International
2019-06-02 - Colombia U20 vs New Zealand U20
A Sports Betting Pick by Auls
Football: FIFA Under 20 World Cup 2019 Second Round
Sunday 2nd June 2019 - Kick Off 7:30pm (British Time)
This game is live on TV
Preview
Most would have picked Colombia Under 20 to come out of their Group and have a serious impact in the FIFA Under 20 World Cup Finals. More surprising might be the appearance of New Zealand Under 20 who performed very well in the Group Stage and look like a team that is full of belief.
New Zealand had been placed in what looked a difficult Group along with Uruguay Under 20, Norway Under 20 and Honduras Under 20, but they were through to the Second Round after just two games. The 5-0 hammering of Honduras really announced themselves at the World Cup Finals, but the win over Norway might have been even more impressive.
You can't ignore the fact that New Zealand's win over Honduras is the biggest victory they have had at the World Cup Finals at this level. However New Zealand were not expected to finish above Norway and the victory over the UEFA representative will really have got people taking notice of this team.
I won't worry too much about the defeat to Uruguay as both teams had Qualified and made a host of changes to the starting line up. Ultimately it hasn't mattered either as both New Zealand and Uruguay have to face tough South American opponents in the Second Round and the young Kiwis will be looking to show they have learnt what to expect from nations from the at Confederation.
New Zealand's performances have surprised when you think they were beaten 2-0 by France Under 20 and 6-0 by USA Under 20 in the lead up to the World Cup Finals. It may be a big reason they are significant underdogs against Colombia who won 2 out of 3 Group games to make their way into the Second Round.
Colombia beat the hosts Poland Under 20 and hammered Tahiti Under 20 around a defeat to Senegal Under 20 to make their way into the Knock Out Rounds. Like New Zealand, Colombia may have learnt a little bit about the Confederation New Zealand play in during their heavy win over Tahiti, although there is little doubt this is a tougher opponent for them.
They are a team that have produced some mixed form during the Under 20 South American Championships and Colombia have been a little up and down during the World Cup Finals in Poland too. It does look like they have the quality to edge to a win in this one, but it is unlikely to be easy and Colombia have shown some frailties when they have fallen behind in games at this level.
It does feel like the first goal will give the team earning it a huge edge and that makes Colombia feel short at the prices. My feeling is that they are the better team in this one, but rule out New Zealand at your peril.
Prediction
Both teams have looked pretty good through the Group Stage with a couple of wins each and a single loss to the nation that ultimately won the section they were involved in.
New Zealand Under 20 have perhaps overachieved by getting into the Second Round, but they will feel they have nothing to lose now. All of the expectation is on the shoulders of Colombia Under 20 who will feel they have every chance of reaching the Under 20 World Cup Final with the way the Knock Out Stage has been put together.
They can't afford to overlook New Zealand though and Colombia have still got to show how they can react when they fall behind in games. Colombia can be very good defensively, but sometimes they can struggle on the other end of the field and this is a nation on a long run of games where at least one of the teams playing fails to score.
It would have been a winning play in each of New Zealand's Group games too and I will back at least one team failing to find the net in this Second Round fixture.
The Pick :
Colombia U20 1-0 New Zealand U20
