By Joshua Poole.
England Half Time 4/6 Skybet – England cannot afford to be casual in their meeting with the Algerians and I see no reason why they should not go on to win this one rather comfortably. An England victory seems most assured despite the disappointing result in the opener against the USA. The performance was received indifferently by the public but I believe England should not panic just yet – there were positives from this game. Gerrard and Lampard worked well together in the middle and their passing and influence in the game was assured. Had it not been for Green’s misfortunate blunder the game could have been so different; England were well in control and suddenly thrown into turmoil by this mistake. However, a weakness in the past for England has been their inability to start games well which was not the case against the USA – Gerrard scored early and the team looked full of confidence. That is why, having checked the markets, I see England to be winning at half time as the most valuable and certain of the bets available. Algeria will defend deep and invite pressure on themselves as many so called ‘minnows’ have done so far in the tournament. They were disappointing against Slovenia and I believe the likes of Rooney, Gerrard and Lampard will lead England to a half time and then full time victory in this one.
Germany to win 8/13 Bet365 – Germany were the most impressive side in the first group stage games. They were organised, ruthless in front of goal and clearly a coherent team full of determination and togetherness. Serbia, on the other hand, lacked all of these attributes. They suffered defeat to Ghana and despite the qualities of certain stars such as Vidic and Ivanovich in defence, they were less than impressive as an attacking force. Most impressive of all was that all of Germany’s front men managed to get on the score sheet. Teams that win the World Cup must have strikers on form and with the likes of Klose leading the line you always fancy Germany to bag goals. This is the deciding factor for me and I predict Germany will pull-off another solid victory against a rather average Serbia side.
Slovenia v USA Under 2.5 Goals 4/7 Skybet – Games are starting to produce over 2.5 goals per game now the second group games are commencing so the market is becoming increasingly less predictable. However, presuming England win their match versus Algeria neither of these two teams will want to go all out for the victory – defeat here would devastate either of these side’s second round hopes. It is for this reason I see this being a cagey affair and most probably a bore draw at half time as the two teams weigh one another up. In addition, neither of these sides contains real World Class talent and I see this more as a contest of nerve and grit rather than a battle of skill and technique. Under 2.5 seems the logical way to evaluate this one and at these decent odds it is well worth a stake.
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