Azerbaijan vs Iceland Prediction: Albert to solve Azerbaijan equation

Azerbaijan and Iceland meet at the former’s Neftci Arena on Thursday (17:00 GMT) with both teams knowing they could end the evening out of contention to qualify for the 2026 Fifa World Cup.

Below are my Azerbaijan vs Iceland predictions, supported by all the latest team news and match odds, ahead of this Group D game in Baku.

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Team News

Azerbaijan's squad includes 78-cap defender Badavi Guseynov (Qarabag) and 58-cap midfielder Emin Mahmudov (Neftci).

Football Odds

Iceland midfielder Mikael Anderson (Djurgarden), who was a late substitute in both October qualifiers, is out for this month's camp because of a heel injury.

Azerbaijan vs Iceland Odds

Azerbaijan are 6/1, or a 14.3% chance, to claim a first win of the campaign, with Iceland 1/2 (66.7%) to pick up their second.

The draw is priced at 10/3, both teams to score at 1/1, and over 2.5 total goals at 4/5.

Anytime Goalscorer - Albert Gudmundsson (ICE) @ 7/5

Iceland and Fiorentina forward Albert Gudmundsson has been in good goalscoring form over the last month or so, netting five times across his last eight appearances for club and country.

The 28-year-old started this impressive run with a brace in Iceland’s 5-3 defeat to Ukraine in Reykjavik on October 10, his 12th and 13th goals for the senior side.

On October 23, Gudmundsson came off the bench to score in Fiorentina’s 3-0 victory over Austrian outfit Rapid Wien in the Uefa Conference League, and three days later, he found the back of the net in a 2-2 draw with Bologna.

Today's Football Fixtures

The former Genoa man signed off in style before the international break, scoring in a 2-2 draw with his former side last Sunday.

Gudmundsson looks like Iceland’s most likely candidate to strike on Thursday, and at 7/5, he’s decent odds to notch, especially as he was on the scoresheet in September’s reverse fixture.

Match Result & Total Goals Over/Under 2.5 - Iceland & Over 2.5 Goals @ 13/10

Azerbaijan, who have picked up just a single point from 12 available in Group D, know that their qualification hopes are all but over.

Iceland, meanwhile, need to at least match Ukraine’s result against France to prolong their chances of a top-two finish.

Currently, Iceland are three points behind Ukraine, who they play in Warsaw, Poland, in their final group game on Sunday.

Our Boys haven’t won any of their last three matches, losing the first two away to France (2-1) and at home to Ukraine (3-5), but last time out, they held France to a 2-2 draw in Reykjavik.

Next, Iceland take a trip to Neftci Arena in Baku to take on Azerbaijan, whom they battered 5-0 at home on September 5.

Azerbaijan have improved since then, drawing at home to Ukraine (1-1) before showing more fight in defeats to France (3-0) and Ukraine (2-1).

However, considering the reverse result and how much the visitors need to win on Thursday, it’s Iceland who I’m predicting to triumph.

I'm also backing over 2.5 goals, which has been a winner in all four of Iceland's qualifiers and three of Azerbaijan's.