Portugal vs Ghana Odds & Prediction – World Cup Group H
- It’s Portugal vs Ghana in Round 1 of the 2022 FIFA World Cup on Thursday, November 24
- Uruguay and South Korea are the other two teams competing in Group H
- We preview Portugal vs Ghana, look at the odds, and offer some picks
It’s Portugal vs Ghana on Thursday, November 24 in the first round of fixtures in the 2022 FIFA World Cup. The action kicks off in Group H at Stadium 974, Doha at 11am ET.
The Cristiano Ronaldo show rolls into Doha, as the Portuguese kick off their campaign with a tricky one against Ghana. Uruguay and South Korea are the other two teams in Group H, which promises to be a very close one.
We preview Portugal vs Ghana, look at the World Cup odds, and offer some analysis, team news, and picks below.
Portugal vs Ghana Odds
| Matchup | Moneyline |
|---|---|
| Portugal | -260 |
| Ghana | +750 |
| Draw | +350 |
Odds as of Nov 23 at Caesars Sportsbook. Use this Caesars Sportsbook promo code to bet on this or other games.
Portugal start this one as big odds-on favorites at -260, with an implied win probability of 72%, while the Ghanaians are listed at a huge +750 with an implied probability of just 12%. The draw, at +350, is implied at 22%.
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Over/Under and Spread
Caesars are undecided as to how this will go in terms of the number of goals. The tentative, cautious starts that have been commonplace in previous tournaments have not materialized in Qatar and so it’s a tough call. Over 2.5 goals are listed at -110 and under is very similar at -120.
Portugal vs Ghana Preview
The news that Ronaldo and Manchester United have announced a parting of the ways will come as a huge relief to Portugal manager Fernando Santos whose tournament preparations have been dominated by talk of the player’s future. Finally, their focus can be on this tournament.
The Ronaldo era has elevated the profile and success level of this Portuguese team, but in what’s been described as their golden era, they have failed to build on their European Championship win of 2016. In the World Cup, they have enjoyed limited success, failing to progress past the last 16 in four of their last five tournaments.
𝗙𝗔𝗠𝗜́𝗟𝗜𝗔. 🫂🇵🇹 Foco na nossa estreia no @FIFAWorldCup 🏆 #VesteABandeira
𝗙𝗔𝗠𝗜𝗟𝗬. 🫂🇵🇹 Focus on our @FIFAWorldCup's debut 🏆 #WearTheFlag pic.twitter.com/k1AwuMEOG1
— Portugal (@selecaoportugal) November 22, 2022
Slow-Starting Portugal
Four years ago, in Russia 2018, Portugal made it out of the group stage but suffered a disappointing exit in the round of 16 at the hands of Hungary. It all adds up to a disappointing run of just three wins in their last 11 World Cup final games.
Their preparations for Qatar have been decent though, the Ronaldo fiasco aside, and their 4-0 win over Nigeria last Thursday was impressive. But worth noting is that they have not won any of their last three opening games at major tournaments.
Palavra de Capitão! 🫡🏆 #VesteABandeira
The captain has spoken! 🫡🏆 #WearTheFlag pic.twitter.com/e3jpH9E1CK
— Portugal (@selecaoportugal) November 21, 2022
Portugal vs Ghana Head-to-Head Stats
| 8 | FIFA World ranking | 61 |
| 7 | Appearances in WC Finals | 3 |
| 4 | Progressed to second phase | 2 |
| 7-2-1 | Qualification record | 4-3-1 |
| 5-0 (vs Luxembourg) | Biggest win in qualification | 3-1 (vs Zimbabwe) |
| W-W-L-W-L-W | Form guide | D-L-W-L-W-W |
Fourth World Cup Appearance for Ghana
Ghana’s appearance in Qatar is their fourth at the finals since 2006. In that time, only once have they failed to progress beyond the group stage, so in that regard the omens for the Black Stars are good.
However, to put it in perspective, their last appearance was in 2014, and in that campaign, they failed to progress after drawing one and losing two. They have also had unimpressive runs in the last three Africa Cup of Nations.
✌🏾𝑾𝒊𝒏𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 𝑻𝒆𝒂𝒎 😁#BlackStars | #FIFAWorldCup | #TeamGhana | #Qatar2022 pic.twitter.com/BP6Y067eTk
— 🇬🇭 Black Stars (@GhanaBlackstars) November 22, 2022
Addo Revives the Fortunes of the Black Cats
But the appointment of Otto Addo to the role of head coach has revived their fortunes. Almost his first act was to steer the Black Stars through their World Cup qualifier with Nigeria – they drew 1-1 over two legs but qualified via the away-goals rule – and they enter the tournament off the back of two wins and two clean sheets.
Ghana and Portugal have played each other once before in a World Cup finals, in 2014, when a late Ronaldo penalty secured the points for Portugal in a 2-1 win.
𝑺𝒐𝒎𝒆 𝑷𝒊𝒄𝒕𝒖𝒓𝒆𝒔 𝒇𝒓𝒐𝒎 𝒕𝒐𝒅𝒂𝒚‘𝒔 𝒕𝒓𝒂𝒊𝒏𝒊𝒏𝒈 📸 #BlackStars | #FIFAWorldCup | #TeamGhana | #Qatar2022 pic.twitter.com/sSCGRE4G4a
— 🇬🇭 Black Stars (@GhanaBlackstars) November 22, 2022
Portugal vs Ghana Team Lineups and Injuries
Portugal Projected Lineup: Costa, Cancelo, Pepe, Dias, Guerreiro, Neves, Carvalho, Fernandes, B. Silva, Ronaldo, Leao.
Injuries & absences: None.
Ghana Projected Lineup: Ati Zigi, Lamptey, Amartey, Djiku, Baba, Partey, Abdul Samed, Sulemana, Kudus, Ayew (J), Williams.
Injuries & absences: None.
Portugal vs Ghana Prediction
Given the big shocks that have already occurred in this tournament, the Portuguese will be doubly aware of how easy it is to lose their opener.
Therefore I expect them to be solid, not overly expansive, and to just have enough quality to edge past the Ghanaians by the odd goal.
Picks: Portugal to win (-260) / Portugal to win 2-1 (+850)
Once just a sports fanatic, fan-turned-writer Gary Gowers has been featured on European television and radio networks to discuss several professional football clubs. His work can be found in an assortment of publications like The Metro, MyFootballWriter.com, and BBC Radio Norfolk.
