It’s been a cracking start to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil where we have seen a flood of goals so far. When you compare it to South Africa back in 2010, we saw 91 goals scored through the group stages which equates to 1.89 per game. So far in Brazil (at time of writing) we already have 27 goals from the first 8 games equating to 3.37 per game. It’s a massive difference and as a football fan it’s fantastic to see open and attacking football. If it keeps up at this rate we should see 160+ goals scored before we even get into the knockout stages.
**Betting odds from Betfair as at 15th June 2014
17th June Fixtures
Germany ($2.18) versus Portugal ($3.95), Draw ($3.45)
It’s another cracking matchup amongst the first round of matches played with Germany taking on Portugal. Both sides could be argued as a World Cup winner this year but Germany certainly look to have a bigger claim on the top prize at this stage. The Germans will be supremely confident having not lost an opening match to a World Cup since 1982 and when you look at the strength of their squad, it’s not hard to see them doing the same again here. Add to this some fitness concerns over Cristiano Ronaldo and it certainly looks like it could be backs to the wall stuff for Portugal. I suspect this game will follow the trend of what’s been happening so far in this World Cup, so there should be a few goals on display. Portugal’s hopes here won’t solely rest on whether Ronaldo is fit and at his best, but they have a much better chance if he’s in the side that’s for sure. In the end though this German side looks too strong. They have one of the best keepers in the world in Manuel Neur, a very strong backline, arguably the strongest midfield mix in the World, and a more than capable frontline attack that is well supported from midfield.
Predicted score: Germany 2-1
Best Bet: Over 2.5 goals at $2.14 (85%)
Next Best: Portugal to keep a clean sheet – No at $1.27
Iran ($4) versus Nigeria ($2.22), Draw ($3.25)
It’s not a glamour matchup by any means, but Iran and Nigeria will be fighting hard for a win here as it’s crucial to their chances if they are to progress out of the group with games against Bosnia and Argentina to follow. Interestingly neither Iran nor Nigeria have won a match at a world Cup since France in 1998 and it’s arguably their best chance to do so. Nigeria had a poor run in 2010 in a group with Greece, South Korea, and Greece where they really should have done better. They’ve considered a strong nation in football terms but sometimes fail to deliver. They did however win the Africa Cup of Nations in 2013 which should give them a good base to work off for this World Cup. I think they are capable of an upset this time as well. The worst thing Nigeria can do here is underestimate Iran as they can be dangerous. They had a pretty solid qualifying campaign finishing on top of their group ahead of South Korea. Whilst we should see a good contest, Nigeria should come out on top with a few more class players getting them across the line.
Predicted score: Nigeria 2-1
Best Bet: Draw No Bet Nigeria at $1.53 (85%)
Next Best: Nigeria to win at $2.22
Anytime Scorer Bet: Emmanuel Emenike at $2.66
Ghana ($2.62) versus USA ($3.1), Draw ($3.25)
Like a few early contests in this World Cup with the top two favourites to qualify for the last 16 facing off this becomes an even more crucial fixture for Ghana and the USA to win if they hope to advance. These two met in the 2010 World Cup in the last 16 where Ghana managed to sneak away with a 2-1 win in extra time. It could be a similarly close contest here but the USA defence will need to be particularly wary of a Ghana side that can be lethal on the counterattack and attack in general having notched up 25 goals during their 8 qualifying matches including a 7-3 aggregate win over Egypt to make it through to 2014. From a personnel perspective it’s interesting that Jozy Altidore made it into the squad after a pretty poor return for Sunderland in the EPL with 1 goal from 30 games but he’s obviously highly rated from a National team point of view with 23 from 70 appearances. Apart from Clint Dempsey, another attacking threat they have up their sleeve this time is Aron Johannsson who’s coming off a solid club season with AZ in the Eredivisie scoring 17 times from 32 games. In the end I think we’ll see a pretty open contest after the teams have settled into it and I’m expecting a few goals for both sides in this one.
