Football Betting: Live on BBC1 Scotland: Fri 19.15: After narrowly missing out on Euro 2008, Scotland will hope to repeat their 2-1 away win in Lithuania of 2006 to get this campaign off to a flyer.
Scotland get their Euro 2012 qualifying campaign underway with a trip to Lithuania – a country with whom they’ve crossed swords six times since 2000.
The most recent of those was in the Euro 2008 qualifiers when Scotland completed a double over the Lithuanians, beating them 2-1 away and 3-1 at home. Ladbrokes offers Scotland at 9/5 to win tonight, although home advantage ensures that Lithuania kick off at 13/8 (Stan James).
There may not be many goals around, though, as both struggled to find the net during their last World Cup campaign, where Scotland bagged just six goals, and Lithuania scored 10 in as many games.
Lithuania conceded just four goals in their five home World Cup qualifiers, a record which supports the conclusion that this will be a low-scoring affair and adds to the appeal of Partybets’ 7/4 about the game yielding one goal or less. A maximum of two goals is priced at 4/7 (888sport), while odds of evens (Totesport) are available about both teams finding the net.
Of course, a draw cannot be discounted, an outcome Betdaq accommodates with odds of 23/10, while a 0-0 is 13/2 with Jaxx.com. Elsewhere, a 1-1 result, which would suit Scotland, is offered at 11/2 (William Hill). Bolder punters sensing an away victory can get 7/1 (Victor Chandler) against a 1-0 Scottish success, while the visitors are 5/1 (bet365) to secure maximum points following a drawn first 45 minutes.
As for the first goalscorer, Kris Boyd (13/2, Betfred) will be a popular choice, along with Kenny Miller the same price with Paddy Power; Boyd is also 2/1 (Stan James) to score at any stage of the match.
With goals likely to be at a premium, William Hill’s 3/1 for a penalty to be awarded catches the eye, while Ladbrokes also offer 3/1 against Scotland winning without conceding.
Compare all Lithuania v Scotland odds and Euro 2012 odds and bet at the best prices.
