Portugal will be hosts to the Czech Republic on the third matchday of the UEFA Nations League A, as they will fight for the first place in their group in this UEFA competition. With that said, it’s a good time to check out our Nations League odds series, which includes our Portugal-Czech Rep prediction and pick we have laid out below.
Portugal bounced back from a fairly poor game versus Spain to demolish Switzerland. Two goals from Cristiano Ronaldo, together with goals by William Carvalho and Joao Cancelo, meant that Portugal came out with four points and is leading this group. Now, they have a chance to further solidify their lead at the top of the group. The Czech Republic surprised the world by beating the Swiss team on the first matchday. Then, as if they were not satisfied with just surprising once, they drew 2:2 with Spain, where the Spaniards had to save a point through an Inigo Martinez 90th-minute equalizer. It is clear that the Czech Republic are entering this game with a ton of confidence.
Courtesy of FanDuel, here are the Portugal-Czech Rep Nations League odds:
Nations League Odds: Portugal-Czech Rep Odds
Portugal: (-270)
Czech Rep: (+600)
Draw: (+350)
Over: 2.5 (-450)
Under: 2.5 (+280)
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Why Portugal Could Win This Game
Portugal has really taken offense to not qualifying directly for the World Cup in 2022. Although they managed to do it through the second round of qualifiers, they have taken the whole ordeal personally. Since losing to Serbia, they have won three out of their four matches, and we can be sure they are going to try their best to make it four out of five. Portugal certainly has the talent to do it, it will be a question of desire when it comes to this match.
Of course, their best bet for winning this game is Cristiano Ronaldo. All the words in the world have already been saying about this absolute legend of football, but he has been on another level playing for Portugal. At the age of 37, he scored 24 club goals this season and added two more to his international tally versus Switzerland. If Ronaldo catches fire, there is absolutely nothing that the Czech Republic defense can do to stop this man.
There are other players next to Ronaldo that could cause concern among Czech Republic players. There is Diogo Jota, Bruno Fernandes, Andre Silva, and Joao Cancelo, to name a few. That is possibly the biggest reason why Portugal could win this game, their enormous lead in terms of talent. Czech Republic players are no scrubs, but Portugal has some incredible players in their squad and anything but a win here would be very surprising.
Why Czech Rep Could Win This Game
When it comes to the Czech Republic, their results this year have been all over the place. Unfortunately for them, they did not manage to secure a spot in the 2022 World Cup. After a qualifying campaign that saw them end second in their group, the Czech squad faced Sweden and lost 1-0 after overtime. Now, they have a chance to secure an alternative path to EURO 2024 qualification, if they were to win this group. No one had them any place higher than third in this group, but early results are very good.
That is, in essence, the biggest reason why the Czech Republic has a shot in this game. As said above, they surprised the world on two occasions in this edition of the UEFA Nations League already, so why not do it the third time? Alternatively, this could be looked at not as luck or a surprise. As a fairly small nation, building a team capable of holding its own against stronger opposition. Their biggest bet for winning this game is exactly the fact that they are a compact and well-put-together team.
Individually, the Czech Republic cannot compare to Portugal. Their best players are Adam Hlozek, Tomas Soucek, Vladimir Coufal, and a few more names that play in the biggest European leagues. However, when they step on the field, they really look like a true team, and that is all that matters. If they were to surprise everyone again, they would do it standing side by side, showing the strength they have shown in the first two games.
Final Portugal-Czech Rep Prediction & Pick
It is tough to go against the Czech team, given the fact they have already garnered four points out of two games in this group. Yet, Portugal's form is too good to ignore. Our final Portugal-Czech Rep prediction is a Portugal win in the Estádio José Alvalade in Lisbon, Portugal.
Final Portugal-Czech Rep Pick: Portugal (-270)
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