As Neymar strode forward and stroked home an equalizer against Croatia on the opening night of the 2014 FIFA World Cup, a collective gasp of relief filtered its way through a nation as Brazil had equalised and were back on track in their quest for a 6th world title, a quest that had started with plenty of fire and passion during the national anthems but had translated into raw nerves that for the first 20 minutes they looked incapable of dealing with. Neymar’s equaliser brought a huge sense of relief, excitement and the feeling that NOW this tournament had really started and as the emotions swept through the collective consciousness in Brazil, they soon settled down and started to enjoy the opening match to what thus far has proved a fabulous tournament. Lots of goals, lots of late goals, early goals, high quality and drama mixed with some shocking refereeing has given the tournament the kind of start us fans could only have dreamed about with almost every game so far exuding quality, excitement and goals (Iran v Nigeria being the obvious exception) and for the past 5 days the footballing world has begun to rejoice in the fact that after a dismal World Cup in South Africa 4 years ago, the football being played here has been thoroughly watchable. And without those retched horns ruining the atmosphere too! Few teams have parked the bus (Iran and Greece the obvious exceptions) and while it is still early days, optimism is flooding the football world that finally we might have a World Cup to go down in stature as one of the greatest of all time or at the very least, the best of this century. Early days it might be, but already this tournament has surpassed that of South Africa 4 years ago with the Netherlands rout of Spain providing more shock and excitement value than anything offered to us 4 years ago. The first 14 games of this tournament have yielded 44 goals and when you compare this to just 21 in the first 14 in South Africa, you can see why people are already talking about the 2014 vintage in glowing terms and certainly it is easier to look good when the last tournament was frankly a stinker. But it is not just the goals, but the quality of some of the goals has been magical too with Messi, Van Persie and Robben providing us with moments that will take a long time to be forgotten. Messi’s goal in particular was an answer to the sceptics and naysayers who were beginning to question the little man and his desire to etch his name in World Cup history. His opening salvo will have raised his confidence and it can now be expected that he can go on and deliver the kind of tournament his legacy deserves. The Dutch were utterly masterful in their defeat of Spain with their front pairing of Van Persie and Robben scoring some wonderful goals to drive a knife through the heart of tiki-taka while the England v Italy encounter brought some tremendous action on the Saturday evening while Costa Rica delivered the biggest shock (although I felt personally Holland was much more surprising) in beating a poor Uruguay 3 goals to 1 while USA’S last gasp winner through the young centre back Brookes was a moment of real World Cup joy. It’s still early days and the success of a tournament and the legacy it delivers is largely decided in the knock out phases and while we have seen some tremendous goals and exciting football, it is still too early to declare this tournament one of the best but it has certainly got pulses racing and I for one am thoroughly enjoying the spectacle unveiled thus far. The magnificence in the setting, a country obsessed with football has certainly added to the appeal and the scheduling has certainly aided to the overall enjoyment. Who didn’t love the fact that you could watch Chile and Australia go head to head at midnight on a Friday night? One bug bear which I am sure is not an uncommon thought has been the commentary and punditry which at times has been great but more often than not, poor and at times embarrassing. Phil Neville’s performance as co-commentator was scandalous. After literally 5 seconds I asked myself “who is this guy???????” before quickly realising it was the lesser Neville in all his “glory”. To say he was dull would be doing dishwater a disservice and it remains a mystery as to why he was given his debut in such a vital gig. The very fact I was longing for Mark Lawrenson (a thought to strike fear into any man’s heart) says it all and surely this is a mistake the Beeb will not repeat. Possibly because they don’t have any more England games until the 2nd round and it is entirely plausible that they won’t see any more action. Indeed the BBC are not alone in their mistakes as ITV’S Clark Carlisle, a man who seems far too convinced that he is the egghead of English football declared that Ecuador must be a great team if the highly talented Jackson Martinez could not get into their starting line up. Yes COLOMBIA’S Jackson Martinez must be as confused as everyone else about his inability to get a game for Ecuador. Carlisle has not been alone in his gaffes and while I have shouted at the TV on at least 5 occasions due to the utter nonsense being spouted by Robbie Savage and Jonathan Pearce, it must be said