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Euro tips

Wales v Switzerland predictions: Dragons may have to settle for a point

Pragmatic Page likely to prioritise defence over attack in Wales' opener

Aaron Ramsey in action for Wales in Euro 2020 qualifying
Aaron Ramsey in action for Wales in Euro 2020 qualifyingCredit: Stu Forster

Free Euro 2020 football tips, best bets and analysis for Wales v Switzerland in Group A on Saturday.

Where to watch

BBC One, 2pm Saturday

Best bet

Draw
1pt 21-10 Betfred

Switzerland have never gone further than the round of 16 at a European Championships and might have to settle for a draw against Wales, who do not look significantly weaker than five years ago.

Team news

Wales
Robert Page has a fully fit squad to select from.

Switzerland
Uncapped trio Gregor Kobel, Dan Ndoye and Andi Zeqiri were the last to be trimmed from the squad, leaving Vladimir Petkovic with a fully fit group of 26 players.

Match preview

Wales opened up their historic Euro 2016 campaign with a 2-1 success over Slovakia but have been handed a tougher start to Euro 2020 and may be content to hold Switzerland to a draw in Baku.

Switzerland are the section's second-highest ranked nation but are not a team who enjoy forcing the pace.

Vladimir Petkovic, in the Swiss dugout since 2014, has built a solid unit with vast experience - seven players have won at least 60 caps -but major tournament progress has proved difficult to achieve.

The Swiss bowed out at the round of 16 at World Cups 2014 and 2018 and Euro 2016, and have not reached the last eight of a major tournament since a quarter-final exit on home soil at the 1954 World Cup.

They have qualified for seven of the last eight major tournaments so are clearly worthy of respect, but they looked on with envy five years ago as Wales battled their way through to the Euro 2016 semi-finals.

Switzerland's failure to achieve a breakthrough can be put down to a lack of quality up front.

They scored five goals in four matches at Russia 2018 and still rely on largely the same pool of forwards with Mario Gavranovic and Breel Embolo competing to start alongside Haris Seferovic in Baku.

Seferovic has had a strong season with Benfica – scoring 22 league goals – but his modest international scoring record of 21 goals in 74 games underlines his struggle at the very highest level.

Wales do possess that star quality thanks to the end-of-season resurgence of Gareth Bale.

The 31-year-old was not always on the right side of former Tottenham manager Jose Mourinho but warmed up for the Euros with six goals in his last six Premier League appearances and looks primed to make an impact.

Wales have decent support for Bale, with Dan James offering pace and width and Aaron Ramsey and Harry Wilson providing energy and creativity.

And there is the useful substitute option of Cardiff target man Kieffer Moore.

However, while Wales have the edge in attack, their defence looks inexperienced with Chris Mepham and Joe Rodon preparing for major tournament debuts.

Wales manager Rob Page is aware of the need to protect his back three and could adopt a cautious approach which may stifle some of the attacking talent.

Overall, it could be a tight, tactical affair, raising the strong possibility of the points being shared.

Key stat

Switzerland drew three of their four matches at Euro 2016.


Inside info

Wales

Penalty taker Gareth Bale
Free-kick wizard Gareth Bale
Set-piece aerial threat Joe Rodon
Card magnet Chris Mepham

Switzerland

Penalty taker Ricardo Rodriguez
Free-kick wizard
Xherdan Shaqiri
Set-piece aerial threat
Fabian Schar
Card magnet
Granit Xhaka

Lowdown

Venue Baku Olympic Stadium, Baku
Fans allowed 31000
Time Zone BST +3 hours
Weather Sunny, max 26C
FIFA rankings Wales (17), Switzerland (13)


Bet builder

Wales or draw double chance
Wales have suffered just one competitive defeat over the last two years – losing 3-1 away to Belgium – and can avoid defeat against the Swiss, who have won just two of 13 matches at European Championship finals.

Under three goals
Six of Wales's last eight competitive games have featured fewer than two goals and another low-scoring affair is on cards in Baku.

Chris Mepham to be booked
Wales defender Chris Mepham showed his rash side when he was sent off while playing for Bournemouth in the Championship playoffs and he looks a strong contender to enter the notebook of referee Clement Turpin.

The treble pays 13-2 with bet365


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