Moldova vs Scotland

Dead-last Moldova will play host to Scotland at the Stadionul Zimbru in what is a seemingly must-win World Cup qualifying encounter for the traveling side.

With the bottom finish looming on the back of seven defeats from their eight 2022 World Cup Qualification Group F matches so far (D1), Moldova’s wait for their first-ever World Cup finals appearance as an independent nation goes on. By far the worst team in this section, the Moldovans have conceded Group F-high 24 goals to date while scoring just four in return. Another underwhelming result is well on the cards, with the Eastern European minnows losing both previous World Cup qualifying H2Hs without scoring. Adding to this sentiment, Roberto Bordin’s men have lost each of their last three World Cup qualifying fixtures on home soil by at least a two-goal margin after conceding one or more first-half goals.

On the other hand, Scotland have gone from strength to strength since losing 2-0 away to Denmark in early September, winning their subsequent four World Cup qualifying games by a single-goal margin. Considering three of those four victories yielded the identical 1-0 scoreline, keeping Moldova at bay could prove crucial to Scotland’s efforts to lock down the second-placed finish. Indeed, Steve Clarke’s men need to secure one win from the last two World Cup qualifying fixtures to ensure a place in the play-offs regardless of Israel’s results. We could have a low-scoring affair on our hands here, given that six of Scotland’s eight internationals on foreign soil in 2021 have featured under 2.5 total goals, while the ‘Tartan Army’ have netted one goal or less in nine of their last ten road trips.