Qatar vs El Salvador Odds & Prediction – Gold Cup Quarterfinals July 24
- Qatar plays El Salvador in the first CONCACAF Gold Cup quarterfinal on Saturday, July 24th at 7:30pm ET
- Qatar finished first in Group D while El Salvador finished second behind Mexico in Group A
- Get the odds, our analysis and betting prediction below
The quarterfinal stage of the CONCACAF Gold Cup tournament takes place this weekend and the first match features Qatar and El Salvador. These two counties are the 58th and 69th placed teams in FIFA’s World Rankings, making for one of the better fixtures in the tournament so far.
In the group stages, Qatar had a difficult group with the likes of Honduras, Panama and Grenada. Nonetheless, the Maroon managed to win the group on seven points, dropping two points in a disappointing draw versus Panama.
Felix Sanchez’s side has a scintillating offense that was on full display in the first three matches. However, they face an El Salvador defense that is one of only three teams to not concede more than one at this summer’s Gold Cup.
Qatar vs El Salvador Odds
| Matchup | Spread | Moneyline | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| Qatar vs El Salvador | QAT -0.5 (-155) | SAL +0.5 (-105) | QAT -130 | SAL +400 | DRAW +255 | Ov 2.5 (+160) | Un 3.5 (-200) |
Odds as of July 23 at DraftKings
Qatar Favorites to Advance
As fans know, Qatar were a special invitation to this Gold Cup tournament, featuring as the Asian Cup champions. Aside from Mexico and the United States, they have easily made a case to be one of the favorites to challenge for this trophy abroad.
So far, no team has been able to stop them on offense either. They have scored handfuls of goals in the first three games, and while their first match versus Panama was tumultuous and probably a little too open, they have adapted well. In the two games since they have held clean sheets, one being against an impressive Honduras side.
Asian Cup ⚽️
Copa America ⚽️
Gold Cup ⚽️Qatar forward Almoez Ali has become the first footballer in history to score in 𝕥𝕙𝕣𝕖𝕖 different continental tournaments.
All before the World Cup on home soil next year ⏳ pic.twitter.com/m3IGIVpTC9
— B/R Football (@brfootball) July 15, 2021
Specifically, Akram Afif and Almoez Ali have been bright spots in the Qatar attack. They both play on the left side of the formation which means Eriq Zavaleta will have to be on his toes in the El Salvador back four.
Additionally, Qatar likes to play with a 3-5-3 formation. This means their wing backs will push up into the attack and look to pin the ball back into the El Salvador half. Qatar’s passing is above average compared to a lot of the other teams in the Gold Cup, which is where La Selecta’s could struggle to gain back possession.
Nobody scored more goals in the Gold Cup group stage than Qatar 💪
Will they keep up their goalscoring ways in the quarterfinals? pic.twitter.com/heVLvenkhq
— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) July 21, 2021
Regardless, Qatar have been great so far and most importantly they have already played some tough competition. El Salvador fought hard against Mexico, but frankly got some easier games against Trinidad and Tobago and Guatemala. For those reason, Qatar has to be the favorites to advance to the semifinal round.
El Salvador’s Defense is Their Main Hope
While the odds are stacked against La Selecta, this is a knockout fixture. Scratch that, it is a CONCACAF knockout fixture, meaning literally anything can happen.
⚽🇲🇽 ¡GOOOL! Luis Rodríguez convierte de zurda tras una buena jugada individual. @miseleccionmx vence 1-0 a 🇸🇻 @LaSelecta_SLV.#EstoEsNuestro #CopaOro21 🏆 pic.twitter.com/0PR2bp0CSM
— Gold Cup (@GoldCup) July 19, 2021
El Salvador’s defense has only conceded one goal all tournament, and it was to Mexico in their final group stage match after already qualifying. El Salvador did soak up quite a bit of pressure, facing 16 shots from El Tri, but to stand firm is quite impressive nonetheless.
Qatar vs El Salvador Gold Cup Statistics
| 3 | Goals per game | 1.33 |
| 1 | Goals conceded per game | 0.33 |
| 50.0% | Possession % | 58.33% |
| 85.0% | Passing % | 76.33% |
El Salvador will be without one of their midfielders, Narciso Orellana, as he sits out due to yellow card accumulation. One place El Salvador do have a lot of depth is in the midfield, so this setback should not impact them too much.
Finally, these sides actually played in a friendly just a few weeks ago before the Gold Cup started. The game ended 1-0 in favor of Qatar thanks to an Almoez Ali goal in the 69th minute. Qatar played a man down for 70 minutes as well, which just goes to show the difference between these teams.
Best Bet
Overall, the best bet for this match is the Qatar moneyline with odds of -130. The over/under for this game has good value, but all in all it is a great offense versus an even better defense, making it hard to make a clear call.
Qatar have the clear edge in this game and will win in regular time to advance to the semifinals of the Gold Cup.
Pick: Qatar moneyline (-130)
Josh Ricker is a freelance sports journalist, currently attending the University of Southern Maine (Bachelor of Science in Sports Management and Marketing). He has recently interned with the AA Portland Sea Dogs, and his work has been featured on Fansided, as well as now here on SBD.