that the punditry and presentation has been superior on the BBC for the most part. Thierry Henry has been exactly as imagined...smart, suave, smug, effusive, sometimes funny and always beautifully French while Rio Ferdinand has been surprisingly insightful and genuinely listenable as he provides some excellent anecdotes about his experiences of playing the game. This is the kind of thing everyone enjoys and makes a welcome change from the dourness of Hansen and Lawrenson who provided about as much insight as a man with no eyes. Rio in particular, while a hugely wealthy man and largely unpopular with those not affiliated to England or Man Utd has carried himself very impressively, demonstrating insight, interesting anecdotes and an ability to communicate in a normal, human way. He also seems to be genuinely excited to be there and that is a great thing for a pundit who is still actually a professional player. Trust me, this is not a typical quality of the BBC pundit who more often than not has something to grumble about and in the case of Lawrenson, seems almost angry that they have to talk about football for a living! Gordon Strachan, Neil Lennon, and even Alan Shearer have also brought added weight to the BBC’s presentation with Gary Lineker now a seasoned pro in the presenters chair carrying proceedings calmly and with composure. ITV has typically been the weaker of the 2 and they are certainly missing the dead eyed mania of a certain Roy Keane with Adrian Chiles continuing to provide constant irritation. If only Keano was there to unleash his dogs upon him. Lee Dixon is decent but dull while Patrick Viera has a lovely accent while Fabio Cannavaro has looked like a scared little boy at times and his difficulty with the language is obvious. Back to the football itself, and In terms of who is going to win the title, Brazil remain favourites with Germany especially likely to be their biggest threat and the performances of both the French and the Dutch have certainly added their names to the potential list of champions while Spain have been written off (perhaps a little prematurely) while Argentina struggled badly in their opening period against Bosnia but this was quickly altered by a big change in their shape for the second half and in Messi they have a man with destiny on his mind. I am still sticking with Brazil but I certainly see Germany as their biggest threat and if both are to meet in the semi-final in a few weeks time, what a match that promises to be. It’s been a super tournament so far with thrills and spills aplenty and it seems we are destined for a fantastic month of World Cup action. So I am sure 1 or 2 of you are a bit skeptical about my late additions of Benzema and Mueller as top goalscorer selections following their goals this past 24 hours but I am not sure why I neglected to mention them in my pre tournament bets posted on Thursday but I did indeed get Benzema at 25/1 and Mueller at 28/1 (Admittedly with only 1 and 2 euros on them respectively( and both are now flying in the race of top scorer.
I will try to post all of my selections in the coming days so here are the additional bets I have running for the tournament that I have placed in the last couple of days. Accumulator USA V Ghana BTTS 8/11 Brazil to beat Mexico 1/3 Holland -1 goal to beat Australia 4/6 Belgium to beat Algeria 9/20 Pays at 5/1 Draw Double Iran v Nigeria to draw 12/5 USA v Ghana to draw 9/4 Pays at 11/1 Teams to qualify from each Group Argentina and Bosnia 10/11 Holland and Spain 11/8 Italy and England 6/5 Belgium and Russia 19/20 Germany and Portugal 4/5 Pays at 35/1 As for tomorrow's action, I will post something later PRE TOURNAMENT BETS – UPDATE
It has been a tremendous start to the 2014 World Cup with goals a plenty, controversy, and late drama which ultimately has lead me to some excellent winners over the course of our first weekend but with over 20 bets still running, let’s have a look at how we are getting on so far. OUTRIGHT WINNER Brazil 3/1 (Recommended stake of 20 euros) Good start from the hosts and I am sticking with them to win the tournament although it looks as open as it could be possibly be at this stage. Germany to win (Each way) 13/2 (Recommended stake of 15 euros) Nothing to say here as we have yet to see the Germans in action but I remain confident in them for a good run here. TOP GOALSCORER Neymar Jnr 10/1 (Recommended stake of 10 euros) 2 goals in the opening match and you can only get 4/1 on Neymar now. Good bet. Mr Fred 18/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) 0 goals in the opening game and his chances of winning the Golden Boot seem to have faded. Gonzalo Higuain 20/1 (Recommended stake of 2 euros) 0 goals yet for Higuain who came on at halftime last night. Expect a start and some goals against Iran. Karim Benzema 25/1 (This was a late selection of mine (before his 2 goals!!), apologies for not including in the list) 2 goals for Benzema against Honduras got this bet off to a flier. Thomas Mueller 28/1 (Another late selection as I was unsure if Klose would get the nod ahead of the 2010 golden boot winner) Miroslav Klose 40/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euros) – yet