Ukraine go in search of their first win in the 2022 World Cup qualifiers as they travel to the Helsinki Olympic Stadium for a Group D clash with Finland. The Finns have a fine record at home and can hold out for a point against Ukraine.
Finland are coming off a 2-0 defeat to France in their previous qualifying fixture. They spent much of the encounter trying to keep out the French attack and barely mustered a threat at the other end of the pitch, finishing with just one attempt on target.
It was the first defeat in the qualifiers for Finland, although they have also claimed just one victory in their four matches. Markku Kanerva's men are the draw specialists of the qualifiers having been held to three stalemates in Group D.
Finland have also struggled to keep things tight at the back and have kept just one clean sheet in their four matches in the qualifiers.
Ukraine were held to a 1-1 draw by Czech Republic last time out in the qualifiers. They took an early lead through Viktor Kornienko and looked to be on the verge of claiming their first victory before conceding the equaliser deep into added time.
As it stands, Ukraine are still winless in Group D, although all five of their matches have ended in draws. They are currently second on the table and with France in control of the Group, they may have to settle for a place in the playoff.
Ukraine have struggled with defensive problems throughout the qualifiers and have let leads slip in their last four matches. They are also without a clean sheet in all five of their fixtures in the qualifiers.
How the bookies view it
Ukraine have the edge among the bookies and are priced at 13/10 to win by betfair. Unibet is offering 13/5 for a Finland victory while a draw is set at odds of 11/5 by SBK.
Head to head
Ukraine have never lost to Finland with two wins and a draw from three previous matches. Both teams played out a 1-1 draw in the reverse fixture back in March.
Players to watch
Joel Pohjanpalo has been among the goals for Finland lately and scored the only goal against Kazakhstan in their last home fixture. The striker is priced at 3/1 by bet365 to find the net on Saturday.
Roman Yaremchuk is set to lead the line for Ukraine and will be the one to watch on Saturday. The striker’s pace and power is likely to pose a threat for Finland and he could be backed to score anytime at 43/20 with Unibet.
Anything else catch the eye?
There have been BTTS in the last two matches between Finland and Ukraine and that run is likely to continue at 66/67 with SBK. The Ukrainians saw over 3.5 goals in their last away fixture and could be set for a repeat at 19/5 with BetVictor while over 2.5 goals is priced at 11/8 by SBK.
Ukraine have taken the lead in their last four matches and can be tipped to score first at 87/100 with SpreadEX.
This World Cup match between Finland and Ukraine will be played on Oct 9, 2021 and kick off at 17:00. Check below for our tipsters best Finland vs Ukraine prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
