Continue Australia’s perfect group stage run?
Two games, two wins – the Australian national team could not have had a better start to the second round of World Cup qualifying. The resounding victory over Bangladesh was followed by a narrow win against the Palestinians in the second group match. The “Socceroos” will now round off the first round with the group match against Lebanon.
As expected, national coach Graham Arnold’s team is also favored in this match. Bookmaker Oddset is currently offering odds of up to 1.14 for an Australia vs Lebanon bet on the home side. If you take a look at the recent form curve of the Lebanese, the clear favorite role of the Australians is understandable
Lebanon have not won any of their last four international matches since their 2-1 win over Jordan last year. In those four matches, national coach Miodrag Radulovic’s team even suffered three defeats. It would therefore be all the more surprising if, given the current form of the underdogs in Australia v Lebanon, a prediction on the visitors pays off
If you’re still leaning towards a surprise, you can also use the bookmaker Intertops. New customers benefit from their first free bet after successfully verifying their account – without having to make a deposit.
Australia – Statistics & current form
Australia is one of the regulars at the World Cup. The “Socceroos” qualified for a World Cup for the fifth time in a row at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar and were even represented in the last 16. It was only against the eventual tournament winners from Argentina that Australia narrowly failed to qualify, thus bowing out of the World Cup.
The “Socceroos” will be aiming for their next World Cup appearance at the upcoming World Cup in Canada, Mexico and the USA. Australia got off to the perfect start in the second round of World Cup qualifying in the AFC zone. National coach Graham Arnold’s team not only picked up six points on the first two matchdays, but also went into the game without conceding a goal.
The perfect group stage is now set to continue against Lebanon. This is supported not only by the Australian national team’s recent run of form, but also by the H2h between the two nations. The “Socceroos” have won every international match against the Lebanese so far. It’s quite possible that the next victory beckons now
Another clean sheet for Australia?
Since losing 1-0 to England in a Test match in October 2023, the Australian national team has only lost one of its last nine international matches. Australia have won seven of those eight matches since then, including seven internationals in which the Socceroos have kept a clean sheet.
A one-nil win against the Lebanese is by no means out of the question. The betting option is available in the Intertops app under the “Home/Guest” match section. Quotes of up to 1.49 are currently on offer for a betting tip on “Home team to win to nil”.
The “Socceroos” will start with their best line-up for the most part and have hardly any personnel worries to complain about. The current squad even includes three national team debutants, including 24-year-old John Iredale from SV Wehen Wiesbaden.
Predicted Australia line-up:
Ryan – Atkinson, Souttar, Rowles, Bos – Metcalfe, Baccus, Irvine – McGree, Duke, Goodwin
Lebanon – Statistics & current form
Lebanon have never qualified for a World Cup in the entire history of the association. It is possible that this negative trend will continue at the 2026 World Cup. Although a place in the third and final round of World Cup qualifying in the AFC zone cannot be ruled out, Lebanon should not be overestimated in terms of World Cup participation.
The Lebanese are only stronger than teams such as Bangladesh and Palestine in Group I of the AFC World Cup qualifiers. The group favorites from Australia, on the other hand, are of a completely different caliber than their other group opponents. Consequently, it is understandable that Lebanon will go into the match against the “Socceroos” as the clear underdogs.
The only question in this fixture is how badly Lebanon will lose to the Australian national team. In the two previous H2hs, the Lebanese had already suffered two defeats. In both encounters, Lebanon failed to score a goal, but the FIFA world number 15 rang the bell a total of six times
Continue the Lebanese crisis?
Lebanon have gone 0-1-3 in their last four internationals, including three matches at the 2024 Asian Cup. In three of these four international matches, the Lebanese national team failed to score a goal. It is therefore more than risky to bet on the underdogs from Lebanon.
There are currently only six legionnaires in the entire Lebanese national squad. The majority of the Lebanese national team plays in the domestic Premier League. Big star players are sought in vain. One of the few bright spots in the squad is Hassan Maatouk, the Lebanese team captain.
In his 119 appearances for Lebanon, Maatouk has scored a total of 23 goals, making him the Lebanese national team’s record goalscorer. In the current World Cup qualifiers – second round, mind you – Lebanon’s top scorer is still without a goal
Predicted Lebanon line-up:
Matar – Khamis, Michel, El Hindi – Nassar, Srour, Jradi, Tneich, Zein – Maatouk, Bugiel
Australia – Lebanon head-to-head comparison / H2H result
Australia and Lebanon meet for the third time. The “Socceroos” lead the H2H against the Lebanese with a record of 2-0-0. In these two encounters, the Australian national team scored six goals and did not concede any in return. The last time the two nations met in a friendly was in November 2018. Australia won 3:0.
Australia – Lebanon betting tip
For the Australian national team, progression to the next round of World Cup qualifying is already within reach. After all, the “Socceroos” got off to the perfect start, winning both group games on the first two match days. Now Australia are aiming for their next win and will host the Lebanese, who are in poor form.
The visitors have not won any of their last four international matches, but Lebanon have lost three of those four games. It is therefore not at all surprising that national coach Miodrag Radulovic’s team will go into the upcoming international match as clear underdogs. Especially since the H2h against Australia also speaks against a prediction in favor of the Lebanese
We have decided to bet on a win for the Australian national team with at least a three-goal lead in Australia v Lebanon. We are betting five out of ten possible units on this. The best odds are currently offered by Bet365