to play Edin Dzeko 50/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euros) - no goals for Dzeko but with 2 easier fixtures to come, who knows. Edin Hazard 66/1 (Recommended stake of 1euros) – yet to play Alexis Sanchez 50/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euro) – 1 goal for the Barca man and a decent start but unlikely to trouble the tournament big hitters. Name the Finalists Brazil and Argentina 8/1 (Recommended stake of 4 euros) The opening performance of both was hardly inspiring but with a win each in the bag, there are no complaints. Teams to Qualify for the 2nd round Bosnia (despite their defeat to Argentina, their performance inspires confidence that they can see off Nigeria and Iran) Belgium – yet to play Chile – Great opening win and with Spain losing, they are now favoured to qualify. We shall see. France – Great performance against Honduras leaves this selection almost a certainty. Pays at 5/1 (Recommended stake of 10 euros) Teams to qualify for the 2nd round (Extended acca) Chile – see above England – Despite their defeat, Uruguay’s defeat has opened the group up and I am still backing England to qualify Japan – an unfortunate defeat to Ivory Coast may well have killed off Japanese hopes. Belgium – yet to play France – see above Bosnia – see above Pays at 13/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) Unlikely with Japan’s defeat but this was never one of my bigger bets but there remains some hope if the Japanese can bounce back in their next game. Likewise with England. Teams to Win Their Groups Brazil Belgium Germany Argentina France Pays 6/1 (Recommended stake of 10 euros) 3 wins out of 3 for Brazil, Argentina and France means we are off to a good start here. Teams to Win Their Groups (ambitious treble) Chile England Colombia 30/1 1 (Recommended stake of 2 euros) Unlikely to see profit here with England losing their opening match but you never know GROUP FORECAST (very ambitious) Group B - 1st Spain, 2nd Chile Group C 1st Colombia, 2nd Japan Group E - 1st France, 2nd Switzerland Group F 1st Argentina, 2nd Bosnia Pays a whopping 150/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euro) Spain’s defeat renders this long shot an even longer shot. AUSTRALIA UNDER 2 POINTS 4/11 (TEAM GROUP POINTS) CAN BE ADDED TO ANY ACCA OF YOUR CHOOSING. I might add it to them all! haha. they are rubbish will surely not beat any of Chile, Spain or Holland and are highly unlikely to even claim 1 draw, let alone 2. This looks the biggest cert of the Tournament for me. (looks good but the Aussies were not as bad as I thought they would be against Chile) Looks good this selection. TOP TEAM GOALSCORER (4 acca's with a degree of ambition involved, small stakes only) Dzeko for Bosnia 11/8 (0 goals) Sturridge for England 9/4 (1 goal) Benzema for France 6/4 (2 goals) Tasty Treble at 26/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euro’s) Pretty decent start here with only Dzeko failing to hit the net in their opening game with the other 2 already their respective teams top goal scorer. TOP TEAM GOALSCORER Sanchez for Chile 5/2 Messi for Argentina 11/8 Muller for Germany 7/2 Pays a very sexy 28/1 - (Recommended stake of 1 euro) Great start with Messi and Sanchez both finding the net in their first games. Muller plays tonight. I hope. (AND HE SURE DID) TOP TEAM GOALSCORER Lukaku for Belgium 2/1 Eto'o for Cameroon 10/3 Forlan - Uruguay - 5/1 Remarkable 176/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euro) Doubt we are going to win this one, so let’s just move on TOP TEAM GOALSCORER Gonzalo Higuain - Argentina 7/2 Joel Campbell for Costa Rica 7/2 (1 goal) Teofilo Guttierez for Colombia 4/1 (1 goal) 100/1 Treble (Recommended stake of 1 euro) 2 of my boys finding the net in their opening games but with Higuain not starting last night and Messi off the mark, it will be tough for the Napoli man to emerge however he should be back in the starting line up against Iran. TO QUALIFY/WIN GROUP/BOTTOM OF GROUP ACCA (GROUP BETTING MARKET) Brazil to win Group A - 2/9 Australia to finish bottom of Group B - 1/5 Colombia to qualify from Group C - 3/10 England to qualify from Group D - 4/7 France to qualify from Group E - 1/5 Argentina to win Group F - 2/9 Germany to win Group G - 8/13 Belgium to win Group H = 4/6 Pays at 11/1 and should keep you engrossed in every group. I expect all 8 permutations to be likely or possible going into the final round of matches in the group section. (Recommended stake of 10 euros) I am still very much liking the looks of this bet and we need a German win tonight, Belgium tomorrow and England on Wednesday to keep us fimly on track. BOTTOM OF GROUP ACCA South Korea - 9/4 Iran (sorry towelie) - 4/7 Honduras - 4/9 Greece - 11/8 Pays at 16/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) Another good start with Honduras and Greece both losing their opening fixtures and the other 2 yet to play. Germany took care of Portugal in emphatic style with Thomas Mueller (highlighted in the blog earlier) bagging a hat-trick to become favourite for top goalscorer at this years championship as the Germans rolled him as 4.0 winners following the first half dismissal of Pepe.
