Finland vs. Wales 9/3/20 UEFA Nations League Soccer Pick, Odds, and Prediction

Finland is hosting Wales at Helsinki Olympic Stadium in round 1 in the UEFA Nations League.

Finland was doing surprisingly well in the Euro Cup qualifications, and they ended in 2nd place with 18 points, 16 scored goals, and 10 conceded goals, and Finland has qualified for the Euro Cup next year. In the Euro Cup group B, Finland will play against Denmark, Belgium, and Russia, and to be honest, if Finland can keep playing the way they played in the qualifications, they just might advance to the next stage. There aren’t many well know players in Finland’s squad, except Pukki who was playing in the EPL last season, Kamara from Rangers, and Pohjanpalo from Leverkusen. Finland is in the 58th place in the standings. Kanerva has been Finland’s head coach since December of 2016, and during that time he has 18 wins, 5 draws, and 10 losses, which isn’t bad for the country where soccer isn’t the first sport. In their last match against Greece, Finland has had 42% of ball possession, 2 shots on goal, 1 corner kick, and 83% of the correct passes. Finland has lost this match 2-1, but even with a loss, Finland was safe. Finland might not be anywhere near the best teams in Europe, but it’s nice to see them in the Euro Cup.

Wales was playing well in the Euro Cup qualifications, and they were lucky enough to qualify for the Euro Cup. Wales ended in 2nd place with 14 points, 10 scored goals, and 6 conceded goals, which made them the best defensive team in the group. There is plenty of firepower in Wales coming from Bale, Kanu, James, Ramsey, Wilson, and Davies, and Wales will be a tough team to beat both in the Nations League and in the Euro Cup next year. Wales will be competing against Turkey, Italy, and Switzerland in the Euro Cup group A next year. In their last qualifications game against Hungary at home, Wales has had 41% of ball possession, 5 shots on goal, 2 corner kicks, 2 big chances created, and 76% of the correct passes. With 2 goals from Aaron Ramsey, Wales has won this match 2-0 and has qualified for the Euro Cup. Wales was in solid form before the pandemic, and most of the players have played a few friendly or competitive games with their teams, but it’s always hard to predict how the team will react after not playing together for such a long time. I think Wales is a good team, and when they start playing solid defense and focusing on the counterattacks, Wales can be a really dangerous team.

The trends are mixed here, and I’m not sure what to expect in this game. I think Wales is the better team, but Finland will not just rollover. I think we could see some goals in this game.