Second Leg in Less than 24

Tomorrow will see four matches that will conclude the Euro 2012 qualifying tournament. Each match is the second half of an aggregate goal series. So regardless of which team won the first game, anything could happen in these four games. For sure, a team that won by several goals has a distinct advantage — and you will see that translated in the soccer betting odds at AllYouBet. But if you look at history, there are many examples of teams which rebounded from a first game deficit to win the series. For tomorrow (November 14) games, the All You Bet odds are as follows (Second number is the odds of a tie at the end of regulation):

Croatia vs Turkey  1.69    3.63   5.3

Montenegro vs Czech 2.58   3.24  2.79

Ireland vs Estonia   1.38    4.41   9.55

Portugal vs Bosnia   1.41    4.30    8.78

As you can see, teams like Estonia and Bosnia, which were long shots to start with, now have the odds stacked against them. The one match that may spark more interest is Croatia vs Turkey. Croatia won the first leg by three goals, but they will always remember being knocked out by Turkey in 2008 and are not taking the second game for granted.

No Croatia Celebrations Yet

Fans of Croatia know that even a three goal could disappear against a talented Turkish squad. This is, after all, the team that knocked them out of the 2008 quarter-finals by coming back with a goal scored at the very end of  extra time. A tie game went to a shoot out in which Turkey prevailed sending Croatia home with a bitter disappointment. So although three goals is a nice cushion to have, Croatia must play their game for ninety minutes so that they can lock the victory in and finally have their revenge for 2008.

Missing Players

Croatia will miss suspended defender Vedran Corluka and midfielder Tomislav Dujmovic. Yet they still have a deep pool of talent from which to draw. Danijel Pranjic replaces Corluka at left back while Ognjen Vukojeviccan fill the missing midfielder’s cleats. On the other hand, Turkey will sorely miss four key players suspended and injured defender Giray Kacar. They simply do not have enough talent and the gaps in the line up will hurt them. They must play the football match of their lives with their collective backs to the wall.