Na partly luck, partly skill, na so Slovakia take waka pass di group stage for di European Football Championship. Many people dey talk say luck still dey follow di Slovakian footballers as dem go face England for dia first knockout match for di tournament. E fit sound strange, but to meet England for dis qualifying phase match today na luck.
England waka enter di tournament for Germany as one of di two biggest favorites, alongside France. Plus, dem get di most expensive squad for di championship. But as e be, England no dey too shine, na so Slovakia dey get luck. Di English players dey play like say dem belong for third tier of di Nations League.
E no clear how, with all di world-class players wey Gareth Southgate get, di team play still dey dull and no get creativity. England dey dominate possession for most of di game but dem no fit produce enough quality shots. For fact, for three matches, England create fewer goal-scoring opportunities pass Germany when dem play against Scotland for just di first half. Dem still score fewer goals pass di Germans for di first 45 minutes.
Another surprise be say, even with all di wahala, Gareth Southgate never change him lineup to fix di problem. Di only change wey him do na to drop Trent Alexander-Arnold for Conor Gallagher as di second defensive midfielder against Serbia. At last, even dis decision wey di head coach make no sweet di fans belle. Statistics after di first two matches show say Alexander-Arnold create di most scoring chances for him teammates. Maybe na because of dis, di match against Serbia na di only one wey England no score.
According to di media, e no too sure say England go change dia lineup, so we fit expect di same thing for di Round of 16 match against Slovakia. Wetin dis mean? Most likely, England go play safe and limit Slovakia chances to score for Jordan Pickford front. At di same time, dem go depend on di brilliance moments from dia high-class players like Harry Kane, Jude Bellingham, Bukayo Saka, and Phil Foden. Na dis kind moments fit decide di Round of 16 match.
Wetin be Slovakia chances for dis match? Dem don already show say dem fit beat top teams, as dem don overcome Belgium. Dia victory for di first group match na 1-0 even though dem create xG of 0.58. On di other hand, Belgium create goal-scoring chances reach nearly 2 goals, not counting Romelu Lukaku two disallowed goals. At di end, dis victory na luck, as di group standings show say if Romania and Slovakia end dia last match draw, both teams go qualify. So, with luck, dem reach di Round of 16.
Slovakia luck fit continue? According to bookmakers like bet365 and bWin, e no too sure. Di odds for England win for dis match na 1.4, making dem di second clearest favorite for di Round of 16. Di odds for draw na 4.33, and Slovakia chances of victory na 9. In other words, England chances na 75 percent, draw na around 20 percent, and Slovakia chances dey around 5 percent.
But, make nobody think say dis match go easy for di favorite. Everything so far dey suggest say e fit lean go Slovakia side. Whether dis go continue, na we go see, but personally, I believe say safe bet dey dis match. No be to bet on di victory of any team but rather say England no go concede goal for regular time. Di odds for dis no too high – bet365 dey offer 1.66. If you dey find slightly higher odds, you fit try England to win to nil, wey offer odds of 1.9.
Di odds for exact scores and for England to win 1-0 or 2-0 na 5.5 and 6, respectively. To combine dis two odds give total bet of 2.75, which no be bad option for betting. But at di end, we must consider say di Round of 16 of di European Football Championship dey offer many better betting options pass match wey favorite dey play poorly and outsider dey enjoy smooth ride. Personally, I go avoid dis match.
