Jake Pearson has picked out his best bets in the World Cup European qualifiers on Wednesday.
Football betting tips: World Cup qualifiers
- 1pt England to beat Poland and Under 2.5 goals at 23/10 (Betway)
- 1pt Italy to beat Lithuania and Under 2.5 goals at 14/5 (Boylesports)
- 1pt Germany to beat North Macedonia and Under 2.5 goals at 13/5 (Boylesports)
- 1pt Scotland to beat Faroe Islands and Both Teams To Score at 4/1 (Boylesports)
England v Poland
- Click here to read Jake Pearson's full preview
- Kick-off time: 19:45 GMT, Wednesday
- TV channel: ITV
Robert Lewandowski’s injury has seen England’s price cut from 2/5 into as short as 2/9 in places, such is the importance of Poland’s captain to their chances.
Interestingly, though, there was not the same kind of shift in prices in the goals markets, which surely there should have been, considering Poland have lost roughly half of their attacking prowess.
Under 2.5 goals is still available at the same price it was prior to the Bayern striker’s injury announcement, despite the fact that Poland’s price of getting on the scoresheet has drifted from 4/6 to even money.
This makes the unders market the sensible play in this fixture, and with England now even more heavily fancied to win this match, a price of 23/10 for ENGLAND TO WIN AND UNDER 2.5 GOALS seems a little bigger than it should be.
Score prediction: England 2-0 Poland (Sky Bet odds: 5/1)
Odds correct 1200 GMT (30/03/21)
Lithuania v Italy
- Kick-off time: 19:45 GMT, Wednesday
- TV channel: Sky Sports Red Button
Italy under Roberto Mancini have developed into one of the most efficient winning machines in international football, and while Lithuania represent easy pickings for the Azzurri, Mancini’s men rarely exert themselves when unnecessary, a run of four successive 2-0 victories a testament to that.
Lithuania were only narrowly beaten by Switzerland in their opening World Cup qualifier, and with five of their last seven competitive matches also seeing fewer than three goals, a price of 14/5 for ITALY TO WIN AND UNDER 2.5 GOALS makes plenty of appeal.
Score prediction: Lithuania 0-2 Italy (Sky Bet odds: 5/1)
Odds correct 1430 BST (30/03/21)
Germany v North Macedonia
- Kick-off time: 19:45 GMT, Wednesday
- TV channel: Sky Sports Red Button
North Macedonia’s two opening World Cup qualifiers were the place to be as far as goals were concerned, losing 3-2 to Romania on Thursday before putting five past Lithuania on Sunday, but they are as short as 2/5 to find their scoring run coming to a halt in Germany.
Germany sit top of Group J on goal difference after victories over Iceland and Romania, but Die Mannschaft, particularly in the latter match, were far from convincing in their finishing, missing plenty of gilt-edged chances as they snuck past Romania 1-0. We have already seen plenty of low-scoring affairs over these World Cup qualifiers, and with a home win impossible to side against, a price of 13/5 for GERMANY TO WIN AND UNDER 2.5 looks worth getting on side.
Score prediction: Germany 2-0 North Macedonia (Sky Bet odds: 9/2)
Odds correct 1430 BST (30/03/21)
Scotland v Faroe Islands
- Kick-off time: 19:45 GMT, Wednesday
- TV channel: Sky Sports Main Event
Scotland will be desperate for a win over the Faroe Islands after failing to beat either Austria or Israel in their opening two qualifiers, drawing both matches, and while this looks a great opportunity for Steve Clarke’s men to get their first win on the board, keeping the Faroes off the scoresheet may be a little more difficult than anticipated.
Faroe Islands have found the net at least once in their last six matches, including away at Austria last time out, and given Scotland haven’t kept a clean sheet in their past five, a price of 4/1 about SCOTLAND TO WIN AND BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE looks worth a small punt.
Score prediction: Scotland 3-1 Faroe Islands (Sky Bet odds: 16/1)
Odds correct 1430 BST (30/03/21)
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