My disappointment in the failure of Portugal to score was tempered by the fact that I had (and I apologise again for not putting this selection on my blog) £1 on Mueller for top goalscorer at 28/1!.however I did post the following treble which is beginning to look very good; Posted on Thursday Tasty Treble at 26/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) Sanchez for Chile 5/2 Messi for Argentina 11/8 Muller for Germany 7/2 With both Messi and Sanchez hitting a goal in their opening match and Mueller's hat-trick today, it's looking good! With only a £1 on Mueller for overall top scorer, I decided after 2 goals, to stick another £3 quid on him before he got his hat-trick at 5/1 odds. Nicely done. His new price is 5/2 and if he does go on and finish top scorer, I will be on for 44 euros from a 4 euro stake. It is true that I have a multitude of top scorer selections and I am very happy with my Neymar and Benzema selections and now with Mueller, things are looking good in this market having added Robben at 12/1 after his double, Anyways, next up is Iran and Nigeria and I think the Iranians could claim a point while USA and Ghana should be entertaining later on tonight. Good luck with your bets It was another tremendous day for the tournament and for Bo as I continued a sparkling run of predictions with another 3 winners out of 3 for Sunday which makes 6 out of 6 winning selections for the last 2 days.
Kicking off the action on Sunday was the Switzerland v Ecuador tie which proved worth avoiding. My feeling here was for a draw but the Swiss struck deep into injury time to break the Ecuadorians hearts and this was one match that I ignored this weekend. France easily overcame Honduras 3.0 bringing up my 5 fold 10/1 acca posted in the blog on Wednesday last week and this was a particularly satisfying 3 day acca which never looked in doubt. I also tipped up France-1 and with Benzema hitting the net twice; it was a particularly satisfying result as I have Benzema as one of my top goal-scorers and also backed him to hit the net last night with Messi in my anytime double. The final game of the evening saw a wonder goal from Leo Messi as Argentina overcame Bosnia 2.1 in a fine conclusion to the day. Messi’s goal brought up my Benzema/Messi Double and Bosnia’s late consolation brought home the BTTS that I tipped up as well. My only disappointment was that Messi failed to finish a great chance to make it 3.1 which would have brought up my correct score prediction but you can’t win ‘em all. Let’s have a look at all my weekend bets (posted on the blog) Bo's Best Bets for Sunday France -1 to beat Honduras Evens (winner) Final Score 3.0 Argentina v Bosnia BTTS 5/6 (winner) Final Score 2.1 Benzema and Messi Both to score at anytime double 2.5/1 (winner) Bo's Best Bets for Saturday Chile -1 to beat Australia = 6/5 (winner) Final score 3.1 Colombia to beat Greece 5/6 (winner) Final score 3.0 Japan v Ivory Coast BTTS 5/6 (winner) Final score 2.1 First Weekend Big Acca Brazil to beat Croatia (winner) Final score 3.1 Chile to beat Australia (winner) Final score 3.1 France to beat Honduras (winner) Final score 3.0 Ivory Coast v Japan BTTS (winner) Final score 2.1 Colombia to beat Greece (winner) Final score 3.0 Winner! Pays at 9/1 (Recommended stake of 7 Euros) Speculative Acca England v Italy Draw Mexico v Cameroon Draw Switzerland v Ecuador Draw Not a one of these finished draws but it’s fair to say all 3 of them could or should have. BTTS AND HANDICAP ACCA Mexico v Cameroon – BTTS evens (loser) Japan v Ivory Coast - BTTS 5/6 (winner) Argentina v Bosnia - BTTS 5/6 (winner) Brazil -1goal, 5/6 (winner) Chile -1goal 5/4 (winner) Only 1 goal short of winning a great 30/1 acca. Thanks Cameroon. Treble winner (forgot to post this on blog, my apologies) Chile-1 goal to beat Australia5/4 – final score 3.1 Spain v Netherlands BTTS 5/6 final score 1.5 Colombia to beat Greece 17/20 – final score 3.0 So many winners you might lose count! Day 5
Today’s action takes us to group G as Germany take on Portugal in a mouth watering clash at 6pm cet, with Iran v Nigeria following at 9pm and Ghana and the USA rounding off the day’s action in the late kick off at midnight. This is our first change to see the Germans, who are one of my favourites for the tournament and I expect them to win this group and score a few goals along the way and they begin their campaign with a stern test against a Ronaldo lead Porgual team who will be banking on the fitness of the Real Madrid hitman. If Ronaldo is fit and finds his sharpness, he could be unstoppable and this makes Portugal potential dark horses should their talisman continue his stunning form of the last 2 years which lead him to the World Footballer of the year award. I expect the goals to continue in this fixture tonight as the Germans, while immensely talented going forward are prone to conceding as well and if Ronaldo starts, and looks fit (a big if at this stage) then we could see a real classic encounter. BTTS IS 8/13 I will certainly be waiting for the team news before picking any goal scorers for this one but if Klose gets the nod for the Germans, he can be backed at 5/4 to score and I fancy the big man to edge ever closer to breaking the all time top goalscorer record of 14 goals. If he doesn’t start, then Thomas Muller will be my pick for the Germans. I am backing the Germans to win and BTTS and as I said, I expect this to be an entertaining encounter. Such