IT'S the dawn of a new era for Wales as they kick off their Euro 2024 qualifying campaign in Croatia without the talismanic Gareth Bale.
The World Cup in Qatar brought the curtain down on an incredible career for the former Real Madrid and Spurs star, with the 33-year-old quitting not only just international football but the entire professional game.
It looked like Bale would bow out with a bang when he fired a penalty equaliser against the USA in the first group game at Qatar 2022. But Wales were a huge disappointment in the next two games as they lost 2-0 to Iran and 3-0 to England to crash out with a whimper.
Croatia only just squeezed through their group at the finals thanks to a 0-0 draw with Belgium in the final game but they hit form in the knockout stage and floored Japan and Brazil before losing to Argentina in the semi-finals.
That proved their golden generation were still shining in their silver years and evergreen Luka Modric is on board for another qualifying campaign at the age of 37.
With the Real Madrid magician pulling the strings, Croatia will be confident of topping a Euro qualifying group that also includes Armenia, Turkey and Latvia.
It looks like a scrap between the Turks and Wales for second place and this clash with Split will show us if Dragons can still roar without Bale.
How the bookies view it
It's no surprise to see Croatia as odds-on favourites based on the form of both these sides at the World Cup. Zlatko Dalic's men are a best 8/13 with SBK while Wales are as big as 11/2 with BetVictor and the draw pays 3/1 at Betfred.
Head to head
These nations have only faced off six times and Croatia remain unbeaten, with four wins and two draws. But the Welsh can take heart that it ended in a 1-1 stalemate when these sides last faced off in Cardiff in the Euro 2020 qualifiers. That was a great game for me as Bale's equaliser brought up a full house of tips.
Players to watch
Marko Livaja should start for the Croats in his home stadium and the Hadjuk Split star has been in lethal form at club level. He has 19 goals for club and country this term and is 9/4 at Bet365 to add to that tally here.
Brennan Johnson is the most exciting player in the Welsh squad but is a fitness doubt for this one after picking up a groin injury. The best hope of a Welsh goal could come from target man Kieffer Moore and the Bournemouth striker is 4/1 at William Hill for anytime scorer.
Anything else catch the eye?
Wales lacked a cutting edge at the World Cup and their only goal in three games came from a penalty. That makes a Croatian win to nil worth a look here and it pays 6/4 at Paddy Power. Backing Dalic's side to be winning at half-time and full-time also appeals at 14/9 with SBK.
There was an average of just 3.5 corners across the two games when these sides faced off in the Euro 2020 qualifiers so it could pay to bet against a lot of flag kicks here. Bet365 price under nine corners at evens and that looks decent.
This Euro 2024 match between Croatia and Wales will be played on Mar 25, 2023 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Croatia vs Wales prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
