With just one round of 2018 FIFA World Cup qualifying fixtures left, there’s still a lot to be settled for a number of the Home Nations. England may be safely through to Russia, but Scotland, Northern Ireland, Wales and Republic of Ireland still have work to do.
In Group F on Sunday, England travel to Lithuania while Scotland make the trip to Slovenia. Northern Ireland will finish second in Group C, and they play Norway in Oslo on Sunday. Meanwhile, Wales and Republic of Ireland meet in a straight shootout in Cardiff for a play-off spot in Group D.
- Lithuania v England – England to Win to Nil (11/10 at Bet365)
- Slovenia v Scotland – Draw (23/10 at Betfair)
- Norway v Northern Ireland – Northern Ireland to Win 2-0 (14/1 at Coral)
- Wales v Republic of Ireland – Wales to Win and Both Teams to Score (4/1 at Betfred)
FIFA World Cup Qualifiers
England made sure of qualification with a 1-0 win over Slovenia at Wembley on Thursday. Harry Kane’s late goal was enough to give the Three Lions an unconvincing victory in London. Scotland, meanwhile, also left it late as Slovakia’s Martin Skrtel netted an 89th-minute own goal to shoot the Scots into second spot.
Northern Ireland were the only Home Nation to lose, falling to a 3-1 home defeat to Joachim Low’s Germany. In Group D, Wales beat Georgia 1-0 courtesy of Tom Lawrence’s second-half strike, while Daryl Murphy scored a brace in Republic of Ireland’s comfortable 2-0 win over Moldova in Dublin.
Lithuania v England – 8th October
Gareth Southgate’s England finish up Group F with a trip to the LFF Stadium in Vilnius to take on Edgaras Jankauskas’ Lithuania on Sunday. The Three Lions have won the group, while the Lithuanians will finish in fifth. England head to the Lithuanian capital as the strong favourites to take the points.
The English have without doubt been the strongest nation in Group F, winning seven and drawing two of their nine qualifiers. Kane’s injury-time goal against Slovakia at Wembley on Thursday made sure of qualification, but Southgate’s boys were relatively untroubled in the group. As for Jankauskas’ side, they stopped a run of five straight defeats with a 1-1 draw in Malta on Thursday.
England will be looking for one more win before they can start preparing for Russia. Southgate’s troops have kept seven clean sheets in their nine qualifiers, winning six of those along the way. The Three Lions cruised to a 2-0 win when these two met at Wembley back in March. Back them to win to nil in Vilnius, too.
England to Win to Nil – 11/10 at Bet365
Slovenia v Scotland – 8th October
Scotland have hung in there in Group F and are now just one win away from a probable play-off spot. Victory in Ljubljana against Slovenia will see Gordon Strachan’s men take second place behind England in the group. Can the Scots make it four wins on the bounce?
Srecko Katanec’s side still have slim hopes of taking second spot themselves. However, they need to beat the Scots and hope Malta can take at least a point against Slovakia in Trnava. The Tartan Army may be in pole position, but it’s still all the play for in Group F.
A draw for Strachan’s side could still be enough to claim second spot and a play-off place. We fancy Scotland to get a point in a nail-biting game in the Stozice Stadium. Betfair are offering 23/10 for the draw.
Draw – 23/10 at Betfair
Norway v Northern Ireland – 8th October
Northern Ireland are sure of second place in Group B, but they could do with one more point to secure a play-off spot. Michael O’Neill’s Green and White Army make the trip to Oslo to play Lars Lagerback’s Norway in the Ullevaal Stadion on Sunday.
Despite falling to a 3-1 defeat to world champions Germany in Belfast last time out, Norn Iron have had another remarkable campaign. Overall, Northern Ireland have won six, drawn one and lost two of their nine fixtures. Can they get over the line with another positive result at the weekend?
When the two squared off at Windsor Park back in March, O’Neill’s team eased to a 2-0 win with Jamie Ward and Conor Washington on the scoresheet. We fancy another 2-0 Irish victory on Sunday, with Coral’s top odds of 14/1 well worth having a punt on.
Northern Ireland to Win 2-0 – 14/1 at Coral
Wales v Republic of Ireland – 9th October
Chris Coleman’s Wales and Martin O’Neill’s Republic of Ireland meet at Cardiff City Stadium for a shootout for second spot in Group F. These two Home Nations have been neck and neck all campaign, but who will do enough on the night to claim a place in the top two?
With Serbia somewhat surprisingly losing in Austria on Friday night, top spot is still up for grabs. If the Serbians lose at home to Georgia on Monday, the winner of this clash in Cardiff will win the group and gain automatic qualification to Russia, with the losers eliminated. However, Serbia should beat Georgia in Belgrade, meaning whoever wins in Cardiff will more than likely finish in the play-offs.
On paper, these two teams look very evenly matched and either nation are capable of winning in the Welsh capital. However, we believe home advantage could be the deciding factor, so we’re backing Coleman’s men to do the business on their own patch. Things will be tight and we can see Ireland scoring, so check out Betfred’s 4/1 for the hosts to win and both teams to score.
Wales to Win and Both Teams to Score – 4/1 at Betfred