Cyprus will host San Marino in the first round of the World Cup Qualifiers on Friday, 21 March.
Will the home team secure an easy win as expected or will we see a huge upset by San Marino? Read our Cyprus vs San Marino prediction and preview to find out.
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Cyprus vs San Marino prediction: A confident win for the hosts
Key stats
- Cyprus have conceded just one goal in the last seven duels with San Marino.
- San Marino have failed to score in three of their last five games.
- Cyprus are ranked 130th in FIFA rankings, 80 places ahead of San Marino, who are in the last place in the rankings.
Pre-game odds and win probability: Cyprus are obvious favourites
- HOME: 1/5 (1.20) – 83.30%
- DRAW: 6/1 (7.00) – 14.30%
- AWAY: 14/1 (15.00) – 6.70%
It's clear from these Cyprus vs San Marino odds that the hosts are the expected winners in this match and by a huge margin.
Considering the reputation of both teams, that's hardly a surprise, but that being said, San Marino have done better lately compared to the usual state of things, so Cyprus will have to take them seriously if they want to secure three points.
In any case, if you like our predictions for this duel, we have more exciting options on our free betting tips page.
Most recent H2Hs: Perfect record for Cyprus
These two teams have met seven times before and Cyprus have notched all seven wins, only conceding one goal in the process.
International Match 11/06/24
San Marino
Cyprus
Euro 2019 Qualifying 09/09/19
San Marino
Cyprus
Euro 2019 Qualifying 21/03/19
Cyprus
San Marino
Cyprus preview: Only a victory will be accepted
While Cyprus have struggled lately, they did finish the last season of UEFA Nations League C in third place in their group, ensuring they'll compete at this level next season as well. So, despite their bad results overall, they are still huge favourites against San Marino, the last-placed team in FIFA rankings.
Predicted lineup: Demitriou (GK), Laifis, Andreou, Panagiotou, Pileas, Kastanos, Artymatas, Charalampous, Loizou, Sotiriou & Pittas
Europe - World Cup Qualifying 24/03/25
L
Bosnia-Herzegovina
2
Cyprus
1
Europe - World Cup Qualifying 21/03/25
W
San Marino
0
Cyprus
2
UEFA Nations League C 18/11/24
L
Romania
4
Cyprus
1
UEFA Nations League C 15/11/24
W
Lithuania
1
Cyprus
2
UEFA Nations League C 15/10/24
L
Kosovo
3
Cyprus
0
San Marino preview: Can they keep shocking the football world?
While San Marino have entered the last season of UEFA Nations League D as the worst-ranked team in the world, without any competitive wins in their history, they managed to shock everyone by beating Liechtenstein twice and finishing first in their group. This didn't help their FIFA rankings, but San Marino will play in league C of the UEFA Nations League next season, which is a huge success for this tiny nation.
Predicted lineup: Colombo (GK), Fabbri, Valentini, Benvenuti, Tosi, Contadini, Zannoni, Golinucci, Lazzari, Beradi & Nanni
Europe - World Cup Qualifying 24/03/25
L
Romania
5
San Marino
1
Europe - World Cup Qualifying 21/03/25
L
Cyprus
2
San Marino
0
UEFA Nations League D 18/11/24
W
Liechtenstein
1
San Marino
3
UEFA Nations League D 15/11/24
D
Gibraltar
1
San Marino
1
International Match 13/10/24
L
Andorra
2
San Marino
0
Player to watch: Pieros Sotiriou
The experienced forward is one of the players that has most caps for Cyprian national team at the moment and he is the team's best scorer of all active players with 12 goals, which also puts him in third place when it comes to Cyprus top scorers of all times.
Obviously, 12 goals in 63 appearances is hardly a great efficiency, but Sotiriou will have a chance to improve this against San Marino, one of the worst national teams in the world.