We’re in the cycle again, as the first round of the 2026 World Cup qualifying begins on Saturday.
Our focus turns to the Cardiff City Stadium for Craig Bellamy’s boys in red as he looks to continue his unbeaten run in charge of Wales, who welcome Kazakhstan to the capital.
Our tipster, Tom Desborough, has run the rule over the two sides and has a bet builder for us to enjoy on Saturday evening. So, let’s get into his Wales v Kazakhstan tips.
Wales v Kazakhstan tips
Wales -1
Both teams to score, no
Brennan Johnson to score
Over 9.5 corners
Nuraly Alip to commit 1+ fouls
- A Bet Builder with these bets pays at approximately 18/1 with Paddy Power. CLICK HERE TO ADD IT TO YOUR BETSLIP.
WHEN: Saturday, 22nd of March, 7:45pm
WHERE: Cardiff City Stadium, Cardiff
TV: BBC One Wales, BBC Three, BBC IPlayer
Wales -1
Craig Bellamy took over the helm from Rob Page as Wales boss last summer and has done a stellar job leading a side that has become difficult to beat. They are unbeaten in the six games he has taken charge of, with three wins and three draws.
They host a Kazakhstan side who struggled in the Nations League at the end of 2024. In their six games, they lost five, drew one, and didn’t score a single goal. Their most recent game saw them suffer a 5-0 defeat away to Norway.
The visitors will find it tough to break their duck in Cardiff, while the hosts should extend their great start under Bellamy. I’m going for a comfortable Wales win, adding a -1 handicap.
Both teams to score, no
Following the first pick, it is unlikely that both teams will find the back of the net on Saturday.
Kazakhstan’s lack of potency in front of goal extends further beyond the last round of the Nations League. They haven’t scored a competitive goal since a 2-1 defeat to Slovenia in 2023.
Wales have also been assured at the back under Craig Bellamy, conceding only one goal in their previous three games.
I can see the visitors’ dry spell continuing in Cardiff, enticing us to add Both teams to score, no to the bet builder.
Brennan Johnson to score
Harry Wilson had been the prolific marksman for Wales since Craig Bellamy took charge. However, he is out with a broken foot. So, their other forwards must step up and carry the goalscoring load.
One attacker capable of that is Tottenham’s Brennan Johnson. The winger found the net twice during the Nations League campaign and has scored 14 club goals this season despite missing several games with injury.
In a game where Wales will get plenty of opportunities at goal, Johnson is a great price to find the back of the net.
Over 9.5 corners
Both teams’ Nations League matches at the end of 2024 saw plenty of corners, most notably for Kazakhstan, who saw 13 or more corners in three of their six games. Despite their poor goalscoring record, they still earned at least one corner in each game.
Wales’ games weren’t quite as corner-heavy but still saw nine or more in four of their six games.
With these stats in mind, there could be plenty of corners during Saturday’s game and over 9.5 is a nice price for us to add to the bet builder.
Nuraly Alip to commit 1+ foul
In addition to struggling to score goals, another attribute of Kazakhstan’s struggling team is that they love picking up yellow cards.
The referee showed at least one card to a Kazakhstan player in all six of their Nations League games, with at least two or more shown to their players in five.
Nuraly Alip was the most prolific offender, picking up yellow cards in consecutive games. He has earned 10 yellow cards in 38 games for Kazakhstan.
His most recent yellow resulted in a suspension, which meant he missed Kazakhstan’s fifth Nations League game.
However, he returned for their sixth game against Norway and played the full 90 minutes without being booked.
He may avoid going into the referee’s book on Saturday, but the centre-back will still be in the mix to commit at least one foul, which we’re backing here.
Wales v Kazakhstan tips
Wales -1
Both teams to score, no
Brennan Johnson to score
Over 9.5 corners
Nuraly Alip to commit 1+ fouls
- A Bet Builder with these bets pays at approximately 18/1 with Paddy Power. CLICK HERE TO ADD IT TO YOUR BETSLIP.
*All prices are bang up to date with our snazzy widgets, while odds in copy are accurate at time of publishing but subject to change.
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