Albania vs Portugal Betting Tips

Albania did well to earn a 0-0 draw with Denmark in Friday night while withstanding a barrage of shots. The draw keeps them in contention to earn an unexpected Euro 2016 place, that campaign started when they stole a surprise 1-0 victory over Portugal. They meet the top of the group again on Monday night, playing host with a chance to go top with another win.

There’s no mystery as to how Albania will approach this game. They’ll line up three midfielders in front of a back four and they’ll get men behind the ball, work hard on set pieces and hope to exploit a little pace on the counter attack. They did it against the Danes and somehow managed to keep them out, they’ll probably need to play a little better on Monday.

It’ll be interesting to see how Portugal approaches this game. There’s a temptation for a high quality team to enjoy ball possession a little too much. They might be better off going for the kill early and hoping to force a change of approach from Albania.

Portugal are top of Group I, but their qualifying campaign hasn’t been that impressive. They have just seven goals in six games and haven’t impressed in many of the games. There’s a feeling that they are just a little overdependent on Cristiano Ronaldo. This squad and its talent needs to come together before the major tournament in the summer (assuming they qualify).

Three Reasons for Betting Tips

1. Albania’s run will end

They sat back and absorbed the pressure against Denmark. It’s tough to do that two games in a row, mentally and physically. Portugal are also a team coming in for revenge and there will be no surprises for them.

2. Cristiano Ronaldo

He hasn’t quite electrified during this qualifying campaign. The expectations are tough, but he is a once in a generation talent and we just have a feeling that he’ll put something together in this game, whether it’s controlling the game or a moment of talent. He’s the x-factor that Albania can’t account for.

3. Portugal needs to win

They need to win to take control of Group I and they need it for team confidence if they are going to offer any sort of serious threat in the major tournament.