Serbia v Switzerland World Cup Group G Betting Guide

The Teams’ Routes to the World Cup

Serbia

During the past 12 months, Serbia has had some indifferent form. During this period, they have played 13 international matches winning 9, drawing 2 and losing 2. Their form at the end of 2021 was impeccable with 6 wins and 1 draw from 1st September 2021. The new year and 2022 saw the indifferent form set in with 6 games, 3 wins, 1 draw and a loss. Despite this, their form is still solid as they head towards the World Cup. They have two UEFA Nations League games to play in September against Sweden and Norway. These games plus one or two friendlies will set them up nicely for the start of the tournament. Serbia qualified for the World Cup winning their UEFA qualification group ahead of Portugal and the Republic of Ireland.

Switzerland

The Serbs may fancy their chances against a Swiss team that has struggled for form during 2022. Switzerland has been on a terrible run of form in the six games they have played this year losing 4 of which 3 were Nations League games. That said, there may be a ray of light as in their last Nations League game in June they put in an excellent display to beat Portugal 1 – 0. Their form is in contrast to their last 7 international matches played in 2021 where they remained unbeaten. Collectively, the aforementioned form guide of Switzerland during the past 12 months produces 13 matches, 5 wins, 4 draws and 4 losses. In the run-up to the 2022 World Cup, they have two Nations League matches scheduled against Spain and the Czech Republic and a friendly against Ghana.

The teams have only played each other once before in the 2018 World Cup when Switzerland won 2 – 1 in the group stage.

Current Odds at mr.play

Switzerland beat Serbia in the 2018 World Cup group stage and the Serbs will be wanting revenge. Here at mr.play you can take a punt on which team will win the fixture, or you can predict the result to be a draw. There are many more betting markets that you may want to explore including our 1st half-double chance. The double chance offers you three outcomes including the first half to end with Serbia winning or the match being level. The second option involves either team leading by the time the referee blows his whistle for half-time. Finally, you can bet on Switzerland to take the lead by half-time or the match remaining on equal terms. These are fun options and there are many more to consider right here at mr.play. 

Team Overviews & Player Profiles

Serbia

Considering Switzerland is going to throw the kitchen sink at Serbia then Vanja Milinković-Savić is going to have to be extremely alert. In the goalkeeping department, the Serbs may decide to go with Milinković-Savic or they may turn to Predrag Rajković or Marko Dmitrović. This may point to the fact the Serbians are not settled on their number one goalkeeper, however, Milenković-Savic appears to be getting the nod. Still relatively young for a goalkeeper, he is 25 years old and is a giant at 6ft 8in (203cm). Currently contracted to Torino he made his debut for Serbia in 2021 and has so far made 4 international appearances. His most notable achievement to date is winning the U20 World Cup in 2015.

If the goalkeeping position may not be quite settled just yet, Serbia has some good options in attacking positions including Luka Jović, Aleksandar Mitrović and Dušan Tadić. Luca Jović is a lesser-known quantity of the three players but he will be important to the success of the Serbs in the 2022 World Cup. Playing as a striker he has recently joined Fiorentina having played for Eintracht Frankfurt where he won the DFB-Pokal in 2017/2018. Jović had his most successful season in 2018/2019 when he was included in the Europa League Team of the Season and Bundesliga Team of the Season. Having had experience in the 2018 World Cup in Russia, Jović has now made 26 appearances for Serbia scoring 9 goals.

Switzerland

Defensively the Swiss will be expected to come under some pressure from the Serbs. Manuel Akanji plays in defence for the Swiss national team and will be expected to marshal the back line. Playing for Borussia Dortmund since 2018 he has made 119 appearances and scored 4 goals. Before joining Borussia Dortmund, he was contracted to FC Basel and won the Swiss Super League twice with them. Making his debut for Switzerland in 2017 he was part of the squad in the 2018 World Cup and has made 41 appearances.  

The game will need to be controlled in midfield if Switzerland wishes to end the game with a positive result. Remo Freuler will be just the ticket when conducting the midfield area and he has the likes of Granit Xhaka and Xherdan Shaqiri in good company who between them have over 250 international appearances. Freuler will bring a range of passing while breaking down the play of the Serbians with his tackling. Recently joining Nottingham Forest at club level, Freuler has played in the 2018 World Cup and came 4th in the UEFA Nations League with Switzerland, gaining 46 caps and scoring 4 goals.

A Quest for Revenge for the Serbs

Brazil versus Switzerland may be the game that is the highlight of Group G but Serbia versus Switzerland will be a match that will be equally worth watching. The teams played each other in the 2018 World Cup and that game was full of incidents with the Serbs taking the lead through Aleksandar Mitrović in the 5th minute with Granit Xhaka equalising early in the second half. The Swiss clinched the game in the last minute of normal time when Shaqiri broke free from the halfway line and finished. Serbia versus Switzerland is going to be another barnstormer of a game and you can place a bet on this match with hundreds of betting markets to choose from right here at mr.play.