Money Makers - Top Tips in Buabook's Belgium-Italy Match Market

It’s fair to say that Monday night’s game between Belgium and Italy is the real glamour tie of the opening round of fixtures at the Euros, despite that fact that neither side enter the tournament at full strength.

Marc Wilmots’ side are among the favourites to go all the way this summer, entering the tournament as the highest ranked team in France, while Italy have a good record at the finals in recent years, reaching having been runners up in 2000 and 2012. 

The game on Monday promises to be an intriguing tactical battle, with Belgium boasting one of the strongest attacking teams at the tournament - on paper at least - and the Azzurri arguably the best defence. Antonio Conte will field the back three that served him so well at Juventus and has continued to impress under Max Allegri, with the BBC of Barzagli, Bonucci and Chiellini shielding the seemingly evergreen Gianluigi Buffon. This, then, will perhaps be the truest test of both Italy’s backline and the Red Devils’ attack.

With that in mind we have an unenviable task in predicting an outcome at the Stade de Lyon, with plenty of money to made via Buabook’s match market.

Buabook is the first trading exchange that allows you to buy and sell shares for real cash in players based on their in-play statistics. A player’s value will rise and fall live for every positive or negative event in the game, be that as obvious as a goal or as detailed as a misplaced pass. Correctly predict which players will perform above (by buying shares) or below (by selling shares) the expectations of others and you can make a great profit, as well as adding extra intrigue to a game.

With regards to Belgium’s clash with Italy, there are certainly a few players worth keeping an eye on. Among those in impressive form heading into the game is Eden Hazard, who endured a bitterly disappointing season with Chelsea but did start to replicate his best for the Blues at the end of the campaign.

The winger has the added responsibility of inheriting the captain’s armband from the injured Vincent Kompany and will no doubt want to lead by example this summer as a result. That may be easier said than done against Italy’s backline but if Belgium are to breach the resolve of Conte’s side, getting in behind the wing-backs - with Italy set to line-up in a 3-5-2 formation - will be key, so Hazard has a crucial role.

The Chelsea man will likely come up against Antonio Candreva down the Azzurri’s right, and while the Lazio winger is a fine player in his own right, he does like to get forward and could leave space in behind. While that may not have been too much of an issue against the Hazard of two months ago, the 25-year old had a direct hand in 8 goals in his last 10 appearances of the season at club level (5 goals - each worth £1.00 in Buabook markets, 3 assists - each worth £0.60), so will be keen to continue that fine form and get one over on Chelsea’s incoming coach.

If he can get in behind Candreva and either cut inside or provide balls for the likes of Lukaku to capitalise on, Italy will be in for a tough opener and I would buy shares south of £0.60 in the Belgium skipper.

That said, I wouldn’t be confident enough to both buy shares in Belgium forwards and sell shares in Italy defenders, as a clean sheet (worth £1.00 for defenders) for the Azzurri - which is well within the realms of possibility - would lead to significant losses. Instead I’d look to protect any risk that may be in place buy investing in shares in Hazard by selling shares in Italy forwards, far more confident that Conte’s attack will struggle to have a telling impact on the game.

One player in particular I would look to sell is Inter striker Eder, who is still favoured to partner Southampton’s Graziano Pelle up front despite a dismal record since sealing a switch to San Siro at the turn of the year. The Brazilian-born frontman fully justified the Nerazzurri’s interest in January having score 12 Serie A goals ahead of his move - second in the league to Gonzalo Higuain at the time - but scored just once in the league for Inter.

Moreover, having scored in just one of his 9 international appearances since netting a late equaliser on his debut against Bulgaria back in March 2015, Eder’s confidence will be very low. While he works hard and his movement could prove a handful for a Belgium defence without the likes of Kompany and Lombaerts, it’s difficult to see Italy’s support striker doing the business on Monday.

While a goal is worth £1.00 in Buabook’s markets, if a striker fails to score it will deduct £0.20 from their game earnings, and though an assist can earn a player £0.60, failing to set up a goal for a teammate will deduct £0.10 from a striker’s value. As a result I’d be confident to sell 20 shares in Eder at £0.30, with his game earning’s likely to sit at zero if he fails to contribute to a goal, leading to a potential return of £6.00.

It promises to be a great battle when Belgium meet Italy in Lyon, but why not raise the stakes higher by trading with Buabook?