Check Out Our Betting Picks For Scotland vs. Brazil
Victory for Brazil could see them top Group C
Cunha a solid first goalscorer bet
The three-way battle to qualify from World Cup Group C concludes on Wednesday, as Scotland face Brazil at Miami Stadium. BetMGM are currently making Brazil heavy favorites for the win, but Scotland look more than capable of springing a surprise.
After two rounds of fixtures, Brazil are sharing top spot with Morocco on four points, whilst the Scots are a further point back. With Morocco facing minnows Haiti in the other final group fixture, whoever loses in Miami will finish third in the group and face an anxious wait to find out if they have qualified for the knockout stages.
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Whilst Brazil have yet to hit top form in the World Cup, there were some encouraging signs during the first half of the 3-0 victory over Haiti on Matchday Two. Matheus Cunha celebrated his return to the starting eleven with a brace, Vini Jnr continued his superb goalscoring form, whilst Lucas Paquetá enjoyed a fine game pulling the strings in midfield. Scotland will be a much tougher test than Haiti, but Carlo Ancelotti’s men will go into the game full of confidence after recording their first win of the tournament. The one concern for Ancelotti is a minor hamstring injury picked up by winger Raphinha in the win over Haiti. Arsenal’s Gabriel Martinelli could start in his place, whilst veteran talisman Neymar is fully fit again after missing Brazil’s opening two games.
Scotland’s lack of a cutting edge was exposed during Saturday’s 1-0 loss to Morocco. Steve Clarke’s men battled hard and played well in patches, but they simply do not have a forward line that can cause problems for top-class defences. That being said, in Scott McTominay and John McGinn, they do possess a high-class midfield capable of scoring big goals, so Brazil will have to be wary of their threat. The big decision for Clarke is whether to stick with the slightly defensive starting lineup he used against Morocco, or to try to play on the front foot by selecting an extra attacking player such as Ben Gannon-Doak. Given the fact that a draw will almost certainly be enough for the Scots to progress, we are expecting Clarke to resist the temptation to change tack.
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This might not be the most ambitious betting pick of the World Cup, but we simply cannot see Scotland being able to cope with Brazil’s attacking pace and flair. Vini Jnr, Cunha and co were extremely slick in the first half against Haiti, and given Scotland’s lack of pace at the back, it should be a tough evening for Grant Henley and his fellow defenders. At the other end of the field, we simply cannot see Che Adams (or whoever else may play in attack for Scotland) causing problems for Gabriel and Marquinhos. Like most World Cup betting sites, BetMGM are pricing Brazil at around -286 and we think that represents a solid and safe option.
If Brazil want to top Group C, they will need to better Morocco’s result against Haiti. In other words, they are likely to need a big win to avoid a second-place group finish and a likely second round clash with the Netherlands. Because of that, we are expecting Ancelotti to go for the jugular from the word go. That could lead to an open and potentially high scoring encounter, which makes the odds of -128 on the game having at least three goals look very attractive.
After being left out of the starting eleven for the opening game against Morocco, Cunha delivered a two-goal performance against Haiti that will have secured his starting place for Wednesday’s group finale. Aside from his goals, Cunha was lively throughout, and his movement caused headaches for the Haitian defence all evening. With Vini Jnr, Martinelli and Paquetá providing the ammunition, Cunha seems likely to get plenty of chances to add to his goal tally.
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