Latvia vs Armenia prediction: EUROPE: Euro – Qualification betting tips on match 2023-10-11 16:00.
Under-pressure Latvia manager Dainis Kazakevičs knows he likely has only a handful of games left to save his job. The 42-year old has been in the hot seat since 2020, but a desperate run of six seven successive defeats, including all five of their UEFA Euro 2024 qualifiers so far, has left some supporters demanding a change in the dugout.
The most recent of those losses was a 2-0 reversal at home to Wales, after which Latvia Football Federation president Vadims Ļašenko told supporters that Kazakevičs’ future will be “evaluated after the Euro qualification campaign." But even wins from their final three group fixtures will not be enough to reach Germany, with previous performances in Group D so poor that their hopes of finishing in the top two places have already been extinguished.
That is certainly not the case for opponents Armenia, whose dreams of making it to a major tournament for the first time as an independent nation very much remain alive. Armenia, who had finished no higher than second from the bottom in six of their previous seven European Championship qualifying campaigns, have already picked up seven points from five games (W2, D1, L2), including a 2-1 win over Latvia in June.
Manager Oleksandr Petrakov believes that means his side have every chance of booking a place in Germany, stating that they are “fighting for second place” in the group alongside Turkey and Wales. However, a narrow 1-0 defeat to 2023 UEFA Nations League champions Croatia in their last match means they currently sit three points off the top two, subsequently making this an extremely important game for them, especially as second-placed Turkey visit group leaders Croatia.
Key battle: Roberts Uldriķis has scored seven goals for Latvia, the last six of which have come after half-time. Looking to stop him may be defender André Calisir, although in his seven European qualifiers for Armenia, he has never kept a clean sheet (W1, L6).
Hot streak: Armenia have not kept a clean sheet in any of their last 11 away internationals, conceding at least twice on eight occasions.