Croatia vs Albania Prediction: Perisic to help Croatia revival
Croatia and Albania both have ground to make up in Group B, after their respective matchday one defeats, when the sides meet at Volksparkstadion on Wednesday (KO, 14:00) live on ITV 1.
Zlatko Dalic's side were put to the sword 3-0 by Spain, while Albania succumbed to Italy later that day after taking a shock early lead. Read on for my Croatia vs Albania prediction, as well as the latest team news and match odds.
Croatia vs Albania Betting Tips
Team News
Following the 3-0 defeat to Spain, Dalic may be tempted to rotate his squad, which could see the likes of Andrej Kramaric and Ante Budimir demoted to the substitutes' bench.
Ivan Perisic could also return to the starting lineup after a lively appearance as a sub against La Roja, while the likes of Mateo Kovacic and Luka Modric are expected to retain their places in the engine room.
As for Albania, Jasir Asani is a major doubt due to an ankle injury, while Chelsea's Armando Broja is expected to spearhead the attack once again on Wednesday.
Croatia are 4/9 favourites - which gives them a theoretical chance of 69.2% of claiming the three points - while Albania can be backed at 7/1, with the draw available at 100/30.
If you think there'll be plenty of goalmouth action at both ends, both teams to score - yes is 6/5, while over 2.5 goals is priced up at 10/11.
Croatia to win to nil @ 11/10
As mentioned in the introduction, both sides suffered defeats in their opening encounters and will be looking to respond accordingly here.
At first glance, the Albania result looks more courageous but the 3-0 scoreline against Spain was perhaps a little harsh on Croatia, who had more possession and shots than their opponents.
I'm expecting Dalic's side to bounce back on Wednesday, because beyond that first-minute strike from Nedim Bajrami, Albania had little to shout about against the Italians on Saturday night, and their attack was toothless for the majority of the 90 minutes.
Croatia have a wealth of tournament experience to call upon, and I don't see them having any issues in keeping out Albania here - Sylvinho’s side have drawn blanks against Faroe Islands, Chile and Sweden within the last 12 months.
Ivan Perisic to score first @ 13/2
The veteran winger can add to his tally of 33 goals for his country on Wednesday, and I think 13/2 is a cracking price.
The 35-year-old came off the bench against Spain, firing off three efforts in 35 minutes, so I wouldn't be surprised to see him promoted to the starting XI here.
I've opted for the former Spurs man to break the deadlock rather than anytime for that extra bit of value.
Correct Score - Croatian to win 2-0 @ 5/1
As far as score predictions go, I'm going for a 2-0 Croatia win.
While I don't believe that this Croatia team are full of goals, I do reckon that the Checkered Ones will bounce back with a win here, and have enough defensive quality to keep Albania out.
Wednesday (19/06): Place an In-Play bet of £10 or more odds of 1/2+ on Croatia v Albania or Germany v Hungary and get £5 in Free Bets to use In-Play on Scotland v Switzerland.
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You can read all our latest Euro 2024 Betting Tips at our dedicated Betfred Insights content hub.
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