The second match of Group A takes place at 21:00 local time on Friday 15th June at the Saint Petersburg Stadium.
Egypt go into their opening match against Uruguay as massive underdogs with Bovada pricing them at +425 to win compared to -150 on an Uruguayan victory and +285 for the draw. Uruguay has many Europe-based players in its squad, particularly its forwards, so acclimatising to the Russian weather should no pose a problem and could give them a distinct advantage over Egypt.
Bovada have Uruguay starting at -1 as a +130 shot and this looks exceptional value as the South American outfit has plenty of firepower at its disposal and while Egypt’s Mo Salah is a major threat, Uruguay should, in theory, win this match comfortably. Neither side is likely to be challenging for the winner’s trophy, although both are capable of progressing to the knockout stages.
Egypt vs Uruguay Key Bites
The second match of Group A takes place at 21:00 local time on Friday 15th June at the Saint Petersburg Stadium.
Egypt are just happy to be at their first World Cup finals since 1990, yet they are not turning up just to make the numbers up. They have a legitimate world class superstar in their team in Mo Salah and he is capable of opening up any defence.
Uruguay were disappointing at the 2014 World Cup as they fell in the Round of 16, four years after they had navigated their way to a solid fourth-place finish. In Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani, Uruguay have enough firepower to worry any team in the competition.
There was much hype surrounding Egypt when the team secured qualification to what is its third World Cup finals. That hype was mostly due to the incredible form of Liverpool winger Mohamed Salah who has enjoyed the best season of his career.
Salah scored 44 goals in 49 appearances in all competitions last season but then suffered a shoulder injury in the UEFA Champions League final that looked set to rule him out of the World Cup. Salah has returned to training with his Egyptian team mates, yet there are still doubts over whether he will be fit in time to face Uruguay.
Egypt’s main problem is their over-reliance on Salah; without him they look lost. The Egyptian squad does have a few players who ply their trade in the big leagues. The aforementioned Salah is joined by West Bromwich Albion defender Ahmed Hegazi and Arsenal defensive midfielder Mohamed Elneny.
First choice goalkeeper Ahmed El Shenawy is another player who suffered an injury blow, which could pave the way for Essam El Hadary to become the oldest player to feature in a World Cup finals. Colombia’s Faryd Mondragon holds the current record at 43 years and 3 days. El Hadary will be 45 years and five months at the start of the Uruguay game.
Uruguay seem to be happy with the title of the tournament’s dark horses. The South American outfit are currently priced around +2800 with Bovada to win the tournament, which puts them as ninth favorites, and there are definitely worse teams than Uruguay that are attracting the attention of punters.
The Uruguayans have a solid defense that is unlikely to be troubled by any of the Egyptian players, except for Salah if he is fit. This defensive unit conceded five in their previous nine games and they kept six clean sheets in those matches.
At the other end of the pitch, Uruguay look deadly. Coach Oscar Tabarez has thrown some of Uruguay’s excellent youngsters into the squad and they have immediately looked at home. Midfielder Federico Valverde looks like a huge prospect while Nahitan Nandez and Rodrigo Bentancur will bomb down the wings and cause havoc with any defense in the world.
It is expected that Uruguay will partner Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez up front in what could be the deadliest duo to feature at the World Cup. Cavani scored 50 goals in 50 games last season and recently made his 100th international appearance. Suarez found the net 35 times in 57 games and only needs three more appearances in the blue Uruguay short to reach a ton of caps.
Uruguay should, on paper at least, brush Egypt aside and go into this match on the back of three straight victories. The +130 on offer from Bovada on a Uruguay win with a -1 spread looks exceptional value, especially when you consider Egypt’s recent awful form and the fact they may be without their talismanic frontman Salah.
A 2-0 Uruguay victory is priced at +500 and looks a solid bet, which means we also like the look of the +120 on offer on a Uruguay win and there being over 1.5 goals in the game.
Category : Betting Picks
Tag : FIFA World Cup , Soccer
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