Scott Thornton’s International Best Bets: Cards and Corners in the Nations League

Scott Thornton brings you his best picks across the card and corner markets for the upcoming round of Nations League fixtures.

Three of the bets kick off on Friday night. San Marino and Gibraltar square off in the battle of the minnows while Denmark host Spain. Switzerland vs Spain is the other match at that time. On Saturday, we look forward to Turkey vs Wales before Slovakia head to Sweden.

• San Marino vs Gibraltar: Over 8.5 Corners In The Match
• Denmark vs Spain: Over 3.5 Cards In The Match
• Switzerland vs Serbia: Over 5.5 Corners For Switzerland
• Turkey vs Wales: Over 5.5 Cards In The Match
• Sweden vs Slovakia: Over 5.5 Corners For Sweden

Acca odds: 18.21

The Football Betting POD is out NOW: Eight Bets and Afters Regrets

Fresh off his failed first round interview for Match of the Day, host Daniel Jenkins returns with his tail between his legs to join Sam Ingram and Scott Thornton to run the rule over the international break.

The boys discuss the upcoming matches for England and Wales in a tip-happy episode of The Football Betting Pod:

San Marino vs Gibraltar: Corners Sail in When Minnows Clash

Europe, Nations League, Friday, 15th November, 19:45 (UK)

San Marino are a team that rarely features on betting pages with them being the lowest-ranked team in the world, currently 210th in FIFA’s rankings. However, they managed to secure their first win in 20 years earlier this year by beating Liechtenstein at home.

Gibraltar are also a minnow in world football. They are ranked 13 places ahead of San Marino coming into this international break. Nevertheless, they are unbeaten in their last five matches, even managing a draw against Wales.

This is a bet that will be familiar to those of you who tune in to the bettingexpert podcast. San Marino are capable of racking up some corners when they host Gibraltar. The win over Liechtenstein will have given them some confidence and La Serenissima managed to win six of the 13 corners when they played in Gibraltar.

The last time that Gibraltar played in San Marino was back in 2020. There were 10 corners in that match, comfortably above the line set by the bookmakers here. Their last 10 matches have seen an average of 9.6 corners per game.

• Selection: Over 8.5 Corners In The Match (TRACKED BET)
• Best Odds: 2.00
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stake: 8/10

Denmark vs Spain: La Roja Matches See Red…and Yellow

Europe, Nations League, Friday, 15th November, 19:45 (UK)

Denmark are braced for a tough test here but their home form will give them confidence. The team haven’t lost a home game since June 2022. Since then, they are enjoying a run of 13 matches unbeaten in front of their own fans.

Spain are the holders of the Nations League and the champions of Europe. Luis De La Fuente has transformed the team since taking over from Luis Enrique after the World Cup in Qatar. La Roja will be hoping to continue their dominance by recording a win here.

Both of Denmark’s home games in this group have seen this bet land. There were five cards when they hosted Serbia and a whopping nine yellows and two reds in their game against Switzerland in front of their own fans.

La Roja’s matches in this competition have seen an average of 6.75 cards per game. Spain are willing to attack with pace in the wide areas and the ability to hurt opponents on the counter makes their matches card-friendly.

• Selection: Over 3.5 Cards In The Match (TRACKED BET)
• Best Odds: 1.62
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stake: 8/10

Switzerland vs Serbia: Serbs Backed into a Corner

Europe, Nations League, Friday, 15th November, 19:45 (UK)

Switzerland are in danger of being relegated from League A here. They were beaten 2-0 when the teams clashed in Serbia but they are trickier to beat on home turf. Spain are the only team to beat the Swiss in front of their own fans since Croatia in 2020. Since then, Switzerland have won 14 of their 24 home matches.

Serbia’s only win in their last seven came in the reverse fixture. They were comprehensively beaten 3-0 by Spain in their last outing and will be under the cosh here. The Serbs qualified for the European Championships but failed to make it out of the group.

Murat Yakin’s side won a total of seven corners in their last game against Serbia. Switzerland’s home matches under the manager have seen them win an average of 6.88 corners per game with over 5.5 winning in five of the last seven. This bet has landed in their last three matches in this competition.

Serbia are conceding an average of 7.5 corners per game in the Nations League and this bet has won in all four of their games.

• Selection: Over 5.5 Corners For Switzerland (TRACKED BET)
• Best Odds: 1.72
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stake: 8/10

Turkey vs Wales: High Stakes Game of Cards

Europe, Nations League, Saturday, 16th November, 17:00 (UK)

Turkey have the advantage heading into this clash with Wales. Both teams are unbeaten heading into matchday five of the Nations League but three consecutive wins means the home side are two points ahead.

Craig Bellamy is yet to taste defeat as Wales boss. His team were unfortunate not to beat Turkey in the reverse fixture, dominating possession and missing four clear-cut chances as the game finished 0-0. They beat Montenegro 1-0 in their last game and another win here would put them in pole position to win the group.

With these teams closely matched and the stakes high, expect cards in Saturday night’s clash. There were eight yellow cards and one red handed out when these teams went toe-to-toe in September. The last meeting between these sides in Turkey took place last year and that game saw five yellows and a red dished out by the referee.

Wales’ Nations League matches have seen an average of 6.5 cards per game. There have been six cards or more in both of their games on the road.

• Selection: Over 5.5 Cards In The Match (TRACKED BET)
• Best Odds: 1.90
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stake: 8/10

Sweden vs Slovakia: The Swede’s Menacing Attack

Europe, Nations League, Saturday, 16th November, 19:45 (UK)

Sweden have one of the most menacing attacks in international football at present. Viktor Gyokeres has been in excellent form for Sporting, scoring 11 goals in five appearances since the last international break. Alexander Isak has netted four goals in his last four games for Newcastle. The lethal pairing have helped Sweden pick up 10 points from their four Nations League matches so far.

Slovakia are also unbeaten in this tournament. They managed to draw 2-2 with Sweden in the reverse fixture and this promises to be an intriguing clash. Francesco Calzona’s side made it to the knockout stages of Euro 2024 but were eliminated by a Jude Bellingham goal in extra time.

Jon Dahl Tomasson’s side have won more corners than any other side in the Nations League with an average of 9.25 per game. They have had seven or more corners in all four of their matches so over 5.5 looks like a good bet here.

Slovakia have conceded an average of 5.6 corners per game in their last five matches. This is despite the fact they conceded just one corner against Estonia, who are 124th in FIFA’s world rankings.

• Selection: Over 5.5 Corners For Sweden (TRACKED BET)
• Best Odds: 1.72
• Bookmaker: bet365
• Stake: 8/10

Premier League Props Acca Tips Odds via bet365 as at 13:29, November 14th, 2024. Odds may now differ.

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