Italy v Netherlands – Women’s World Cup 2019 Betting Preview and Prediction
Entering the quarter-finals of the Women’s World Cup, we have got an exciting match between Italy and Netherlands, who will face off against each other on June 29th at Stade du Hainaut.
European Champions lack synergy
While there is no denying Netherlands are a strong team with exceptional individuals, they seemingly don’t play well as a team, or at least not as good as they could’ve. The expectations are understandably high for the Netherlands team who boast with names such as Vivianne Miedema, Lieke Martens, Danielle van de Donk and Shanice van de Sanden, but as mentioned, they do not play on the level it is expected of them. Looking back at their games, they do get the job done, however, some matches end closer than they should. One of their biggest problems is the fact they do not rotate their squad, as it seems like Sarina Wiegman favors picking the same 11 players over and over again. This makes their games very stale and as time goes by, their performances don’t improve but rather darken. Looking back at their 1/8 finals, Netherlands barely defeated Japan and we can only wonder what would’ have happened if they did not receive a penalty in the 90th minute.
Italian midfield to cause issues to the Netherlands
Italy will enter the quarter-finals after a 2:0 win over China in the 1/8 finals. Looking at Italy’s campaign this world cup, they have played good football, which is especially true for their midfield, which is known to cause issues to the opponents. Their star midfielder Manuela Giugliano is in great form and is as of now the tournament leading player in the assists department. In addition to strong midfield, Italy are also the 2nd most clinical side, with 18.4% of their shots finding the net. Known to be a team that creates a lot of chances, Italy are the perfect counter for the Netherlands, who lack some quality in the back.
Verdict & Prediction
Putting these two teams side by side, the Netherlands team do come slightly ahead, however not enough for us to believe they will have an easy time against Italy. The Netherlands does possess some exceptional players, however, as we have mentioned they fail to work as a solid unit. Individual performances are still there, however that alone won’t take them very far. What we expect in the upcoming fixture is a fast-paced match with at least one goal per side, which was the case in all of the last 5 h2h fixtures between Italy and Netherlands. both teams have strong attacking lines and with their strikers in good form, there is little to suggest this one will end with a low score.
However, we won’t be betting on the over market, but instead, look for our chance to bet on one or the other side. Picking a winner here was not easy, but I must give Italy some credit. They have been playing incredibly well this tournament and with their convincing performance against China, I am confident they can transfer the momentum from 1/8 finals match to the quarter-finals and put up a tough fight against the Netherlands. The Netherlands on the other side have not been too convincing against Japan, a match they have won due to a questionable 90th-minute penalty. All in all, a close match is expected, and with odds of around 1.80 on Italy +0.5, we will back Italy to win or grab a draw.
Prediction: Italy +0.50 Asian Handicap
Odds: 1.82 Betfair Exchange
