Canada vs El Salvador Odds & Prediction – CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying

• Canada hosts El Salvador in CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying on Wednesday night at BMO Field in Toronto
• Canada is a heavy -270 favorite for this fixture
• Find the odds, preview, and prediction below

CONCACAF World Cup Qualifying continues on Wednesday with Matchday 3. Canada will be looking for their first victory after two consecutive draws when they welcome El Salvador to BMO Field, who have also failed to win thus far. The kick-off is scheduled for 7:30 PM EST.

These two nations have met six times since 1999, with Canada tasting defeat just once. However, that loss came in their most recent encounter in 2017.

The Canadians will be without their best player in Bayern Munich left-back Alphonso Davies, who suffered a knee injury in their last clash against the US.

Canada vs El Salvador Odds

All odds as of September 7th at FanDuel

Three Points Are a Must for Canada

The Canadians have just two points to show for in qualifying after draws with Honduras and the United States. John Herdman’s men went down by a goal to the Hondurans but were able to equalize in the second half thanks to Cyle Larin. The US match was a very positive showing for Canada, though.

They were extremely dangerous at times in the final third, much in part due to Alphonso Davies, who was wreaking havoc down the left flank. After the Americans bagged an opener, Les Rouges stormed back just seven minutes later and drew level thanks to a fantastic run from Davies and a fine assist to gift Larin a simple tap-in.

All in all, Canada played very well against their rivals, but Davies limping off in the second half was concerning. He missed training on Tuesday and will return to Germany to recover from a knee injury. That being said, there are numerous players who will have to step up in his absence.

Alphonso Davies will miss Canada’s third World Cup Qualifier in Toronto due to injury.

He will return to Bayern Munich to continue his recovery 🇨🇦 pic.twitter.com/WQzo5Vif2x

— FOX Soccer (@FOXSoccer) September 8, 2021

Larin has been clinical for his country and must continue this trend. This is an opportunity for Jonathan David to shine up top and be the main man as well. Four goals in six World Cup Qualifiers is a fantastic return and his country needs him more than ever on Wednesday. Missing Davies is a definite blow because he is the focal point of their attack, but there is more than enough talent within this squad to find a positive result against a rather weak El Salvador side.

El Salvador Still in the Mix

The El Salvadorians have never been a very strong footballing nation, but they’ve done rather well in qualifying to this point. Defensively, Hugo Perez’s group hasn’t conceded a goal yet after consecutive scoreless draws with the US and Honduras. El Salvador dominated possession against the Hondurans and even slightly edged out the Americans with 51% of the ball on home soil.

However, they’re rather toothless in the final third. Perez’s side has registered just two shots on target and failed to score a goal so far. Without the services of talisman David Rugamas, El Salvador doesn’t have a lot of attacking prowess.

Even in the Gold Cup this summer where they made a run all the way to the quarterfinals, La Selecta netted just four times in the group stages. But the squad did show some guts in the last eight in a heartbreaking 3-2 defeat to Qatar.

Nevertheless, El Salvador has shown the ability to keep superior opponents at bay thanks to their strong backline. Although a victory will be the primary goal on Wednesday, another draw would put them in a decent position before the next set of qualifiers in October.

Canada vs El Salvador Key Stats

Canada vs El Salvador Prediction

Even without Davies wreaking havoc for Canada, I do think they have enough to secure the full three points here. Given that El Salvador doesn’t have many legitimate options up top, expect the Canadians to play on the front foot for most of the 90 minutes and push more players forward. They’re also playing in front of an electric atmosphere at BMO Field which should certainly help. The moneyline offers little value, but a specific scoreline could be worth a bet here.

Pick: Canada to Win 2-0 (+490)