Turkey – Spain

European champions will defeat their direct rivals away from home

The qualifying matches for the World Cup in Group E began on Thursday. This quartet looks very competitive due to the improved level of the Georgian national team, as well as the determination and healthy disregard for the leaders of world football shown by the Turkish team. Bulgaria appears to be the underdog in this company, which was partially confirmed in the match on the first matchday. Spain has risen to become the European champion in recent years. Undoubtedly, the "Red Fury" is setting maximum level goals - not just to qualify for the World Cup in North America, but to win it. The Turkish national team has finished third in major national tournaments twice in the 21st century. However, the last such success for Turkish footballers was in the summer of 2008, meaning that not all young fans remember it. The match in Turkey looks like a battle of rivals fighting for first place which gives the right to go directly to the World Cup. Bookmakers have made the guests the favourites for the upcoming encounter, offering odds of 1.55 on their victory. Turkey's performances at EURO 2024 confirmed that this team is capable of competing with good opponents on the continent. Even the lost quarter-final match against the Netherlands left a positive impression of the Turkish players' performance. In the subsequent Nations League after the continental championship, Turkey earned the right to compete in League A. The first match of the current qualifying stage played by Montella's team was in Tbilisi, where at the beginning of the second half they were leading the Georgian team 3-0. The Turks, however, did not avoid stress. Davitashvili and Kvaratskhelia reduced the deficit to a minimum, and Turkey finished the match with ten players due to Yilmaz's red card. Spain, after a triumphant European Championship, narrowly missed defending their title in the Nations League. However, in the penalty shootout of the final match, the Portuguese players were more accurate. Spain started their qualifying campaign in Sofia, where Bulgaria allowed them to shoot on target twelve times. The players of the "Red Fury" scored three unanswered goals and are heading to the city of Konya for an equally convincing victory. Let’s place a bet that the guests will win the match.