NATIONS LEAGUE: The Ultra previews FRANCE v BELGIUM and MONTENEGRO v WALES both with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
FRANCE V BELGIUM
7.45pm We have a cracking Monday night from the Nations League on BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE! Wales are back in action from the Home Nations, but we kick off the evening in Group A2 with a superb fixture as France host Belgium. I said heading into their opening fixture against Italy on Friday night that they really didn’t take the last Nations League seriously – they nearly got relegated – and they started this one on the backfoot too with a 3-1 loss at home to Italy. Belgium didn’t have any issues getting past Israel, as you would expect to be honest, and now France find themselves needing a win to get back into things to reach the Quarter-Finals. As I said in my opening preview of this International break however; for sides like France and Belgium the Nations League isn’t a big deal because they will sail through qualifying for the next Euros – whereas for the smaller sides who won’t finish in the top two spots, getting a playoff spot through their Nations League placing is absolutely massive. You could say that in a situation like France, they don’t have to take this tournament seriously unless they want to win it – and let’s be honest here; winning the Nations League hasn’t been a big deal. That’s probably something UEFA needs to work on.
A fascinating game awaits however; Belgium got a lot of criticism after exiting Euro 2024 and a Nations League win would be a good statement for them – let’s be honest again here; they usually bottle the knockout stage of major tournaments anyway! France come into the game as the odds on favourites at 1.81 with Belgium 5.0 and the draw is 3.9 at the time of writing. After an excellent start – scoring after 13 seconds – it was very disappointing to see France lose 3-1 to Italy, especially with home advantage. France were quite poor after a positive start, and Italy haven’t been playing too good lately either – they exited Euro 2024 very early and didn’t really put up much of a fight either. I have to say from a value point of view the 1.81 feels a little short on France here. I know Belgium have had their own issues recently, but they can make this one closer than the odds suggest. I’m happy with a small position against France.
The Ultra Says:
One point lay (liability) France to beat Belgium at 1.81 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/FraBlm
MONTENEGRO V WALES
7.45pm We move over to Group B4 to finish Monday night as Wales travel to take on Montenegro. We have a very open betting heat here; Wales are the favourites at 2.44 with Montenegro 3.25 and the draw is 3.4 at the time of writing. On paper, you could say that this is a game that Wales should win but you can understand the market not trusting them to get the job done. They have struggled to create quality chances recently, and started their campaign with a 0-0 draw against Turkey, which wasn’t a bad result. Wales were obviously out of their depth in an A Group in the last Nations League, but Montenegro finished third is a very average B Group involving Bosnia and Herzegovina, Finland and Romania – they actually only avoided relegation on head-to-head record because they ended with the same amount of points as Romania. They had a reasonably weak Group in Euro 2024 qualifying too and missed out finishing behind Hungary and Serbia – ahead of Lithuania and Bulgaria. I do feel that this is a game that Wales should win, but obviously they have had their issues going forward and you just know it’s going to be difficult away from home.
While I would lean towards the Wales win, the 2.44 doesn’t exactly jump off the page. I feel this game absolutely screams a lack of chances and goals – I was surprised to see Under 2.5 goals trading as big as 1.64 when I clicked into the market to be honest. Montenegro weren’t able to get on the score sheet against Iceland in their opening game, and Wales only had Over 2.5 goals in two of their Euro 2024 qualifiers. A draw isn’t a bad result for Montenegro here, even with home advantage, and you’d have to expect them to be a little cagey heading into this game. With the lack of creativity for Wales up front, they could really struggle to break down Montenegro here. I actually wouldn’t be surprised to see a full-time score of 0-0 here, but it’s hard to get away from Under 2.5 goals at 1.64. That looks cracking value, and it’s worth a confident bet in my opinion.
The Ultra Says:
Three points win Under 2.5 goals at 1.64 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/MonWal
