Friday night’s World Cup Qualifier between minnows Liechtenstein and Macedonia might look like a fixture with little to play for, but both sides will see this game as an ideal chance to pick up a first win of the campaign. Both sides have suffered defeats in all 4 of their opening games respectively, with a goal difference of -15 keeping Liechtenstein firmly rooted to the foot of the table.
Liechtenstein have scored just once in those 4 games in their 2-1 defeat to Israel last October while Macedonia have fared a little better in the goalscoring stakes, averaging a goal a game thus far.
Macedonia manager Igor Angelovski might have a difficult task in trying to motivate a team that already feels like they have nothing to play for and they have looked a little sorry for themselves since their late defeat at home to Italy in October. In contrast, Liechtenstein are used to this kind of position and are no strangers to playing for pride. That being said, Macedonia go into this game as strong favourites.
This game isn’t expected to be a classic and it is unlikely that the game will have too many goals. Despite their shared points total after 4 games, Macedonia have considerably more quality than their opponents and should come away with 3 points.
While the overs goal markets look a tempting option, it is probably wise to avoid them given both sides struggles in front of goal. Ladbrokes have odds of 11/8 on Macedonia to be winning at half time and full time, and that price looks generous. Another decent price is Bet 365’s odds of 11/8 for Macedonia to win to nil. Either option would be a sensible bet.