The final round of matches in World Cup Group F take place in the early hours of Friday morning when Japan clash with Sweden and Tunisia take on the Netherlands.
Group F Update
The Netherlands and Japan both have 4 points and Sweden have 3. Tunisia have lost both their matches so far and they are no longer in contention to qualify for the knockout rounds.
A reminder that the final round of matches in each group share the same kick off time. Should two or more teams finish equal on points in their group the first criteria used to determine the final standings is the head to head record. The 8 best third placed finishers from the 12 groups will also qualify for the Round of 32.
Japan vs Sweden (Dallas)
Japan
Japan as good as put themselves in the knockout rounds with a 4-0 win over Tunisia in Monterrey in their second group match. It took just 4 minutes for Daichi Kamada to open the scoring and Ayase Ueda made it 2-0 before half time In the second half Ueda set up Ito for Japan’s third and then scored his second of the match to make it 4-0.
Japan’s opening match against the Netherlands in Dallas was 0-0 at half time but a cracking second half eventually saw the game finish 2-2. Japan had to come from behind twice to claim a point and their goals came from Keito Nakamura and then Daichi Kamada who scored in the 89 the minute.
Sweden
Sweden came into their second match against the Netherlands in Houston on a high but it quickly went pear shaped, 2-0 down in 17 minutes and eventually losing 5-1. They were 4-0 down by the time Anthony Elanga scored their consolation just before the hour mark but went on to concede a fifth to wipe out an impressive goal difference they had rocked up from their first match.
Sweden’s opening match against Tunisia in Monterrey turned into a one sided affair as they romped to a 5-1 win. Ayari opened the scoring on 7 minutes, Isak made 2-0 after half an hour but Tunisia pulled one back and it was 2-1 to Sweden at half time. Second half goals from Viktor Gyokeres, Mattias Svanberg and Ayari’s second at the death confirmed Sweden’s dominance.
The Betting:
Japan are priced at around even money to win the game with the draw available at 26/10 and Sweden can be backed at around 33/10.
A game of 3 goals or more is priced at 0.77/1 and its 13/20 for both teams to score
The Verdict:
I’m sure we will be seeing Japan in the knockout rounds and it could be that Sweden have already done enough as well although it would be dangerous for them to take that for granted. Japan have looked the after bet on the evidence of the first two matches but with the Netherlands likely to top the group my gut feel is that the draw, that would maintain the status quo and see both sides through, is a big runner ere.
Bets: Match Result Draw at 26/10 with BetXchange
Note, odds are subject to change
Tunisia vs Netherlands (Kansas City)
Tunisia
Tunisia have had a miserable time of it and after conceding 9 goals in losing their first 2 group matches they will be heading home after this match regardless of the result. Most recently they conceded twice in each half in a 4-0 defeat to Japan in Monterrey. They bowed out tamely failing to register a shot n target.
Tunisia came up against Sweden in their opening group match, also in Monterrey and pretty much everything that could go wrong did go wrong as they crashed and burned 5-1. They were 2-0 down inside half an hour and although Omar Rekik made it 2-1 just before half time Sweden scored 3 further goals in the second half. The fall out from that defeat saw coach Sabri Lamouchi subsequently leave the post and replaced by Herve Renard.
Netherlands
The Netherlands kick started their tournament in some style when they dismantled Sweden with a 5-1 win in Houston last time out. Sunderland’s Brian Brobbey had them 2-0 up inside 17 minutes and it stayed that way until half time. Cody Gakpo then scored twice early in the second half and after Sweden netted a consolation Crysencio Summerville made it 5-1 in the closing moments of an impressive Dutch win.
The Netherlands opened their campaign with a -2 draw with Japan in Dallas. The first half went without a goal and van Djik headed the Dutch in front on 51 minutes. Japan were level just 6 minutes later but on 64 minutes Summerville made it 2-1. It looked like the Netherlands had done enough but Japan came back again, making it 2-2 on 89 minutes and that’s the way it finished.
The Betting:
Tunisia are priced at around 25/1 to win the game with the draw available at 9/1 and the Netherlands can be backed at around 3 / 20.
A game of 3 goals or more is priced at 5/10 and its 7/4 for both teams to score
The Verdict:
We have seen nothing from Tunisia who’s race is already run so it should be straight forward for the Netherlands who I am taking to win a game of 4 goals or more in total.
Bets: Netherlands to win and over 3.5 goals? Yes at 5/4 with Sportingbet
Note, odds are subject to change