Goran Paladin shares his picks and plays for Day 4 of the World Cup.
The Dutch Football Association has made reaching the semifinals a MINIMUM target, while the famous German mathematician/statistician/economist Joachim Klement, who has predicted the last THREE World Cup winners, went a couple of steps further and said the Netherlands will win the final. Was anyone aware of the nasty injury toll before making these calls and predictions?
Missing for the Netherlands: Xavi Simons, Matthijs de Ligt, Stefan de Vrij, and Arsenal’s Jurrien Timber, who actually made the World Cup squad and was THEN ruled out with a groin injury! Meanwhile Memphis Depay, Oranje’s all-time leading goalscorer, is just getting back to full fitness having been sidelined for 2 months with – you guessed it – injury. It gets worse though! Bart Verbruggen, the first choice keeper hurt his hip in their final preparation game. Coach Ronald Koeman might struggle to find eleven fully fit players for this one.
And that is something which Japan will gleefully take advantage of. Theirs is a squad that has been hailed as one of the strongest ever to come out of the Asian nation. All of their key cogs are not only present, but coming off of stellar seasons. An example of this is Feyenoord’s Ayase Ueda, who scored 25 goals in 31 league appearances. And don’t be surprised if he buries one with his melon; he scored more headed goals than any other player in Europe.
If the Netherlands go on to win the final, they’ll do it having lost their opening pool game to Japan.
Tips
Best Bet: Japan to WIN @ $3.50
Best Goalscorer: Ayase Ueda ATS @ $3.40
Same Game Multi: Japan to WIN + Ayase Ueda ATS @ $7.53
“Three points to Ecuador” is what you’ll be saying after this encounter with Cote D’Ivoire. The Ecuadorians will outclass their African rivals from go to whoa, thanks to a raft of players from high-profile clubs. Arsenal’s Piero Hincapie and PSG’s Pacho were rivals in UEFA’s Champions League Final, but for Ecuador they make up half of the back four. And their defence is no joke; in qualifying they conceded only FIVE GOALS in 18 matches. Think about that for a second… a qualification campaign featuring home and away matches against Argentina, Brazil, Colombia. That’s impressive! They will be hard to break down, and when in possession they have players higher up the pitch that will make ‘The Elephants’ pay.
Don’t get me wrong, Cote D’Ivoire isn’t exactly a ‘dead man walking’. Amad Diallo continues to prove his worth with Manchester United, and Ibrahim Sangare is another with Premier League clout, hanging out with ‘Our Woodsy’ at Nottingham Forest. And, if there was a criticism of Ecuador in qualifying, it was that they didn’t score many. In other words, if Cote D’Ivoire discover a route to goal, then there’s a strong chance they could sit on that lead til the final whistle.
But if this match goes according to script, then chances in good areas will be few and far between for Cote D’Ivoire, and Ecuador will secure their first win of this World Cup.
Tips
Best Bet: Ecuador 1-0 Correct Score @ $5.25
Best Goalscorer: Enner Valencia ATS @ $3.20
Same Game Multi: Ecuador to WIN + Enner Valencia First Goal @ $12.97
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