Bitesize Prediction: Bahrain vs Saudi Arabia – 05/06/25

Competition: World Cup Qualifiers

Market: Saudi Arabia win

Odds: 19/20 @ 1xBet

Facing what is a must-win World Cup qualifying showdown on Thursday evening, Saudi Arabia will travel to Riffa when they meet Bahrain.

Starting with the hosts, while Bahrain might have made real history back in January as they were crowned Gulf Cup champions for just a second time, Dragan Talajic’s men are enduring a real qualifying struggle. Last seen putting in another toothless display as they were hit with a 1-0 loss at the hands of Indonesia on March 25th, the Red Devils have put just six points on the board from their eight Group C appearances and their chances of booking a play-off ticket are hanging by a thread. Getting March’s qualifying fixtures underway with a routine 2-0 defeat against Japan, Thursday’s hosts have lost their previous three consecutive Group C showdowns by an aggregate score of 5-1. With their qualifying blip highlighted by a shock 2-1 defeat at home against Yemen on December 28th, Bahrain have also drawn consecutive blanks for the first time this calendar year.

As for the visitors, despite suffering Gulf Cup heartbreak on New Year’s Eve as they fell to a 2-1 defeat against Oman, Saudi Arabia haven’t shown any real signs of a hangover. Turning their attention back to World Cup qualifying duties sat in bronze medal position, Herve Renard’s men will be preparing for a must-win showdown on Thursday evening. Picking up some perfect momentum last week as they claimed a 2-0 win against Jordan, the Green Falcons will be desperately seeking a repeat performance here. Suffering just a single defeat from their previous six appearances across all fronts, the one-time Lille boss will also be excited by his side’s recent defensive steel. Including a 1-0 victory at home against China on March 20th, Saudi Arabia have recorded a clean sheet in all of their last three straight outings. With their World Cup dreams potentially hanging in the balance, we are backing an away win on Thursday evening.

Bet: Saudi Arabia 19/20 to beat Bahrain in Thursday’s World Cup qualifying showdown @ 1xBet