Livingston vs Partick Thistle Prediction: Livi set for the final

Livingston took a giant step back towards the Scottish Premiership as they beat Partick Thistle 2-0 in the away leg of their play-off semi-final, meaning they are massive favourites to book their place in the final on Friday when the teams meet again (19:45).

If they make it through, they will come up against the team that finishes second-bottom of the Scottish Premiership, and below you can find my Livingston vs Partick Thistle predictions for this second leg.

Team News

After a wonderful dominant display in the first leg, David Martindale may be tempted to name the same XI on Friday night. Danny Wilson and Scott Pittman came up with the goals while Robbie Muirhead, Lewis Smith and Cristian Montano made the front three. 

Interestingly, all of the attacking trio were substituted, with Stevie May and Tete Yengi coming on after an hour. They are pushing for starts but Martindale will probably play things safe and stick with the team that did so well on Tuesday. If Jerome Prior can keep another clean sheet, Livi will be one game away from promotion. 

Meanwhile, Partick Thistle will have to try something different to rescue this tie. Defender Luke McBeth came off at half-time for Alexander Jakibiak as player-manager Brian Graham tried to turn the tie around - but it backfired as they conceded the second just after the interval. 

Graham, along with coach Mark Wilson, will try and conjure up a plan to stage a dramatic comeback, which may involve the 37-year-old starting again up top. He’ll need more from his fellow attackers Aidan Fitzpatrick and Logan Chalmers if they are to get anything from this tie. 

Livingston vs Partick Thistle Odds

Livingston are 4/5 to win on the night which gives them an implied win probability of 55% for this second leg. As you’d expect, they are just 1/50 to win the tie, while Partick can be backed at 3/1 to win the game and 12/1 to qualify. 

A draw is 11/4, over 2.5 goals is 10/11 and BTTS is 5/6. Graham is the 5/1 favourite to score first for the hosts.

Livingston to win @ 4/5 

Livingston completely dominated that first leg to my surprise, and I’m more than happy to back them to win this game in 90 minutes again. I don’t think much will change despite their two-goal lead as they will want to put the tie to bed early on. 

Livi had 57% possession in that first leg and eight shots on target compared to Partick’s one. There was no doubt on the night who was the superior side and now the team that just missed out on automatic promotion look set to head into the play-off final. As Partick throw bodies forward in an attempt to chase the game, I think they could get picked off. 

Happy to back this selection. 

Over 2.5 goals @ 10/11

I will back over 2.5 goals to come in during this second leg based on the game state. I don’t think Livingston will be particularly defensive based on what we saw in the first leg as I don’t think that will suit their style - while I also will back Partick to throw the kitchen sink at it and possibly get a goal or two. 

Their season will end on Friday if they don’t score at least twice, and I think they’re going to put the pressure on the hosts - even if they lose on the night. Let’s back a decent game at Almondvale Stadium. 

Offers

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