David Flower
Dailysports's expert
Tajikistan
Saudi Arabia
One of the matches in the qualifying campaign for the 2026 World Cup will take place in Dushanbe at the Republican Stadium, where the Tajikistan national team will face Saudi Arabia. Here's the prediction for this match from the experts at Dailysports.
Tajikistan
The "Persian Lions" played a goalless draw against China in the group stage of the Asian Cup and suffered a narrow 0-1 defeat to the favorite of the quartet, Qatar, in the second round. The crucial three points came from a victory over Lebanon in the final round, securing third place in the group. In the Round of 16, Tajikistan eliminated a tough opponent, the UAE, in a penalty shootout, but narrowly lost to Jordan (0-1) in the quarter-finals.
In the World Cup 2026 qualifiers, Tajikistan drew at home with Jordan (1-1) in the first two matches and achieved a resounding victory away against Pakistan (6-1). Despite their respectable performance against the group favorite Saudi Arabia in the away match, the "Persian Lions" couldn't find the net and suffered a 0-1 defeat.
Saudi Arabia
Under Roberto Mancini's leadership, the team had no problems in the group stage of the Asian Cup. Only in the final round, in a match against Thailand, did the "Green Falcons" drop points, having previously defeated Oman (2-1) and Kyrgyzstan (2-0). Finishing at the top of the group, Saudi Arabia lost to South Korea in the Round of 16 in a penalty shootout.
It's worth noting that Saudi Arabia secured maximum points in the first three matches of the World Cup qualifiers, defeating Pakistan (4-0), Jordan (2-0), and Tajikistan (1-0) last week.
Interesting Match Facts and Head-to-Head History
- Prior to last week's encounter, the teams last met on the football field in January 2005, with Saudi Arabia defeating Tajikistan 3-0.
- Both teams scored in only two out of the last six matches involving Tajikistan.
- Only in one out of the previous eight matches involving Saudi Arabia was the "Total over 2.5" outcome realized.
Tajikistan - Saudi Arabia Prediction
Once again, the visitors are considered favorites, and it's hard to disagree with the bookmakers. The "Green Falcons" have remained undefeated in four away matches, securing three victories. Importantly, in all these matches, no more than 2 goals were scored. Our bet is "Total under 2.5" with odds of 1.79.
