Two teams from Group G, will meet each other on Saturday, Bulgaria and Switzerland.
Both teams so far have 3 matches played and each has 3 points. After to losses against England with 0:4 and against Montenegro at home with 0:1, the Bulgarian squad finally changed managers and under the command of the German football legend Lothar Matthaeus the team grabbed their first victory over Wales.
In this game, Matthaeus will count on 3 defenders, one of which will be Aston Villa’s captain Stiliyan Petrov. Earlier this week Matthaeus said “Don’t Write Off Bulgaria”.
“When I first came here, I knew Bulgaria were not the side they were 15 years ago, but while there is a lot to be done here, I have found some fantastic players in the current national team who are professional and have strong characters. I really enjoy working with them and I think they feel the same about me.”
Switzerland, also started with 2 losses, but managed to win over Wales at home with 4:1 and keep their chances. Ottmar Hitzfeld did incredible improvements on the Switzerland and although the team went home early on the WC2010, they remained the only team that won over Spain in the Cup.
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The last game both teams played against in a group for an Euro qualification, Euro 92, ended 3:2 in favor of Switzerland. Both teams have exactly 1 victory and a draw in Bulgaria. Their most recent friendly game in Geneva ended 1:1 in 2009.
Both teams realize the importance of this game, and a possible draw will be unpleasant for either team. Why? Theoretically both teams still have chances to fight for the second spot which will guarantee play-offs. A draw will give each team a point, keeping their positions with 4 points, and mostly likely 6 points distance from Montenegro, and England who are expected to win over Wales. The draw has odds of 3.20.
Personally I would back Bulgaria in this game for several reasons. First, since Lothar Matthaeus came in charge, things changed a lot. Second, for this game Matthaeus brings up and entirely difference squad and formation, obviously he is looking for something different, something unexpected that will win him the game. The home factor will also play an important role in this game.
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