Scotland v Belarus: Three Opta stats and bets for Sunday's World Cup qualifier

• Scotland second to Denmark only by goal difference 

• Group whipping boys Belarus are the visitors 

• Opta stats to a home win with plenty of goals 

• Safe Sub is here for the 2025-26 season - read all about it!

Scotland v Belarus
Sunday October 10, KO 17:00
Live on BBC

Scotland were struggling against Greece on Thursday night but scored a trio of second-half goals to cap a sensational night at Hampden Park.

The win takes them alongside Denmark at the top of the table.

Visitors Belarus are pointless in the group, having conceded 13 goals and scored just once. 

Little suprise then that the odds and the Opta stats are skewed heavily towards a home win. Here are three bets using the Optas as our guide...

Scotland v Belarus Match Odds - Home side should be taking all three points

• Scotland have won three of their previous five meetings with Belarus (D1 L1), with each of those coming in World Cup qualifying - the most recent was just last month, with the Scots winning 2-0 in Belarus.

• Scotland remain unbeaten in qualifying for the 2026 FIFA World Cup (W2 D1), and could avoid defeat in their first four matches of a qualifying campaign for the first time since qualification for the 2002 World Cup (first six).
• Scotland have won each of their last 11 games in all competitions against nations ranked 100^th or lower in the FIFA rankings (Belarus - 100^th), since a 3-0 loss in Kazakhstan (117^th) in March 2019. The Tartan Army have never lost at home to such a nation since the rankings were introduced in 1992 (P21 W19 D2).

Scotland v Belarus Goals - Scotland fancied to find the back of the net

• Belarus have lost each of their last 10 World Cup qualifying matches by an aggregate score of 35-4, losing each of their last 17 outside of Belarus - that run has seen them fail to score more than once in any defeat, while also conceding at least five times in four of their last six losses.

Scotland v Belarus Goalscorers - Super-sub Dykes to strike

• Lyndon Dykes has scored three goals as a substitute for Scotland with only James McFadden (5) netting more times from the bench in their history - half of his 10 goals for the nation have come in World Cup qualifiers.

Bookmark Betting.Betfair for football tips and previews

Back Scotland -2 @ 11/102.11

Back Scotland to win & Over 3.5 goals @ 13/102.30

Back Lyndon Dykes to score @ 4/51.80