A pivotal battle is set to take place in Ghent between the top two sides in FIFA World Cup qualifying UEFA Group J, when second-placed Belgium attempt to leapfrog table-topping North Macedonia.
Match News and Current Form
Playing a game fewer than North Macedonia is arguably the reason Belgium find themselves below them in the table, but they will now be looking to take charge of the group, and seem in great nick having won their last two World Cup qualifiers 6-0! Those thrashings did admittedly come against Kazakhstan (currently #118 in FIFA’s world rankings) and Liechtenstein (#204), but it underlined the Red Devils’ dominance in qualifiers, having not lost any of their last 44 such encounters in reaching either the UEFA European Championships or the World Cup (W38, D6).
The North Macedonians will not be intimidated by that record as they continue to cement themselves as a real force on the global stage, having gone unbeaten in their last 12 matches excluding friendlies (W8, D4). Only three of those results (D3) came against teams currently ranked higher than themselves though, meaning that FIFA’s 63rd-ranked nation still have a bit to prove if they are to reach the promised land of a first-ever World Cup next year.
Head-to-Head History
The reverse fixture ended in a 1-1 draw, ending North Macedonia’s three-game losing and scoreless run against Belgium.
Hot Stats and Streaks
There have been six goals scored after the 80th minute in Belgium’s last five matches.
Belgium have netted 3+ goals in five of their last seven designated home games.
There have been fewer than 2.5 goals in eight of North Macedonia’s last 12 fixtures.
North Macedonia have scored in each of their last six away games.
Key Players to Watch and Missing Players
The last H2H saw a defender for each team get the goals, with Belgium's Maxim De Cuyper scoring the third of his four international goals, three of which have served as the match opener, while Ezgjan Alioski netted for the 13th time in North Macedonian colours. He is also usually a good luck charm for his nation, with just two of his goalscoring outings for them seeing him end up on the losing side (W8, D3).
Belgium head coach Rudi Garcia will be without big names Youri Tielemans and the country’s all-time top scorer Romelu Lukaku, with no such headaches seemingly bothering his counterpart Blagoja Milevski.
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Betting Analysis
Given the form of the North Macedonians, backing both teams to score seems rather attractive here.
Author: Peter Stavrinou
