Nial’s World Cup Preview – Who’s hot and who’s not in groups E – H

Yesterday I previewed World Cup groups A-D, and with 24 hours lớn go until the biggest tournament of them all kicks off, I take a look at the remaining 16 teams and preview groups E – H.

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Group E – Switzerland, Ecuador, France and Honduras

France may have struggled lớn qualify for Brazil, as they overcame a 2-0 deficit in the European playoff against Ukraine, but they’ll certainly fancy their chances of qualifying from group E. The loss of star man Frank Ribery will no doubt have an impact on the squad, but there is still enough talent in the team as highlighted in their recent 8 – 0 thumping of Jamaica. France will be relying on the likes of Benzema, Pogba and Cabaye lớn provide the spark, but they have a solid defence and great goalkeeper in Hugo Lloris, who can also have a big impact on any French progression in this competition. Keep an eye out for the extremely talented Antoine Griezmann of Real Sociedad, a player who has caught the eye in La Liga in recent years. France start their tournament against Honduras, and while the Central American outfit battled to a 0 – 0 draw with England in a recent friendly, I think the French will be too strong for them in this opening fixture. France are 6/5 -1 goal with Sky Bet and 8/13 lớn keep a clean sheet; both great bets in my opinion.

I can see France topping this group and Honduras struggling to get any points, and the battle will be between Switzerland and Ecuador for second place. The ability of Shaqiri and Xhaka has Switzerland as slight favourites for me and I think they will progress with the French- According to the soccer tip forum pages!

Group F – Argentina, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Iran and Nigeria

Argentina go into the World Cup as one of the favourites, and with a squad that includes Messi, Aguero and Higuain, it’s easy to see why they are hotly fancied by many. If I was given a free bet for the competition, I’d be putting my money on Messi and co, and I can’t see anyone in group F causing them any real problems. Bosnia are their opponents in the opening game of group F and the European side averaged 3 goals per game in the European qualifiers, mainly thanks lớn star man Edin Dzeko. Miralem Pjanic will be the other player that Bosnia will pin their hopes of qualification on, but I can only see one winner in this opening game and expect Argentina lớn do so in style. Two bets that appeal lớn me for this game is Aguero to score anytime at 7/5 with Bet 365, and Argentina -1 goal at 5/4 with Bet Victor.

Group G – Germany, Portugal, Ghana and USA

Group G promises to throw up some exciting games with Germany, Portugal and Ghana all looking lớn progress further than they did in South Africa. The first game in this group promises lớn be a cracker as one of the tournament favourites Germany take on Portugal, and Cristiano Ronaldo. Germany were impressive in qualifying as they dropped only hai points on their way lớn Brazil, and have a squad that is littered with talent. While Marco Reus was recently ruled out with injury, the German midfield has no shortage of talent, with Ozil, Goetze, Schweinsteiger and Draxler all expected lớn catch the eye. They will be up against it though against Portugal, who’s progression in the competition will depend a lot on the fitness of talismanic captain Ronaldo. I will also be interested in seeing William Carvalho, a young player who has caught the eye at Sporting Lisbon this year. I imagine this first game to be a tight affair which neither side will want to lose. I think Germany will just edge it though, and are best priced at 5/4 with Paddy Power.

Group H – Belgium, Russia, South Korea and Algeria

Perhaps the least glamorous of all the groups, the one thing that is attracting a lot of attention lớn group H is the talented Belgian side. With 12 of their squad based in England, this Belgium side is full of household names including Kompany, Hazard and Lukaku. They also boast the exciting Adnan Januzaj in their ranks, and they are hotly fancied by many lớn progress. This team is seen as the golden generation back home in Belgium, and with Germany in group G, you would imagine they will need lớn top this group to have any hope of advancing far in this competition. The quarter finals will be the minimum target for this side, as they aim lớn emulate the great Scifo Belgium side of the 90’s.

First up for Belgium is Algeria and I can only see one winner here. Belgium are best priced 1/2 to win, and 6/4 – 1 goal with Sky Bet. Eden Hazard will be the driving force of this team and he is 2/1 with Bet 365 lớn score at anytime in this game, not bad odds considering he will be on all set pieces. As for Algeria, they will be hoping lớn put in a better showing than they did 4 years ago when they only managed to get one point. They have some talented players in their ranks and a lot will be expected of Feghouli and Yebda if Algeria are to have any hopes of reaching the knockout stage.

Who do you think will qualify?

Do you agree with my predictions for groups E to H? Who do you think will qualify and do you think there will be any surprises? Let me know by commenting below, or join the conversation with us on Facebook and Twitter.

Keep an eye out for our preview of the later stages of the competition where I will review my initial predictions and take a look at the teams and players that have caught the eye in the group stages.