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Belarus v Northern Ireland
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Kick Off: Saturday 12th October at 19:45
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Competition: UEFA Nations League
Nations League C Group 3 leaders Belarus take on Northern Ireland at the ZTE-Aréna in Zalaegerszeg on Saturday evening, aiming to maintain their unbeaten start to the new UNL campaign at their opponent’s expense.
Michael O’Neill’s troops lost on their travels in Bulgaria in September (1-0) and they will have to shake off their habit of coming unstuck on the road to succeed here. Northern Ireland have lost eight of their last 11 away fixtures in all competitions.
⭐ Belarus v Northern Ireland Best Bets
Belarus are the early pace-setters in Nations League C Group 3 thanks to a haul of four points from two games, though the Belarusians snapped a six-game goalless run with their narrow 1-0 win over Luxembourg last month and Carlos Alos’s side have failed to register in eight of their last 12 matches overall.
Northern Ireland’s fixtures are also routinely low on action and just one team managed to register in 13 of their last 16 assignments. Margins are likely to be similarly slim when the Green Army visit Zalaegerszeg. Northern Ireland won 1-0 when they last played Belarus (June 2019) and a similar outcome looks possible here. A stake on BTTS – no offers plenty of value for what should be a low-scoring affair.
🔍 Belarus v Northern Ireland Players to Watch
🔴 Dmitry Antilevsky
Dmitry Antilevsky has been impressively accurate from his position as the furthest left forward in Belarus’ front three and the 27-year-old managed to land a shot on target in each of his country’s first two Nations League tests against Bulgaria and Luxembourg.
Indeed, Antilevsky managed to get an effort on target in each of his last five competitive starts for Belarus despite racking up a modest eight attempts at goal in total across the same appearances. Antilevsky doesn’t need much of a sniff to threaten and he offers superb value to find his range at least once again against Northern Ireland.
⚪ Conor Bradley
Liverpool starlet Conor Bradley is undoubtedly Northern Ireland’s star and the 21-year-old, who has scored three times in six appearances for his country since the turn of the year, plays with enough thrust down the right flank to hurt Belarus on Saturday.
Bradley has been averaging 2.50 shots per 90 minutes for Northern Ireland since the start of the new Nations League campaign and the versatile performer, who plays a more advanced role for his country than he does for Liverpool, is backed to clock at least two attempts again here.
📂 Belarus v Northern Ireland Cheat Sheet
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💻 Belarus v Northern Ireland Form and Tactics
Belarus fall into the international minnow category and Spanish Head Coach Carlos Arlos sets them up accordingly, with defensive discipline and risk-averse tactical strategies the order of the day. Setting up in a rigid 3-4-3 formation, Belarus can be robust at the back at their best and they’ve been conceding just 12.0 shots per 90 in the Nations League so far.
Indeed, they’ve conceded only 14 times in 12 matches since Arlos’s appointment in August last year and they should be tough to break down again on Saturday. Belarus have been fouling at a rate of 15.0 times per 90 minutes in the current Nations League campaign and they tend to do a lot of their dirty work in midfield.
There are similarities between Belarus and Northern Ireland in terms of tactical approach and performance. Northern Ireland manager Michael O’Neill also favours a three-man defence, while his team have been averaging a modest 11.0 shots per 90 in the UNL compared to Belarus’ 10.50.
Northern Ireland have been fouled 17.50 times per 90 so far, making them one of the Nations League’s most targeted outfits. Northern Ireland’s 1-0 loss to Bulgaria last month was just their second defeat in seven assignments during a run that featured wins over Scotland and Denmark. Fixtures involving the Green Army are rarely goal-laden and 12 of their last 16 fixtures in all competitions have featured under 2.5 goals.
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🏁 Belarus v Northern Ireland Ref Watch
- Referee: Henrik Nalbandyan
- Henrik Nalbandyan brandished a massive 10 cards in his last game (Ararat v Urartu, Armenian Premier League).
- Nalbandyan handed out five cards when he officiated over Israel U21s clash with Germany’s U21s in September.
- Nalbandyan has been in charge of five international matches in 2024 (U19 and U21 fixtures included). Those games all featured at least five cards.
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* I recommend waiting for confirmed team line-ups before placing any bets.
* All odds displayed correct at the time of publishing.
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