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Wales vs North Macedonia prediction: Red Lions to face down the Red Wall
Follow our football betting tips as Wales host North Macedonia in a must-win World Cup qualifier
Wales vs North Macedonia betting tips
- Draw - 14/5 Bet365
- Harry Wilson to score at any time - 5/2 Boyle Sports
Wales know a win against North Macedonia on Tuesday will see them finish second in Group J and secure home advantage for the World Cup play-offs next March (7:45 pm, BBC Three & BBC iPlayer).
Craig Bellamy’s side sit level on 13 points with tonight’s opponents and in theory either side could still win the group ahead of Belgium, although that would require a winless Liechtenstein side pulling off a shock win in Liege.
A draw would see the visitors take second place, by virtue of their superior goal difference, helped largely by their 8-0 aggregate with over Liechtenstein, but Wales are the favourites on betting sites to finish in the top two at odds of 13/20.
Even if Wales don’t get the right result at the Cardiff City Stadium, they are guaranteed a play-off place as one of the Uefa Nations League group winners, but that route is fraught with danger.
A win tonight would secure home advantage for the semi-finals of the play-offs. However, any other result and Wales would go in Thursday’s play-off draw as one of the lowest ranked seeds, leading to an away semi-final, potentially against one of Europe’s bigger hitters.
North Macedonia are also guaranteed to be in the play-off draw courtesy of winning their Nations League group. Blagoja Milevski’s side are currently ranked 65th in the world, 31 places below Wales, but have yet to lose a game this calendar year and may prove a tough nut to crack.
Wales vs North Macedonia preview: Wales leaning on Cardiff crowd
Wales have been less than impressive for large parts of this campaign, and after only managing a 1-0 win over Liechtenstein on Saturday, they will need to be much improved against North Macedonia.
Jordan James scored the only goal of the game against the side ranked 206th in the world, but he will miss Tuesday’s game due to suspension, along with captain Ethan Ampadu.
When the two sides met back in March, all the action happened in added time as Bojan Miovski gave the home side the lead, only for David Brookes to equalise five minutes later in the 96th minute to grab what has proved to be a vital point.
That was only the third time the two sides had ever met, with the previous two games producing one win for each nation both the draw in Skopje.
Before Saturday’s win over Liechtenstein, Wales lost three straight matches against England, Canada and Belgium, so victory won’t be easy, especially against the side with the best defensive record in the group.
The visitors are unbeaten in seven games and have yet to concede an away goal in this campaign, while they’ve only shipped three goals in total. The Red Lions are likely to lean heavily on that defensive resilience to see them through a game they are significant underdogs to win on football betting sites.
Bookmakers clearly expect Wales to be lifted by the passionate home crowd in Cardiff, as they have been many times before. However, recent performances haven’t been good and the absence of some key players in midfield may contribute to Wales coming up short in the quest for a win.
Wales vs North Macedonia prediction 1: Draw - 14/5 Bet365
Wilson to shine on his return
If Harry Wilson plays well, then it usually means Wales plays well, and he is likely to go straight back into the starting lineup after missing the last match due to suspension.
The Fulham midfielder has 14 goals for his country, which is the highest of any member of the squad, and he is likely to provide the biggest threat.
He has scored just two goals for the Cottagers so far this season, but he has two in his last six appearances for his country, scoring against Belgium and Liechtenstein.
He’s 15/2 on some football betting apps to open the scoring but we’ll happily take the shorter football odds on him netting at any stage.
Wales vs North Macedonia prediction 2: Wilson to score at any time - 5/2 Boyle Sports
Wales vs North Macedonia predicted line-ups
Wales: Darlow; Williams, Rodon, Lawlor, Dasilva; Sheehan; Johnson, Wilson, Brooks, D. James; Harris
North Macedonia: Dimitrievski; Ilievski, Serafimov, Stojchevski, Ashkovski; Kostadinov, Alimi, Bardhi; Ristovski, Trajkovski, Churlinov
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