Lithuania and Bulgaria square off in a Group G clash in the 2024 European Championship qualifiers with both teams still seeking their first win of the campaign. The Lithuanians should be no match for the superior quality of Bulgaria, who are expected to have the upper hand on Thursday.
Lithuania began the qualifiers with a 2-0 defeat to Serbia in their opening fixture. They had a few attempts on goal but were generally no match for the superior quality of the Serbians, who could have won by more.
The Lithuanians are often among the weakest teams in most qualifying campaigns and as such have never made it to any major competitions. The Euro 2024 campaign appears to be going the same way as they are only second from bottom in Group G due to goal difference.
Beyond the qualifiers, Lithuania’s overall form has been woeful as they are winless in their last 11 matches across all competitions. Things are just as rough at home for Edgaras Jankauskas’ men, who are without a win in nine of their last 10 matches in front of their fans.
Bulgaria have also made a poor start to the qualifiers as they have lost their opening two matches in Group G. They suffered 1-0 home defeat in their opening fixture before falling 3-0 to Hungary on match-day two.
Those results mean Bulgaria are rooted to the bottom of the group, even below perennial whipping boys Lithuania. However, one of the most disappointing things about their campaign so far is that they have failed to register a single goal after two matches.
A small positive for Bulgaria is that they had shown some good form prior to the start of the qualifiers. Malden Krstajic’s men had won three of the previous four matches, a run that included a 1-0 victory in North Macedonia and a 2-0 triumph in Cyprus.
How the bookies view it
Bulgaria have the upper hand among the bookies and are priced at 6/5 by Coral to claim the win. Lithuania are considered outsiders at home at 14/5 by BoyleSports while a draw is set at odds od 11/5 by bet365.
Head to head
Bulgaria have claimed two wins while Lithuania have been victorious just once in three previous meetings. Both teams met during the 2022 World Cup qualifiers with the Bulgarians claiming a 1-0 victory at home while the Lithuanians ran out 3-1 winners in the reverse fixture.
Players to watch
Fedor Cernych netted a brace the last time Lithuania faced Bulgaria and could be worth keeping an eye on in Saturday’s clash. The attacker is priced at 7/2 by bet365 to get on the score sheet once again.
Kiril Despodov is considered the most dangerous attacker for Bulgaria and often leads the line for the team. The striker was on target in the last meeting with Lithuania and is priced at 21/10 by bet365 to find the net on Saturday.
Anything else catch the eye?
With Lithuania and Bulgaria without a goal in the qualifiers and desperate to get on the score sheet, an open contest could be on the cards. There were over 3.5 goals in the last meeting and a repeat is priced at 17/4 with BetVictor while over 2.5 goals is valued at 7/5 by bet365, with William Hill offering odds of 21/20 on both teams to score.
Bulgaria have more attacking quality than Lithuania and can be backed to score first at 5/6 with Paddy Power.
This Euro 2024 match between Lithuania and Bulgaria will be played on Jun 17, 2023 and kick off at 14:00. Check below for our tipsters best Lithuania vs Bulgaria prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.