a shame I am in work till 7pm tonight! At 9pm, Iran and Nigeria square off in what immediately stands out as the weakest fixture of the tournament so far. I don’t rate this Nigerian outfit too highly and if Iran can get off to a positive start, I see this match providing our first draw of the tournament but I won’t be betting big stakes on this unpredictable encounter. Finally at midnight, USA and Ghana will both be desperate for 3 points in the group of death with Germany and Portugal waiting for both in their next 2 fixtures and if there is a loser in this fixture then they can very much expect that they won’t be progressing beyond the first round. This should be a closely fought but open encounter and I can see a score draw with both sides desperate not to lose but fully aware that a win will be essential if they are to stand a chance of progression. BTTS IS 4/6 The US no longer have the silky skills of Landon Donovan who has been left out by Jurgen Klinsmann while Ghana are looking to erase the ghosts of that painful exit suffered at the hands of both Uruguay and Luis Suarez in South Africa 4 years. Asamoah Gyan will be the man most desperate to exorcise the demons and he is a potential goal scorer tonight. Gyan is 6/4 to score at anytime. 3 more games to enjoy and I am banking on goals in the first and third fixtures and let’s hope this startling introduction to the 2014 World Cup can only continue. Bo’s Best Bets Germany v Portugal BTTS 8/13 Germany to beat Portugal and BTTS 5/2 Ghana and USA BTTS 4/6 Bo's Speculative Double Iran v Nigeria to draw, 9/4 USA V Ghana draw 9/4 Pays at 10/1 Bo's Bonkers Bet Germany 3 v 2 Portugal - 22/1 Late bet to be had having seen the team news...Griezman to score first for France, 5/1.
Allez les Bleues! Day 3 brought more of the same in the World Cup as I got some great results and the tournament continued in it's ever so exciting form which has yet to see a dud game, with goals galore, controversy and some memorable moments already, Who said it might be boring?
Colombia brought home Bo's Bacon with a convincing 3.0 victory over Greece, to seal the final part of one acca and a key part in my other weekend acca, posted on Friday. If France see off Honduras this evening, they will seal a 10/1 5 fold which included Brazil, Chile, Colombia all to win, and BTTS in the late game between Japan and Ivory Coast which subsequently finished 2.1 to the Ivorians (falling asleep at 0.1 to wake up to 2.1 was a nice bonus). Costa Rica's stunning win over Uruguay was a shock to many but I wrote on more than 1 ocassion that this Uruguay team were pretty average and so it proved as the Costa Rican's won convincingly and with Joel Campbell and Teofilo Gutierez scoring earlier for Colombia, it was a good day for my longshot treble of those 2 plus Higuain for top team goalscorer which i backed at 100/1/ Let's hope Higuain can find some goal against Bosnia tonight. . Not to be overly boastful but I had seen Uruguay tipped up on every other betting site, including Mrfixit of the Daily Record who actually put Uruguay-1 as his Super Single! Here's what Bo had to say on the matter; "Uruguay are expected to see off Costa Rica at 9pm although I will be avoiding the Uruguayans who have looked ordinary on every occassion I have seen them play in the past year. Suarez isn't starting and at 4/9 they are very much over rated in my eyes. The Central American's Costa Rica have a decent chance to get a result here and in Joel Campbell and Bryan Ruiz they have seem decent attacking quality" Not only does Bo pick the winners, but dodging bullets as the hardest skill in betting and this was one I was especially pleased with and I was delighed to see Joel Campbell score 1, set up another and win man of the match! I was never certain of the England match and backed a draw in the end and I was left frustrated as I backed Sturridge for 1st goal and his reposte, a mere 2 minutes after the opener was a bit of a sickener especially as Italy went on to win a game that England could have easily taken a point in. Overall I feel quite optimistic about my pre-tournament bets and England to qualify still looks like a good possibility while many of the players I backed to score goals have found the net with many of my big early tips coming in.. Brazil -1 to beat Croatia 10/11 - winner Chile-1 to beat Australia 5/4- winner Spain v Netherlands BTTS 5/6-winner Colombia to beat Greece 5/6 - winner Ivory Coast v Japan BTTS 5/6 - winner Ok, really no more showing off. here are tonights tips which after my tall talk are sure to turn out to be rubbish (of course they won't) Bo's Best Bets for Sunday France -1 to beat Honduras Evens Argentina v Bosnia BTTS 5/6 Benzema and Messi Both to score at anytime double 2.5/1 Tomorrow see's a cracker as Germany tackle Portugal in the first game at 6, followed by Iran v Nigeria and Ghana and the USA will round off the action. I haven't thought too much about these ties but I would expect BTTS in the first match and the final match and Germany should be good to get 3 points as well. Iran v Nigeria could be a draw and likewise the spoils could be shared in the Ghana/US tie. I may post some more later... Enjoy the games A good start to the day as I write this with Colombia 2.0 up on Greece and I cashed out on my acca of Chile -1, BTTS in the Spain game and Colombia to win. I forgot to post my complete predictions for the first round matches that I did on the Telegraph predictor 2 couple of weeks. Here they are (although my feelings may have changed since)
