Gloria Buzau vs Petrolul Ploiesti Prediction 11.11.2024 | Liga 1

• Competition: Romania - Liga I
• Date: Monday, 11th, November 2024
• Kickoff: 16:00 UK / 17.00 CET
• Venue: Stadionul Municipal (Buzau)

Petrolul Ploiesti sets their sights on staying close in the title hunt as they gear up to face Buzau at Municipal on Monday in Liga 1’s matchweek 16.

Despite not earning promotion by merit, finishing only fourth in the playoff group, Gloria found their way back to the Romanian top flight thanks solely to the fact that higher-placed teams Corvinul Hunedoara and Selimbar do not meet the advancement criteria. The return to the top of Romanian football after a 15-year absence hasn’t gone smoothly for the Buzau-based club, as they find themselves in third-from-bottom place, sharing an identical points tally (13) with the two teams at the very bottom.

Next up on their schedule is the Petrolul Ploiesti side, who are aiming to break into the top six for the first time in a decade before the table split, and their strong performances so far have brought them 23 points in the first phase of the regular season, putting them in a fine fourth position. If Mehmet Topal's squad wants to stay in the race for the national title number four, they will need to find a way to turn draws into victories, as they've finished eight of their first 15 matches without a winner, including a 1-1 stalemate against Sepsi OSK in the previous round.

Gloria Buzau vs Petrolul Ploiesti Betting Tips: UNDER 2.5

Gloria are not in the best spirits ahead of their Monday clash, having suffered back-to-back shutout losses to UTA Arad and CFR Cluj, and now face the third-best defense in the division, which could further complicate their scoring issues. Even with the return to home turf, the lack of firepower in front of goal is evident for the Red-Blues, who have failed to score more than once in six of their first seven home games, while being kept off the scoresheet on three occasions during that period.

On their part, Petrolul have stood out this season for their rock-solid defensive line, but their attack have been less impressive, resulting in 10 out of their 15 league matches having two or fewer goals, making their games less exciting to watch. On top of that, it should be highlighted that the head-to-heads between these two teams have shown a lack of goals, as the 2.5 goal threshold was not surpassed in seven straight meetings, with the most recent two remaining scoreless, including the earlier fixture this season. All things considered, we expect another hushed contest during which a solitary strike could separate the two sides.