World Cup qualifiers betting tips: Belgium v Wales best bets and preview
Wales travel to Belgium for the opening match of their World Cup qualification campaign, and Jake Pearson has picked out his best bet.
Football betting tips: Belgium v Wales
1pt Belgium to win and under 2.5 goals at 9/4 (Sky Bet)
Belgium are heavily fancied to sweep aside all before them and come out comfortably top of Group E, and understandably so, with Roberto Martinez’s side boasting some of the most talented players in the world.
The Belgians are also one of the more heavily supported sides to win the entire competition, not to mention the Euros, which has yet to take place, despite the World Cup qualification process having bizarrely started already.
Kick-off time: 19:45 GMT, Wednesday
TV channel: Sky Sports Main Event
Home 1/3 | Draw 18/5 | Away 15/2
Astoundingly though, in the last two meetings between these two sides, Wales have come out on top, most recently when Wales knocked Belgium out of Euro 2016, Hal Robson-Kanu cementing his place in Welsh folklore with his remarkable Cruyff turn and finish.
This time it feels different though, and Belgium will be desperate to get their World Cup qualification off to the perfect start with their first victory over Wales since 2012.
The trouble with that is, a price of around 3/10 for Belgium to win makes very little appeal, despite the fact that Wales will be without Aaron Ramsey for this fixture, a huge blow for a side who must also face the Belgians without manager Ryan Giggs at the helm, with assistant Robert Page once again taking the reins.
Wales have performed well in both the Nations League and their Euro 2020 qualifying group, winning the former and finishing second in the latter, and a big part of their recent success has been down to their defensive record, conceding just one goal in six Nations League matches and six in eight Euro 2020 qualifiers.
Unfortunately for Page’s side though, they are coming up against the highest scorers in both the Nations League and Euro 2020 qualifying, with Belgium netting 16 times in their six Nations League matches, and a whopping 40 times in Euro 2020 qualifying.
This is by no means the most straightforward fixture to assess, with Belgium free-scoring and Wales defensively sound.
Belgium are fancied to find a way past this stubborn Wales rearguard, but it's unlikely that this will be the hammering that Belgium’s outright price would suggest.
Wales are a difficult side to breakdown, particularly with Ramsey’s injury likely to lead to an even more pragmatic approach.
There is every chance Page will set his team up on the defensive, with the possibility of Gareth Bale and Daniel James as pacey outlets.
Even with those two though, it's difficult to see Wales scoring, and once Belgium do make the breakthrough, it's likely they will coast for the remainder of the match.
Belgium are fancied to get the job done here, but Wales very rarely find themselves on the wrong side of a hiding, and for this reason, the bet that appeals most is BELGIUM TO WIN AND UNDER 2.5 GOALS at an enticing price of 9/4.
Belgium v Wales best bets and score prediction
- Belgium to win and under 2.5 goals at 9/4 (Sky Bet)
Score prediction: Belgium 2-0 Wales (Sky Bet odds: 5/1)
Odds correct 1630 GMT (22/03/21)
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