Czech Republic vs Belgium Odds & Prediction – World Cup European Qualifiers March 27

• Czech Republic and Belgium meet in Prague on Saturday, March 27, KO 3:45 pm EST
• On Matchday 1 of the UEFA World Cup qualifiers, both teams won in midweek
• We preview the game, look at the odds, and offer a best bet below

After both making winning starts to their World Cup 2022 qualifying campaigns, the Czech Republic vs Belgium takes place on Saturday in Prague – KO 3:45 pm EST – on Matchday 2 of Group E. With only the top place in the group guaranteeing a place in Qatar 2022, any dropped points could prove costly, so it promises to be an enthralling night in the Sinobo Stadium.

Read on to see the odds and our best bet for this UEFA World Cup qualifier match.

Czech Republic vs Belgium Odds

All odds taken Mar 26

Czechs in Fine Form

The Czech Republic head into this game in good shape having just won three on the spin in all competitions, and even against the team ranked number one by FIFA, manager Jaroslav Silhavy’s team side will still fancy their chances of extending that run. Their 6-2 win in Estonia on Matchday 1 was the perfect start to their Qatar 2022 campaign, made even more impressive by the fact they fell behind early on in that game.

In the end, a hat-trick from West Ham United’s Tomas Soucek and goals from Patrik Schick, Antonin Barak, and Jakub Janktonow were more than enough to overcome the Estonians, and with Wales to come in midweek on Matchday 3, the next few days look likely to be pivotal in the Czechs’ chances of qualification for Qatar.

Back in Prague with a smile 😃👋🏻 pic.twitter.com/rbqU9fqngp

— Czech Football Team (@ceskarepre_eng) March 25, 2021

There are exciting times for the Czech Republic who will also be appearing in this summer’s European Championships, having finished second in the group won by England, and worth noting is that their home tie against the English, back in October 2019, was a 2-1 win for Czechs. So, while they will respect the Belgians, they will not fear them.

Worth noting too though is that the Czech Republic has not qualified for a World Cup since Germany 2006 – where they failed to make it beyond the group stages – and so a successful qualifying campaign in the competition is long overdue.

Off to Prague! 🇨🇿 pic.twitter.com/BECrr8BQFw

— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) March 26, 2021

Belgium’s Golden Generation

Belgium, by comparison, have recently become serial qualifiers of major tournaments, and are among the favorites for every competition they enter, but their so-called Golden Generation has yet to turn their undoubted quality into the winning of a trophy. So far, they have promised much but delivered little; something that manager Roberto Martinez will be desperate to change.

They head into this match off the back of an impressive 3-1 win over Wales on Wednesday – a game in which they fell behind to an early Harry Wilson goal but responded with goals from Kevin De Bruyne, Thorgan Hazard, and Romelu Lukaku. The win made it five in a row for Martinez’s men, who will be expected, and will be expecting, to make light work of this qualification group.

Czech Republic vs Belgium Head-to-Head Stats

Martinez’s Serial Qualifiers

The Belgians will, unsurprisingly, be taking their place in this summer’s Euro finals and, as mentioned above, have developed a healthy habit of qualifying for Euro and World Cup finals in recent years. Since missing out on the 2010 World Cup in South Africa, they have made it to every tournament and have been edging ever closer to winning the big prizes.

Having reached the quarterfinals of the 2016 Euros in France, they went one better in the 2018 World Cup in Russia where they lost in the semifinal to the eventual winners, France. The next logical step is to win the Euros this summer or, better still, qualify for and win the 2022 Qatar World Cup. In order to do that, they can ill afford to slip up against the Czech Republic.

Still No Hazard Senior

In terms of team news, the Czechs reportedly came through the Estonia game unscathed and so Silhavy may well be tempted to keep an unchanged XI for this match, which would mean Schick retaining his place in the forward line after scoring his tenth international goal on Thursday. Other attacking options available to Silhavy are Burnley’s Matej Vydra and Legia Warsaw’s Tomas Pekhart.

📸📸📸

Pictures selection from the perfect start to the @FIFAWorldCup qualification as we beat Estonia 6:2 on Wednesday night.

©️ Jana Pipar/Jalgpall.ee pic.twitter.com/w8bcrvMmV0

— Czech Football Team (@ceskarepre_eng) March 25, 2021

For Belgium, Martinez looks likely to make a change in his back-three with Jason Denayer having made a positive impact after replacing Thomas Vermaelen at halftime on Wednesday. Timothy Castagne and Leandro Trossard are also in the frame for Belgium after making impressive cameos against Wales but, as ever, Martinez will be reluctant to make too many changes. He will still be without the injured Eden Hazard.

90 caps for our number 9. 🙌 pic.twitter.com/60dvL4WH7y

— Belgian Red Devils (@BelRedDevils) March 25, 2021

Best Bets for the Czech Republic vs Belgium

So, we should expect Belgium to control possession in the normal way, but also for the Czechs to be set up to absorb pressure and hit the visitors on the break. It promises to be fascinating. Ultimately, I expect the greater quality of Martinez’s men to give them the slight edge and, probably, a narrow win but this will be much closer than the bookies expect. In terms of the value, the +700 on offer for the 2-1 away win looks appealing.

Pick: Belgium to win 2-1 (+700) / De Bruyne first goalscorer (+550)