Plenty of games in the first round of fixtures at Euro 2024 have been pretty fiery, with referees flashing lots of cards as they try to keep order.
Here we look at which matches could give punters a bit of value in the cards betting markets in the pivotal second games of the group stage.
Why the Euro 2024 cards betting market is worth exploring?
Euro 2024 got off to an explosive start as Germany routed Scotland 5-1 and the officials played a key role, with VAR recommending a red card for Ryan Porteous' horror tackle on Ilkay Gundogan.
A few other games have also seen plenty of cards but the much-anticipated crackdown on dissent doesn't really seem to have come to pass. Refs were told to book any player other than the team captain for giving them lip but it hasn't really been enforced, although plenty of managers and coaches have been handed yellows for getting lippy.
That could change as the stakes get higher and matchday two will see plenty of teams drinking in the last chance saloon. Those who have lost heavily in their opener need a victory to stand a chance of going through so it could lead to more fiery matches.
Which Euro 2024 games could be of interest here?
Scotland vs Switzerland
Few teams have a bigger point to prove in their second outing than Scotland after their pitiful display at the Allianz Arena. Going for over 3.5 cards paid off for me that night and I was expecting most of the cards to go to Steve Clarke's boys.
Full-back Anthony Ralston came up trumps for me when he went into the book but the Scots were strangely passive and the only other player who went in the book was Porteous for that crazy red-card tackle. In the end, I was thankful to Germany for picking up two bookings as well.
There's no way the Scots will sit off Switzerland like they did against the Germans so I'm expecting Clarke's players to be more physical. That could lead to a lot of bookings and the Swiss are no shrinking violets either, having picked up two yellows in their win over Hungary.
Grant Hanley will likely deputise for the suspended Porteous in Scotland's defence and looks good at 2/1 with Bet365 to go into the book here.
Croatia vs Albania
Albania and Croatia are both looking to bounce back from opening defeats and probably need a win in this second game to stand a chance of qualifying.
I expected the Croatians to run Spain close but they crashed to a 3-0 defeat while Albania took a shock lead against Italy inside the first minute only to end up losing 2-1.
With the World Cup semi-finalists having an ageing midfield, I'd imagine the Albanians will try to press them and play a high-energy game. That could lead to a few tough tackles so try backing Albania for two or more cards.
Former Aberdeen man Ylber Ramadani will anchor their midfield and he's 21/10 to go into the book.
Slovenia vs Serbia
I was impressed by Serbia's display against England in their opener and they were unlucky to lose 1-0 having been the better team in the second half.
But the defeat means they need to go all out for a win against Slovenia, who upset the odds to hold Denmark 1-1 in their opener.
What struck me in Serbia's clash with the Three Lions was how tight their defenders got when marking, especially Petar Jovanovic and Nikola Milenkovic.
The ref was quiet lenient with both of them but if they adopt the same approach against Slovenia it could lead to cards. Jovanovic is 15/8 to go into the book while Milenkovic offers better value at 7/2.
I'm a sports journalist, football tipster and author from Dundee, who is now working in Glasgow. I've covered games at every level, from Junior football to internationals, and still love football even though it has clearly sold its soul. I've been in football tipping since 2018 with the MFT site.
