The 2021 European World Cup Qualifiershave begun this weekwith Matchday 1from Wednesday,March 24,to Thursday,March 25.On Wednesday, we witnessed several surprises, when Turkey crushed Holland 4-2, Ukraine held France 1-1, Bosnia and Herzegovina drew 2-2 with Finland, and Serbia triumphed 3-2 over Ireland.
On Thursday, Spain will welcome 2004 European champions Greece at the Nuevo Estadio de Los CƔrmenes in Granada. On the same day, Sweden and Georgia will clash as Zlatan Ibrahimovic is set to make his first international appearance for the first time in five years.
This Matchday 1provides an opportunity for the bettor to play around with parlays, picks in the over/under, or goalscorers.Here are some sports betting predictions to consider when placing a bet on these European World Cup Qualifiers matchups.
Spain vs Greecebetting picks
Ferran Torres of Spain (center) celebrates a goal vs Germany. (Getty)
The Spanish national teamtook part in two International Friendlies last year, and both games ended in a draw. They also appeared atthe 2020-21UEFA Nations League, where they triumphed three times, drew twice, and lost one match. In addition, even John van āt Schipās playersfeatured in eight international games in 2020,triumphing on three occasionsat the2020-21UEFA Nations League, and drawing three times. They also played two International Friendlies, one of which they lost, and the other one they won.
This will be their 11thoverallmeeting. Spain are by farthe better sidein head-to-head duels, winning seven games so far; Greecehave celebrated a victory only once, and the remaining two games haveended in a draw so far. Interestingly, La Roja have only one defeat in the last 20 international games in the course of over two years. To be honest it looks doubtful that Greece will be able to become the second team to do that, especiallyon Spainās home turf.Itās not unreasonable to think that Luis Enriqueās sidecanwin this game 4-0 and thatscore line is paying +800.
Sweden vs Georgiabetting picks
The Sweden national team celebrate a goal against Croatia. (Getty)
This will be their firstoverallmeeting. Sweden and Georgia have never clashed beforeneither at theWorld Cup/EuroQualifiers nor at any of the World Cup/Euro tournaments.Janne Anderssonās playerstook part in four International Friendlies last year. They won three of them and lost once. They also appeared atthe 2020-21UEFA Nations League, where they triumphed only once, and lost even three times.
Georgia, meanwhile, featured in eight international games in 2020,triumphing on only one occasion at the2020-21UEFA Nations League, drawing four times, and losing only once. They also played at the Euro 2020 Knockout phase, beating Belarus in the Semi-Finals, but eventually losing to Macedonia in the Final.
In comparison,Sweden have had more defeats last year than Georgia, but this year, they have Ibrahimovic to help them return to winning ways.We expect atough battle between these two sides, so betting that the game will have Over 2.5 goals could be a sure bet. Thus, at -108, a $100bet could earn the bettor $95 on DraftKings.In addition, if you got to pick anyone to put the ball in the back of the net in this game, lookno further than Ibra, who is at +240 to bethe first one to score.
Parlays for these two matchups of the European World Cup Qualifiers Matchday 1
A solid parlay bet could be the following:Spain to beat Greece 4-0, Sweden and Georgia to score Over 2.5 goals, and Zlatan Ibrahimovic to score the first goal of the game.At $100, the bettor could win up to $932.
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