Uzbekistan U-20 – New Zealand U-20

Direct play-off rivals will play a low-scoring game

In Argentina, the Youth World Cup, which kicked off last week, continues. In Group A, the hosts started the tournament with a win, and will play Guatemala in the second round. Meanwhile, the Argentines are obviously the favourites to win one of the two direct play-off berths. The encounter between Uzbekistan and New Zealand was the central game in Group A. The Asian team faced the hosts in the first leg. In the middle of the first half, Uzbekistan sensationally took the lead, thanks to a Mahmajonov goal. However, Argentina quickly came around, scoring twice by the end of the first half. The opponents scored no goals in the second half, which meant Uzbekistan's defeat, for which they should not feel ashamed at all. New Zealand played their first game in the group against Guatemala. The Oceania international created fewer chances to score, but was luckier at the end of the game. Just when it looked like it would end in a draw, a long cross to Gerbett and the latter's accurate shot sealed the win for New Zealand. Bookmakers selected the Uzbeks as favourites, with a 2.01 win odds. Uzbekistan got into the World Cup by winning the Asian championships, where they overcame Iraq's resistance in the finals. This is the fifth appearance of the Uzbek squad in the finals of the World Championships, the best achievement being reaching the quarterfinals. In preparation for the tournament, Uzbekistan played friendlies against Brazil and Uruguay, which it lost. Meanwhile, the team looked good against Argentina, so it's a fair bet. New Zealand are also winners of their continental championship. The team has taken part in the world championships more often than their opponents - seven times. This can be explained by the fact that there is less competition in Oceania. That said, New Zealand have never got past the 1/8 finals (three times). New Zealand won three friendlies before the tournament, but their level of opposition was lower than that of their rivals. We're betting that the rivals will be cautious in the important encounter, culminating in a low-scoring encounter.