Tag: world cup betting

Portugal Expected to Run Riot on the Algarve

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

EUROPEAN champions Portugal host minnows Latvia at the Estadio do Algarve on Sunday night in World Cup qualifying Group B, and this could get very messy for the visitors.

The Portuguese are a very warm favourite for the win at general 1.07 which will give them their third successive international win and in the last two they’ve been banging in the goals for fun with 12 scored in two 6-0 wins over Andorra and The Faroe Islands.

Latvia arrive in the Algarve after back-to-back home defeats and even though some might be tempted by the massive 51.0 on the visitors to win this with Bet365, a $10 on them at the 50s means that you will LOSE $10.

The Latvians struggled to get past one of the worst sides in Europe, Andorra 1-0, in their only win in this campaign, and up against a Portugal side that is buzzing after their success in the summer, this is expected to be very, very one-sided.

The Asian handicap line is pitched at -2.75 for Portugal, which is 1.84 with Ladbrokes, and I can see them covering that line very easily and maybe before half-time.

In their previous meeting in 2005 Portugal ran out comfortable 3-0 winners and against a side that’s only scored just ONCE in qualification so far; for bigger hitting clients a Portugal win to nil looks like finding the cash on the street at the 1.45 that is being offered by BetVictor.

In recent Portugal matches, they’ve raced into early leads. I can see them flying out of the traps yet again in this one, and Portugal half-time/Portugal full-time will also appeal to money buyers at the 1.40 with Coral.

Cristiano Ronaldo is the star-man for the Portuguese, but the Real Madrid superstar is a very short 2.75 favourite to open the floodgates with the first goal.

Porto’s Andre Silva has scored four goals in four matches, and the 21-year-old striker is flying for both club and country at present with seven goals already in the Portuguese league; he makes much better appeal in the first goalscorer markets at the general 4.50, and in a match which could turn into a rout, I also like the 21.0 with Betfair Sportsbook on him to score his first international hat-trick.

The Netherlands Need to Bounce Back

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

The Netherlands have one of the greatest traditions in modern European football. Their success at international level since 1974 has been remarkable for such a small nation. It all started for The Netherlands with that famous World Cup Final against West Germany in 1974. Johan Cruyff scored with an early penalty but the Dutch became complacent. The result was a 2-1 win for the Germans.

Further complacency stopped them from winning the 1978 World Cup in Argentina. Once again they were beaten in the final. The problem with the Dutch is their sense of footballing superiority. Their love of “total football” and a fixation on fancy play is often their downfall. Their only tournament success came in 1988 in the European Championships. Dutch international football has slipped a long way since their 2010 World Cup Final loss to Spain.

Do They have The Players

Their current World Cup qualifying campaign hasn’t started well. They have a relatively tough group with France and Sweden facing them. With just one win in the opening three games, the pressure is on to win their next game. That match comes on Sunday when the Dutch make the short journey to play Luxembourg.

A few years ago this fixture would have been a formality for the orange men but not anymore. Luxembourg has strengthened substantially in recent years and is much more solid in defence. They are capable of taking points from many teams these days. A combination of a stronger Luxembourg side and an underperforming Dutch team doesn’t make this fixture a walk in the park.

The Netherlands currently sit three points behind France and Sweden. Any result other than a win would be a disaster. In terms of strikers and midfielders then it is clear that the Dutch are lacking quality. Apart from Georginio Wijnaldum who plays for Liverpool, their midfield doesn’t have a single player that plays at a top club. They only have two class players in their squad. Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder have played at the highest level but both are over 30 years of age.

So Where is The Value Bet

Despite all this, The Netherlands are still big favourites to overcome Luxembourg. Bet365 are as short as 1/8 for a Dutch victory. Luxembourg is 15/1 with the draw at 8/1. If you don’t fancy those odds then how about something a little different? SkyBet quotes 11/4 on the game being level at half time and The Netherlands winning at full time.

Even the supposed whipping boys are defensively solid these days. The so-called minnows know how to frustrate the big teams. No team seems to thrash these weaker teams anymore. If you fancy an upset and a Luxembourg win after leading at half time then Bet Victor quote 30/1 for that. A good bet but only if you don’t mind losing your money.

Unbeaten Ireland Face Stern World Cup Qualifying Test

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

Life is fairly rosy if you’re a Republic of Ireland supporter right now.

The boys in green currently sit joint top at the summit of FIFA World Cup Qualifying Group D, and only trail leaders Serbia on goal difference after their unbeaten start on the long and winding road to Russia 2018.

This weekend, however, Martin O’Neill’s team face a very tricky assignment in the form of an away trip to the Ernst-Happel Stadion, where they face fourth-placed Austria. True, the hosts were fairly wretched at last summers’ European Championship, but their home record makes grim reading for Republic of Ireland.

Ten Of The Best

Marcel Koller’s men are currently unbeaten in their previous 10 competitive home matches and have a 100% record against R.O.I. in Austria in recent years, winning their past four encounters while scoring 11 goals to the visitors’ one. With their biggest win being a 6-0 demolition in the 1972 Euro Championships, O’Neill will be mindful of keeping things tight so as not to derail his side’s current qualifying momentum.

While a repeat of that damaging encounter looks highly unlikely here, the bookies are currently giving Austria the edge, with Matchbook offering a best price of 21/10 on the home side emerging victorious. R.O.I. are meanwhile priced at 10/3 to get the win at William Hill, with the draw also available at 11/5.

Austrian frontman Marc Janko is currently rated as the 4/1 favourite to open the scoring on Saturday with Boyle Sports, while R.O.I. stalwart Jonathan Walters perhaps represents the best value for the visitors at 10/1 with Bet365. Whatever way you cut it, however, it should be far from an easy night for the away team, with a 1-1 draw being the best-priced positive result for the Republic at an enticing 6/1 with William Hill.

Spain Expected To Stroll

Over in Group G, meanwhile, things are expected to be far more straightforward for top-of-the-table Spain as they take on a FYR Macedonia side who are yet to record a point in this year’s FIFA World Cup Qualifying campaign. La Furia Roja has scored 11 goals in their three games so far – conceding just once to Italy – but this should be tempered by the fact that the majority of those strikes came as they beat Liechtenstein 8-0.

FYR Macedonia, on the other hand, has shipped seven goals in their opening three games; and though they have found the back of the net on each occasion, the team currently have nothing to show for their efforts in Group G so far. The disparity in the two sides’ form going into this one is certainly reflected by the prices on offer from the bookies, with Spain rated as red hot favourites at 1/20 with Bet365, Betfred and Sky Bet.

Indeed, the home side is so highly-fancied here that you can get odds as big as 70/1 with Betfair on the visitors causing an upset, with even the draw coming in at a prohibitive 14/1 with Betfred. Despite the huge prices on offer, backing such an outcome looks sheer folly, so if you are determined to bet on Macedonia causing Julen Lopetegui’s men problems, both teams to score is as good as it gets at 27/10 with Betfair.

In terms of first scorer picks, the veritable who’s who of attacking talent in the home side’s ranks and the paucity of options for the opposition makes it a tough market to call. Diego Costa is currently the 13/5 favourite with Bet Victor – and with the Chelsea man currently on fire in the Premier League, you can also find an improved price of 15/8 on the burly centre-forward scoring two goals or more courtesy of Bet365.

World Cup Qualifiers: Wales v Georgia/Moldova v Republic of Ireland

Posted on by Online Betting Pro

THIS set of World Cup qualifiers are never ending, and we’ve got two more on Sunday to preview before the Premier League returns starting with Wales’ Group D clash with Georgia in Cardiff.

The Welsh have made a great start to their World Cup qualifying campaign starting with a routine 4-0 route at home to Moldova, which was followed with an equally impressive 2-2 draw in Austria midweek.

Chris Coleman’s side will count themselves very unlucky not to win in Vienna after the Welsh led twice; they looked much the better side throughout the 90 minutes, and they are a confident selection to maintain their unbeaten start with a win against Georgia.

The bookies won’t give you much for your buck though, and the layers have the Welsh at just 1.33 for the win, which is too short for me to get too heavily involved. They will, however, be included in my weekend World Cup accumulator.

Georgia had their chances on Thursday night against an injury hit Republic of Ireland side, but the Georgians just can’t score goals against top quality opposition, and I can’t see them causing a confident Wales any problems at all in Cardiff.

So for that reason, the best way to play in this one is to back the Welsh to win this to nil, which at 1.83 with Paddy Power is a much better bet than taking the home side at the short odds just to win the game in 90 minutes.

Moldova v Republic of Ireland

MARTIN O’Neil takes his injury hit Republic of Ireland squad to Moldova on Sunday in another Group D World Cup qualifier clash, and this is going to be a lot closer than the bookies odds suggest.

The Irish are totally decimated by injuries ahead of this trip, with Norwich’s Robbie Brady adding his name to the long list of casualties in the 1-0 win over Georgia. To make matters worse for the Irish, their best performer in the last 12 months, Hull’s record breaking summer signing Jeff Hendrick, is suspended for the trip as well.

The Irish used all their luck on Thursday night in Dublin as for long parts of the match they were totally outplayed by the Georgians, and even though I think they will win, the Irish reserves aren’t tempting me for a wager at odds of just 1.57.

The Moldovans have been lambs to the slaughter in both of their Group D qualifiers after a 4-0 defeat in Wales and a 3-0 home loss to Serbia in their most recent qualifier on Thursday night.

After those two heavy defeats, they’ve been given a 7.50 quote to win this match with the odds compilers at Sportingbet, which if successful will see them win only their second international in two years.

The Irish should have enough quality to get through, even though they are missing a whole host of key players. They have struggled for goals since the retirement from international football of record goalscorer Robbie Keane, and for that reason the odds on offer look too short for me to get involved on the win market.

This Irish squad doesn’t look to have many goals in it, and this match looks all about the result rather than the performance; another Ireland 1-0 win at 6.00 with Paddy Power looks a sensible play, but the best bet is to beat Ireland to win this to nil, which is 2.30 with Paddy Power.