Argentina vs Venezuela: prediction & betting odds 5 September 2025

The Matchday 17 World Cup 2026 qualifier between Argentina and Venezuela will take place on September 5 at the Monumental Stadium in Buenos Aires. Argentina vs. Venezuela: prediction and betting odds, statistics.

Argentina

The team has already secured their spot in the 2026 World Cup. Despite having no tournament motivation, Argentina defeated Chile 1-0 away in June and drew 1-1 at home with Colombia. Lionel Scaloni's side is unbeaten in their last five World Cup qualifiers, with four wins and one draw. Argentina has scored the most goals in their continental qualifiers, totaling 28. They are also guaranteed to finish first in the South American group.

• No more than two goals have been scored in 4 of Argentina's last 5 World Cup qualifying matches.
• The team is unbeaten in their last 5 home World Cup qualifiers (4 wins and 1 draw).
• Argentina has kept a clean sheet in 11 of their last 14 home World Cup qualifying matches.

Predicted lineup for Argentina (4-3-3)

Emiliano Martinez – Nahuel Molina, Cristian Romero, Facundo Medina, Nicolas Otamendi – Exequiel Palacios, Rodrigo De Paul, Leandro Paredes – Thiago Almada, Lionel Messi, Julian Alvarez.

Midfielder Enzo Fernandez is suspended for this match.

Venezuela

In June, the team secured a crucial 2-0 home victory over Bolivia. Venezuela will compete with Bolivia in the remaining two rounds for 7th place, which grants a playoff spot for a World Cup berth. They had a chance to widen the gap from their competitor (currently just 1 point) but lost 0-2 away to Uruguay in their last match.

• Venezuela has won only 2 of their last 12 South American World Cup qualifiers (5 draws and 5 losses).
• The team has scored in 7 of their last 8 World Cup qualifying matches.
• Venezuela has not won in 17 consecutive away World Cup qualifiers (2 draws and 15 losses).

Predicted lineup for Venezuela (4-4-2)

Rafael Romo – Wilker Angel, Miguel Navarro, Nahuel Ferraresi, Jon Aramburu – Yeferson Soteldo, Cristian Casseres, Jose Andres Martinez, Daniel Pereira – Salomon Rondon, David Martinez.

Referee

Piero Maza (Chile)

Matches – 25 (International matches, 2024–2025);

Yellow cards shown (including second yellows) – 128;

Average yellow cards per match – 5.1;

Red cards shown – 4;

Average fouls per match – 23;

Penalties – 24%.

Argentina vs. Venezuela: Match Prediction

In this match, only the visitors have tournament motivation. Argentina is out of reach for their South American rivals with a 10-point lead. For Venezuela, both remaining matches are crucial: they need to earn at least as many points as Bolivia. Additionally, they have a chance to secure 6th place, which grants direct World Cup qualification, but they must beat Argentina and hope for Colombia to drop points.

Venezuela will likely focus on defense throughout the match to secure at least one point. Playing open football against Argentina is not advisable, and Venezuela has been weak on the road. However, in 7 of their last 8 away World Cup qualifiers, Venezuela has avoided heavy defeats. In their last 6 official encounters, Venezuela has only lost by more than two goals once.

My prediction: Venezuela with a handicap (+2)