Handicap Bets for Thursday's International Fixtures - 02/09/21

A defeat in the Euro 2020 final to Italy clouded over an otherwise perfect tournament for the Three Lions, with the return of international football a chance to kick on once more and show the world they are most definitely contenders for silverware.

Galvanizing the feel-good factor of fans will be key to Gareth Southgate’s approach to World Cup qualifying, but a tricky trip to Budapest to face Hungary could throw up an early headache for the England boss. Hungary showed their hand with a number of impressive performances in the ‘group of death’ and they’ll be keen to get something from this fixture.

Despite the quality the opposition hold, England should still have too much for Hungary and a -2 victory for the Three Lions comes in at 7/2.

It’s been a mixed start to World Cup qualifying for the Czech Republic, who enter the first international break of the 2021/22 season second in Group E. After a convincing 6-2 win over Estonia in their first fixture, the Czechs followed it up with an impressive point against Belgium, before suffering a frustrating 1-0 loss to Wales.

After a decent Euro 2020 campaign where Jaroslav Šilhavy’s side reached the quarter-finals, the Czech Republic should return to winning ways when minnows Belarus travel to Prague. The Eastern European nation shipped eight without return when they played Belgium earlier in the year, making a shock result against the Czechs an unlikely prospect.

Thomas Soucek, Patrik Schick and Adam Hložek are just a few players capable of threatening the Belarussian defence, with a Czech Republic -3 handicap win priced at 9/2.

Life is good for Roberto Mancini and Italy at the moment, with the Azzurri returning to World Cup qualifying action less than two months after being crowned European champions for a second time.

Bulgaria represents the first opponents for Mancini’s men since lifting the trophy at Wembley in July and Italy should be confident of picking up another victory in Group C, as they’ve lost just one match against the Eastern European nation since the last time they won the European Championships all the way back in 1968.

Remarkably, Italy hasn’t beaten Bulgaria by a three-goal margin since September 1989, with the bookies pricing an Azzurri -3 win at 2/1

Many tipped Belgium for European Championship glory, yet Roberto Martinez’s side failed to make it past the quarter-finals stage, with some questioning whether that spelled the end for their golden generation.

Despite their summer woes, the Red Devils remain firm favourites to top their World Cup qualifying group and Estonia are the unfortunate opponents for Belgium’s first post-Euros match. Whilst they may be without Kevin De Bruyne to light up their midfield, talisman Romelu Lukaku has started the season in strong form, with breakout star Jérémy Doku also likely to feature.

Looking to add to their 12 goals already in qualifying, don’t look past a high-scoring game with a Belgium -5 handicap priced at 13/2.

After taking over from Joachim Löw at the end of the European Championships, Hansi Flick’s first job as Germany manager will be to get Die Mannschaft’s World Cup qualification campaign back on track. In their last competitive match before Euro 2020, the five-time world champions were humiliated 2-1 by minnows North Macedonia.

Currently sitting outside the qualification spots in Group J, Thursday’s trip to Liechtenstein represents the perfect opportunity for them to get back in the swing of things. Germany have never lost to their opponents, winning all four previous encounters by an aggregate scoreline of 27-1.

Flick probably couldn’t have picked an easier challenge for his first game in charge, with a Germany -5 handicap handily priced at 11/8.

By Amos Murphy