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Greece vs Scotland betting tips:
Scotland travel to Piraeus to face Greece in their penultimate World Cup qualifier on Saturday night, with Steve Clarke’s side needing a win to keep the dream of automatic qualification alive.
Scotland’s dramatic 3-1 win over the Greeks in October condemned the visitors to failure in their own qualification campaign, and now the return fixture comes with Greece having nothing to play for other than pride with Scotland and Denmark having secured the top two places.
Nevertheless, that triumph at Hampden Park will have shown Scotland that Greece carry plenty of threat, with the visitors having dominated large portions of the game before goals from Lewis Ferguson and Lyndon Dykes put the Scots’ qualification campaign back on track.
The performances in that match go some way to explaining why betting sites have Greece as favourites in the latest football odds.
However, both Scotland and Denmark enter the final two matches level on points, with the final game throwing them together in a potential winner-takes-all decider at Hampden next Tuesday (18 November).
Therefore, a draw with Greece is the very least Scotland need if they want to avoid the potentially difficult play-offs – they’ve already thrown together some surprises in this campaign, so can they produce another in Piraeus?
Greece vs Scotland prediction: Scots to draw
This match could have been a pivotal one for the hosts if they had managed to beat Scotland at Hampden, but as it happens they fell to a surprise defeat despite going 1-0 up in a match that told the story of their qualification campaign.
That result and Scotland’s subsequent win over Belarus means that it is the Scots and Denmark who will contest the automatic qualification spot, but with Denmark facing Belarus in their penultimate match and having a vastly superior goal difference, it is likely that Steve Clarke’s side will need to beat the Danes on the final matchday to overhaul them – regardless of whether they win or draw in Greece.
It means they do need a result in Piraeus, where the hosts have nothing to play for, and despite being the better team on paper, it could be that Greek hearts are not in it this weekend – as was the case when they lost 3-1 to Denmark last time out.
Scotland make the trip across the continent having won four of their last five matches – including that 3-1 win last month – with those results yielding 11 goals scored and just two conceded, while Greece come into the game with just two wins in their last five, with one coming against Belarus and the other against Bulgaria in a friendly.
The hosts have scored 11 and conceded 10 in that time, though five of scored came against Belarus and another four against Bulgaria.
Greece have won just once in their qualifying campaign, and are yet to keep a clean sheet, though they did beat Scotland 3-0 at Hampden in the Nations League in March to underline the gap in quality between these two sides.
However, that supposed quality has not been on show for the rest of the year, even despite the visitors dominating at Hampden in October, and it is instead the Scots who could make history this month in earning qualification for the World Cup.
Nevertheless, with the Scots desperate for a result while Greece have plenty to prove – and the ‘better’ team on paper as well as home advantage – we think that a wager on a draw and both teams to score could be the best value on football betting sites.
Greece vs Scotland prediction 1: Draw and both teams to score – 7/2 Ladbrokes
Greece vs Scotland betting tip: McTominay to deliver again
Scott McTominay emerged as Scotland talisman during their qualifying campaign for Euro 2024 and the former Manchester United midfielder remains arguably the team’s most important player as they look to book a place in the World Cup for the first time since 1998.
The midfielder has five goals and two assists for club and country so far this term, and scored the winner in the sub-par performance over Belarus last time out.
While he hasn’t managed to regain the same explosive form that saw him named Serie A MVP last season, the Napoli man remains key to Scotland’s qualification hopes, and thankfully he tends to deliver on the big occasions.
McTominay scored the only goal in Scotland’s 1-0 win when these two teams met in Athens in March, and the Tartan Army will be praying he can do the same again this weekend.
With the 28-year-old on decent form this term, and having scored last time out for his country – plus the added bonus that he’s usually on penalty duties – we think a wager on McTominay to score or assist could present good value.
Greece vs Scotland prediction 2: Scott McTominay to score or assist – 2/1 Bet365
Greece vs Scotland team news
Greece: Konstantinos Mavropanos and Fotis Ioannidis will miss this match due to injury, though usual starters Vangelis Pavlidis, Kostas Tsimikas, Christos Tzolis and Tasos Bakasetas are all expected to be involved. Ex-Hibs midfielder Nectarios Triantis and Brighton’s Charalampos Kostoulas could both make their debuts.
Scotland: Udinese midfielder Lennon Miller and Bristol City defender Ross McCrorie were forced to withdraw from the Scotland squad this week, while Billy Gilmour has been ruled out of the match against Greece.
Craig Gordon could start in the absence of the injured Angus Gunn, with the 42-year-old potentially earning his 82nd cap.
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