The Best Bet: Penalty fever to continue in Portugal vs Morocco

The 2018 World Cup has not been short of drama. Whether Cristiano Ronaldo’s hat-trick against Spain or Mexico’s shock win over reigning world champions Germany, this summer’s tournament has been a rollercoaster ride already.

After holding Spain to a 3-3 draw in last week’s Iberian derby, Portugal will hope to go one better when they ace Morocco on Wednesday. The Euro 2016 winners have drawn their last four group matches at major tournaments and are best priced at 2.86 with Marathon Bet to continue that streak here.

Morocco face a mountain to climb if they are to qualify to the knockout stage of the World Cup after slipping to a shock 1-0 defeat to Iran in their group opener. With Portugal and Spain to come in their last two group games, their chances of a top-two finish are slim.

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In fact, Morocco are priced at 20/1 to qualify for the knockout phase with Sky Bet, emphasising the task at hand for Herve Renard’s side if they want to prolong their stay in Russia.

There have remarkably been 10 penalties awarded in the first 16 matches of the 2018 World Cup, with eight of those converted. We are backing this staggering trend to continue when Portugal face Morocco in Moscow and you can get double your stake with odds of 2.0 with Paddy Power.