Belgium has already qualified for the World Cup in Russia in 2018, but Bosnia and Herzegovina still have everything to play for when they host the Group H leaders on Saturday.
What To Know About Belgium
Belgium has seven wins and a draw in eight games after a 9-0 thrashing of Gibraltar at home, and then they won 2-1 in Greece. Romelu Lukaku has 10 goals in qualifying and has been excellent for Manchester United since moving from Everton, but he has an ankle problem and since he doesn’t need to play this game, he probably shouldn’t. Dries Mertens has five goals and could get the chance to go for more, along with Michy Batshuayi, who could get a starting chance for Chelsea with Alvaro Morata injured. This match is all about how Belgium lines up and if they don’t need to take any unnecessary risks with players like Lukaku, Eden Hazard and Kevin De Bruyne, they shouldn’t.
What To Know About Bosnia and Herzegovina
Meanwhile, Bosnia and Herzegovina fell 3-2 in Cyprus and then won 4-0 at home over Gibraltar to sit second in Group H, eight points behind Belgium, but only one point ahead of Greece and four points ahead of Cyprus. Bosnia and Herzegovina also sits in the final playoff spot, which goes to the second-place teams in each group, and that is a spot they could lose to Greece or Cyprus. Edin Dzeko is their star man as he has five goals, but he also has eight goals in eight games for Roma this season and Bosnia and Herzegovina will be counting on him to fire them to the next stage of qualifying. Also, keep an eye out for Vedad Ibisevic has three goals and if Belgium pays too much attention to Dzeko, he can step up. These two players are Bosnia and Herzegovina’s all-time leading scorers, combining for 80 goals in 167 combined games, and they could be dangerous for Belgium.
Outlook
Belgium is favored away from home at +155, while Bosnia and Herzegovina are rated at +180 and a draw comes in at +260. These two have played seven matches with each winning three and drawing one. Belgium won 4-0 in October 2016 at home, but they could have a very different lineup when they come onto the pitch on Saturday. They have the luxury of resting players as they have already qualified, so that is something to take into account. Bosnia and Herzegovina will have all of their best players on the pitch and the crowd will be behind them, so this is a game that they definitely could win, which would be a huge boost. Bosnia and Herzegovina have three wins and a draw at home with 12 goals scored and they have yet to concede a goal at home, so they’ll be ready. It’ll be interesting to see how Belgium lines up and that is the key to that game because if they come out with their top players, they have the edge. If not, the edge goes to the home team.
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