International
2011-03-29 - England vs Ghana
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football : International Friendly
Tuesday 29 March 2011 - Kickoff 8pm
This game is live on TV
England
England gained an impressive 3 points at Wales in their Euro 2012 Qualifying game on Saturday, but all of the goodwill in the media was quickly removed as Fabio Capello made it clear he will be making a number of changes to his side for this game.
The fans are understandably unhappy after forking out the cash to see England play at Wembley and now having to watch the 2nd string rather than the first team. The media also got more opportunities to practice sharpening their knives for Capello as he picked Gareth Barry to captain the side in the absence of John Terry.
There was better news on Saturday when England moved back to the top of their Group and are once again in pole position to qualify for Euro 2012 next Summer. The performance also received the backing of the fans and media as Wales were comfortably brushed aside.
John Terry, Michael Dawson, Ashley Cole, Wayne Rooney and Frank Lampard have all been released from international duty, while Aaron Lennon is out through injury. Scott Parker is a doubt, although Capello has said he is likely to make 7 changes to the side that beat Wales.
That means the likes of Andy Carroll, Gary Cahill, Phil Jagielka, Leighton Baines and Gareth Barry will be involved in the starting line up.
Ghana
Ghana were the last African side standing at the World Cup last Summer and were a handball on the line away from making the Semi Finals before succumbing to a penalty shoot out against Uruguay.
They are bringing 21,000 of their fans to Wembley for this first meeting between England and Ghana, and that will be the most away supporters to ever grace Wembley for an England international. However, it is clear that the rotation policy of Fabio Capello has not gone down too well, with former captain Stephen Appiah being particularly vocal about his disappointment that this decision has been made by the England manager.
Many of the Ghana squad actually ply their trade in Europe, although they have just had an African Cup of Nations qualifier on Sunday when they beat Congo 0-3. It will be interesting to see how prepared the team is to play with just a day in between games.
Many of the English fans will be familiar with the likes of Asamoah Gyan, Sulley Muntari and Michael Essien, all of whom are expected to take some part in the game.
Head to Head
This is the first meeting between these nations.
Prediction
I want to have no part of this game in terms of predicting a result as the changes made to the England team and the expected raft of substitutions could have the game go in any direction.
However, I did want a small interest in the game and feel Darren Bent could be the choice to open up the scoring here. Bent has scored in his last 2 internationals for England and will want to ensure he cements his place in the side and is likely to start alongside Andy Carroll in the team.
Bent may also become the penalty taker for the side now that Lampard, Gerrard and Rooney are all absent and the price of 6.5 looks far too big.
I expect Ghana to make life tough for England, but Bent has the pace to unsettle defenders and should be looking to get on the end of any Carroll knockdowns, making his price a little big in my opinion.
The Pick :
England 1-1 Ghana
BEST BETTING TIP :
I'll back Darren Bent First Goalscorer @ 6.5 Bet365 (1 UNIT)Follow me on Twitter @DavindaAulak- the direct link is below