* amended version (I made some changes to my top team goalscorer picks and there is still time to follow my new selections) I also have a feeling Leo Messi is ready to shine and I might look to back him for top goalscorer at 8/1
The time has come to reveal all my pre-tournament bets for this summer's World Cup, beginning in....22 hours!!!!! I feel confident with my selections, and I am sticking by my feeling that Brazil will bring home the World Cup for a record 6th time in front of their home support. While Argentina, Germany and Spain are all huge rivals, I just find it hard to imagine Brazil losing at home; it means too much for them to throw it away and I am backing them at 3/1 to prevail. Germany or Argentina are my tips to reach the final to face the home side and while it might be a little boring to back the favourites, I feel their chance to win is greater than any other. A lot will depend on fortune, fitness and the conditions but I feel ultimately, the fervour behind the home team will push them on to claim the big prize. I have a lot of selections so I will say no more for tonight. I will be back tomorrow with my tips for the first game but here are all of my best bets for the tournament. All of these selections are available on bet365.com OUTRIGHT WINNER Brazil 3/1 (Recommended stake of 20 euros) Germany to win (Each way) 13/2 (Recommended stake of 15 euros) TOP GOALSCORER Neymar Jnr 10/1 (Recommended stake of 10 euros) Mr Fred 18/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) Gonzalo Higuain 20/1 (Recommended stake of 2 euros) Miroslav Klose 40/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euros) Edin Dzeko 50/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euros) Edin Hazard 66/1 (Recommended stake of 1euros) Alexis Sanchez 50/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euro) Name the Finalists Brazil and Argentina 8/1 (Recommended stake of 4 euros) Teams to Qualify for the 2nd round Bosnia Belgium Chile France Pays at 5/1 (Recommended stake of 10 euros) Teams to Qualify for the 2nd round (Extended acca) Chile England Japan Belgium France Bosnia Pays at 13/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) Teams to Win Their Groups Brazil Belgium Germany Argentina France Pays 6/1 (Recommended stake of 10 euros) Teams to Win Their Groups (ambitious treble) Chile England Colombia 30/1 1 (Recommended stake of 2 euros) GROUP FORECAST (very ambitious) Group B - 1st Spain, 2nd Chile Group C 1st Colombia, 2nd Japan Group E - 1st France, 2nd Switzerland Group F 1st Argentina, 2nd Bosnia Pays a whopping 150/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euro) AUSTRALIA UNDER 2 POINTS 4/11 (TEAM GROUP POINTS) CAN BE ADDED TO ANY ACCA OF YOUR CHOOSING. I might add it to them all! haha. they are rubbish will surely not beat any of Chile, Spain or Holland and are highly unlikely to even claim 1 draw, let alone 2. This looks the biggest cert of the Tournament for me. HIGHEST SCORING GROUP GROUP C 11/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) This is an interesting one, actually the least likely to be the highest scoring according to the bookies, one imagines because of the presence of Greece and Colombia who are both somewhat defensive, however Japan are guaranteed to be in at least 1 thriller (Ivory Coast) and I think this could yet turn out to be a surprise for the bookies. Small stakes advised but worth a punt. TOP TEAM GOALSCORER (4 acca's with a degree of ambition involved, small stakes only) Dzeko for Bosnia 11/8 Sturrdige for England 9/4 Benzema for France 6/4_ Tasty Treble at 26/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) Sanchez for Chile 5/2 Messi for Argentina 11/8 Muller for Germany 7/2 Pays a very sexy 38/1 - (Recommended stake of 1 euro) Lukaku for Belgium 2/1 Eto'o for Cameroon 10/3 Forlan - Uruguay - 8/1 Remarkable 126/1 (Recommended stake of 1 euro) Gonzalo Higuain - Argentina 7/2 Joel Campbell for Costa Rica 7/2 Teofilo Guttierez for Colombia 4/1 100/1 Treble (Recommended stake of 1 euro) TO QUALIFY/WIN GROUP/BOTTOM OF GROUP ACCA (GROUP BETTING MARKET) Brazil to win Group A - 2/9 Australia to finish bottom of Group B - 1/5 Colombia to qualify from Group C - 3/10 England to qualify from Group D - 4/7 France to qualify from Group E - 1/5 Argentina to win Group F - 2/9 Germany to win Group G - 8/13 Belgium to win Group H = 4/6 Pays at 11/1 and should keep you engrossed in every group. I expect all 8 permutations to be likely or possible going into the final round of matches in the group section. (Recommended stake of 10 euros) BOTTOM OF GROUP ACCA South Korea - 9/4 Iran (sorry towelie) - 4/7 Hondurs - 4/9 Greece - 11/8 Pays at 16/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) First Weekend Big Acca Bazil to beat Croatia Chile to beat Australia France to beat Honduras Ivory coast v Japan BTTS Colombia to beat Greece Pays at 7/1 (Recommended stake of 7 euros) Speculative Acca England v Italy Draw Mexico v Cameroon Draw Switzerland v Ecuador Draw Pays at 30/1 (Recommended stake of 2euros) BTTS AND HANDICAP ACCA Mexico v Cameroon - BTTS Japan v Ivory coast - BTTS Argentina v Bosnia - BTTS Brazil -1 Chile -1 Pays at 30/1 (Recommended stake of 3 euros) Total Staked on Pre Tournament Bets - £115 Total Staked on First weekend action - 12 Total Staked - £125 Well that was just extraordinary.
