The World Cup is, finally, almost upon us, but there are still a few international friendly matches for the players to negotiate first, trying not to get kicked so hard they miss the tournament but also attempting to play their way into the starting XI… a tightrope if ever there was one.
For us mere mortals on the sidelines, however, these matches give us the chance to hone our betting skills ahead of the main event in Brazil. And here we pick out the weekend matches we think will see both teams finding the back of the net. See if you agree.
Saturday 7th June 2014
- Greece v Bolivia (13/10 with BetVictor) – Greece have a habit of killing games as a spectacle and playing out bore draws, but they need to learn to score and take some risks if they are to do anything at the World Cup. This is their chance… but we think Bolivia, who scored against some of the big boys in qualification, should find the net too.
- Croatia v Australia (Evens with Sky Bet) – Neither side is likely to make an impact at the World Cup but we feel their players will put a lot into this one in an attempt to get in the first team and, with both sides very capable going forward, both to score looks a solid bet at these odds.
- Argentina v Slovenia (5/4 with BetVictor) – Argentina will be loathe to risk Lionel Messi and others at this late stage and we fancy they will have a somewhat experimental team for this one. That’s not to say they won’t win, but we think they won’t be quite as dominant as usual and we can see Slovenia sneaking a consolation goal.
- England v Honduras (23/20 with Ladbrokes) – England’s defence has looked far from solid in their last two friendly matches against weak opposition and we simply can’t see them keeping a clean sheet against a lively and inventive Honduras side. Roy Hodgson’s men should win the match, but just not to nil and backing both to score looks great value.
- USA v Nigeria (11/10 with BetVictor) – Two very fit, powerful and inventive sides go head to head here and we think it could end 2-2. With both teams better in attack than defence a goalfest should ensue and backing both to score should bring home a nice profit.
Sunday 8th June 2014
- France v Jamaica (3/2 with Ladbrokes) – France should walk this one, but we think they’ll take the opportunity to rest a few key players and with Jamaica buoyed by their narrow 1-0 defeat to Switzerland they might just have enough to muster a consolation goal. Both to score is available at handsome odds and we think backing that outcome is worth a punt.
- Ghana v South Korea (Evens with Betfred) – Both these sides have the capacity to sneak through to the knockout stages in Brazil if things go their way, and with both possessing a number of fine attacking players, we fancy this one will see both sides scoring at least one goal.