UEFA Nations League. Group Stage
League A. Group 2. Round 1
Stadium: Estadio Benito Villamarín (Seville)
In the last four face-offs, Spain and Portugal have played in a draw. Will the opponents be able to determine the winner in the upcoming match? Our prediction: The Spaniards and Portuguese will play another draw.
Claim Your Welcome Bonus!Team Spain
The Spanish team has been poor by their standards in all recent major international tournaments. While the Red Fury has won trophies on every occasion from 2008 to 2012, they have only made it to the semi-finals at UEFA EURO 2020 once since. Fortunately, at the end of 2022, they will have a chance to prove themselves again, as they made it to the final part of the 2022 World Cup in Qatar, finishing first in their qualifying group. Having solved this task, Luis Enrique's players had two friendly games against Albania and Iceland during the spring, winning 2-1 and 5-0 respectively.
Team Portugal
Team Portugal is a regular participant in major international tournaments, but they have never in their history reached the awards at the world championships. At the European Championships in the 21st century, though, they managed to win bronze medals twice, and a silver medal, and at Euro 2016 they became the champions at all. Now the Red and Green have the opportunity to assert themselves at the 2022 World Cup, where they qualified, though not without problems. They took only second place in the group in the qualifying tournament, losing to Serbia, so they had to play in the knockout rounds, where they beat first Turkey 3-1, and then North Macedonia 2-0.
Head-to-head encounters
Throughout history, the teams have played 39 head-to-head encounters. The Spaniards have won 17 games, the Portuguese have been stronger in six, while 16 games ended in a draw. The goal difference is also on the side of the Red Fury, 77-44. The last time the opponents met was in 2021, it was a zero draw in a friendly.
Expert Betting Tips
Spain has historically played well against Portugal, winning much more often than losing, but lately the rivals have been playing a constant draw. Now in four consecutive head-to-head encounters, they cannot determine the winner, and once they played in a draw at the world and continental championships, and twice more in friendly matches. Now the draw is very likely too, so you have to consider betting on that outcome at odds of about 3.30.
It is curious that in three out of the last four games Spain and Portugal have played not just a draw, but a zero one. In the upcoming match, we should not expect a goal drought, after all the UEFA Nations League is an official tournament, so it will not be out of place to play for the victory in order to participate in the finals and compete for the trophy. Both teams have bright performers on the attack, so the optimal option for the prediction seems to be Total Over (2.5) goals at odds close to 2.20.
Cristiano Ronaldo had one of the worst seasons of his career, finishing with Man United only sixth in the English Premier League. On the other hand, the 37-year-old's personal statistics are not too bad: in 30 matches, he scored 18 goals, becoming the third-best scorer in the EPL. There is no doubt that after the unsuccessful performance with the team he will be incredibly motivated to play for the national team, where he has already set many records. Thus, it is worth betting on Cristiano Ronaldo's goal in the upcoming game at odds of about 2.40.
Our prediction: Draw at odds of 3.30 at Bet365.
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