Algeria's slim odds at the World Cup 2014

Algeria’s Chances of winning the 2014 World Cup in Brazil

Algeria will be making its fourth appearance at the World Cup tournament in the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. This is their second consecutive appearance at the World Cup 2014 in Brazil. They had a long absence of 24 years from the World Cup before qualifying in 2010. They were glad to be back at the tournament, but they did not, however, impress with their performance when they were forced to terminate their campaign at the group stage. We do not expect them to win the tournament, but they need to at least proceed past the group stages. A lot of the talent in the Algerian team is youthful with little experience and they will look to pull a few surprises.

Madjid Bougherra scored the lone goal against Burkina Faso to earn Algeria a slender advantage at home in their second leg encounter. In their first leg encounter away from home they managed to score two away goals that proved crucial for the qualification after a 3-3 aggregate.

Algeria, Belgium, South Korea and Russia make up Group H. This is a challenging group for the Algeria who will need to proceed to the round of 16 in order to have any hopes of winning the World Cup. They had a goal deficiency in 2010 where they never managed even a single goal. Their peak performance at the tournament was a barren draw against England. They lost marginally to Slovenia and USA and were bundled out of the tournament at the Group stage.

Algeria face Belgium in their Group H opening match and this will be a difficult game for the Algerians. Their hopes of getting the group stage will lie on them beating either Russia or Belgium. Algeria has had one draw and a loss in the last two encounters against Belgium. Algeria need to beat South Korea as they appear to be the most vulnerable in the group. The two teams had previously met four times and Algeria won once and lost the other three. Algeria’s last group stage match encounter will be against Russia and having never met before Russia’s stubborn defense is not likely not to concede any goals.

The Algerian sensational player is Sofiane Feghouli. The 24 year old is a Valencia forward. Others include 19 year old Tottenham mid-fielder Nabil Benataleb, 22 year old Saphir Taider of Inter Milan, striker Madjid Bougherra who has played for Rangers club and many others.

The coach for the Algerian team from Youglaslavia Vahid Halihodzic is an experienced coach. His main mission will be to make sure his team performs well against either Russia or Belgium in order to get a chance beyond the group stage. This is going to be difficult, but there are always surprises at the World Cup and this year is not an exception.

If you are going to bet on Algeria, you might want to pick exact scores of how much they lose by against the other teams in their group. 

Odds of Nigeria winning the 2014 World Cup

Nigeria’s of Chances of Winning the 2014 World Cup in Brazil

Nigeria’s football team the Super Eagles as they are commonly referred to, is the African Champion and the winner of the 2013 African Cup of Nations. They qualified for the World Cup with an unbeaten record. This will be the fifth appearance for Nigeria in the World Cup tournament and they will be looking to improve their performance at the World Cup this year in Brazil. Nigeria was knocked out at the Group stages of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa. Nigeria finds itself in Group F alongside Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Iran. Nigeria will need to make past the group stages in order to raise their hopes of winning the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Nigeria’s World Cup Qualification

Nigeria never lost a match in the qualifying matches for the 2014 World Cup, finishing top in the group with three draws and seven wins. They thrashed Ethiopia 4-1 on aggregate in the playoffs. They were also the African Cup champions therefore qualifying for the World Cup.

Group F Hopefuls

Group F is not the most difficult group, however, Nigeria must be very cautious if they want to proceed to the next round. The Super Eagles have a better chance of beating Iran to confirm at least one win in their group opening match. However, they face fierce opposition from Argentina in their last group match. Nigeria might have to fight for the runners up position in Group F with Bosnia-Herzegovina and Iran. Little known Bosnia Herzegovina will be making their first appearance at the World Cup tournament and they will provide a strong opposition for the number two position in this group.

Argentina are the favorites to win the World Cup after Brazil and they will be a hard nut to crack for Nigeria. They have incredible talent that is bound to unsettle the Super Eagles. The Super Eagles will have a difficult time containing the Argentinian forwards like the great Lionel Messi, Sergio Aguero, Gonzalo Higuain and Angel Di Maria. If Argentina proves that it is too strong for, Nigeria the Super Eagles will need a win against Bosnia and Iran. Perhaps Nigeria should be more worried about beating Bosnia-Herzegovina because they can score goals and have world class players like Edin Dzeko of Manchester City and Miralem Pjanic of As Roma. Iran is not expected to offer much opposition, but they could just disappoint some teams from proceeding to the next round. Nigeria must avoid conceding goals and exposing their backline defense.

Nigeria’s Star Players

The Nigerian squad is full of stars, like Fenerbahce’s sensational forward Emmanuel Emenike, Ahmed Musa of CSKA Moscow, Liverpool’s fast paced Victor Moses, Chelsea’s free flowing mid-fielder John Obi Mikel and many others. Nigeria’s goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama has also been sensational for Lille in France.

The combination of Emmanuel Emenike, Victor Moses and Ahmed Musa in attacking will pose a major threat for any teams dense. With that striking force they should be able to thrash Iran and confirm at least 3 points. The deciding match for Nigeria will be the match against Bosnia-Herzegovina with whom they must fight for the runners up position in Group F.

Nigeria’s coach Stephen Keshi will be steering the team to the 2014 World Cup in Brazil with the hope that they will not be bundled out of the group stages like the previous tournaments. His tactics have so far won Nigeria the African Cup of Nations Championship. However the World Cup is a whole different ball game and Nigeria must be in the finest form to win it.

Odds of Ghana Winning the 2014 World Cup?

Chances of Ghana winning the 2014 Brazil World Cup

Ghana has a better chance of winning the World Cup in this year’s Brazil 2014 World Cup. The Black Stars as they are commonly known have world class players playing in some of the top clubs in the world. Ghana, performed well in 2010 World Cup in South Africa reaching the quarter finals, but failed to proceed to the semifinals. This was after the Al-Ain striker Asamoah Gyan missed a crucial penalty against Uruguay in the quarterfinals after Suarez’s intentional handball on the line in the dying minutes of extra time when he smashed the crossbar with the ball. In this year’s Brazil 2014 world cup Asamoah must now put that behind him and focus on reaching the finals and lifting the cup for the continent.

Group G- ‘Group of Death’

Is Ghana in a group of death? Well Ghana finds itself in Group G alongside Germany, Portugal and the USA. Ghana is a strong side, but it faces worthy opponents from Europe i.e. Germany and Portugal. Ghana must be prepared to beat either one of them to proceed from the Group stages. If Ghana beats either Germany or Portugal then this will be a clear message that they are here to win the tournament. In the previous World Cup Ghana lost narrowly to Germany by1-0 but they managed to proceed to the quarter finals as runners up of their group. Germany is a good side and Ghana will have to watch out for the German stars such as Mesut Ozil of Arsenal who scored the solitary that gave Germany a win against Ghana in World Cup 2010.Others include attacking midfielders Marco Reus, Thomas Muller, Lucas Podolski, Toni Kroos just to name but a few. Everyone is betting on Ghana to beat the USA after all Ghana defeated USA in the previous world cup to proceed to the quarter finals. Ghana has had a much more impressive profile than the USA in the previous world cups. However the USA will be all out for revenge, Ghana has beaten them in the last two World Cups both in 2010 and 2006. Portugal will be a hard nut to crack for Ghana, their major threat will be how to contain the fantastic forward Cristiano Ronaldo. Ghana’s best bet will be to beat USA and have at least one win and a draw against Germany and Portugal to make it to the last 16. The first two games should earn Ghana at least 4 points. If Ghana beats USA then it will be relying on USA to perform well against Germany or Portugal much to their advantage.

The Black Stars’ Key Players

Asamoah Gyan shined in World Cup 2010 and has been instrumental in helping Ghana qualify for the World Cup. Asamoah is in top form and he can score goals and that is what Ghana needs a top scorer who can give them an early lead in the matches. Ghana will be relying on its key players its main forward Asamoah Gyan and a strong midfield consisting of players like Michael Essien, Kevin Prince Boateng of Schalke, Sulley Muntari, Kwadwo Asamoah and a strong defense.

Ghana’s coach James Kwesi Appiah knows only too well how important it is for the Black Stars to make through the group stages. Ghana will meet USA in their opening match for the group stages and getting a win in their first match will be crucial. It is going to be tough beating USA a third time at the World Cup. The weather in Africa and Brazil is somewhat similar and it should favor Ghana. Ghana can pull a surprise on everyone and win the 2014 Brazil World Cup.

