Bulgaria vs England: Bulgarians capable of springing a surprise
Published:England will head into their Group G European Championship qualifier with Bulgaria in confident spirits, and so they should do.
Bulgaria have never beaten England in seven attempts but Fabio Capello’s side cannot afford to be complacent against a Bulgarian side that took a point on their travels to Montenegro last time out.
Match Odds
Two draws in their previous two games mean England head to Sofia not in the greatest of form and Capello is under pressure to produce a result with Montenegro performing so well.
England have already been supported having opened at 8/13 to win and are now trading at 4/7, and considering they are yet to lose in Bulgaria – one win and one draw – punters can be confident England aren’t going to lose.
However a draw is a very possible outcome considering Bulgaria have drawn three of their last five, and the 11/4 for the draw is the danger for punters backing England outright.
England have won four of their seven clashes against Bulgaria, including a 4-0 thrashing in the fixture at Wembley last year, and while Bulgaria pose a threat, England should have too much for their opponents.
Total Goals
A repeat of that 4-0 win on Friday night is unlikely considering Bulgaria haven’t conceded more than two goals in a game at home since June 2005.
In fact, of the 47 games Bulgaria have played at home since the turn of the millennium, they have only conceded three times or more in four of those games.
Bulgaria have failed to find the net in three of their last four fixtures and a 2-0 win looks a very real possibility for England at 6/1.
Wayne Rooney looks likely to lead the line and is 7/2 to get the first goal, but his team-mate Ashley Young looks a better bet at 7/1.
With Montenegro taking on Wales in Cardiff, England can take the outright lead in Group G and Capello’s side should be well placed to qualify come Saturday morning.
