Wales host Latvia in their second Euro 2024 qualifier, George Gamble previews the game and provides his best bet.
1.5pts Both Teams to Score at 7/4 (William Hill)
Despite the fact that they have now failed to win for nine successive games, there was a sense of joy as Wales were able to take a point away at Croatia, a side who have impressed on the world stage in recent tournaments.
There was an element of luck to that result as they allowed eight shots on their goal and were able to secure a 1-1 draw after registering one shot on target throughout the course of the game.
Rob Page is still experimenting with his new look side after talisman Gareth Bale's retirement. It was evident during the first half in Split as they were dominated in every sense of the word.
But a draw in what will arguably be their toughest game in qualifying is as a huge positive and now they can turn their attention to Latvia.
Improving defensively is a must if Wales are going to improve as they have failed to keep a single clean sheet across their recent nine matches and they can ill-afford to underestimate a Latvia outfit that have hit the back of the net in each of their previous 12 fixtures.
Latvia are the lowest ranked country in the group and are aiming to make just their second appearance in the Euro finals after 2004. They’ve already shown they can cause problems for defences as they travelled to the Republic of Ireland and scored twice in the first half before eventually suffering a 3-2 defeat.
Boss Dainis Kazakevičs has set a realistic aim of finishing above Armenia in the group but wants his team to give a good account of themselves against superior opposition in this group.
They finished fifth in World Cup qualifying but their Nations League campaign should give them confidence as they accrued 13 points in six matches.
Anything but a Wales win would be a huge surprise, but Rob Page is still trying to find his best side and they have been defensively unreliable in recent matches.
In a similar vein, Latvia don’t look the best at the back but their rate of finding the back of the net has been impressive and there looks to be some good value on BOTH TEAMS TO SCORE at a generous price of 7/4.
Score prediction: Wales 2-1 Latvia (Sky Bet odds: 17/2)
Odds correct at 1615 GMT (27/03/2023)
We are committed in our support of safer gambling. Recommended bets are advised to over-18s and we strongly encourage readers to wager only what they can afford to lose.
If you are concerned about your gambling, please call the National Gambling Helpline / GamCare on 0808 8020 133.
Further support and information can be found at begambleaware.org and gamblingtherapy.org.