Verdict: Spain were one of the hot favorites going into this tournament so it's no surprise that they are likened to complete the job against the Dutch. Along with Forlan, Villa has been the hottest striker at this tournament with 5 goals to his name and shooting for Fifa's Golden Boot award. Torres has been off colour and was replaced in the starting line-up by Pedro against Germany. Despite this, Fernando's big match experience may lead Del Bosque to restoring the Liverpool marksman in the starting 11.
Van Persie is another that has disappointed at this tournament with only a solitary goal to his name. In contrast, Arjen Robben has played a big part since returning from injury against Slovakia, scoring 2 goals in three games.
Spain will most definitely rule possession in this game which is a major factor in considering this pick. In addition, Spain's defence has only conceded twice (3 consecutive clean sheets) in comparison to the Dutch allowing five (no clean sheet in last 4 games). I think this pick represents reasonable value.
Picks: Villa/Torres to score more than Van Persie/Robben @2.30 (betsafe, 10 units) Any of these players did not score Van Bommel to receive a card @2.30 (betsafe, 10 units) Van Bommel cautioned on 22' Spain 1x2 @2.12 (188bet, 7 units) Spain 0 - 0 (after 90 minutes)
Picks: Klose to score any time @2.22 (betfair, 7 units) Klose did not play any part Over 2.5 goals @1.78 (betfair, 7 units) Uruguay 2 - 3 Germany Germany 1x2 @1.93 (pinnacle, 10 units) Uruguay 2 - 3 Germany
Picks: Uruguay +0.75AH @1.94 (betfair, 8 units) Uruguay 2 - 3 Netherlands Van Bommel to receive a card @2.56 (betfair, 8 units) Van Bommel cautioned on 90'
Wednesday, July 7
Germany v Spain
Verdict: Going into the 6th game of the tournament, Sergio Ramos has amassed more fouls than any of his Spanish team mates, 13 to be exact. Germany has shown to be a very good counter attacking team while Ramos likes getting forward himself. I feel this will be problematic for the Real Madrid flyer as Podolski and Boateng will look to exploit the space left behind the Spaniard when he decides to venture forward.
Ramos will come under a lot of pressure as the game wears on, and I expect his name to be taken by referee Viktor Kassai.
Picks: Sergio Ramos to receive a card @3.20 (unibet, 10 units) Not cautioned. Germany -0.25AH @2.54 (betfair, 10 units) Germany 0 - 1 Spain
Verdict: In what is likely to be a more open contest than the one that took place back in March, Argentina won 1-0, and a place in the quarter-finals in waiting, a hot game is likely. Argentina's strengths going forward are known to everyone but their main strength may also prove to be their biggest weakness. Germany is a strong team on the counter-attack with the like of Podolski, Ozel, Lahm and Muller pacy and direct. With Germany orchestrating the majority of their attacks down the right side, so far in this tournament, I feel that Gabriel Heinze will come under immense pressure and may be forced to commit a clear foul at some stage during the game.
Picks: Heinze to receive a card @3.25 (unibet, 10 units) No card Germany -0.25AH @2.94 (10bet, 6 units) Germany 4 - 0 Argentina Mascherano to receive a card @2.94 (betfair, 6 units) Mascherano cautioned on 80'
Paraguay v Spain
Picks: Dario Veron to receive a card @3.9 (betfair, 7 units) No card Sergio Ramos to receive a card @4.1 (betfair, 5 units) No card Spain clean sheet @1.71 (betfair, 10 units) Paraguay 0 - 1 Spain
Verdict: Netherlands have cruised to the quarter finals with arguably the easiest draw out of all 8 teams remaining in the tournament. The Oranje have scored 7 goals and conceded 3 against Denmark, Japan, Cameroon and Slovakia in performances that can only be described as dull. Arjen Robben has given the Dutch some extra spark since returning from injury against Cameroon but I expect them to be under extreme pressure against the ever improving Brazilians.
Mark Van Bommel is an aggressive player by nature but has so far escaped a caution in this tournament as his team has rarely needed to get out of second gear. Mark's reputation as a hard man is renowned across Europe, managing 22 yellow cards and a red in his last two seasons with Bayern Munich. I expect the Brazilian midfield and wing-backs to stretch the Dutch to their limits, thus giving us a good opportunity to win this bet.
Picks: Van Bommel to receive a card @3.0 (unibet, 10 units) No card Brazil -0.25AH @1.72 (sbobet, 10 units) Netherlands 2 - 1 Brazil
Uruguay v Ghana
Pick: Diego Perez to receive a card @3.10 (betfair, 10 units) Perez cautioned on 60'
Picks: Paraguay -0.25AH @1.88 (sportbet, 10 units) Paraguay 0 - 0 Japan Santa Cruz Man of the Match @6.0 (bet365, 3 units) Honda voted MOM
Spain v Portugal
Verdict: Torres' lacklustre performances in SA so far have been a major talking point at the World Cup. In 154 minutes of football, Torres has only had one strike on goal and missed some glorious opportunities to find the back of the net. He is simply out of form and perhaps not in 100% physical condition. Villa is perhaps the sharpest striker in this tournament, scoring 3 goals from his 7 shots on target.
With Villa favorite with the bookies to score in this match and Torres completely out of sorts, I see very good value in this bet.
Pick* (free pick): Villa to score more goals than Torres @3.50 (unibet, 6 units) Villa 1-0
Other Picks: Meireles to be cautioned @4.0 (unitbet, 10 units) Not cautioned Pepe to be cautioned @2.84 (betfair, 5 units) Not cautioned
Picks: Arjen Robben to score anytime @2.94 (betfair, 7 units) Robben scored on 18' Netherlands to score 2 or more goals @1.67 (betfair, 10 units) Netherlands 2 - 1 Slovakia Pekarik to be cautioned @3.0 (skybet, 7 units) Not cautioned Weiss to be cautioned @3.95 (betfair, 4 units) Not cautioned
Brazil v Chile
Picks: Vidal to be cautioned @2.8 (betfair, 7 units) Vidal cautioned on 47' Sanchez to be cautioned @3.7 (betfair, 7 units) Not cautioned Carmona to be cautioned @2.36 (betfair, 7 units) Not cautioned Chile to score @1.85 (betfair, 10 units) Brazil 3 - 0 Chile