Predicted score: Draw 2-2
Best Bet: Both teams to score at $2 (80%)
Next Best: Over 2.5 goals at $2.38
Anytime Scorer Bet: Asomoah Gyan at $2.92
18th June Fixtures
Belgium ($1.5) versus Algeria ($8.6), Draw ($4.4)
The biggest dark horse of them all, Belgium, kick off their World Cup against Algeria. I think we’re all expecting Belgium to make it to the final 16 at the very least so it’ll be interesting to see how they cope with that pressure on the biggest stage of all. There’s no doubting their strength all over the field and with a lot of their players playing in the biggest leagues in the world and building big reputations for themselves, they are certainly the ones to beat here. Algeria will certainly be a contest and have some pretty good players coming through but I doubt they’ll have the quality to upset Belgium here who should control from the outset. For Belgium it’s a matter of ensuring they don’t go out there expecting to win and letting any complacency step in. I doubt though that Belgium won’t be focused as they’ll know they have a quality team and a relatively comfortable group to qualify from.
Predicted score: Belgium 3-0
Best Bet: Over 2.5 goals at $2.16
Next Best: Belgium to win at $1.5
Russia ($2.26) versus South Korea ($3.75), Draw ($3.3)
Russia get their World Cup campaign underway against South Korea and are a good shot at qualifying for the last 16 if they can get underway with a win. Going off their qualifying, they had a pretty smooth run with 7 wins and a draw from 10 but perhaps key to that was only conceding 5 goals whilst knocking in 20 themselves. This isn’t to take anything away from South Korea as they have some great talent in this squad, led by Son Heung-min who had 10 goals and 4 assists for Bayer Leverkusen this season, but it’ll be interesting to see if they have the quality to trouble Russia and Belgium who are favourites to qualify from this group. Interestingly Capello has chosen a squad of domestic based players which perhaps points to some preparation for the 2018 World Cup in Russia. I think the fact that Russia will be hosting the next World Cup could also be a good motivator for them to put a good showing in in Brazil. For South Korea, they perhaps have an advantage as they play Algeria next so if they can somehow scramble a point here, they could be a good shot at qualifying. I do think though that Russia might be just slightly too strong here and could win it late on.
Predicted score: Russia 2-1
Best Bet: Draw No Bet Russia at $1.56
Next Best: Over 2.5 goals at $2.56
Value Bet: Russia for the Half Time/Full Time double at $3.9
Brazil ($1.35) versus Mexico ($5.6), Draw ($11.5)
After a clearly nervy and perhaps lucky start to their World Cup campaign against Croatia, Brazil will be looking for a much more complete performance when they take on Mexico here. Mexico had a good win over Cameroon in their first fixture but it should have been by a bigger margin than the 1 goal with Giovani Dos Santos seeing two goals disallowed when they should have been allowed. Perhaps some of the bad luck though may convert into good luck here and they’ll definitely need it if they are to beat this Brazil side. The last time these two played was at the Confederations cup in 2013 with Brazil running out 2-0 winners. The meeting prior to that was a 2-0 win to Mexico so I suppose we can’t completely discount Mexico’s chances here. It’ll be interesting to see how Brazil are in the first 10 minutes. If they still look like they are a bit nervy under the pressure then we could get a surprise result perhaps in a draw, but if they look relaxed and comfortable then I dare say Mexico could be in for a long night. Personally I think it’ll be the latter. They’ve blown off the cobwebs in the first match, riding on some luck of course, but that will go a long way to settling themselves into the rest of the group stage matches.
Predicted score: Brazil 3-1
Best Bet: Over 2.5 goals at $1.89
Next Best: Brazil for the Half Time/Full Time double at $2
Anytime Scorer Bet: Neymar at $1.8 ($3.9 to score first)
Please Note:
All of the above are the opinions of the author and are not recommendations or advice. The author may not be taking every bet listed above. Bet at your own risk.
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