New Zealand vs. Argentina Rugby Odds: Back the hosts to dominate Los Pumas on Saturday

Who’d have thought that two games into the Rugby Championship we’d see these two teams at the opposite ends of the table? Most people, likely, but not in the positions they currently are. After their astonishing win over Australia, Argentina currently occupy first place, with the All Blacks sitting in fourth.

As mentioned in our other preview for Saturday, all four teams have a record of one win and one loss so far in this year’s tournament, and there will be a degree of urgency to try and push on in game number three. The pressure is all on All Blacks head coach Ian Foster coming into this game, and Argentina’s Michael Cheika had this to say…

“It’s not work at all, he’s the coach of New Zealand, one of the best countries in the world at rugby. He’ll be loving it, even when it’s tough mate, it doesn’t matter. That comes with the territory of footy. It gets tough.”

Cheika knows his Los Pumas side can continue to play without fear, after a series win against Scotland, and their stunning victory over the Wallabies, Cheika’s side really are on the up.

With everything in mind, we’ve previewed Saturday’s second fixture, and picked out two tips to go with it.

It’s always hard to find value when it comes to the All Blacks, so our first selection might be a bit of a shock. After their convincing win over the Wallabies, we’re expecting Los Pumas to come out firing, creating an aerial bombardment, and really using their pack to drive New Zealand back.

With the tension surrounding New Zealand head coach Ian Foster at the minute, don’t be surprised if there’s a few worried faces in the All Blacks crowd and on the pitch, and an early try for Argentina will only add to it. This line landed in the Argentine’s opening Rugby Championship game this season, after they crossed the line with just five minutes on the board against Australia, and it can be found at 19/10 with Bet365 for them to do similar, before going on to lose.

Onto our second bet for Saturday’s game, we’re looking at New Zealand to come out on top in this game, with a winning margin of 36-40 points. This line has landed in two of the All Blacks’ last three wins over Argentina, with the exception being a 23 point winning margin last time out.

New Zealand have only ever played Los Pumas twice in Christchurch, but they’re averaging a winning margin of 34.5 points in those fixtures, so that gives us more hope for the weekend’s clash.

Best of luck if you’re following any of these bets, and please remember to gamble responsibly.