Euro 2016 Qualifier preview: Faroes Islands v Northern Ireland

Group F - Friday, September 4

20.45pm - Tórsvøllur - Torshavn

Saturday will be a really big night Group F as Northern Ireland travel north to face the Faroe Island while their main qualification rivals Hungary and Romania go head-to-head in Budapest.

Not just whipping boys

Northern Ireland are well-positioned in Group F - currently sandwiched between leaders Romania and third-placed Hungary. A win on Saturday evening could see them top the group depending on how the match between their rivals pans out. However, Head Coach Michael O`Neill will be well aware that winning all three points in Torshavn is by no means guaranteed, despite the perceived inferiority of their opponents.

Northern Ireland have only visited the Faroe Islands once before, back in 2010, and on that occasion they only came away with a point. This time they will be playing a team that sits fourth in Group F on six points following two qualification victories, having recently moved up to their highest ever FIFA ranking position of 74.

When the teams met for the first qualifier in Belfast last year, the home side prevailed by two goals to nil, but the game was by no means a walkover. In fact, the result may have been very different had Roy Carroll not saved Fródi Benjaminsen’s penalty kick. The Islanders are currently conceding goals at their lowest ever rate with an average of 1.33 conceded per game during this current qualifying quest.

With both Finland and Euro 2004 winners Greece below them in the group, Lars Olsen’s team have firmly established themselves as a competitive side on the European stage. Northern Ireland will have to tread very carefully on Saturday night.

Team news

Despite doubts surrounding the fitness of Ben Reeves, Chris Brunt and Jamie Ward, Head Coach Michael O`Neill named all three players in his squad for the two upcoming Group F games. Ward is receiving day-to-day treatment at his league club Nottingham Forest in an attempt to remedy a problematic hamstring.

Captain Steven Davis will be available for selection despite missing training on Tuesday. According to club sources, the decision to omit the player was taken as a precaution.

Kyle Lafferty has returned to full training after missing all of Norwich City`s Premier League openers through injury and is in line to play a part on Saturday. He is the team’s top scorer in the qualifying campaign competition with a five-goal haul.

Betting tips

Northern Ireland will start the game as favourites but they are not as short as you might think. In fact, they can be backed at a generous 7/10 with Coral. If you are not convinced that the Northern Irish team can pick up their first win on the Islands (they once beat them away in Sweden) then the draw might be appealing at 3/1 with betfred.

Kyle Rafferty is joint-third top goal scorer in the Euro 2016 qualifying competition having chalked-up the same amount of goals as Zlatan Ibrahimović, Cristiano Ronaldo, Thomas Müller, Gareth Bale and Edin Džeko, putting him in illustrious company. The Norwich forward is due to return from injury and can be backed to score anytime at 13/8 with Skybet or to score first at 4/1 with bet365.

Go To bet365

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04/09/2015     © Frixo 2024