An intriguing battle awaits between two of the top European nations as Netherlands welcome Norway to the Johan Cruyff Arena in an international friendly on Friday night.
Both teams qualified for the World Cup with relative ease, and with neither having won it before, they could both be considered as underdogs come the summer.
Netherlands have a bigger pedigree at the World Cup having reached multiple finals before, but Norway's exquisite qualifying campaign sees them head into their first World Cup since 1998 with a lot of confidence.
Read our prediction, preview and betting tips for the game below, and make sure to check out our Today's betting tips page for more of our free expert international friendly predictions!
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Netherlands vs Norway key stats
- Netherlands are unbeaten in eight games in all competitions (W6, D2).
- Norway's own unbeaten run stretches to 12 matches across all competitions (W11, D1).
- Netherlands are also unbeaten in the last eight H2Hs (W5, D3).
Netherlands vs Norway preview: Norwegians to spring another surprise?
| Netherlands | vs | Norway |
|---|---|---|
| 7th | FIFA ranking | 32nd |
| Memphis Depay (108) | Most caps | Alexander Sorloth (68) |
| Memphis Depay (55) | Most goals | Erling Haaland (55) |
| 808 | Total caps | 634 |
| 155 | Total goals | 108 |
| 1 | Uncapped players | 3 |
Despite never winning the World Cup, expectations will be on the Netherlands as one of the world's highest-ranked nations.
Their qualifying campaign was not all plain-sailing, but they were never in real danger of not making the tournament this summer.
Netherlands have not scored over 2.5 goals in the last five H2Hs.
Netherlands reached the semi-finals in the last major tournament, Euro 2024, and will be hoping to go one better this time.
They boast plenty of quality and experience in the squad, and a quality Norway side is ideal preparation for them.
The Norwegians have hit a golden generation of players led by Manchester City superstar Erling Haaland, while Arsenal's Martin Odegaard and Atletico Madrid's Alexander Sorloth are also among the notable names.
BTTS has come through in Norway's last three games.
Odegaard has not been included in this squad for their upcoming friendlies though as he continues to recover from injury.
Nonetheless, Norway still possess plenty of quality that could still hurt the Netherlands on Friday.
Indeed, we are expecting an exciting battle between two nations looking to make a name for themselves at the World Cup.
Netherlands vs Norway form guide & betting tips
| Netherlands | vs | Norway |
|---|---|---|
| W-W-W-D-W | Form | W-W-D-W-W |
| 16 | Goals For | 25 |
| 3 | Goals Against | 4 |
| L-W-W | Int'l friendly form | L-W-D |
Whispers predicts: Netherlands 2-2 Norway
Netherlands are 7/10 favourites with bookmakers, but given recent form, we feel Norway can cause an upset.
A Double chance - Draw or Norway at 5/4 bet therefore appeals to us.
Both nations have also been free-scoring in recent matches, so we can also see plenty of goals being shared out.
BTTS - Yes at 4/6 and Over 3.5 goals at 13/8 are also bets that we are also willing to take in this sense.
Overall, we are predicting a high-scoring draw, and a 2-2 scoreline can be backed at 14/1 with bookmakers.
> BTTS - Yes at 4/6 | Likelihood: Probable
> Double chance - Draw or Norway at 5/4 | Likelihood: Possible
> Over 3.5 goals at 13/8 | Likelihood: Possible