10 Matches To Punt On This Weekend

With club football on hold, the road to Qatar 2022 continues, and we’ve picked out our best bets for this weekend’s FIFA World Cup qualifying matches to help guide you through that betting slip.

The Lab – Stats Centre

Andorra v England (Saturday)

With one of the most star-studded squads in world football, England will be overwhelming favourites to beat Andorra in Group I of the World Cup qualifiers on Saturday. In their six group matches, the Three Lions have won five and drawn one, scoring 18 goals while conceding twice. Andorra, on the other hand, have lost five times, including a 4-0 defeat to Gareth Southgate’s side at Wembley last month.

Poland v San Marino (Saturday)

Robert Lewandowski will be leading the line when Poland host San Marino at the Stadion Narodowy in Group I of the World Cup qualifiers on Saturday. Paulo Sousa’s men are looking to qualify for their second consecutive World Cup and will be confident of breezing past the bottom-dwellers of San Marino, who’ve yet to manage a point. Franco Varrella’s side have conceded 24 goals in their six group matches.

Moldova v Denmark (Saturday)

Denmark face Moldova at the Zimbru Stadium on Saturday in a top versus bottom match in Group F of World Cup qualifying. The Danes have locked up the top spot after winning all six of their games, scoring 22 goals without reply. In contrast, Moldova are yet to win a match in the qualifying stage and suffered their fifth group defeat – and third in a row – against the Faroe Islands last time out.

Scotland v Israel (Saturday)

Scotland take on Israel in a decisive Group F clash at Hampden Park on Saturday. Steve Clarke’s team are second in the group standings and, while catching group leaders Denmark seems out of the question, victory over Israel, who are only a point behind, would put them in a commanding position in the race for second place.

Switzerland v Northern Ireland (Saturday)

Second-placed and still unbeaten behind Italy in Group C, Switzerland entertain Northern Ireland at the Stade de Geneve. The Green and White Army have never scored against the Swiss in all three of their previous meetings and will aim to break that duck after failing to find the net in the reverse tie last month in Belfast, which eventually ended in a goalless stalemate. Switzerland have kept five clean sheets in six matches and seem odds on favourites to make home advantage count.

Sweden v Kosovo (Saturday)

Sweden aim to overtake Group B leaders Spain by winning both their games against Kosovo and Greece, with both ties being played on home soil. The Blue and Yellow have the opportunity to avenge the unexpected 2-1 defeat away in Athens after making light work of minnows Kosovo. Emil Forsberg is the man to watch, the Swedish number 10 is the second biggest goal threat behind young striker Alexander Isak after scoring five times in eight games for the Swedes.

Hungary v Albania (Saturday)

Hungary needs to bounce back soon in order to qualify from Group I, which is currently headed by England. Following an impressive showing of themselves in the toughest group of the European Championships, the Hungarians went on to lose their World Cup qualifiers to England and Albania. The visitors, on the other hand, fly into Budapest with two wins that have catapulted them into second. Albania will also come into the clash confident after claiming their first-ever win over Hungary after previously tasting three defeats.

Luxembourg v Serbia (Saturday)

Luxembourg will look to avenge the 4-1 defeat they suffered when they made the trip to Belgrade last month. Despite claiming two victories in Group A, it’s hard to see the Red Lions putting pressure on the likes of Portugal and Serbia for top spot. The Serbian spearhead, Aleksandar Mitrovic put his nation 2-0 up after 30 minutes and is expected to lead the line for the Eagles.

Faroe Islands v Austria (Saturday)

Austria still has enough strength in depth to remedy their current situation, trailing Denmark, Scotland and Israel in Group F with four games to play. They’ve lost three times from their last four games at the hands of the above-mentioned teams and need to pull up their socks and improve their performances. The Faroe Islands picked up their first victory last time out against the whipping boys of the group, Moldova, and face an uphill task to claim maximum points.

Georgia v Greece (Saturday)

Georgia and Greece meet at the Adjarabet Arena this Saturday, with Greece in good form. The Greeks are unbeaten in Group B, trailing both Spain and Sweden, while Georgia remain winless and rooted to the foot of the table. At home, Greece upset the applecart and toppled Sweden last time out and don’t forget their 1-1 draw away in Spain during their opening qualifying clash.