Germany and Portugal can cover handicaps to lead World Cup bets
Published:Not much wonderfully stands out from a betting perspective for the next batch of World Cup qualifiers, but we have settled on a handicap treble that pays out at 7/1.
Germany, Belgium and Portugal are three of the sides heavily fancied to reach the World Cup and with goal difference taking precedence over head-to-head record if teams finish level on points, this should ensure they go all out for goals.
Portugal (-2) to beat Northern Ireland @ 10/11
Although Portugal can be a bit hit and miss, this handicap has been covered in five of Northern Ireland’s last seven away encounters.
Meanwhile, Northern Ireland have lost their last seven away internationals and have had to sift through the lower leagues in calling up some late replacements.
Portugal will almost certainly have about three-quarters of the possession and with Joao Moutinho and Miguel Veloso in the team and Cristiano Ronaldo celebrating his 100th cap, a drubbing may be on the cards.
It is worth noting that the Portuguese have scored at least three in seven of their last nine home qualification games.
Belgium (-1) to beat Scotland @ 11/10
Belgium recently cleared this handicap in away games with Wales and Serbia and so must be fancied to do so against potentially the worst team in Group A.
Scotland can be quite negative and disciplined in their organisation, but with Moussa Dembele and Eden Hazard in their side, Belgium have enough creativity to unlock the door.
A tight start will be vital for Scotland, but the fact they have fallen behind inside the opening 20 minutes in four of their last eight fixtures does not inspire much confidence of this occurring.
Germany (-1) to beat Sweden @ 5/6
Sweden made hard work of winning to the Faroe Islands in their latest qualifier, falling behind in the second half before stealing a 2-1 success.
Germany displayed their destructiveness when leaving Ireland with a 6-1 success and have scored at least three goals in their last six qualification games on home soil.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
