The Acca Scout from oddschecker finds value bets for the 2022 World Cup fixtures, featuring key stats, offers & best of the boosts.
- BEST OF THE BOOSTS: England to win vs Iran @ EVENS (Was 2/7)
- TODAY'S BIG TEAM PREVIEW: Brazil team preview from Ranks FC
14:40 Friday
Who will win the (not so) Golden Ball?
None of the last six Golden Ball winners played for the winning team, with Brazil's Romario the last double winner in 1994. England to win the World Cup, with captain Harry Kane getting the Golden Ball is a best price 188/1 (worst price 117/1).
12:10 Friday
Quick start key to Golden Boot success
14 of last 17 winners of the World Cup Golden Boot (including shared winners) reached at least the semi-finals, with 13 of those scoring at least two in the group stage.
09:50 Friday
Brazil ready to continue Group Stage run
Brazil have topped the group at every World Cup they've been to since 1978, but where is the value in Group G outside of the 4/1 tournament favourites?
Find out what Raj Chohan and Mark O'Haire had to say on the Betting Show.
13:25 Thursday
Morocco to spring a surprise in Group F
Sevilla's Bounou in goal, Saiss at centre-back, Aguerd from West Ham, top full-backs in Mazraoui (Bayern) and Hakimi (PSG). Are Morocco the team to watch from Group F?
12:30 Thursday
Older players fare better in the Golden Ball race
Four of the last five Golden Ball winners have been aged 30 or over, as revealed by Mark O'Haire in the oddschecker World Cup Betting Show.
35-year-old Lionel Messi leads the market for the 2022 World Cup at best price 8/1 (13/2 worst price), while second favourite Neymar, 30, is 12/1 best (8/1 worst).
09:38 Thursday
Feast or famine for France
It’s been feast or famine for France, with Les Bleus having either reached the semi-finals or been eliminated at the group stage in 11 of their last 13 tournaments.
Speaking on the oddschecker World Cup Betting Show, football betting analyst Mark O'Haire said this about their Group D opponents Denmark:
“There might not be a huge amount of stars in the Denmark squad but they're absolutely cohesive and they know exactly what they're doing. They've got a head coach who is incredibly adaptable, while they've turned over France home and away this year so they know how to beat the big guns.
“Centre forward is always the doubt with Denmark but I think they had 18 different goalscorers in qualifying which is remarkable really. As an outright dark horse you're probably getting about 33/1, which is a bit short. Smart people got on them at 100/1 12 months ago!
“Instead, I'm looking at them at 3/1 to win the group. The World Cup winning midfield for France has been ripped up - Kante and Pogba are big shoes to fill. If you win the group, you avoid Argentina in the last 16 so the match between the top two is huge."
15:56 Wednesday
Group C rivals Poles apart in attacking firepower
Raj Chohan: "It's a big blow for Mexico to lose Jesus Corona and Raul Jimenez isn't the same player so I'm not sure they've got the firepower. Poland, by contrast, have Robert Lewandowski (50/1 for the Golden Boot), Arek Milik and Piotr Zieliński - a key man in Napoli's rise this season under Spalletti. I fancy them to have a bit more in the final third than Mexico and take that second spot."
Click here for Group C analysis from Raj, Mark O'Haire & Steven McInerney.
14:23 Wednesday
Kane to upset the Golden Boot outsider trend?
Only two favourites have won or even placed in the top goalscorer market since 1994. The average price of the winner since that year is 56/1 - can 10/1 pre-tournament favourite Harry Kane (a 16/1 winner in Russia four years ago) retain the award?
11:48 Wednesday
Stick with Senegal for Group A qualification
Mark O’Haire is sticking with Senegal to qualify from World Cup Group A despite the injury to Sadio Mane. Find out why HERE or watch the video below.
11:00 Wednesday
Iran to qualify from awkward group for England
Speaking exclusively on the oddschecker World Cup Betting Show, Mark O’Haire agreed with host Ali Maxwell’s assertion that Group B will be low-scoring.
He said: “It is a low margin group which lends itself to underdog victories. I think Iran have the best coach in Carlos Queiroz. If you go back four years they were in a group with Spain and Portugal and Mehdi Taremi missed an opportunity in the last minute which would have seen them win the group (instead they go out). Compared to that, this group feels much more manageable.
“I don't want to oppose England at those prices but it's definitely an awkward group. However, I do like Iran at 13/4 to qualify as the value bet."
For the Group B predictions article in full, click HERE.
11:57 Tuesday
Morata the main man up top for Spain
Alvaro Morata scored the first and last goals of Spain’s World Cup qualifying campaign and will be the man they look to in the big moments here.
Despite routinely facing criticism for his profligacy in front of goal, particularly during his time at Chelsea, he has managed 27 goals from 57 international appearances.
Check out the Ranks FC preview for Spain below, featuring a mention for Morata in as the team's likeliest top goalscorer. If Spain go deep in the tournament, he could be a value bet in the Golden Boot market (best price 40/1 & worst price 22/1).
11:49 Tuesday
England to improve record in World Cup openers
England have only won two of their last five opening games at World Cups, having failed to beat Sweden in 2002 (1-1), USA in 2010 (1-1) and Italy in 2014 (1-2).
Gareth Southgate's side are a best price 4/11 to start with a win against Iran at the Khalifa International Stadium on Monday (worst price 3/10).
16:25 Monday
Qatar to continue incredible home run
The hosts have never lost their opening match at the World Cup across the tournament's entire history. Yes, you read that right.
So while you might not fancy Qatar to beat Ecuador in the opener, best price 4/6 for them not to lose (Qatar-Draw Double Chance) could be the play.
14:33 Monday
Quarter-final the likeliest exit point for England?
It's widely thought that England should have no problems in winning Group B, which would put them on collision course with the runners up from Group A at the Al Bayt Stadium, Al Khor, on Sunday 4th December. Netherlands are expected to win Group A, which would leave Qatar, Senegal and Ecuador vying for second place.
On paper that seems favourable, but we think the England journey could end at the quarter-final stage, where Southgate's side are likely to run into world champions France, should Les Bleus top their group and overcome Argentina, Mexico or Poland in the last 16.
11:45 Monday
Make the most of the bookmaker offers and free bets
With the World Cup now less than a week away, oddschecker have compiled the best free bets and new customer offers ahead of the opening match in Qatar.
Keep checking back HERE for the best free bets and bookie offers throughout the World Cup.
11:43 Monday
Argentina taking a lot of late bets
Last Thursday, we told you that almost 20% of the bets on the World Cup 2022 winner through oddschecker this year had gone the way of 4/1 tournament favourites Brazil, with 16.6% for Lionel Scaloni's Argentina (11/2).
However, the last 24 hours tells a different story. During that period, Argentina have taken the most tournament winner bets (16.1%), England second most with 14.4% and Brazil only third with 13.9%.
