Iceland and Slovakia square off in a Group J clash in the 2024 European Championship qualifiers with both teams looking to build on wins from the previous match day.
With former European champions Portugal playing in the same group and already setting the early pace, second place seems the most realistic target for the rest of the teams. Iceland are currently fourth on the standings, although a win on Saturday could move them up to second.
It has been a mixed start to the qualifiers for Iceland as they bounced back from a 3-0 defeat to Bosnia-Herzegovina in their opening fixture with a 7-0 victory over Liechtenstein. Having been away in their first two matches, manager Arnar Vidarsson will be keen to mark their homecoming with a win.
Iceland have drawn their last two home matches and will be looking to carry the performance in Iceland into Saturday’s clash. They have also been unconvincing at the back, conceding three goals across both home fixtures.
Slovakia are unbeaten in the qualifiers having claimed a draw and a win in their opening two matches. They began with a disappointing 0-0 draw with Luxembourg before goals from Robert Mak and Lukas Haraslin gave them a 2-0 victory over Bosnia-Herzegovina.
While it has been a good start to the qualifiers for Slovakia, their overall recent form has been a bit unconvincing. The win over Bosnia-Herzegovina was their first in seven matches across all competitions, with four draws in that run.
Slovakia are on the road for the first time in these qualifiers and will be looking to improve on their record away from home. Francesco Calzona's men are winless in their last two away matches, conceding four goals across both fixtures.
How the bookies view it
Slovakia have the edge among the bookies and are priced at 7/4 by BoyleSports to claim the win. A victory for Iceland is valued at 9/5 by BetVictor while a draw is set at odds of 11/5 by William Hill.
Head to head
Slovakia have a 3-1 advantage with one draw from five previous matches against Iceland. The most recent meeting between both teams was a friendly in 2015 which ended 3-1 in favour of the Slovakians.
Players to watch
Hakon Haraldsson was on target in the win over Liechtenstein and could be worth keeping an eye on for Iceland. Betfred has the forward at odds of 18/5 to get in the score sheet on Saturday.
Robert Mak often features in attack for Slovakia and could be the one to watch on Saturday. The forward was on target last time out against Bosnia-Herzegovina and is priced at 18/5 by William Hill to get on the score sheet.
Anything else catch the eye?
Iceland and Slovakia have some attacking quality and both teams could be backed to score on Saturday at 20/23 by BetVictor. The Icelanders have seen over 2.5 goals in their last three matches and a repeat is priced at 11/8 by BetVictor, who is also offering odds of 19/5 for over 3.5 goals.
With a tight encounter expected on Saturday, both teams can be set for a halftime draw at evens with bet365.
This Euro 2024 match between Iceland and Slovakia will be played on Jun 17, 2023 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Iceland vs Slovakia prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