Where to begin on a match that will be forever iconic as the champions Spain were utterly humbled and destroyed by a rampant Dutch side whose Robin Reliant's proved simply unstoppable with Arjen putting in the kind of performance that will go down in World Cup history. This was a result and performance that trumped anything the last tournament had to offer and to see a Spanish team who previously were so tight and organised crumble in this manner was just breathtaking. Rarely do i feel speechless during a match but here it was, the champions losing 5.1 and the quality of some of the goals truly made this a game to go down in folklore. Both Van Persie and Robben in particular were just fabulous and combined with the young Blind on the flank and Sneijder looking like a player again, this Dutch side will take immense confidence and are surely contenders for the title. I backed both teams to score at great odds of 6/5 and I have a small acca running into the Chile game tonight, but in truth I also backed a draw on another small line, and I don't think many could have envisaged the result to come, but what a game! Who cares about bets when you witness something like that and I'm glad I only had small change on the draw as it was a real pleasure to witness the Dutch back to their best and in truth I was happy to see the Spanish put in their place. Earlier Mexico deservedly beat a poor Cameroon side 1.0 and they would have lost by more had it not been for some dreadful officiating which saw the Mexicans denied 2 other clear goals. Next up is a match i am looking forward to with my favourite dark horse, Chile taking on potential whipping boys Australia and I expect the Chileans to win and potentially by at least 2. 4 matches tomorrow from 6pm til 5am! what a day it will be. First off, Colombia should be able to beat Greece at 6pm and likewise Uruguay are expected to see off Costa Rica at 9pm although I will be avoiding the Uruguayans who have looked ordinary on every occassion I have seen them play in the past year. Suarez isn't starting and at 4/9 they are very much over rated in my eyes. The Central American's Costa Rica have a decent chance to get a result here and in Joel Campbell and Bryan Ruiz they have seem decent attacking quality. The big one at midnight sees England and Italy sweat it out in the jungle of Manaus and I am still undecided on this one. At first I was sure it would be a draw but now I am edging towards England. They might just have the legs on this Italian team and it could be a great start to the tournament for England. It is only my feeling and I will decide when I see the team news. Finishing off at 3am for you night owls will be a potential cracker as Ivory Coast and Japan square off. I smell more goals here and Japan could be worth a should. BTTS is the surefire call here. Bo's Best Bets Chile -1 to beat Australia = 6/5 Colombia to beat Greece 5/6 Japan v Ivory Coast BTTS 5/6 Well it was a great start to the tournament for bo and Brazil as Neymar got the hosts off to the perfect start with 2 goals in a 3.1 victory. Some poor refereeing and dodgy goal keeping with a late 3rd goal to boot, secured the first part of 2 of my weekend acca's which included Braztil to win and to win on the handicap at -1. I thought it would be 2.0 to be fair and Croatia really gave the Brazilians a big scare by scoring first. Not in the script.
