Northern Ireland have the best defensive record in the 2026/27 Nations League and Michael O'Neill's men take on Ukraine in Group B2 on Saturday.
The hosts are slight favourites in Belfast , although they failed to score in their first two home matches, drawing 0-0 with both Hungary and Georgia.
The Irish had kicked off their campaign with a 1-0 victory in Georgia and boosted their UEFA Nations League promotion hopes by beating Ukraine 3-0 in Slovakia on matchday three.
However, defenders Conor Bradley, Dan Ballard and Eoin Toal remain sidelined for the return fixture before O'Neill's side travel to Hungary on Tuesday.
Northern Ireland v Ukraine Tips Summary
Best Bet - Draw @ 2/1
Alternative Bet - Ethan Galbraith to be booked @ 15/8
Bet Builder - Under 2.5 goals, Trai Hume 1+ shot & Oleg Ocheretko to be booked @ 29/4
Northern Ireland v Ukraine Prediction
Best Bet: Draw @ 2/1
Northern Ireland kept four clean sheets in four Nations League matches in September and October, but they look less convincing at the other end of the pitch.
O'Neill's side scored with all three of their shots on target in the 3-0 win over Ukraine and two of their goals came from centre-back Ciaron Brown.
They were held to goalless stalemates in their first two home matches and their opening win in Georgia was decided by fine margins.
Goalkeeper Pierce Charles saved a late Khvicha Kvaratskhelia penalty before classy midfielder Shea Charles scored the only goal of the game in the eighth minute of injury time.
Northern Ireland and Ukraine could prove hard to separate in Belfast, so the draw looks the best bet on Saturday.
Ukraine won 1-0 in Hungary on matchday one before drawing 0-0 with Georgia in a game of few chances.
They conceded in the 85th minute to lose 2-1 to Hungary on matchday four and should be competitive on their trip to Windsor Park.
The hosts are missing Arsenal forward Ceadach O'Neill due to injury and Ukraine's defensive unit includes Benfica goalkeeper Anatoliy Trubin and Paris Saint-Germain centre-back Illia Zabarnyi.
Alternative Bet: Ethan Galbraith to be booked @ 15/8
Midfielder Ethan Galbraith has had an action-packed start to the 2026/27 season for Stoke City in the Championship, contributing three goals and four assists in 14 starts.
The tough-tackling Galbraith served a one-match ban this month after picking up his fifth yellow card of the campaign and he is a likely candidate to be booked against Ukraine.
The 25-year-old returned from suspension at Portsmouth last weekend, when he was cautioned in the second half.
Galbraith, an industrious figure in the Northern Ireland midfield, caught the referee's eye early on in September's home fixture against Hungary.
He was the first player booked in that game, in the 16th minute, and also picked up two yellow cards in six World Cup qualifying appearances.
Northern Ireland v Ukraine Bet Builder Tip
Under 2.5 goals
Trai Hume 1+ shot
Oleg Ocheretko to be booked
Pays 29/4
Under 2.5 goals was a winning bet in Northern Ireland's last five World Cup qualifying matches, while their first two Nations League home fixtures ended 0-0.
Trai Hume averages one shot per 90 minutes in the Nations League and he had two attempts at goal in Sunderland's Premier League win over Chelsea last weekend.
Ukraine's Oleg Ocheretko should be in the thick of the midfield scrap and is worth backing to pick up a card. He was booked in his last away international against Georgia and has been cautioned in two of his last five starts for Shakhtar Donetsk.
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Key Match Stats
Northern Ireland have kept a clean sheet in all four of their Nations League matches
Isaac Price has scored in five of his last eight starts for West Brom and Northern Ireland
One or both teams failed to score in Northern Ireland's last nine competitive fixtures
There were under 3.5 goals in eight of Ukraine's last nine games
Twelve of Ukraine's last 13 defeats featured over 2.5 goals
Ukraine have scored only one first-half goal in their last seven competitive internationals
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This article was written by a partner sports writer via Spotlight Sports Group. All odds displayed on this page were correct at the time of writing and are subject to withdrawal or change at any time.
