GOONERSGUIDE WORLD CUP NEWS SECTION

This is our World Cup news section where we provide any news items that might have a significant effect on the matches being played - or sports betting in general.

World Cup News :: Group F Preview : Germany, Mexico, Sweden, South Korea

---

Posted on 2018-06-07 by Niko

---

World Cup 2018 : Group F Preview

This is a group with two obvious favorites in Germany and Mexico. Sweden also have a decent team, but their quality cannot match the Germans or Mexicans. South Korea are total outsiders here, travelling to this World Cup without any pressure on their shoulders.

Germany

The reigning World Champions Germany, as usual, are one of the top contenders for winning it all. They have so many talented players they can fill not one, not two, but three equally good formations of 11 players.

All lines in the team are well covered with top players, which is one of the reasons why some fantastic players like Leroy Sane, Mario Gotze and Sandro Wagner were left out of the squad for this World Cup in Russia.

Germany lost their final preparation match against Austria a few days ago and their coach Joachim Low was very upset with the way they lost that friendly game. However, that defeat came in best possible time for them, as now they will not relax and think they have done the job. They will definitely be more alert at this World Cup and I expect them to win the group.

Germany will likely struggle against Mexico in their first match, but winning against Sweden and South Korea looks almost certain.

Mexico

Mexico are one of the dark horses for going very deep in this tournament. They are always near the best, but not quite there. However, they finally have a very strong squad capable of going deep. There is a good mix of experienced and younger players in the team.

Goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa will play his fourth World Cup, while striker Javier Hernandez will have his third appearance at World Cups. Pay attention to midfielder Hirving Lozano who scored 17 goals for PSV Eindhoven in his first season in Europe last year.

Giovani Dos Santos, Rafael Marquez and Carlos Vela are three other players that are very stable and dangerous in this team. Almost all of the first team players have given statements that they have come to win the tournament, so the team confidence is very high.

Sweden

Sweden qualified for this World Cup after finishing second behind France in their qualifying group and later eliminating Italy in the playoff matches. This will be their first World Cup appearance since 2006 and the expectations are not very high for them.

Emil Forsberg and Markus Berg are their top two players, but rest of the players have no big experience in playing important games at competitions like these. Zlatan Ibrahimovic is no longer there, but that is good for the other players to finally step up from his shadow. Anyhow, Sweden will battle Mexico for the second spot, but on paper their squad looks a bit weaker than the Mexicans.

South Korea

South Korea have constantly been the best team from Asian continent, qualifying for each World Cup tournament since 1986.

This will be their ninth consecutive World Cup appearance, so they should never be underestimated. However, they are no match for the powerful Germany squad, while Mexico and Sweden also have strong individuals that play top football in best European and World leagues.

Ki Sung-yueng of Swansea City and Sun Heung-min of Tottenham are the top two players that lead South Korea. Overall South Korea are not as technically good as other teams in this group, but they have some very fast players that play with a lot of heart.

South Korea will likely cause troubles and possibly upset either Mexico or Sweden, but reaching the knockout stages is too much to ask of them.

The Betting Verdict

Germany & Mexico to both qualify (use the Group Dual Forecast market so the order of 1 or 2 does not matter) at odds of 2.25 at Bet365 looks like a pretty solid bet for me.

 

Sourced From : Guide to World Cup Betting

PREVIOUS NEWS ITEM :
Group C Preview : France, Denmark, Peru, Australia