Neymar got 2 to get off to a flier and my tip for him to be top goalscorer has got off to a super start with his odds slashed from the 10/1 i got today against the 3/1 he is now. Overall it was a good start with Neymar looking like he can handle the pressure although his penalty was not the best but his standard of play was high. The defence gave much to worry about and you just wonder if a better side would have picked them off. Still, it was the first game and they are bound to get stronger and with 4 goals, it was an exciting, and thrilling opening game which got the tournament off to the start it needed. Tomorrow the competetion really gets going with 3 matches. Mexico v Cameroon kicks off the action at 6pm CET which is followed by a repeat of the 2010 Final as Spain take on The Netherlands at 2100CET while Chile will surely see off Australia at midnight.in the late game. I fancy BTTTS and a draw in the opening game while Spain should edge past the Dutch in a tight encounter while Chile should take care of business against the Aussies with a goal to spare. Here are tomorrows tips. BOna Nit Mexico v Cameroon, BTTS 6/5 Mexico v Cameroon Draw 9/4 Chile to beat Australia and -1 - 4/9 and 6/5 Don't know about Spain, it's tough to call. Part one of my preview for the World Cup...3 days to go!!!
In a nutshell if you can't be bothered reading (I noticed the Daily Mail use this technique for the knuckleheads who are too stupid to read paragraphs and prefer bullet points of bullshit) here is a snapshot of groups A-D. 1) Brazil to win their group and the whole thing. 2) England will be decent, perhaps even good 3) Uruguay to be a bit rubbish. 4) Everyone to love Chile and Japan 5) Spain not to be ruled out 6) Colombia still sexy menus Falcao. With three days til the opening match of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil, and may I say how excited I am about the upcoming tournament, what a feast of football awaits us (here's hoping) my thoughts are focused on my pre-tournament bets and as we stand I have still not finalised all of my best selections and predictions.
Having gone through the World cup Predictor on the Telegraph website, I ended up with a Brazil v Argentina final and that looks on paper, the most logical choice. It's so hard to see Brazil losing at home but this is hardly the best Brazilian team ever and while I cannot look past the hosts as winners for the tournament and i would be shocked if they failed to reach the final, they are by no means far and away the best team in this tournament and there are at least 6 other sides with decent chances to go all the way. Argentina I expect will be strong and with Messi back to fitness, in tandem with Aguero, Higuain and Di Maria and others, they have every opportunity to make the final especially with a real manager in charge this time. Sorry Diego. Germany are packed full of quality and champions Spain are going to go deep surely again in this tournament. I also think the likes of Belgium, France, Italy, Chile, and even England can make an impact. I have a feeling that we are in for a pretty open tournament and we always seem to have at least 1 surprise semi-finalist (think, Sweden and Bulgaria in '94, Croatia in '98, South Korea 2002, Portugal 2006, and Uruguay in 2010) and so there are opportunities for the B class nations to make a real push. Tournament top goalscorer is another market I have been considering and I think Neymar is just bound to hit the net consistently. He is second favourite to Messi and he could be my final pick in this market but I also fancy Muller for Germany (if he is starting up front) and Aguero for Argentina or Higuain could be real dangers. Of course Mr Flintstone, Fred, is my other tip for goals. Bosnia and Chile are my two outsider tips to get out of their groups (both are 3rd favourites to progress) and I think England could somehow do well. Belgium have a chance too but I think in the end, the cream will rise to the top and my 4 semi-finalist will be the hosts, Argentina, Spain and Germany. Of course this could all be debunked of any of them fail to win their respective groups and World Cups' are rarely without surprises. I think Australia might go home pointless and goalless and such a bet is worth having, just because it's funny to laugh at the Aussies and also because they look pretty rotten. Honduras likewise although they are far dirtier and almost as likely to go home empty handed. Scotland will surprise some with their bold, attacking approach unbeaten in six under the wonderful Gordon Strachan...oh wait, sorry, I have been nodding off as I write this.. So Scotland won't be playing and it always breaks my heart but hope springs eternal for the Scots who I will be BETTING HARD MONEY on qualifying for euro 2016. It's almost time boys, almost time... I remember fondly dreaming about going to this tournament to watch the Scots, undeniably more naive and less weary to Scottish woes back in those days and given the protests, the crime and the scandalous cost to actually go to a World Cup, my feeling now is that I am thoroughly excited to watch this tournament from the comfort of my terrace in Barcelona. Summer BBQ's watching the World Cup is an undeniable dream...but where does my heart lie in picking a winner? who can I support to aid the joy of watching the world's greatest event? Undoubtedly my heart and wallet have to go hand in hand and for that reason, Brazil will be my picks for glory. It would be a tremendous lift for a nation in need of a boost and if they beat Argentina in the final it will be all the sweeter. With 2 nights to go before the action kicks off on Thursday, I must finalise my selections imminently and as we stand, it's viva Brazil! BOna nit And now part 2 of my preview for the World Cup...3 days to go!!!
1) France to bring back the swagger. 2) Argentines on the way to final 3) Bosnia find their respect 4) Germans to do what Germany does. 5) USA! USA! 6) Beware Belgian Bravado. |
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