Portugal will play against Ghana in the first leg at Stadium 974 in Doha. The meeting starts on 24 November at 16:00 UK time. Will Cristiano Ronaldo score at least one goal against the Black Stars?
Bookmaker Ratings: Prediction #1 – Total Goals Over 3.5 – 1.77.
Bookmaker Ratings: Prediction #2 – Corner Kicks Over 9.5 – 1.87.
Bookmaker Ratings: Prediction #3 – HT/FT – Draw/Portugal – 3.84.
Two yellow cards for Portugal and a 2.14 average total for Ghana. The referees show an average of 4.11 yellow cards in Portugal’s games and 3.71 in Ghana’s games.
Portugal often emphasizes corner kicks, which is why they serve an average of 5.89 corners per match. Ghana serves an average of 5 corner kicks per match. It should also be noted that seven of Portugal’s nine matches this year have involved at least ten corner kicks.
Against African teams at the World Cups, Portugal’s play against them has been less confident. For example, Morocco was only beaten 1-0 in 2018, the Portuguese beat Ghana (2-1) in 2014 and a draw against Côt d’Ivoire in 2010. Portugal has a very strong squad at the moment, but Ghana is a fairly strong team with a number of players who play in the APL. Portugal might be able to get a win, but maybe with a minimum score. I think, that one or two goals will be scored only in the second half.
In European qualification for the World Cup in Qatar, Portugal had a tough time securing a place in the playoffs.
Fernando Santos’ side defeated Turkey (3-1) in the first leg and North Macedonia (2-0) in the final.
The leader of the Portuguese national team is 37-year-old Cristiano Ronaldo, who is ready to end his football career in case his team wins the upcoming Mundial.
The European Brazilians made their World Cup debut in 1966 in England, where they achieved their best-ever result by winning bronze medals.
Ghana qualified for the World Cup in Qatar after a play-off where the Black Stars had two difficult games against Nigeria at home (0-0) and away (1-1).
Most of Ghana’s players play for APL clubs. The final squad entry features players from Arsenal, Leicester, Brighton, Fulham, Southampton and Crystal Palace.
Asamoah Gyan is Ghana’s all-time leading goalscorer. The 36-year-old forward has become one of the most important figures for the African team, scoring 51 goals in 107 games.
The team went to the Mundial for the fourth time in its history. It previously took part in the 2006, 2010 and 2014 World Cups.
In our opinion, the teams will take to the field with the following line-ups:
Portugal: Costa – Cancelo, Pepe, Dias, Guerreiro – Neves, Carvalho, Fernandes – B. Silva, Ronaldo, Leao.
Ghana: Ati Zigi – Lamptey, Amartey, Djiku, Baba – Partey, Abdul Samed – Sulemana, Kudus, J. Ayew – Williams.
The fixture will be played at Stadium 974 (40.000) in Doha, Qatar.
This starting whistle will sound on the 24th of November, 2022, at 16:00 UK Time.
We recommend checking out the odds for the World Cup 2022: Portugal vs Ghana at 22Bet.