Sparta Prague vs Banik Ostrava Prediction: Hosts can not afford to drop points

epet ARENA will be the venue for this round 29 Czech Fortuna Liga match between league-leading Sparta Prague and fourth-placed Banik Ostrava. Heading into this game, the two teams are on an incredible unbeaten run. How will this highly anticipated match unfold?

Sparta Prague returned to winning ways the previous weekend and took them top of the league standings after Viktoria Plzen defeated their closest rival, Slavia Prague. The last season's league winner will come here working hard to make it consecutive title wins, having clinched last year's title with a goal difference over Slavia Prague. In 28 played this season, Sparta Prague have accumulated 70 points, scoring 62 goals in that run, while they conceded 22. In recent games, Sparta Prague have defeated the likes of Hradec Kralove, Ceske Budejovice, Opava, and Bohemians while being held to a 1-1 draw by Mlada Boleslav.

Banik Ostrava maintained their unbeaten run last weekend against Ostrava even though they bottled their lead twice in that game to settle for a 2-2 draw. Brazilian midfielder Ewerton put Banik Ostrava in the lead just 19 minutes into that match, finding the perfect strike for David Buchta pass. However, despite Martin Regali leveling the scores for Opava in the 63rd minute of the second half, Ewerton got his second of the day from the spot to put this side ahead for the second time just 11 minutes later. However, Banik Ostrava failed to hold, and they could only see themselves conceding in the 80th minute of the game. In the meantime, prior encounters to that draw did see Banik Ostrava win three consecutive league games, defeating FK Pardubice, Teplice, and Jablonec. The visitors are positioned 4th with 44 points from 28 league games in the standings, scoring 43 times while conceding 33 in those games.

Possible Sparta Prague Lineup: Vindahl, Vitik, Krejci, Panak, Sadilek, Karinen, Rynes, Wiesner, Tuci, Birmancevic, Kuchta

Possible Banik Ostrava Lineup: Letacek, Frydrych, Lischka, Blazek, Boula, Rigo, Buchta, Rusnak, Ewerton, Tanko, Kilma

Both teams are in pole position to win here and have shown that they have the quality needed to take all three points. In the meantime, Sparta Prague at home will benefit from the home turf advantage and the support of their fans. While Banik Ostrava proved stubborn in their last meeting, in which the hosts won 0-1 on the road, the fact that they need this game to keep their top spot standings makes it unlosable for them. Take all chances, betting on the hosts to win here, even though the match is expected to end with a few goals, just like their reverse fixture.