2018 World Cup Betting Predictions: Egypt vs. Saudi Arabia Odds
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Jeremy Perry
Matchday 3 of the 2018 FIFA World Cup begins on Monday morning with the conclusion of Group A. Even though they are not moving on, expect both of these teams to play at their very highest level as they attempt to end their tournaments on a high note by salvaging a win.
2018 World Cup: Saudi Arabia vs. Egypt Betting Analysis
After finishing second in its World Cup qualification group, the actual tournament has been a major disappointment for Saudi Arabia with the worst goal differential at the event so far.
The disappointment feels just as great for an Egypt side that had high hopes after finishing atop its group in qualifying. Following a close loss to Uruguay in its opener, Egypt was completely outclassed by Russia in its second group stage match. Now both teams will attempt to avoid going winless at the World Cup.
Saudi Arabia
Saudi Arabia deserves some credit for battling hard with Uruguay before settling for a 1-0 loss in its second match. After being blown out 5-0 versus Russia and dealing with a scary incident in which the team’s plane caught fire in the air following the game, it would have been easy for Saudi Arabia to suffer a letdown on the pitch. However, Saudi Arabia bounced back with a much better effort than what we saw in its opener and made things very difficult on the South American side. The biggest issue for Saudi Arabia has been the lack of class up front as they have struggled to create chances at the offensive end of the pitch.
Saudi Arabia won 53-percent possession versus Uruguay but finished with only three shots on target and eight shots in total. Fahad Al-Mullawad, Salem Al-Sahlawi and Hatan Bahbir will need to break through up front in order for this team to finally break through with a win versus Egypt. However, considering what we have seen from this side so far in the tournament, it will be difficult to trust the Saudi Arabia offense to find the back of the net against an Egypt side that has underachieved to this point.
Egypt
Egypt needed at least a point against Russia to keep its hopes of advancing to the Round of 16 alive and even then they wouldn’t be guaranteed a chance to move on. None of that matters now following a 3-1 loss in which they looked like a complete mess at their own end of the pitch. A bizarre own goal opened the scoring for Russia and it took two more goals before Egypt responded with one of its own.
Meanwhile, Mohamed Salah played for the first time since suffering a shoulder injury in the Champions League Final but didn’t look particularly dangerous. Will it be a different story in Egypt’s final match of the tournament? It’s hard to imagine this side not delivering a better effort in the finale but considering the fight Saudi Arabia put up against Uruguay it’s hard to completely dismiss them heading into this game. Salah gives this team a slight edge and that should be the difference as they earn the win.