Data Analysis
Our analysis of all available data, including recent performances and player stats up until an hour before kickoff, suggested the most likely outcome of this match was a Crusaders win with a probability of 44.89%. A win for Linfield had a probability of 28.85% and a draw had a probability of 26.3%.
The most likely scoreline for a Crusaders win was 1-0 with a probability of 11.33%. The next most likely scorelines for that outcome were 2-1 (9%) and 2-0 (8.17%). The likeliest Linfield win was 0-1 (8.66%), while for a drawn scoreline it was 1-1 (12.48%). The actual scoreline of 2-0 was predicted with an 8.2% likelihood. Our data analysis correctly predicted that Crusaders would win this match.