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Greece will face Kazakhstan at the OPAP Arena on Thursday in the semifinals of the 2024 European Championship qualification playoffs.
The home side enjoyed a strong start to their qualification campaign, winning their first two matches before hitting a rough patch which saw them win just two of their subsequent six games. They held on for a 2-2 draw against group leaders France in their last match and will take confidence from that as they head into the crucial midweek clash.
Greece historically won the European Championship back in 2004 but have now failed to qualify for the tournament since 2012 and will be looking to snap that streak this year.
Kazakhstan, meanwhile, performed well above expectations in the group stages of the qualifiers and will hope they can replicate a similar showing in the playoffs this week. They beat Turkmenistan 2-0 in their last outing with Islam Chesnokov and Aleksander Zuev getting on the scoresheet early in either half to seal the win.
The visitors are on the hunt for their first-ever Euros appearance but must first see off the Piratiko before facing the winner of Georgia vs Luxembourg in the final later this month.
Greece vs Kazakhstan Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- There have been three meetings between Greece and Kazakhstan. The hosts have won all three games by an aggregate scoreline of 7-2.
- The two sides last faced off in a friendly clash back in March 2006 which the hosts won 2-0.
- The visitors have managed just one clean sheet in their last five matches.
- Only one of Greece's three league defeats in the qualifiers so far has come on home turf.
- The Piratiko were ranked 49th in the latest FIFA rankings and now sit 51 places above their midweek opponents.
Greece vs Kazakhstan Prediction
Greece are on a run of back-to-back unbeaten outings and have lost just one of their last five games across all competitions. They have lost just one of their last nine home matches and will be hopeful of a positive result here.
Kazakhstan have won three of their last four matches and seven of their last 10. They have, however, had their struggles on the road of late and could see defeat here.
Prediction: Greece 2-1 Kazakhstan
Greece vs Kazakhstan Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Greece to win
Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Over 2.5 goals (Four of the visitors' last five matches have produced more than 2.5 goals)
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: YES (Both sides have found the back of the net in four of the visitors' last five matchups)
