Croatia take on Kosovo in Zagreb on Saturday evening, with the World Cup qualifying Group I leaders looking to bounce back from a defeat to Iceland last time around. Only goal difference separates Ante Čačić’s men from Iceland at the top of the standings, making this weekend’s encounter a must win for the home side.
World Cup 2018 Qualifying – Stadion Maksimir, Zagreb – Saturday 2nd September – 19:45 UK Time
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Draw Best Odd of: 8/1 at Betway |
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Croatia
KosovoMatch Preview: Croatia vs Kosovo
With Kosovo having collected just a single point from their opening six matches, a win for Croatia is certainly expected among both football fans and betting customers. With a squad packed full of talent, the home team will be looking to lay down a market ahead of the trip to Turkey which follows next week.
Croatia Team News & Form
After their narrow defeat in Iceland, Croatia are in need of a strong performance, despite remaining at the top of the standings. Just two points separate themselves with the Ukraine in fourth place, with the emphasis on their star players to guide them to a comfortable victory against Kosovo. Real Madrid star Luka Modric is undoubtedly the heartbeat of the team, however the likes of Ivan Perisic, Mario Mandžukić and Mateo Kovačić help to make up a pretty daunting line-up for the home side. This quartet have over 200 international caps between them, with their experience vital when coming up against a side such as Kosovo, who will aim to frustrate their opponents for large periods. Having conceded just two goals in their opening six matches, Croatia will be looking to keep another clean sheet, with Liverpool man Dejan Lovren set to line up at the heart of the Croatian defence.
Kosovo Team News & Form
Having conceded 18 goals in their opening six matches, it perhaps comes as little surprise that Kosovo have managed to collect just one point throughout their qualifying campaign. However, having only been a member of UEFA for a little over a year, Kosovo are still very much a work in process as a national team, with Albert Bunjaki having been tasked with job of managing their team. Despite having players from teams such as AS Roma, Schalke 04 and Sheffield Wednesday, Kosovo have so far been unable to make an impression in Group I, with little chance of rectifying this against Croatia. Atdhe Nuhiu, Valon Berisha and Amir Rrahmani are the only members of the current squad to have scored on the international stage.
Head to Head
The two teams have met just once in the past, coming back in October last year, when Croatia cruised to a 6-0 win in Kosovo. If this is anything to go by, then it could well be another tough night’s work for the visiting team.
Betting Odds and Predictions
Best odds of 1/33 on from Ladbrokes for a Croatia win is unlikely to attract a large number of bets, with more diverse markets needing to be targeted if profits are to be made from this match. Firstly, backing Croatia to win both the first and second half is a potentially easy way to beat the bookies, with William Hill offering odds of 1/6 on this market.
Meanwhile, betting on Croatia scoring over 4.5 goals is another appealing market, with best odds of 4/5 available online.
Top Betting Tip
However, our top betting tip for the match is to bet on the second half being the one with the most goals, which can be found at odds of 1/1 at Ladbrokes.