Shanghai Port (home)
- Shanghai Port are top of the Chinese Super League with around 55 points.
- Shanghai Port are in excellent form domestically after an initial lull, with their last five matches in all competitions seeing them dominate opponents with a flurry of goals and late game-winning goals, but also dropping points because of late goals conceded, as highlighted in our Shanghai Port FC vs Machida Zelvia betting tips.
- Kevin Muscat’s team have been a dominant force in the CSL in 2025 and have played with an attacking mindset in the ACL group games, though with a couple of disappointing results.
Machida Zelvia (away)
- Machida Zelvia are sixth in J1 League with 55 points from 33 games, one of Japan’s most improved teams in 2025.
- Go Kuroda’s Machida Zelvia have been a model of consistency and resilience in J1, proving very difficult to beat and stringing together a run of draws and narrow wins.
- Kuroda’s side have been a revelation in the ACL as well, with some excellent defensive organisation, a compact, disciplined system and efficient set-piece prowess allowing them to punch above their weight.
Key Players
- Shanghai Port are an exciting team to watch when they play at their best as they press high and wide, allowing their creative midfielders to exploit verticality, while their full-backs overlap to create chaos in the opposing penalty box and this Shanghai Port FC vs Machida Zelvia prediction will consider how that impacts the match.
- Muscat has some good depth on the bench and rotates players between the CSL and ACL to keep them fresh.
- Machida Zelvia have been solid in their build-up play, but they will be very physical and disciplined in their defensive shape, giving up their share of set pieces, something to keep in mind for the Shanghai Port FC vs Machida Zelvia betting tips.
Betting Insights
- Machida Zelvia are the narrow favorites to win this game at 2.16, but Shanghai Port are 3.07 and the draw is 3.87.
- The Over 2.5 goals option is available at 1.62.
Prediction
- Both clubs need the points to advance to the next phase of the competition.
- We are going to go with a narrow win for the visitors and the possibility of a 2-2 draw.
