Prediction: Portugal vs Brazil

June 24th 2010

Having won their first two matches, Brazil already ensured the place in the next stage, while Portugal did something similar with the 7:0 win over North Korea and this match is only set to decide the winner of the group.

Portugal had had major problems during the World Cup qualifiers and their worries continued into the warm-up games and the World Cup. Carlos Queiroz’s side struggled a great deal against Ivory Coast, failing to score a single goal and they seemed to be staring into the face of elimination. Nevertheless, the 7:0 win over North Korea changed everything and now Portugal are on the verge of qualifying for the second round. Still, they have every reason to fear this game as the Portuguese have largely struggled during the qualifiers against teams like Sweden, Denmark and they couldn’t beat Ivory Coast, thus I don’t see how they will fare any better against a side like Brazil. The general impression is that Carlos Queiroz cannot seem to get the best out of his players and the match against world’s powerhouse Brazil is set to expose all their weaknesses. Deco looks certain to miss the game through injury, which only adds to the problems.

Brazil started their World Cup campaign slowly, struggling against North Korea but we always knew they were going to improve. The Ivory Coast game showed everyone why Selecao are again one of the hottest favourites for the title, and if they continue playing like that, there is no way Portugal will be able to stop them from winning. While past Brazil teams were mostly concentrated on attack, Dunga now have a very balanced side at his disposal and that is definitely a new quality. With Lucio and Juan at the back, defence looks very reliable, the midfield area also looks very good, but the main thing is that the team haven’t lost the edge in attack. With Luis Fabiano red hot at the moment and Kaka and Robinho slowly returning into form, the opposition defenders will have their work cut out for them. Kaka is set to miss out through suspension, but that won’t be such a big problem with so many world-class players ready to step in.

Conclusion

Portugal are not playing to their potential at the moment and they should just be happy to qualify from this group. Brazil, on the other hand, are slowly raising their game and if they go on like this, they could easily go all the way. Brazil to beat Portugal looks like one of the best soccer predictions this week.

Verdict: Away win Brazil(2)

Best Odds: 5/4

Bookmaker: Titan Bet