Saudi Arabia vs Japan Prediction & Match Preview

Aron Wright - October 7, 2021

These two had locked horns in the 2019 Asian Cup Round of 16, and then the Japanese had recorded a comprehensive win. They will be eager to pull another win over Saudi Arabia this Thursday, considering it would help them to climb to one of the top-two spots. Read our Preview, Predictions, and Betting Tips with Analysis here.

Tips for Saudi Arabia vs Japan

• Japan to Win @ 2.25 (5/4)

• Both Teams to Score @ 2.00 (1/1)

Key Stats for Betting

• Japan are ranked 26^th in the world by FIFA, and are one of the best Asian teams, along with Qatar.
• At the same time, Saudi Arabia are ranked 20 spots lower at the 56^th position.
• They had crashed out of the 2018 World Cup from the Group Stages itself.
• Meanwhile, the Japanese had made it till the Round of 16, and narrowly lost against Belgium, who went on to win the third-place in the tournament.
• Since December of 2019, not once have the Saudi Arabians failed to score in a match-up.

Saudi Arabia vs Japan Prediction and Analysis

The top-two teams from each group will get a direct ticket to Qatar, while the third-placed team will have to go through another two rounds of hardship. Certainly all squads involved will be targeting a top-two finish.

As of now, Australia are at the top, followed by Saudi Arabia and Japan respectively. While the first two have the same number of points (6), the Japanese are trailing by three points.

Suffice it to say they need a victory at any cost this Thursday, or risk missing out direct qualification.

Moreover, toppers Australians are pitted against fourth-placed Oman (who also have three points), and this is further incentive for Japan to go after a win this game week.

Japan have a far better h2h record against this rival, and they also have the confidence of their knockout win over this same team in the Asian Cup just two years back.

Judging these factors, expect a win for the Japanese. However, a clean sheet seems doubtful, considering the offensive momentum Saudi Arabia have.

Saudi Arabia vs Japan Head-to-head

• The Japanese had won five of the past seven clashes.
• Three of the preceding four meetings had three or more goals.
• It’s been four years since Japan have lost a fixture against this opponent.
• In the past three decades, Saudi Arabia have a single win at their home.

Match Information

Saudi Arabia vs Japan
World Cup Qualification – Asia
Date: Thursday, 7 October 2021
Kick-off at 18:00 UK/ 19:00 CET
Venue: King Abdullah Sports City.