Bulgaria and Cyprus are two old acquaintances who will battle it out on the 6th of June in a can’t-miss international friendly game at the beautiful Hristo Botev Stadium in Plovdiv. The managers are likely going to experiment with their starting lineups, which does make the game a bit hard to predict.
Bulgaria come into the game having recorded some bad results recently. The Nations League match against Ireland couldn’t have ended Bulgaria’s way, as Even Ferguson and his colleagues were just too good to ignore. Bulgaria produced only two shots on target in 90 minutes of play, which is another plus in favour of our key Bulgaria vs Cyprus prediction.
The same could be said about Cyprus. Sure, the team did achieve a 2-0 World Cup Qualifiers game, but the opponent was less than unimpressive – San Marino. Immediately, Cyprus went on to lose the key game against Bosnia and Herzegovina at Bilino Polje, which means coach Apostolos Mantzios will make changes to his starting XI in order to find better performers.
How the bookies view it: Bookies like Bulgaria’s chances
The bookmakers’ belief is that Iliev’s side has the three points up for grabs, with odds priced at 13/20. In the meantime, a draw is valued at 13/5, while the visitors’ odds are even more tempting at 43/10.
Recent head to head: Bulgaria stomps all over Cyprus
Spas Delev and Kiril Despodov scored the winning goals for Bulgaria in the previous match between the two countries. The last five meetings resulted in four victories for Bulgaria and one tie. Our readers might be interested to find out that Cyprus’ last success over their bogey team came on the 10th of October, 2009.
Players to watch: Ilia Gruev
Leeds United star Ilia Gruev is one of the more interesting Bulgarian players in recent years. With his unyielding pursuit of victory, Gruev proved to be a valuable player for both club and country. The defensive midfielder had a great season, recording two assists in 23 Championship games for Leeds United.
Another player that could be interesting to follow is Ioannis Pittas. The CSKA Sofia star is aware of what he can expect from the match at Hristo Botev Stadium, as he already played there with his club.
Predicted line-ups
Pieros Sotiriou is the key player who won’t take part in this match. His absence benefits our top Bulgaria vs Cyprus prediction greatly, as the visitors needed every bit of help they could get in order to get a good result against Bulgaria.
The home side, on the other hand, doesn’t have any major injury issues to deal with, which means coach Iliev will rely on the best 11 men for the job this Friday.
Bulgaria: Vutsov, Nedyalkov, Atanasov, Petkov, Nurnberger, Despodov, Gruev, Kraev, Petkov, Krastev & Petkov
Cyprus: Mall, Kyriakou, Laifis, Sielis, Satsias, Loizou, Kousoulos, Kakoullis, Katsanos, Kosti & Pittas
Anything else catch the eye?
Surely, under 2.5 goals catches the eye, with odds priced at 13/20. There seems to be a high chance for us to see very little goalscoring action at Hristo Botev Stadium, as neither side is exactly known for their goalscoring capabilities.
Another thing you probably should pay close attention to is Bozhidar Kraev to score anytime. The former Levski (Sofia) star is undoubtedly one of Bulgaria’s finest, and it comes as no surprise that the professionals at Boylesports priced this market at an alluring 187/100.
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