It is a three-way battle for the playoff spot in Group J of the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualifiers with two matches left to play. Romania are in pole position to secure that spot and will be keen to fend off the chasing pack when they host Iceland on Thursday.
Germany have already secured top spot in Group J so the rest of the teams are vying for one playoff spot. Romania are in a three way battle to finish second as they hold a one point lead over the chasing pack with two matches left to play.
Manager Mirel Radoi will be reasonably happy with Romania’s campaign as they have claimed four wins from their eight matches so far. One of such wins was a 1-0 victory over Armenia last time out in the qualifiers with Alexandru Mitrita’s early effort enough to secure all three points.
Romania have maintained a solid home record in the qualifiers, suffering only one defeat to group winners Germany. They have won their last two matches in front of their fans and kept clean sheets in both fixtures.
Iceland are not one of the three teams battling for the playoff spot but still have a slim chance of making it. They are five points behind Romania and must win on Thursday to give themselves a fighting chance going into the final Group game.
Although they still have a slim chance of making the playoffs, it has generally been a disappointing qualifying campaign for Iceland. Arnar Vidarsson’s men have been victorious just twice in the qualifiers and only ended a four-match winless run with a 4-0 win over bottom side Liechtenstein last time out.
Iceland’s qualifying campaign has been hampered by a poor record on their travels and they have suffered two defeats in their last three away matches. They have also found things difficult in attack, failing to score in two of their last three matches on the road.
How the bookies view it
Romania have the upper hand among the bookies with SBK offering 7/11 for a home win. An unlikely victory for Iceland is priced at 5/1 by SBK while a draw is set at odds of 16/5 by Unibet.
Head to head
Romania have a 3-1 advantage from four previous matches against Iceland. They also claimed a 2-0 victory in the reverse fixture back in September with Dennis Man and Nicolae Stanciu getting the goals.
Players to watch
Romania have multiple attacking threats with Nicolae Stanciu and Dennis Man both on target in the reverse fixture against Iceland. Paddy Power has Stanciu at 13/5 to score anytime while bet365 is offering 21/10 on Man in the same market.
Romania have not conceded in their last two home matches and with Iceland unconvincing in attack on the road, they will be confident of another shutout. Jonathan Nedelcearu and Vlad Chiriches often partner at centre-back and can guide the hosts to a clean sheet at 21/20 with BoyleSports.
Anything else catch the eye?
Given Romania’s defensive record at home and with Iceland struggling in attack, BTTS NO could be considered at 5/6 with BetVictor. The Romanians could also be tipped to earn a win to nil at 31/20 with BetVictor.
A -1 handicap for the Romania team could be on the cards at 9/5 with Betfred while they could also be picked as the only team to score at 7/5 with bet365.
This World Cup match between Romania and Iceland will be played on Nov 11, 2021 and kick off at 19:45. Check below for our tipsters best Romania vs Iceland prediction. You may also visit our dedicated betting previews section for the most up to date previews.