Uruguay v Netherlands: Betting Preview

Uruguay v Netherlands

Our very own Paul Harper has returned safe and well from South Africa and having seen the Dutch in the flesh he’s in a great position to tell us how he thinks they’ll fare against the Uruguayans.

We’ve well and truly reached the business end of the World Cup now, at the semi-final stage. After some shock results and shocking performances (mainly by England), we’re left with just four teams in the tournament, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and more surprisingly, Uruguay.

The South Americans came through a tricky looking group with flying colours, spoiling the host nation’s party in the process. France looked, on paper, to be the favourites for Group A, but who could have predicted their shambolic performance in South Africa?

Having overcome South Korea and then Ghana, rather fortuitously after a penalty shoot-out, in the knockout rounds, Uruguay now face the Netherlands for a place in the World Cup final.

The Dutch have got through to the semi-finals having eased through a group containing Japan, Cameroon and Denmark. They then coasted past Slovakia in Round 2 before shocking tournament-favourites Brazil in the quarter finals with two second-half Wesley Sneijder goals.

One of Uruguay’s key players during their campaign so far, striker Luis Suarez of Ajax, will be missing from the semi-final after his sending off against Ghana. He will be sorely missed but penalty hero Sebastien Abreu is likely to take his place up front and will pose a different problem to the Dutch defence with his tall, physical presence. If you fancy the big centre-forward to bag the first goal of the game, he can be backed at a generous 14/1 with Bet365.

La Celeste may also be missing influential defender and captain Diego Lugano, so they face problems at both ends of the pitch. After Lugano limped off against Ghana, their rearguard looked a lot less secure and this may be an avenue that Holland will look to exploit.

As for the Netherlands, they too will be missing a key player in Nigel de Jong. The Manchester City midfielder has been instrumental in protecting the back four and his absence may well expose a potential weakness in the Dutch defence.

But looking at the attacking options open to Holland coach Bert van Marvijk, you can’t help but think that this will more than compensate for any deficiencies in defence for the Oranje. Sneijder, Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben are three names which are likely to strike the fear of God into the Uruguayan defence.

If World Cup 2010 has taught us anything, it is to expect the unexpected. But surely the Dutch will have too much for the South Americans… won’t they?

Top tips:

• Arjen Robben to score first goal – 6/1 (Ladbrokes)
• Netherlands to win 2-1 – 17/2 (SkyBet)
• Draw/Netherlands – 10/3 (Victor Chandler, Paddy Power, Coral)

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