Azerbaijan vs Norway
European Qualifiers – 2018 World Cup
Date: Saturday; 8th October 2016
Kick-off: 17:00 UK
Venue: Olympic Stadium, Baku.
Azerbaijan came on top against San Marino by a narrow 1-0 margin in the battle of minnows in Group C on the opening day of the European leg of World Cup Qualifiers. However, this is only their second win in a qualifier since the beginning of calendar year 2014. The previous win was against another lower ranked nation Moldova.
Norway on the other hand were thrashed 3-0 at home by defending World Cup Champions Germany in the group opener. The result must be expected, but their overall performance was also disappointing after failing to register a single shot on goal. The Norwegians are in a tough group alongside Czech Republic and a much improved Northern Ireland. Therefore, the room for error is pretty narrow and Azerbaijan are the kind of teams that they can’t afford to drop points against.
Azerbaijan vs Norway: Head-to-Head Stats
The have met for a total of 4 times in qualification tournaments and Norway are unbeaten with 3 wins and a draw. Interestingly, Azerbaijan have failed to score in each of the four occasions.
Both teams were grouped together for the 2016 edition of Euro qualifiers. Norway earned a 1-0 win at Azerbaijan, while were surprisingly held to a goal-less draw in the return leg at home.
Azerbaijan vs Norway: Prediction
Norway are a side that missed out on Euro 2016 after losing out in the final round of play-off. Therefore they have the quality and they must start to use it to produce results in the football field. They are currently coming on the back of a 3 match losing streak and have only won twice in their last 10 matches. While Azerbaijan are a side that often fails against higher ranked sides and this is a perfect opportunity for Norway to get back to winning ways.
Azerbaijan vs Norway: Betting Tips
- Norway to win at 1.90 (9/10)
- Under 2.5 goals at 1.57 (4/7).
