Will the Lavovete manage another respectable victory?
Even though Switzerland took an early lead in Rome on Friday evening, it was not enough for them to win away at the reigning European champions. In the end, the Nati could still be satisfied with a 1-1 draw due to a missed penalty by the Squadra Azzurra shortly before the final whistle. The Swiss remained unbeaten in their seventh match of the 2022 World Cup Qualifiers.
Together with Mancini’s eleven, Switzerland leads Group C, but is only in second place due to a two-goal difference. The odds are clearly in favour of Switzerland against Bulgaria. However, the Swiss need a much bigger win than the Squadra Azzurra in the parallel match in Northern Ireland to book a direct ticket to Kater.
With the Nati seven points clear of third place and a place in the play-offs secured, Murat Yakin’s side can only follow one strategy: full steam ahead. Accordingly, there is a lot of value in betting on Switzerland against Bulgaria that the visitors from Bulgaria, who already scored a 1-1 draw in Italy on 2 September 2021, will capitalise on this and score at the Swissporarena in Lucerne.
We recommend the Double Chance X2, which is associated with high risk but offers enormous value. It is also possible to minimise the risk by taking advantage of a free bet.
Switzerland – Statistics & current form
The Swiss national team has become an absolute perennial favourite at major finals in the recent past. In the current millennium, the Nati only missed the World Cup in 2002 and the EURO 2012 and was otherwise always in the game.
In the last two World Cups in a row, the Swiss also made it past the preliminary round, as they did at the last two European Championships. This summer, the senior team even managed to eliminate world champions France at EURO 2021, only losing out to Spain in the quarter-finals on penalties.
15 out of a possible 21 points from the seven qualifying matches
It is also impressive how Murat Yakin’s selection kept up with the reigning European champions Italy in the 2022 World Cup Quali. The Nati avoided defeat in both direct duels with the Squadra Azzurra, but also dropped two points in the away game in Northern Ireland (0:0).
Because the Italians also failed to get beyond a draw at home against today’s Swiss opponents Bulgaria, the Swiss still have some residual hope of direct qualification for Qatar. Should the Italians win 1-0 against Northern Ireland, for example, a 3-0 victory over the Bulgarian side would be enough to still catch the Squadra Azzurra.
Switzerland will have to be very attacking
Betting oddsmakers have little doubt that Yakin’s side will come out on top on matchday eight in Group C of the World Cup qualifiers.
However, the starting position clearly plays into the visitors’ hands. The Swiss, who have conceded only two goals in seven group games, must be on the offensive to avoid the play-offs. The longer the score remains 0-0, the more complicated the situation becomes for the Nati.
Predicted line-up of Switzerland:
Sommer – Rodríguez – Akanji – Schär – Widmer – Freuler – Zakaria – Vargas – Shaqiri – Steffen – Okafor
Last matches played by Switzerland:
World Cup Qualification UEFA 1st Round Grp. C
11/12 2021 – Italy 1 – 1 Switzerland
10/12 2021 – Lithuania 0 – 4 Switzerland
10/09 2021 – Switzerland 2 – 0 Northern Ireland
09/08 2021 – Northern Ireland 0 – 0 Switzerland
09/05 2021 – Switzerland 0 – 0 Italy
Bulgaria – Statistics & current form
The Bulgarian national football team went through its strongest period to date in the 1990s, storming to the semi-finals at the 1994 World Cup under the legendary Hristo Soichkov.
However, since the Lavovete (the lions) lost three games at the 2004 European Championship and finished bottom of their group in the preliminary round, no Bulgarian team has ever qualified for a major finals again.
At the beginning of September with a respectable success in Italy
Not only did the Bulgarians miss out on the last two European Championships, despite the fact that the number of nations there was increased from 16 to 24, which could actually have been an advantage for a team like the Lavovete. Yasen Petrov’s side will also be spectators at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar.
Only two of the seven matches in Group C were won (two draws, three defeats), which means they are seven points off second place. Nevertheless, the Bulgarian team did manage a small success when they managed to wrest a 1-1 draw away from European champions Italy on 2 September 2021.
Only lost one of last six internationals
There is undoubted quality in the Bulgarian squad, which is certainly reflected in the recent results. Of the last six international matches, the Lavovete have lost only one (three wins, two draws).
In view of the fact that they will be operating from a stable defensive position in Lucerne and will be able to lurk on the counter-attack, betting on Switzerland against Bulgaria to achieve another respectable result and a point against the Nati is by no means under the worst of omens.
Predicted line-up of Bulgaria:
Mihaylov – Velkovski – Dimitrov – Hristov – Jordanov – Nedelev – B. Tsonev – R. Tsonev – Kirilov – Despodov – Iliev
Last matches played by Bulgaria:
Friendly match
11/11 2021 – Ukraine 1 – 1 Bulgaria
World Cup Qualification UEFA 1st Round Grp. C
10/12 2021 – Bulgaria 2 – 1 Northern Ireland
10/09 2021 – Lithuania 3 – 1 Bulgaria
Friendly match
09/08 2021 – Bulgaria 4 – 1 Georgia
World Cup Qualification UEFA 1st Round Grp. C
09/05 2021 – Bulgaria 1 – 0 Lithuania
Switzerland – Bulgaria Direct comparison / H2H-Balance
Head to head: 5 – 4 – 2
There have been a total of eleven international matches between the two nations so far and Switzerland leads the direct comparison with five victories. The Nati also won the first leg in Sofia 3:1.
Switzerland – Bulgaria Tip
Our prediction for Switzerland against Bulgaria is largely determined by the starting position. The Nati not only need the home win, but also have to keep an eye on the goal difference. If the Italians win, only a victory that is at least two goals higher will help them to book their direct ticket to Qatar, while a defeat would have no consequences. In this respect, it can be assumed that the Swiss will be very offensive.
While the current Bulgarian generation lacks a world star like Stoichkov or Berbatov. Nevertheless, the Lavovete have a lot of quality and should definitely not be written off prematurely in view of the fact that they operate from a stable defensive position and can lurk on the counterattack.
Accordingly, the bet on the double chance X2 is well playable, for which betting odds of 8.50 are available for Switzerland against Bulgaria.
