World Cup Qualifying: Score Predictors and Preview
The North and Central American international soccer region is about to kick off another round of World Cup qualifying fixtures. Three big games will be played Thursday night June 8th, and soccer betting fans will be picking their favorites to win some cold hard cash.
USA vs. Trinidad and Tobago
The United States is desperate for points as the Yanks currently sit fourth in the qualifying group. This week’s matches see the team take on Trinidad and Tobago before clashing with archrivals Mexico south of the border. The US need at least one win from the two matches to keep pace with the other top sides, and to give them a shot of qualifying for next summer’s World Cup automatically.
Jozy Altidore is the USA’s leading goal scorer with six, but the US needs to show some defensive backbone. The team has given up seven goals in qualifying, second highest behind Honduras. The good news is, the US has tallied the most goals going into Thursday with eight.
The US is heavy favorites to win against Trindad, and Zcode sports predictor agrees that the Yanks will do well. The predictor has the US as a 41.24% favorite to win.
Panama vs. Costa Rica
Panama and Costa Rica clash on Thursday night as well. This match sees the second place Costa Rica team battle third place Panama. A loss for Panama and US win would see the Yanks overtake the Panamanians in the standings.
Costa Rica has scored quite a few goals in qualifying so far, and while Panama has been a decent defense team, Zcode and I agree that there will be over two goals in this match. Zcode totals predicts a 64% chance for the game to have over two goals.
Honduras vs. Mexico
In the final World Cup qualifying match on Thursday, Mexico will play fifth place Honduras. The Mexicans have been stellar to this point and are undefeated. The team is led by star striker Javier Hernandez, who has been a thorn in the sides of teams in the region for some time. Honduras has a top striker on its side in Carlos Ruiz. The journeyman leads qualifying with nine goals. Unfortunately, Ruiz hasn’t been in great form since the ‘hex’ round of CONCACAF qualifying started. Regardless, the bullying center forward is always dangerous.
Honduras is a longshot to win this match. The saving grace for the team could be that it is being played in Honduras, which is why Zcode sports predictor believes there is a 38.1% chance this match ends in a draw. Mexico has only given up one goal thus far in the current round of qualifying, and losing seems highly unlike. Expect Mexico to win or draw; but this side won’t lose as it is the best in the group.
The 2018 World Cup in Russia is just a year away. Time is running out for several teams, and others need to make a final push for the tournament. It all starts Thursday night.
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