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Wales vs Portugal betting tips:
- Wales -29.5 - 4/5 with Betfred
- Wales to win by 41-45 points - 15/2 with Spreadex
- Portugal to score first - 13/5 with BetUK
Following their nail-biting clash with Fiji in Bordeaux last weekend, Wales will be hoping for a more stress-free encounter against Portugal in Stade de Nice this Saturday (kick-off 4.45pm UK time).
Despite registering four tries over the course of the contest on Sunday, Warren Gatland’s side didn't have it all their own way during the Pool C meeting, which was the final game on the opening weekend of the Rugby World Cup.
Tries courtesy of Josua Tuisova and Mesake Doge left the Fijians just six points in arrears (32-26) in the closing minutes of the action and it wasn't until a miscalculated attack from the Pacific Islanders that Wales’ victory was finally sealed.
Yet given their ropey form in the past 18 months, the Dragons will take any win that they can get and a Fiji side that were ranked seventh in the world before the start of the tournament represents a perfectly decent scalp.
The Fijians have competed in eight of the nine World Cups that preceded this year’s edition (1995 being the exception) and reached the quarter-finals in 2007 at the expense of Wales.
That tournament 16 years ago marked Portugal’s first appearance at the RWC and Saturday will see them make their grand return to the highest level, although the latest Rugby World Cup odds do not give them much hope.
Wales vs Portugal odds: Welsh overwhelming favourites
Being idle for the majority of the opening weekend of the 2023 tournament made life more difficult for the Welsh, but they were always going to be firm favourites to prevail in their second game.
Semi finalists in 1987, 2011 and 2019, they are as short as 1/200 with bookmakers to get the better of the Portuguese.
Some bookies offer odds of 1/50 on Wales coming out on top, which would bolster their prospects of a knockout place, but very few punters will be interested in such short odds.
You can get 16/1 with William Hill and bet365 on Portugal pulling off one of the biggest shocks in Rugby World Cup history, but the pool’s bottom-ranked team are unlikely to claim a win.
Truthfully, the biggest question surrounding this game is not whether Wales will win, but by how much they will prevail by?
With very little incentive to back a Welsh win, we have turned our attention to the handicap market and the 4/5 offered by Betfred for the Dragons to overhaul a -29.5 start is our first betting pick.
Tip: Wales -29.5 – 4/5 with Betfred
Welsh anticipated to have several points to spare
When Portugal last competed in the World Cup, they suffered four straight defeats that ranged from four points (Romania) to a whopping 95 points (New Zealand).
It is not expected that the Welsh will be as ruthless as the All Blacks were 16 years ago, but a comfortable winning margin is nevertheless expected.
The odds available on Wales winning by between 31 and 35 points are currently 9/2 with Spreadex.
This seems plausible when you consider that Gatland will more than likely make alterations to his starting line-up for Saturday’s game.
Yet the New Zealander will still be able to select a side that has both experience and quality with centurion Leigh Halfpenny, Gareth Anscombe and Aaron Wainwright amongst those who could come into contention.
They are more than capable of surpassing the 32 points they accumulated against Fiji and for that reason our second pick is the 15/2 available on Wales winning by a margin of 41-45 points with Spreadex.
Tip: Wales to win by 41-45 points – 15/2 with Spreadex
Wales vs Portugal betting: How to bet on the underdog
Despite suffering an 82-8 loss in the end, it was Romania who broke the deadlock in their Pool B fixture with Ireland in Bordeaux last Saturday.
This shows that even the most favoured sides in an international encounter can take a little while to find their feet – something the Irish did with considerable aplomb.
Although the odds are stacked in favour of Wales being the ones to open the scoring in Nice, it is not beyond the realms of possibility that Portugal could replicate the Romanians and leave a Tier One nation staring into an early deficit.
With this in mind, the odds of 13/5 that BetUK are offering on the Portuguese to draw first blood this weekend is our outside pick on this game.
Updated by
Last Updated: 14th March 2024, 07:22 AM
