Big Match Breakdown: Group A: Russia v Egypt
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Odds and preview ahead of World Cup tie
The second round of World Cup group stage matches gets underway this evening when Russia take on Egypt.
Victory for the tournament hosts could see them through to the round-of-16, while Egypt need three points to retain any chance of qualification.
It’s all set up for an intriguing clash at the Krestovsky Stadium in Saint Petersburg. And the Coral News Team have previewed the game with a Big Match Breakdown…
Head-to-Head and Form
This will be the first ever meeting between the two sides. So it’s the form which could provide the indicator as to the outcome of this match.
Russia kicked things off with a 5-0 victory over Saudi Arabia in the opening match to bring a run of seven matches without victory to a close. Egypt were downed 1-0 by Uruguay and remain winless in all five previous World Cup matches.
Likely XIs
The hosts look set to be without Alan Dzagoev after the midfielder picked up a hamstring injury in the first match. That should mean a first start of the tournament for Denis Cheryshev, who impressed off the bench against the Saudis. Aleksandr Golovin will move to a more central role in the 4-2-3-1 as a result.
Mohamed Salah missed the opening match for The Pharaohs but is expected to return in time for this one. He’s set to replace Amr Warda in what should be the only change for Egypt.
Key Battles
Liverpool ace Salah could hold the key to this match. If he’s back to full fitness, he’ll cause the Russians serious problems. They looked defensively suspect against the Saudis and will face much sterner questions against Egypt.
If Hector Cuper’s men remain structured and tight-knit they stand a fantastic chance against a Russia side without any standout talents. However, they’ll have to balance that out with a need to go forward and pick up the three points. Villarreal star Cheryshev holds the main threat out on the left, especially if the hosts opt to sit back and play on the break.
Match Odds
Russia are the 11/10 favourites to make it six points from six. You can back Egypt at 3/1 to bounce back from their opening match defeat with a first World Cup success. The draw is 21/10.
Talisman Salah is expected to return for the African side. He’s 13/8 Anytime and 4/1 to Score First. The tournament hosts will be looking towards the aforementioned Denis Cheryshev. The 27-year-old bagged a brace in the opener against Saudi Arabia and is 3/1 Anytime here. It’s 17/2 for a repeat performance of 2 or More Goals.
Our traders also go 23/20 about Both Teams to Score and 31/20 for there to be Over 2.5 Goals.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing
