World Cup Odds Preview Group G: Germany Expects

Germany has a team of all talents, but no European team has ever won a World Cup in South America. Ricky Rothstein previews Group G.

World Cup 2014 Group G Odds
Germany +499
Portugal +2800
USA +17700
Ghana +31500

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Germany
World Cup Outright Odds: +499

Qualification/World Cup History
Germany sailed through qualifying, just like it does – Germany failing to qualify for an international tournament is unimaginable. Consistently everybody’s second-bet to win any tournament at any time, Germany has added a panache to its traditional reputation for efficiency and maximizing resources.

Player to Watch
Thomas Muller. Mesut Ozil catches the eye more and Bayern Munich teammate Bastien Schweinsteiger has been around for longer, but Thomas Muller could be the man to make the difference for Germany this year. There’s something about his style that’s reminiscent of great German midfielders of the past, like Lothar Mattheus and Karl-Heinz Rumminegge.

Team Forecast
Germany has been the second best team in the world for so long now that the Germans are beginning to wonder why exactly they’ve never made it to Number 1. No European team has ever won a World Cup in South America – that’s a lot of added pressure on Joachim Loew’s team.

Portugal
World Cup Outright Odds: +2800

Qualification/World Cup History
Home of Benfica, one of the great clubs of Europe, Portugal has underperformed on the world stage. Its best World Cup Finish is third, in 1966, but Portugal has failed to match anything like that in the long years since.

Player to Watch
Cristiano Ronaldo. If ever there were a one-man team, it’s Portugal. The 29-year-old Real Madrid star has had the season of his life, winning the Ballon d’Or as the best player in the world this year and carrying Portugal on his back all the way to Brazil. Diego Maradona carried Argentina to their second World Cup title by dint of genius alone in 1986. Ronaldo hopes to do the same.

Team Forecast
A first match against Germany is not the ideal start for Portugal. If Ronaldo plays well and Portugal wins, the touchpaper is lit and Portugal could go all the way. Lose or draw, and the remaining fixtures get tougher and there’s a danger of Ronaldo Achilles’ heel, his epic narcissism, causing him to sulk and throw in the towel.

USA
World Cup Outright Odds: +17700

Qualification/ World Cup History
The USA strolled through qualification, but then their path wasn’t really the soccer equivalent of a Navy SEAL assault course either. Team USA is now a regular at the World Cup, but it has yet to take the next step of winning in the knockout stages.

Player to Watch
Tim Howard. The US goalkeeper has rung up 100 caps for his country and plays for Everton in the English Premier League. That’s a combination of experience and talent that the US will need in a hellish group.

Team Forecast
The USA has been unlucky in being drawn in such a tough group. However, it’s also left itself a hostage in fortune in favoring MLS players ahead of US players playing overseas. The ostensible reason is to promote the League but they’re in Brazil to win games in the World Cup. Trying to do both at once leaves Teams USA in danger of doing neither.

Ghana
World Cup Outright Odds: +31500

Qualification/World Cup History
A Luis Suarez handball denied Ghana a place in history as the first African team to reach the World Cup quarter-finals in 2010. Now Ghana are back, four years older but with Michael Essien back in the lineup after injury. Can the Black Stars turn back the clock?

Player to Watch
Michael Essien. One of the greats of his generation, Michael Essien’s club and international career has been cruelly hampered by injury. He knows Brazil is his last shot and he is likely to play in a manner appropriate to the dying of the light.

Team Forecast
Age is against Ghana, but not all hope is lost. If Portugal slip up, Ghana is in the best position to capitalize. Otherwise, the difficulty of the Group is likely to send Ghana home early.

Group G Prediction
Germany will top the Group and Portugal will come second. Any other outcome is very, very hard to see.