Norway vs. Japan prediction and odds for Women's World Cup Round of 16 (Bet the UNDER)

The Round of 16 of the Women's World Cup is set to begin Friday night/Saturday morning, and the second matchup will feature an intercontinental showdown between Norway and Japan.

Norway finished second in Group A, beating New Zealand out on a goal differential tiebreaker after finishing 1-1-1. They'll take on the Group C winner, Japan, who upset Spain in their final match of the Group Stage.

Let's dive into the odds for the match and then I'll break down my best bet.

Norway vs. Japan odds, spread, and total

Norway vs. Japan prediction and pick

When looking at the "expected goals" for both of these teams through the Group Stage, there's one thing that sticks out to me; They're both defensive minded squads.

Heading into the Round of 16, they rank second and fifth amongst all teams in expected goals against. Japan has an expected goals against per game of just 0.66, while Norway has an expected goals against per game of 0.83.

Meanwhile, they both rank further down the list when it comes to expected goals for. Japan is fourth in expected goals for at 2.21 and Norway is eighth at 1.97.

That tells me that we should expect a slow-paced, defensive battle when these two teams meet in the Round of 16.

Japan has yet to concede a goal all tournament and Norway conceded just one.

For those reasons, I love the UNDER in this match early Saturday morning.

Game odds refresh periodically and are subject to change