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Wales will host Finland at the Cardiff City Stadium on Thursday in the semifinals of the 2024 European Championship qualification playoffs.
The home side had mixed results in the group stages of the qualifiers but remain hopeful of securing a spot in the final tournament in June. They faced Turkey in their final group game, taking an early lead via a Neco Williams strike in the seventh minute before their opponents leveled the scores midway through the second half.
Wales are seeking a third consecutive appearance at the Euros while their opponents are targeting their second-ever appearance at the continental showpiece. The winner of the midweek clash will advance to the playoff final where they will face either Poland or Estonia.
Finland enjoyed a strong start to their qualification campaign, picking up four wins from their first five games before suffering a dip in form which saw them lose three of their subsequent five games. They picked up a narrow but largely comfortable 2-1 victory over San Marino in their final group game and will be looking to build on that this week.
Wales vs Finland Head-to-Head and Key Numbers
- There have been 15 meetings between Wales and Finland. The home side have won six of those games while the visitors have won two fewer. There have been five draws between the two teams.
- The two sides last faced off in a friendly clash back in September 2021 which ended goalless.
- The hosts are undefeated in their last four games in this fixture.
- The visitors have managed just one clean sheet in their last five games in this fixture.
- The Dragons have kept just one clean sheet in their last six competitive matches.
- Huuhkajat were ranked 60th in the latest FIFA rankings and now sit 31 places behind their midweek opponents.
Wales vs Finland Prediction
Wales are on a run of back-to-back draws and are undefeated in their last six games across all competitions. They are undefeated in their last four games on home soil and will be looking forward to Thursday's clash.
Finland have won their last two matches after losing their three games prior. They have performed well on the road of late but could see defeat against a slightly stronger side this week.
Prediction: Wales 2-0 Finland
Wales vs Finland Betting Tips
Tip 1 - Result: Wales to win
Tip 2 - Goals - Over/under 2.5 - Under 2.5 goals (Six of the last eight matches between the two teams have produced fewer than 2.5 goals)
Tip 3 - Both teams to score: NO (Both sides have found the back of the net in just two of the visitors' last nine matchups)
