Bosnia & Herzegovina and Finland will be aiming to keep their 2022 World Cup dream alive when they meet in a crucial Group D qualifier on Saturday. Both teams have almost identical records in the group and with little to separate them, are likely to cancel each other out.
It has not been the best qualifying campaign for Bosnia & Herzegovina as they have claimed just one win from six matches. They are currently second from bottom with seven points but still have a slim chance of qualifying, sitting just five points off the pace with two matches left to play.
Ivaylo Petev’s men have been held four times in six qualifying matches, including a 1-1 draw in Ukraine in their previous fixture.
Bosnia & Herzegovina will be without captain Edin Dzeko, who is ruled out with injury. They still possess enough quality to cope with the strikers absence with Miralem Pjanic and Smail Prevljak who have been among the goals in recent matches.
Finland’s record in Group D is evenly split with two wins and as many draws and defeats from their six matches. Sitting four points behind leaders France, they also have a fighting chance of qualifying for next year’s World Cup in Qatar.
Markku Kanerva’s men have a decent record on their travels in the qualifiers, suffering just one defeat in three away matches. They earned a 1-1 draw in Ukraine and also claimed a 2-0 victory in Kazakhstan in their previous fixture.
Teemu Pukki netted a brace in the win over Kazakhstan as Finland can often find their way to the opposition goal. However, they have been slightly unconvincing at the back lately with four goals conceded in their last three matches.
How the bookies view it
Bosnia & Herzegovina have the edge among the bookies with a home win priced at 27/25 by Unibet. SBK is offering 37/13 for a Finland victory while a draw is set at odds of 12/5 by betway.
Head to head
Bosnia & Herzegovina have a 2-1 advantage with one draw from four previous matches against Finland. That draw came in the reverse fixture as both teams battled to a 2-2 scoreline back in March.
Players to watch
In the absence of captain Edin Dzeko, Smail Prevljak will be the one to watch for Bosnia & Herzegovina. The forward has three goals in his last four qualifying matches and is priced at 49/20 by Unibet to find the net.
As always Teemu Pukki will be the one to watch for Finland having scored three goals in his last two matches in the qualifiers. The striker was also on target in the reverse fixture and is priced at 13/5 by Sport Nation to get on the score sheet on Saturday.
Anything else catch the eye?
There have been over 3.5 goals in the last two matches between Bosnia & Herzegovina and Finland and that run could be backed to continue at 7/2 with Unibet. Over 2.5 goals is priced at 27/20 with 10bet while both teams could be tipped to score at 21/20 with William Hill.
All four goals in the reverse fixture were scored after the break so the second half could be tipped as the highest scoring half at 6/5 with Paddy Power.
This World Cup match between Bosnia & Herzegovina and Finland will be played on Nov 13, 2021 and kick off at 14:00. Check below for our tipsters best Bosnia & Herzegovina vs Finland prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
