EURO 2024 QUALIFIERS: The Ultra previews NORTHERN IRELAND v SAN MARINO and ITALY v MALTA both with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
NORTHERN IRELAND V SAN MARINO
2pm We have a very different Saturday on BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE this week as the focus is on the Euro 2024 Qualifiers rather than a hectic domestic schedule! We have two massive home favourites from Group H and Group C as Northern Ireland host San Marino and Italy host Malta. I think the question is how many goals will Northern Ireland and Italy score rather than will they win! We start the day in Group H as Northern Ireland host San Marino – unfortunately for Northern Ireland this a bottom of the table clash. They’ve only managed three points from their six games so far in a bitterly disappointing campaign. Those three points came San Marino too! San Marino are one of the worst sides around Europe; they just have a very small population and their players are part-time. It’s not really a surprise; they’ve never known any different to be honest – they celebrate a goal like they’ve won the game! Sadly for San Marino in this qualifying campaign, they’ve yet to actually score a goal. Maybe that could change here though!
Northern Ireland come into this game as the massive odds on favourites. They are trading as short as 1.03 at the time of writing. Anything bar a Northern Ireland win here would be a shock. San Marino couldn’t even manage a result in a Nations League D Group with Estonia and Malta. Northern Ireland have obviously had massive issues in the Nations League too and that has left them without a playoff spot for this tournament. It’s hard to have a lot of confidence in Northern Ireland scoring goals here because they just haven’t shown good signs, but you have to remember the huge gulf in class between the sides. Northern Ireland have only scored four times in qualifying, and two of those came against San Marino too. They will win here, but it might not be an enjoyable game to watch for the home fans. I’m going to have a small bet on San Marino +3.5 goals at 2.09. Northern Ireland will easily control the game and win, but San Marino can keep the score line respectable in defeat.
The Ultra Says:
One point win San Marino +3.5 goals to beat Northern Ireland at 2.09 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/NirSan
ITALY V MALTA
7.45pm Next we move over to Group C as Italy host Malta. We have another massive odds on favourite here with Italy trading as short as 1.04 at the time of writing. Only one tick bigger than Northern Ireland! Much like Northern Ireland too, anything bar a win for Italy here would be a massive shock. I just can’t see past a comfortable home win but obviously we’re going to have to look around the side markets for some value – this one is about how many goals Italy can score for me. At the moment, Italy are six points behind England but they do have a game in hand this week before meeting England on Tuesday. That will be a massive game, but England have home advantage and although they have their own issues, they have looked better than Italy recently. Malta sit bottom of the Group without a point, and there’s obviously a huge gulf in class between the sides. Interestingly, they did manage to keep Italy down to only two goals when they lost 2-0 with home advantage earlier in the Group. They will be more vulnerable away from home, but they haven’t been really embarrassed in the Group. They lost 4-0 at home to England, but it’s not like they have been conceding six or seven goals.
They will definitely put XI men behind the ball here and try to make this game as boring as possible. That could be interesting because Italy have struggled to score goals and create a lot of chances lately. They had to settle for a 1-1 draw away to North Macedonia in the last International Break too. It’s very hard to see past a comfortable home win here, but I feel Malta can keep the score line respectable. In fairness, that will be their only aim too. The market is expecting goals as Over 2.5 goals is as short as 1.37. I like another bet on the handicap here though; Malta are trading 2.02 + 3 goals on the Asian Handicap meaning if Italy win by exactly three goals stakes are void. This seems a nicer position than the +2.5 option and I’m happy with a small bet at 2.02. It’s a tough day today witch such short favourites – I can see everyone on Social Media screaming for domestic football to return for a normal Saturday!
The Ultra Says:
One point win Malta +3 goals Asian Handicap to beat Italy at 2.02 with BETDAQ BETTING EXCHANGE.
You can view all markets here -> https://betdaq.biz/ItaMal
