13 Nov 2019
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The number one FIFA-ranked team in the world, Belgium, have been utterly dominant so far in qualification. They’ve won all eight of their matches by an aggregate scoreline of 30-1, as that solitary concession came in the reverse of this fixture back in March as they ran out 3-1 winners.
The Russians have also been impressive in winning seven straight matches since their defeat in Brussels during the opening round of fixtures, but in all honesty competition of Cyprus, Scotland, Kazakhstan and San Marino is hardly opposition that should be troubling either of these two teams anyway.
Stanislav Cherchesov’s men had a very impressive World Cup last summer and have carried that good run of form forwards, winning eight of 12 home matches since the start of that tournament.
Their sole defeat over this period came against Uruguay, while they held Spain, Croatia and Sweden to stalemates over 90 minutes, and convincingly defeated the likes of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the Czech Republic and Turkey.
However, if we take a closer look at those victories, it is clear that none of those teams are anywhere near the standard of Belgium.
In fact, under current management, their performances against the best teams in the business haven’t always been to that standard.
Since Cherchesov’s first game in charge back in August 2016, Russia have lost half their 12 winless home matches versus the current top 20 according to FIFA’s World Rankings.
Fighting For Top Spot
With both sides having already qualified, we’re likely to see some rotated outfits. However, neither team are going to just give the game away seeing as the bragging rights of top spot in the group is still mathematically up for grabs.
Just three points separate the two sides, though with Belgium possessing the better head-to-head record having won the reverse fixture, as well as a superior goal difference, it’s almost certain they’ll top the group regardless.
That’s especially the case given they’re at home to Cyprus on the final day, but nonetheless, the hosts have nothing to lose by really going for it, so we can see this one being quite an open affair.
Moreover, the Red Devils will be travelling to Russia without their most capped player, Jan Vertonghen, who’s started every minute of their campaign so far. Indeed, they’ve won all 10 games with him since September last year, conceding just once across them. Meanwhile, in the four he’s missed over this period their record is a mere W2-D1-L1, leaking as many as seven strikes, including five in their solitary road trip in his absence to Switzerland.
Over 3.5 Goals
Belgium have won 10 of their 11 competitive away matches under manager Roberto Martinez, with that sole defeat the 5-2 loss to the Swiss during the Nations League, which saw them come up short in Group A2.
In fact, a common theme in their games outside of Belgium (at away or neutral venues) has been the amount of goals seen. 14 out of 21 such matches (competitive or otherwise) under Martinez have witnessed more than two goals, as nine saw four or more, and that looks like the value option.
Furthermore, the head-to-head meetings with the two current managers at the helm have finished 3-3 and 3-1 in Sochi and Brussels respectively, and we wouldn’t be surprised to see another goal fest with the attacking talent both sides possess.
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