There are two fixtures to look forward to in Group E of 2022 World Cup qualifying on Sunday the 5th of September. One of the matches takes place at the King Baudouin Stadium, Brussels as Belgium meet Czech Republic.
This is a key fixture in the group as both teams are aiming to secure a place in the World Cup finals and Belgium are currently top on 10 points, with Czech Republic in second place on 7 points.
Always good to start off with a win. Now, let’s focus on the next one! ⚽️🙌🏼 #Deviltime #WCQ2022 pic.twitter.com/lKCeJEh3mZ— Thibaut Courtois (@thibautcourtois) September 2, 2021
Always good to start off with a win. Now, let’s focus on the next one! ⚽️🙌🏼 #Deviltime #WCQ2022 pic.twitter.com/lKCeJEh3mZ
Belgium come into the match having recorded a 5-2 victory in Estonia on Thursday night. It appeared as though there could be a shock on the cards as Estonia took the lead in the second minute and held out for 20 minutes to lead 1-0.
However, Belgium soon found their stride as they scored the equaliser in the 22nd minute and took the lead just 7 minutes later. Belgium added 3 goals in the second half in what turned out to be a comfortable victory.
That result was a return to winning ways for Belgium who lost their previous competitive fixture 2-1 against Italy in the quarter final on the 2020 European Championship.
Trends show Belgium are on an unbeaten run of 24 games in World Cup qualifying. They are undefeated in 24 of their last 25 home competitive fixtures and have won their last 4 home World Cup qualifying matches by at least 2 goals.
Czech Republic make the trip to Brussels having recorded a narrow 1-0 win over Belarus on Thursday night. In what was expected to be a comfortable evening for the Czech Republic, they struggled to find the back of the net and scored the only goal of the game in the 34th minute.
It was an important victory for Czech Republic having lost their previous fixture in the group against Wales. However, they can be pleased with their performance at the 2020 European Championship as Czech Republic reached the quarter final of the competition, beating Netherlands in the round of 16.
Trends show Czech Republic are unbeaten in 5 of their last 6 World Cup qualifying matches. They have won 2 of their last 5 away World Cup qualifying fixtures, with the wins coming against Azerbaijan and Estonia. Czech Republic have failed to keep a clean sheet in each of their last 5 away World Cup qualifying games.
Team news and Belgium are expected to name a similar team to the match in Estonia. That will mean starts for Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard, and Yannick Carrasco.
Czech Republic will have to make do without suspended striker Patrik Schick for the second game in succession, which is a big blow. Martin Doležal and Matej Vydra are competing for the strikers position in the team.
Belgium will see this as a great opportunity to stamp their authority on the group and should have little problem taking maximum points. In fact, we expect to see Belgium score 3 or more goals on their way to victory.