- The European champions, Italy, host North Macedonia.
- Portugal awaits Turkey.
- Sweden is clashing with the Czech Republic.
- Wales and Austria meet in the closest game of the entire round.
The World Cup qualifications playoffs begin on Thursday, with four games on the menu. We will make a short preview for all of them, followed by a pick for each, so stay tuned for the upcoming five minutes.
Italy vs Macedonia
Azzurri posted only two wins following the EURO finals and their magnificent achievement in London. Apart from that, Mancini’s boys recorded four draws and one loss, having massive problems with scoring. For one moment, there was even an idea to reactivate Mario Balotelli, but they gave up on that in the end.
Meanwhile, Macedonia ended second in its group, behind Germany, whom they beat on the road. This team plays efficient games, with the majority of the same in the past ten ending with three or more goals.
Our pick here is Italy’s win, probably with clean sheets and by two or more goal margin. Azzurri are much better, and their star potential is not comparable with the Macedonian.
Pick: Italy -1.5
Portugal vs Turkey
Ronaldo and the boys were shocked at home against Serbia, suffering a last-minute loss and a hard slap in the face, which forced them to enter the playoffs for Qatar. This is one of the best teams in Europe, yet they didn’t manage to win first place in their group.
Turkey was second, too, starting the campaign with authority, but losing pace as time went by. They had a few chances to keep on top of the assembly, but a 6-1 loss in Amsterdam and 1-1 at home versus Norway ruined that.
The Turks are playing offensive football, but their fragile defense often collapses, which causes chaos and terrible losses. We’ve seen that on a couple of occasions. That’s why we pick the hosts to be confident here.
Pick: Portugal -1.5
Sweden vs Czech Republic
Both sides will have massive problems with injuries, but we are free to say that the Czechs are massacred with injuries and absences. Several of their key players are out, and they will have a hard time covering up that.
Blagult saw four of its latest games with only one side netting, and they were unable to score in the past two. Overall, they play tough and defensive-minded games.
On the other side, the Czechs are without a loss for five straight, not allowing a goal in the last three, which were all wins and scoring at least twice in the previous four. Still, all the absences will hit them hard, and that is why we suggest betting on under 2.5 goals in this contest.
Pick: Under 2.5 goals
Wales vs Austria
The Dragons are without a loss in the last seven, having three wins and four draws. Meanwhile, Austria won three of the recent four, and in all of them scored 10 goals combined. This indicates that we are ahead of a very interesting matchup, according to many, the closest one of all in this stage.
We see that the offenses of these two sides are better than the respective defenses, and that is why our pick here is both teams scoring.
Pick: Both teams scoring
