Azerbaijan VS Norway Match Prediction

The teams will be familiar to each other as they met during qualifying for the 2016 European Championship, when they played out a pair of very tight games. Azerbaijan were able to hold Norway to a 0-0 draw away from home, but earlier in the campaign in front of their own fans they were beaten 1-0 thanks to a first-half goal scored by Havard Nordtveit, now of West Ham United.

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Azerbaijan v Norway: Prediction

Norway come into this game as favourites but they have only won one of their last five matches, a victory against Iceland in the build-up to Euro 2016. However, Azerbaijan have only won once in 2016, a narrow 1-0 victory at San Marino in their Group C opener a few weeks ago. It is likely to be a tight match, with the two previous meetings between the sides producing just a single goal. A stalemate is not out of the question, but perhaps a narrow Norway win is the most likely result.

Azerbaijan v Norway: Betting Tips

Hosts Azerbaijan will seek to keep things tight at the back and 4/1 for them to win might be tempting, with the draw offered at 5/2. Norway are the favourites, however, with odds of 9/10 on them to claim a potentially pivotal Group C win fairly appealing.

Norway to win by a single goal stands out at odds of 5/2, while 7/1 is far too big a price for a 0-0 draw. Under 2.5 goals looks a certainty for this match at 4/7, with betting against both teams to score at 8/11 also recommended in our Azerbaijan v Norway betting tips.

A 1-0 victory over San Marino in the opening round of World Cup qualifiers was Azerbaijan's first victory of 2016, although a single goal was all they could manage against the minnows. Winger Ruslan Qurbanov scored the only goal of the match and will keep his place on the left as a result. A lack of goal threat will be the main problem for coach Robert Prosinecki ahead of this game.

Azerbaijan likely XI:

A 3-0 loss to Germany in their opening fixture was expected by Norway and in many ways their qualifying campaign starts in Azerbaijan, with second spot behind Germany likely the best they can hope for. Joshua King should be given a start up front after his impressive Premier League performances for Bournemouth, but this is an inexperienced Norway squad, with the goalkeeper Rune Jarstein the most capped member with 41 appearances for his country.

Norway likely XI:

Should Norway have a chance of upsetting the odds to reach the World Cup in Russia, these are the games they are going to have to win. But Azerbaijan are a tough nut to crack and will not give up the points easily, so a hard-fought battle looks to be in store for both sides. Norway do not have a lot of experience in their ranks but should have enough to edge a narrow victory in a match that looks unlikely to provide a lot of entertainment.

The two previous games between the sides have only seen a single goal scored.