Turkey vs Iran
It’s going to be hot, hot, and hotter when Iran take the trip to Turkey on Monday as the near neighbours meet at the Basaksehir Fatih Terim Stadium.
The temperature will be over 30 degrees in the spot where Europe meets Asia, so it’s not one for the faint-hearted. But there’s also serious business to be done, at least for Iran. And with no previous meetings, this is a tough call for football betting players.
Iran are in the tough Group B at World Cup 2018, along with Spain and Portugal, but Coach Carlos Queiroz will have his team prepared, and this is a good test.
Talking Points
Working with Sir Alex Ferguson at Manchester United and coaching Real Madrid isn’t a bad grounding for Queiroz, and the 65-year-old Portuguese boss has given Iran great stability in his seven years in charge. His team has steadily become the best in Asia and, with no little talent, has at least a chance of upsetting his home country, Cristiano Ronaldo and all!
Iran fans have a lot to get excited about, particularly up front where they have the attacking talent of speedy winger Alireza Jahanbakhsh. He recently became the first Iranian to top score in a major European league, bagging 21 goals for AZ Alkmaar in the Dutch Eredivisie. Alongside him, there’s been a lot of talk around young forward Sardar Azmoun, who Queiroz has likened to Ruud Van Nistelrooy. Now that is some comparison, and Azmoun will need a mature head on strong shoulders to cope with the expectation of his country. But could the 23-year-old be the man to take Iran further than the group stages in Russia?
It’s the fifth time Iran have reached the World Cup finals, but the first at consecutive tournaments: a testament to the influence of Queiroz and his talented group.
There’s nothing to choose between the two sides in the FIFA Rankings, with Iran at 36th and Turkey 37th, but there’s a world of difference in the mood of the respective camps. Turkey missed out in the qualifiers from a group which had given them hope. They were competitive, winning four, losing three and drawing three, but fell a few points short as Iceland and Croatia qualified from European Group I.
But Mircea Lucescu’s side has lost a big personality recently following a moment of madness. Turkish midfielder Arda Turan has been banned for 16 games, removed from the national squad and now retired from international duty after assaulting a linesman while on loan at Basaksehir.
Turan has never been shy of controversy, quitting the international team last year after, allegedly, trying to strangle a journalist! But the attacking midfielder relented and played his 100th international appearance in a World Cup qualifier against Iceland.
The hosts still have plenty of experience to call on; 32-year-old Fenerbahce midfielder Mehmet Topal scored the winner in a recent 1-0 win over the Republic of Ireland. But Turkey need to continue to evolve post-Turan, and Romanian Lucescu will have the chance to experiment on Monday at the Basaksehir.
History
This is the first meeting between Turkey and Iran, but recent form favours the visitors. Iran are a tough nut to crack with four wins in the last five, punctuated only by a 1-0 defeat to FIFA 14th-ranked team Tunisia. They were unbeaten in their 10 World Cup qualifiers.
In preparation for the tournament, Queiroz led his team to a draw with Russia in Kazan and will see this as a game to test his team’s organisation as well as its goal threat. Iran’s first opponent in Russia will be Morocco, and that is a must-win game if they are to progress to the knockout phase for the first time.
Turkey have been in patchy form, winning just twice in the last seven games. One of their wins was the impressive victory over Ireland, but they have lost two of their last three at home.
What are the Odds?
The two are well-matched sides according to the rankings, but the away side with more to play for in the coming weeks should make for a close contest. So let’s take a look at the Asian Handicap Betting options.
Turkey are at 2.03 to win, with Iran at 3.55 and the draw 3.30.
That’s home advantage, but as we know the Turks are beatable on their own patch. A +0.50 goal handicap is enough to bring the odds on Iran down to 1.88.
In the last five games, Iran have conceded just three goals with four wins and a single defeat, so it’s no surprise to see the odds on under 2.00 goals at 2.08, with over 2.00 at 1.82. A half-time stalemate is right down the middle at 2.00; and the most likely score? 1-0 to Turkey at 5.20, but with Iran’s goal threat, 1-1 at 5.60 is close behind.
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