The World Cup is getting tantalisingly close and though we can also hear the samba beats and taste the caipirinhas, there are still some games to be played before it all kicks off in Brazil. With national team coaches having just a few friendly matches in which to try out fringe players or experiment with tactics and formations, whilst also praying that their star players remain injury-free, we pick out the matches we think will see both sides finding the net with our both teams to score betting tips.
Friday 30th May 2014
- England v Peru (13/10 with Ladbrokes) – Roy Hodgson will be hoping for a big win against Peru to give his players a boost ahead of the World Cup, but we fear his team might not have things all their own way against a side who drew with Argentina and beat Chile in their qualifying group, the latter of whom comprehensively outplayed England at Wembley not so long ago. Backing both to score looks a good bet though, as long as England don’t fluff their lines too badly.
- Spain v Bolivia (13/8 with Coral) – World and European champions Spain are expected to walk this warm up match against South American minnows Bolivia. But while Spain should have more than enough to win this match, it should be noted that Bolivia caused some very good sides big problems in their World Cup qualifying group, holding Argentina to a 1-1 draw and beating Uruguay 4-1. As such we feel odds of 13/8 for both sides to score looks like the bet of the weekend.
Saturday 31st May 2014
- Bosnia and Herzegovina v Ivory Coast (5/6 with BetVictor) – With Didier Drogba available for the Ivory Coast and Edin Dzeko likely to line up for the Balkan side, backing both to score should certainly bring home the bacon as neither side is particularly adept at defending.
- Netherlands v Ghana (11/10 with Betfred) – Two attack-minded sides who feature in the World Cup will be looking for a morale-boosting win here, and while the Dutch are favourites, Ghana shouldn’t be overlooked. With a determined and powerful side, the Ghanaians are well capable of causing an upset here and certainly getting a goal, and both to score looks a solid bet to go for.
- Portugal v Greece (3/2 with Ladbrokes) – Greece have a reputation for being very defensive but they failed to score just once in their 12 qualifying games for the World Cup and with Portugal looking likely to rest some of their biggest stars we fancy a relatively even match in which both sides get at least a goal, and the odds for both to score are massive.
- Italy v Republic (27/20 with Ladbrokes) – Ireland have a decent record against Italy and though they lost to them 2-0 at Euro 2012, they drew with them 1-1 and 2-2 in 2009 and beat them 1-0 at the World Cup in 1994. Though little to play for here but pride, we fancy the Irish will have enough to muster a goal, albeit as a consolation.