1u - Saudi Arabia 🇸🇦 vs. Uruguay 🇺🇾 Under 2.5 Goals (-130 @ MGM, -134 @ CZR, -135 @ DK)
Analysis from Nikola (Soccer Specialist)
Saudi Arabia arrives at the World Cup following a coaching change just two months before the tournament. There is a question about what kind of football they would play under Georgios Donis, but I expect a very defensive one, since I do not think they have much to offer up front. I believe they will look to win points in the Cape Verde game and try to secure one point from this match, which pretty much means they will start with a more defensive approach. Under coach Donis, they only allowed two goals in three games against Ecuador, Puerto Rico, and Senegal.
Uruguay is one of the more interesting teams for me. They do not like to have possession and often struggle to create when they have to build their attack that way. The basis of their game is intensity, high pressure, and forcing opposing teams to make mistakes near their goal. Even though I consider them a much better team individually than Saudi Arabia, Uruguay has had massive problems scoring goals. In the World Cup Qualifiers, they averaged only 1.22 goals per game and went under 2.5 goals in 12 of 18 games (67%). In recent friendlies, we could see just how low their xG was as they had 0.48 against the Dominican Republic, 0.08 vs. Mexico, 0.59 vs. USA, etc. Those offensive struggles might get enhanced if their main creator, de Arrascaeta, is not fit for the match.
Even though I believe Uruguay is a better team and will win, I do not expect them to score easily, and an under 2.5 goals bet seems like the best option for this game.
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