Friday 10/10/2014, 21:45, Euro 2016 Qualification, Cyprus vs Israel

Cyprus vs Israel Preview

Cyprus makes another attempt at reaching the group stage of the European championship, but this time they can be happy with the way the campaign started. They won the opening game away from home against Bosnia and Herzegovina, despite the fact that the hosts scored the first goal. Tonight they have home pitch advantage and will be facing Israel who played the last official game exactly one year ago.

Cyprus vs Israel Odds

At Unibet

Cyprus 3.90, Draw 3.20, Israel 2.15

Cyprus vs Israel Tips

Israel waited for the other teams in the group to play the opening round and the last friendly game took place more than four months ago. They had no problem in defeating Honduras in the days preceding the World Cup 2014, but before that, they lost back-to-back games to Slovakia and Mexico.

They proved to be a hard nut to crack over the last couple of years, with the qualifying campaigns pitting them against tough opponents. On the other hand, despite their decent performance they failed to make the final stage of a major competition and they have high expectations for Euro 2016. The fact that Bosnia and Herzegovina lost the first match is great news for the Israelis, who can afford to draw on the road.

Cyprus will be thrilled to win consecutive games in a group where they start with the third chance, but a draw wouldn't be regarded as a failure. Manager Christodoluou will need to make some difficult decisions when choosing the players that will feature in the starting formation. One month ago, he decided to use a midfielder as the only striker and that move paid off as Christofi scored both goals.

The decision was unexpected but it is unlikely for Cyprus to use a different starting formation, since that first 11 performed so well. The backline also exceeded expectations, because except for the goal allowed in the first minutes of the game, the defenses held their ground. Bosnia and Herzegovina threw everything they've got at the visiting team, but not even home pitch advantage was enough to tie the score.

Key Facts

• Cyprus was held scoreless over the last nine games, before winning the match against Bosnia and Herzegovina
• In six games played in Cyprus Israel won just once and three matches ended undecided.

Cyprus vs Israel Prediction

There are plenty of arguments in favor of backing the hosts to prevail tonight, with the generous odds offered by bookmakers being at the top of the list. If you have second thoughts about backing the underdog against Israel, you should probably take the Cyprus or draw wager at odds of 1.75 with Unibet.

Bet: Cyprus or Draw @ 1.75 with Unibet