Slovakia vs Hungary Predictions

This Thursday’s match comes from Group E of Euro 2020 Qualifying. Hungary are hoping to reach the Finals again having successfully made it to France in 2016. Slovakia were also at that competition, only the second time they’d qualified for a major tournament as an independent nation. The expansion of the Euros to 24 teams has clearly benefited both nations, however they will have a much harder time making it this time around.

No side in this group was able to make the play-offs via the UEFA Nations League. Therefore the battle for the top two qualification places will be intense and these are the two sides who will be hoping to edge out Croatia and Wales, the two top seeds in this group. As a result this is a really big game for both sides and with home advantage, the onus is on Slovakia to try to force the tempo here.

They only won 1 of their 4 Nations League fixtures in the Autumn, however they will take heart from a 4-1 home win against Ukraine, in their final home match in that competition. Hungary were playing in a lower tier and although they won 3 of their 6 matches, they were unable to seal promotion or a shot at the play-offs, which would have been a potential backdoor into Euro 2020.

The value here looks to lie with the home team. Slovakia’s home record is a strong one. They won 80% of their home 2018 World Cup qualifiers to nil, with the exception being the narrow defeat to what was then Sam Allardyce’s England. They’ve won 7 of their 9 home games since then.

They will also have the one player on the pitch that is of proven quality at the highest level, in the shape of Marek Hamsik. They do have a strong midfield overall and while they are a bit light in strikers, they have plenty of players who can score goals in their side and they’ve not failed to net at home since that 1-0 defeat to England two and a half years ago.

Hungary meanwhile are without a win in 8 on the road, losing 6 of those games. They even lost away to Andorra in World Cup qualifying, rounding off what has been quite a decline since they made Euro 2016. They’ve only won one away game since that competition and it’s hard to see that changing here.

As a result, backing Slovakia to Win looks a solid bet here. Going for Slovakia & Over 2.5 Goals could also be worth a punt, a winning bet in 5 of their last 9 home internationals.