Given the current state of affairs in Group F, a full-blooded showing from both sides is to be expected in Hamburg on Wednesday night, making over 4.5 cards an appealing starting point at 1.7.

While the Lions don’t tend to be involved in bad-tempered games, their stalemate with Georgia on Saturday featured nine yellow cards, five of which were flashed in the direction of Czech players. It’s also worth noting that a red card was issued in two of the Czech Republic’s final four Euro 2024 qualifying matches.

As for Turkey, they are no strangers to hard-hitting contests, with the Crescent Stars’ matches during Euro 2024 qualifying averaging 6.63 cards per 90 minutes. What’s more, across their last eight competitive matches, Turkey have received a minimum of two bookings. Last time out, Vincenzo Montella’s men were shown three yellow cards in comparison to Portugal’s two, and we should see similar numbers if not more at the Volksparkstadion on Wednesday night.

With a bone-crunching contest anticipated, one of several players who stands out to commit a foul is Czech Republic defender Tomas Holes. The Slavia Prague defender committed two fouls during the Czechs’ 2-1 win defeat to Portugal and then tackled himself into trouble once against Georgia, picking up a yellow card in the process.

While Holes was not committing fouls with the same regularity during Euro 2024 qualifying, he was being reprimanded on a regular basis during the most recent domestic season. Holes’ fouls per-90 tally in the Czech top-flight this term sat at 0.73, a figure that increased significantly to 1.45 when appearing in the Europa League. Given the pace and flair that Turkey possess in forward areas, a solitary Holes foul is an appealing option.

Hakan Calhanoglu will lead his country into battle on Wednesday night. The Crescent Stars captain has committed a combined total of four fouls at Euro 2024, falling foul of the referee twice in each of his two respective outings to date.

Calhanoglu was also a serial offender during Inter Milan’s title-winning campaign, with the Turkish midfielder averaging 1.47 fouls per-game during the most recent Serie A season.

The Turkish maestro was also booked nine times across all competitions for Inter Milan last season, not to mention he has already had his name taken once at Euro 2024.

In a game of this magnitude, a minimum of one Calhanoglu foul makes plenty of sense.

Turkey’s Kerem Akturkoglu is a regular shot-taker for both club and country. The Galatasaray winger has registered two on-target efforts across his two appearances at Euro 2024, one of which hit the back of the net.

In the lead up to this summer’s showpiece, Akturkoglu was averaging 0.88 shots on target during the Crescent Stars qualifying campaign.

His shot on target figures are even more impressive at club level, with the 25-year-old averaging 1.01 shots on target per 90 during the most recent Turkish top-flight season. Thus, the 1.83 for 1+ shot on target here looks overpriced.

With tensions and tempers expected to be strained on Wednesday night, Turkey look worth backing to collect three or more cards. The Crescent Stars, who will be roared on by passionate Turkish support, were receiving an average of 3.38 cards per-game during qualifying.

While Vincenzo Montella’s men picked up just two cards in their Group F curtain-raiser with Georgia, they totted up a trio of cautions in their 3-0 defeat to Portugal.

That means Turkey have been shown three or more cards in six of their last seven competitive contests, making a repeat here an eye-catching option at 2.05.

Hakan Calhanoglu has committed exactly two fouls in each of Turkey’s opening two games of Euro 2024 and he looks a great value option to do so again on Wednesday night. The midfield battleground will be intense during this make-or-break clash, and the Crescent Stars skipper will be in the thick of the action.

In a Serie A season where Inter Milan scooped the Scudetto with room to spare, Calhanoglu still managed to commit multiple fouls in 11 of his 32 appearances, clocking up 3+ fouls in six of those matches.

With so much riding on this game for both nations, another couple of Calhanoglu fouls is too big to ignore at this price.