World Cup Quarter Final Player Props
From the dazzling brilliance of the French to the dogged determination of minnows Cape Verde, we’ve seen some great team efforts over the last few weeks, but we’ve also seen some fantastic individual efforts, with many of the big-name stars wowing the crowds. Lionel Messi continues to defy the aging process, while the likes of Harry Kane, Kylian Mbappé and Erling Haaland have all been in ruthless form. Let’s see if the big dogs continue to bark as the competition gets super serious.
From a player-prop point of view, it was nice to land three winners during the Round-of-16, turning a pleasing overall profit.
Ahead of the quarter finals, check out our full section of World Cup picks. First, here are a handful of player props to consider:
Bilal El Khannous 1+ Shots on Target (+275)
We’ll kick things off with a bet on Morocco’s Bilal El Khannous to register a shot on target against the French. This is easily the Atlas Lions’ toughest task in some time, and the French are expected to dominate, but we cannot write the Moroccans off, especially on the break, so someone like Bilal El Khannous, who is no stranger to getting himself into shooting positions could easily be more threatening than the early odds suggest.
The Stuttgart winger/forward is Morocco’s joint-best player in terms of shots on target at this tournament, producing four in five games, averaging 0.90 shots on target per 90 minutes.
El Khannous didn’t register a shot on target against Canada, but he did so against the Netherlands prior to that, also registering three shots on target in his final two group-stage appearances. In a game where he should get room to work on the break, he looks generously priced at +275.
Neil El Aynaoui to Be Shown a Card (+300)
At odds of +300, it’s easy to side with Morocco’s Neil El Aynaoui to collect a card. The combative central midfielder has not been booked at this tournament yet, but he’s been quite fortunate in that sense.
After all, of the players still in the competition, Neil El Aynaoui rates the number one in terms of fouls committed, making 11 in total at this tournament. He’s averaging 2.09 per 90 minutes, and against a French team that will make the Moroccans do plenty of chasing, the man who made no less than five fouls against the Netherlands will do well to stay out of trouble.
Erling Haaland to Score (+133)
Very, very rarely do you see Erling Haaland priced anywhere near +133 to score, and it feels as if such odds are a slight overreaction to the fact that Norway are playing England. Put it this way, if Harry Kane is priced at -105 to score, then Haaland should be around +105.
The English are a little bit stronger than the Norwegians based on what we’ve seen so far, but the gap in quality is not enough to suggest that Kane has anything more than a slightly greater chance of netting than his Scandinavian counterpart.
Haaland has been in devastating form at this World Cup, scoring three goals in two knockout games, netting seven in total. In the knockouts, the Three Lions haven’t been great defensively, so it’s not difficult to see the Norwegians creating a few chances, and Haaland is simply too prolific to ignore in the betting.
Leandro Trossard 1+ Assists (+800)
If you were asked to name the most creative player of the tournament so far, you probably wouldn’t say Leandro Trossard, but it is the Belgian who has made more key passes (= passes leading directly to a shot) than any other player at this World Cup, and that stat is hard to ignore when odds of +800 are on offer. Simply, those odds are too big and should be taken by those seeking value for money.
Trossard registered an assist in both the Round-of-32 and the Round-of-16, contributing three assists in total at this tournament, while he’s averaging an impressive 3.40 key passes per 90 minutes. Quick to react and play forward in behind on the break, Trossard has also shown that he can be a huge threat when out wide in crossing positions, and if the Belgians can hit the forward-pressing Spaniards on the counter, the Arsenal man can create chances here.
Dan Ndoye 1+ Shots on Target (+140)
Lastly, as Argentina and Switzerland clash on Sunday, the pacey and direct Dan Ndoye, who has sprung into life in the knockouts, looks too leniently priced to register a shot on target.
Ndoye scored against Algeria during the Round-of-32, while he worked the Colombian keeper during the Round-of-16. Seeing how open the Argentinians have been and how poorly they’ve done when attempting to guard against the break, the Swiss speedster should fancy his chances here, especially as he’s averaging 1.67 shots on target per 90.
All in all, odds of +140 look far too generous to ignore given that we’re talking about a player who has been registering shots on target for fun, a player who will absolutely relish getting at this rather open Argentinian defense on the break.
