Colombia vs England
The World Cup 2018 has been nothing short of a thrilling rollercoaster for many football fans in the world. Plenty of upsets have been made in this World Cup 2018, proving that not even the strongest team in the world is safe from elimination.
Knowing this fact, the Three Lions will be hard-pressed to win this match. Meanwhile, Los Cafeteros also hope to repeat their quarter-final run in 2014, but the questionable condition of their star man might make things a little tricky.
Many World Cup 2018 odds see England as the side that will come out of this group and face either Sweden or Switzerland. However, Colombia will be a tough team for them to contain.
Will these young Lions reach the quarter-finals and end their frustrating rut at major tournaments? Or will break the hearts of many England fans and leave them disappointed for another four years?
Talking Points
It’s hard not to talk about this game without considering what happened in England’s game against Belgium in order to put things into perspective. Yes, England were slightly disappointing after being beaten up by Manchester United reject Adnan Januzaj, but Gareth Southgate seems to have had a reason behind his decision against Belgium.
Belgium have a fairly easy Round-of-16 game when they square off against Japan, but their next match in the tournament could be the heavy favourites in Brazil. Moreover, prior World Cup 2018 results would have made finishing first in Group G an extremely difficult proposition. Uruguay and France have also performed brilliantly and will be concerning threats for the Red Devils.
Meanwhile, England have a more reasonable route to the World Cup final if they were able to beat the Colombians. Spain were the only country posing a real threat to them on the other side of the bracket. However, Russia pulled off a dramatic victory against the Spaniards via a penalty shootout.
With the bracket looking more open than ever, the England manager’s decision to rest many of his key players not only kept them fully fit for this match but also gives them an opportunity to make a run for the World Cup trophy.
However, England fans should definitely not count their chickens before they have even hatched. Southgate knows that Colombia are a tricky side that must be dealt with carefully. Harry Kane, the former Arsenal fan that has become the talisman of Tottenham and English football, will be the key Englishman in this game.
As long as he makes his impact known on the field, his team-mates have a chance at cracking through a Colombian defence led by Davinson Sanchez, Kane’s team-mate at Tottenham.
Sanchez’s team had quite a trek to the World Cup. They started the campaign on the back foot after being thumped by Japan, they powered through Poland with a dominant 3-0 display. They secured the top spot by beating a challenging Senegal side to a 1-0 victory.
However, their top spot came at a high cost. James Rodriguez, Colombia’s key star, limped off the Samara Arena pitch only 31 minutes into their game against Senegal. Many a Colombia supporter are still anxious regarding the Bayern Munich man’s condition: if he is deemed unfit for their clash against England, they would have lost a dangerous attacking option.
However, scans on James’ calf showed that there was no muscle tear. While his condition for the coming match is still a huge question mark, Jose Pekerman hopes that his ace will be able to return to full fitness in time for this game.
Meanwhile, he would have to rely on Juan Cuadrado and Radamel Falcao to break through the English defence and try to mount an upset.
History
These two nations have met five times, the first one being an international friendly in 1970. The Three Lions have the bragging rights when it comes to their head-to-head history, as England won three and drew two.
These two countries have previously played each other in the 1998 World Cup’s group stage, where England easily won 2-0. England then had a frightening amount of quality in their team, with Paul Ince, Paul Scholes, Michael Owen, Alan Shearer and David Seaman then donning the England crest.
However, recent history hasn’t been kind to England. Not only did they exit the 2014 World Cup in the group stage, they also went out of the Euros in the Round of 16 to Iceland. There are plenty of demons to exorcise for England, and Gareth Southgate has to be careful his team doesn’t crack under the pressure.
Meanwhile, Colombia will be hoping to repeat the historic run they have mounted in 2014. While their match history with England doesn’t bring encouraging results, they did defeat European heavyweights France in a pre-World Cup friendly in March.
What are the odds?
England are the easy favourites to win the match, given the quality of the players and their form coming into the match. England’s 1X2 odds come at 2.11, but the Asian Handicap market at SBOBET offer better odds. England -0.75 @ 2.51 is an intriguing punt to make.
Colombia are not far behind on the odds, and that is a testament to the quality of players they have. Their 1X2 odds of 3.55 is a punt you should make if you believe in the clutch ability of Falcao, Rodriguez and Cuadrado.
Of course, this could also head to penalties. If you think these two sides are evenly matched, a Draw offers 1X2 odds of 3.20.
Disclaimer: Odds are correct at time of publish.
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