World Cup Betting
Playing the Odds is our weekly column where we try and seek value in some longer odds bets. Here are our four top long-shot bets for the 2010 World Cup.
Frank Lampard to be England’s top World Cup goalscorer at 11/2
Since Capello’s arrival and the introduction of a more defensively minded midfielder to play alongside Frank Lampard, the Chelsea man has flourished. He was joint top scorer for England in 2009 and is key to England’s chances in South Africa.
Whilst Wayne Rooney is favourite in this market, I prefer the claims of Lampard. Rooney hasn’t scored in an international tournament since 2004 and with Lampard on penalty duty for England he can fire the Three Lions into the later knockout stages of the tournament.
Germany v Brazil to meet in the 2010 Final at 25/1
These two mighty nations have only ever met once at the World Cup - in the 2002 Final. Brazil won 2-0 that day and it is more than likely that these two teams could face up for the second time in three finals in Johannesburg on 11th July.
I expect Brazil to perform strongly in South Africa and they are my strong tip to win in 2010. To meet them in the Final, Germany would probably have to beat the USA, Argentina and Spain although with their mixture of individual stars, experienced strikers and seasoned international performers there is no reason Joachim Löw’s side can’t do so.
Humberto Suazo to be World Cup Top Goalscorer at 80/1
He may not be well known outside his home nation of Chile and the Spanish city of Zaragoza (where he plays his club football) but Humberto Suazo could be a force to be reckoned with at this summer’s World Cup. The 28 year old striker has seventeen international goals to his name and netted ten times as Chile finished runners-up to Brazil in the South American World Cup qualifying group.
Chile are prolific scorers and hit 32 goals in qualifying. They are a youthful, attacking side and with Spain, Switzerland and Honduras in Group H, goals are certainly a possibility. Suazo has scored against top quality opposition including Brazil, Sweden and the Ivory Coast and he could easily hit several goals in Chile’s run to the knockout stages.
Slovenia to reach the World Cup semi-finals at 22/1
Whilst the World Cup trophy might have been lifted by just seven nations, the semi-finalists of a World Cup are an altogether harder to predict group. In recent tournaments Croatia, Portugal, South Korea, Belgium, Sweden, Turkey and Bulgaria have all reached the last four and so picking a random outsider for glory isn’t as daft a bet as it may seem.
Slovenia eliminated Russia, the Czech Republic and Poland in qualifying and so they are not in South Africa by accident. Whilst they don’t boast many household names, coach Matjaž Kek has fashioned a solid, hard-working side captained by West Bromwich Albion midfielder Robert Koren.
To reach the semis they are likely to have to beat Germany or England and France, Nigeria or Greece. It’s a tall order, but one unusual nation normally emerges at World Cup time and at 22/1 it would be terrific for it to be the Slovenians.
