International Football Best Bets - September 24

Japan return to the international game for the first time following their disappointing World Cup campaign. While they did make it out of their World Cup group, they only managed to win one of their four matches. Solid draws with the Netherlands (2-2) and Sweden (1-1) sandwiched a 4-0 win over Tunisia. However, their victory over the weakest side they took on did little to help them against Brazil as Japan were eliminated. Now, the focus returns to building away from a major tournament. The last two meetings with Uruguay have ended in draws with a 2-2 draw in 2019 followed by a 1-1 stalemate in 2023. With two draws coming from their last four outings, I predict that Japan will have to find the positives in avoiding defeat. 

South Korea were left to rue what might have been at the 2026 World Cup after they were eliminated from the competition in the group-stage. A pair of 1-0 defeats to Mexico and South Africa were hugely frustrating, but their failure came on the back of a very impressive 2-1 win over Czechia in their opener. Ultimately, South Korea could not emulate their outstanding performance in their opener as they crashed out early. Positive for South Korea is the fact they beat Ecuador 2-0 when the sides last met. When omitting their performance at the 2026 World Cup, South Korea had won their previous two, while they had only lost four of their previous 27. With 17 wins and six draws coming in this time, I am backing South Korea to return to winning ways this week.