Saturday’s Best World Cup Picks
Ghana (+105) vs. Australia (+321, 2)
Serbia’s win over Germany has Group D in a bit of a mess. Suddenly the mighty Germans are in a much more vulnerable position and so are Ghana.
The Black Stars, who are favored against the Aussies but will certainly be underdogs against Germany, will be shooting to not just beat Australia, but beat them badly.
This doesn’t bode well for the Socceroos who won’t have one of their most accomplished stars on the pitch. Tim Cahill, who plays his club football with Everton, was given a red card for taking down Bastian Schweinsteiger during Australia’s 4-0 loss to Germany and isn’t available to return until the Socceroos match against Serbia.
Pick: Ghana
Cameroon (+213) vs. Denmark (+154)
Both these teams enter Saturday’s match still in search of their first goal of the tournament. Cameroon’s 0-1 setback against Japan was a real shocker. The Indomitable Lions controlled much of the possession against Japan but failed to produce many quality scoring chances.
Some were left guessing why Cameroon coach Paul Le Guen had world class finisher Samuel Eto’o playing on the wing.
“I chose the position for him and I take responsibility for that,” Le Guen told reporters following the loss. “You make the choice with what you have.”
Others, including some players on the team, wondered why EPL regular Alexandre Song wasn’t in the lineup. However you slice it, Cameroon’s game plan in their first match seemed odd.
The news is much more positive for the Danes. Their lost to the Netherlands was expected and they showed some glimpses as to the type of damage they’ll be able to exhibit against the lesser teams in their group.
“Cameroon have many good players,” Denmark coach Morten Olsen told reporters, “but they don’t have the same qualities as the Dutch team.”
Pick: Denmark