Portadown vs Cliftonville Prediction & Preview
Preview
The Northern Ireland Premiership is set to witness an exciting encounter between Portadown and Cliftonville on Saturday, 14th December, at Shamrock Park. Portadown, currently sitting fourth in the league with 28 points, will be looking to capitalize on their home advantage against second-placed Cliftonville, who have 31 points. The two teams have a recent history, with Cliftonville dominating their head-to-head matches, winning four out of the last five encounters, including a 1-0 victory in their most recent meeting on 11/08/2024 at Solitude.
Both teams come into this match with similar form, having taken eight points from their last five games. Portadown's last outing ended in a goalless draw against Coleraine away at The Showgrounds, while Cliftonville also drew 0-0 against Carrick Rangers at home in their previous match. On average, Portadown score 1.43 goals per game and concede 0.86, whereas Cliftonville score 2 goals per game and concede 0.43. Notably, when playing at home, Portadown's scoring average drops slightly to 1.33 goals per game, while Cliftonville's away scoring average increases to 2.25 goals per game.
The match promises to be a closely contested affair, with both teams having shown resilience in their recent performances. The fact that both Portadown and Cliftonville have identical points from their last five games adds an extra layer of intrigue to the encounter. Given their historical dominance over Portadown, Cliftonville will be looking to extend their lead at the top of the table, but Portadown's home advantage could prove to be a significant factor.
Bet
Considering the performance and statistical data for both teams, along with the odds provided, the recommended bet would be an Away Win for Cliftonville. With odds of 1.85, this bet offers a reasonable return considering Cliftonville's historical dominance over Portadown and their superior goal-scoring average, especially when playing away. While the draw is also a possibility given the teams' recent forms, the odds of 3.6 do not offer as compelling a value as the away win. The over/under 2.5 goals market is also intriguing, but given the defensive solidity of both teams, particularly Cliftonville's impressive concession average of 0.43 goals per game, the focus remains on the outcome rather than the goal tally. Therefore, backing Cliftonville to win away from home seems like the most logical choice based on the available data and odds.
All our previews are generated using advanced AI models. These take into account recent form, H2H records, goals scored, conceded and much more. We manually review all previews before they are put on the site, but mistakes are always possible. Additonally, they do not currently take into account squads, team news or injuries.
This preview should be used to help you evaluate the Portadown vs Cliftonville match, recent team form, goals, statistics and league performance. You should then come to your own decision about what YOU think is a good bet. Always check the facts and never bet money you cannot afford to lose.
