Prediction and odds for the game: Switzerland (14/5) vs Italy (evens)

We are backing the away win

When: Sunday, 5th September 2021, Kick-off 19:45

Where: St. Jakob-Park

On Sunday night, Switzerland host Italy in Basel, as the two teams battle it out in Group C Of European qualifying for the next year’s World Cup in Qatar.

Switzerland

The home team head into this potentially pivotal qualifier in decent form. Murat Yakin’s team are unbeaten in four games over 90 minutes, having recorded three wins and a draw. Switzerland followed up the heartbreak of their Euro 2020 quarter-final exit at the hands of Spain by recording a 2-1 victory over Greece last time out.

A key factor in Switzerland’s recent good form has been their attacking prowess, as they have now scored over 2.5 goals in three of their previous four outings.

Switzerland looks to be well placed to challenge the visitors for top spot in the group. The Rossocrociati have won both their games in the group so far, beating Bulgaria 3-1 and Lithuania 1-0. They are now four games unbeaten in World Cup qualifying, having conceded just once in the stellar run.

One issue for Switzerland in this clash could be that several key players could be missing for this clash. Kevin Mbabu, Xherdan Shaqiri, Loris Benito, Breel Embolo, Eray Comert and Mario Gavranovic could will all be missing through injury. Meanwhile, midfielder Granit Xhaka will be missing after testing positive for Covid-19.

Italy

The Azzurri produced a surprise result last time out, as Bulgaria held the European champions to a 1-1 draw in Florence. The game was the third straight Italy match to finish 1-1 after 90 minutes. The previous two draws helped Roberto Mancini’s team to win Euro 2020 after penalty kick wins over Spain and England.

The recent draws stretched Italy’s unbeaten run in the international game to 30 matches. The visitors have also been difficult to beat in World Cup qualifiers of late, although their five-game unbeaten run isn’t as impressive as their long unbeaten run in the international game in general.

The European champions also have a good recent away record in World Cup qualifying, as they have claimed six wins from their previous eight qualifiers on their travels. That recent away run has been built on solid defensive foundations, as the Azzurri have kept clean sheets in three of their last four qualifiers on their travels.

The visitors will be without Alex Meret, Manuel Lazzari and Andrea Belotti through injury. Juventus midfielder Manuel Locatelli missed the Bulgaria game but could come back in for Nicolo Barella.

Conclusion

The recent matches between these two teams have been extremely close affairs. In fact, four of the last six meetings between the pair have finished all square. We would predict the same result for this clash. However, the home team’s likely absentees could prove vital. With that in mind, we are backing the away win. The other bet we predict is under 2.5 goals, once again due to the tight nature of the recent meetings.

Our Tips: We are backing the away win at evens and/or under 2.5 goals scored at odds of 4/6. (All odds are taken from Bet365).

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Can Switzerland claim a positive result against the European champions?