Cameroon’s Chances of winning the 2014 World Cup in Brazil

Cameroon’s Chances of winning the 2014 World Cup in Brazil

This will be the seventh time Cameroon will be appearing at the World Cup. Cameroon holds the record for appearing at the World Cup more times than any other African team. Cameroon has fantastic players like the Chelsea forward Samuel Eto’o. Cameroon team the Indomitable Lions has gotten much attention from their colorful football kits rather than their performance on the pitch. Cameroon must build team unity ahead of the tournament in order to win in this World Cup, because the recent divisions in the team could threaten the team’s performance. The team has complained of mismanagement and sometimes unpaid allowances and such issues do not help when you are facing reigning world champions like Brazil at home.

During the World Cup qualifiers Cameroon benefited from FIFA’s nullification of Togo’s 2-0 win over Cameroon for selecting a suspended player and awarded Cameroon a 3-0 win. Cameroon went ahead in great form to thrash Tunisia 4-1 in a crucial qualifier match in the playoffs.

Poor Performance in World Cup 2010 in South Africa

Cameroon had a disastrous 2010 World Cup campaign when they lost all of the group matches and exited the World Cup in South Africa. Now that is a memory Cameroon needs not to hold on to if they are to win this the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Cameroon’s chances at the Group Stage

The indomitable Lions of Cameroon as they are commonly known are very physical in their game and have been placed in a tough Group A with hosts Brazil, Croatia and Mexico. The chances of Cameroon making it past the group stages, are slim considering the opponents they will be facing. Samuel Eto’o the captain and forward will be leading his side in the World cup in Brazil this year and he will need to hold them together. Their opening game will be against Mexico on 13^th June and Cameroon will be looking to pull a surprise on everyone.

If the recent friendly with Portugal is anything to go by, then Cameroon must add something to their form before the World Cup in Brazil starts. They were hammered 5-1 by their Portuguese counterparts. We look forward to seeing how Cameroon performs in the friendlies lined up just before the World Cup begins.

Most people believe that Cameroon has no chance against the mighty Brazilian team. Cameroon success over Brazil was a 1-0 win back in 2003 at the Confederations Cup. A lot years have passed since that time and much has changed. Their match against Brazil will be the last group match this gives Cameroon the chance of upsetting either Mexico or Croatia before they meet the giants.

The weather could favor Cameroon in their match against Croatia. Cameroon can take advantage of the hot weather and wear out Croatia who are used to the cold European weather.

Key Players for Cameroon

Cameroon will be relying on its key player Samuel Eto’o the renowned striker, four time African Footballer of the year and captain of the Indomitable Lions. He will be required to provide his team with goals and leadership to hold the team together. The forward has had an impressive record at Chelsea eliminating any doubts about his current form. Others include the Barcelona mid-fielder Alex Song, Benouit Assou-Ekotto, Stephane Mbia, Jean Makoun and Joel Matip just to name but a few.

The Cameroon coach Volker Finke from Germany will be looking to prove critics wrong that Cameroon is not an underdog. Volker is known for his amazing tactics.

Golden Ball Odds & Betting Tips

Trying to pick the tournament MVP Golden Ball ahead of the 2014 World Cup in Brazil is almost impossible. Some players play bigger depending on the importance of the game. To pick the MVP you really need to pick a player that will take their team to the finals and it is rare for the Golden Ball award to be selected to a player that doesn't carry their team to the finals where the last time that happened was by Diego Forlan for Uruguay in South Africa. Typically MVPs of the tournament are ones that lead their teams in goals and it will take a special game breaker to change that like a goalie, defender or midfielder that can break down a defense.

So who can get to the finals? This is a tough question to ask. Can Cristiano Ronaldo help his team escape the group of death? Finishing 1st in their group might be crucial towards getting an easier opponent for the knockout stages if they make it out. Brazil has no easy task either in their group and nobody knows how this team will perform with too much expectations with the spotlight being on Neymar. How about Lionel Messi? Argentina has a short history of failing despite having one of the best teams on paper.

Here are the odds for the Golden ball at Bet365:

• Neymar 6/1 odds
• Cristiano Ronaldo 9/1
• Lionel Messi 7/1
• Andres Iniesta 20/1
• Diego Costa 40/1

So if you are going to place a bet, some of the payouts are decent and you can probably pick 3 or 4 strong players and still expect a decent payout to make it worth your money. Let's assume you have $500 to spend and you break that down into 5 bets of $100 each. With the current odds you would get as low as $600 for a win and as high of $4000. If the big 3 players do win then you are looking at a range of $600 to $900 in a payout which is a great ROI. If you add a bonus on top of this, you are looking at positive expected value (+EV) on these plays which will make it tough to lose. If you shop for more odds then you are looking at possibly gaining a better edge overall.