After delivering a winning selection on Saturday, SlipsTips shares a Bet Builder ahead of Spain's friendly fixture with Iraq.
Spain vs Iraq, Thursday (20:00)
Spain fulfil the first of two pre-World Cup warm-up fixtures when they welcome Iraq to the Estadio Riazor on Thursday night.
The reigning European champions head into the summer showpiece as the bookmakers' favourites to claim global glory, available at best odds of 5/1 with bet365.
Iraq will also be present at the forthcoming World Cup, but they could hardly have asked for a more difficult draw, having been placed in Group I alongside France, Norway, and Senegal.
Spain Win to Nil
For the first leg of my Bet Builder Double, I'm backing Spain to win to nil. Luis de la Fuente's side were a well-oiled machine throughout World Cup qualification, particularly from a defensive standpoint, posting clean sheets in each of their five victories – among them home wins over Georgia and Bulgaria, and a 6-0 trouncing of Turkey away from home. The case is strengthened further by a 3-0 friendly win over Serbia back in March.
Iraq have exceeded expectations in reaching the World Cup, but they are sorely lacking in attacking quality. The Lions of Mesopotamia mustered just 10 goals from their last 12 group stage qualifying matches.
Spain Half Time/Full Time
I'll conclude the double by siding with Spain in the half-time/full-time market.
La Roja are expected to field a strong starting XI before making changes as this game progresses – which is reason enough to fancy them to lead at the interval and see the job out after the break. Even more encouraging is the fact that Spain were winning at both half-time and full-time in each of their five qualifying victories, a trend that also held true in their aforementioned friendly win over Serbia earlier in the year.
With all of that in mind, combining the star-studded Spanish to win to nil alongside them in the half-time/full-time market holds plenty of appeal at value odds of 4/5 with bet365.
Recommended Bet
- Spain Win to Nil
- Spain Half Time/Full Time
- Bet Builder – 4/5 (bet365)
Grant Heaney, aka SlipsTips, is a Freelance Football and Darts Writer with over six years experience. Grant has written football and darts betting content for some of the biggest betting websites and newspapers in the UK. He is a Falkirk season ticket holder and avid watcher of football and darts, whether it be UK-based or further afield. You can find all of his tips on X @SlipsTips
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