Germany once again find themselves in the World Cup knockout round after navigating past the much-anticipated “Group of Death,” Group G, undefeated. The Germans should be relatively pleased to be matched up with an Algeria team making their first ever appearance in the last 16. However, they shouldn’t belittle the Desert Foxes, who could have a trick or two up their sleeve.
The Germans aren’t the only contenders up against African opposition as free-scoring France takes on Nigeria in the Round of 16. Check out our comprehensive preview of that match here, and read on for more on this classic David vs. Goliath World Cup clash.
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Germany vs. Algeria, World Cup 2014, Round of 16 Betting Preview and Prediction
Despite being drawn in the dreaded Group of Death, Germany had little trouble securing qualification to the knockout round for the ninth consecutive World Cup tournament. Ghana provided the Germans their biggest scare of the group stage with a 2-2 draw, but their wins over Portugal and the U.S.A. were much more comfortable.
[sc:Soccer240banner ]Thomas Muller is well on his way toward becoming the first player ever to retain the World Cup Golden Boot. After firing a hat-trick against Portugal, Muller scored Germany’s lone goal in their 1-0 win over the U.S. to put him level with Brazil’s Neymar and Argentina’s Lionel Messi with a tournament-high four goals.
As if the talent-rich Germans couldn’t get any stronger, Bastian Schweinsteiger is slowly returning to top form. The Bayern Munich midfielder was presented a start against the U.S. and performed well in place of Sami Khedira. Regardless of who starts between the two, Germany’s midfield will likely have more than enough to overwhelm their Algerian counterparts.
Expect the Germans to dominate majority of the possession, which will be their best form of defense. After all, Algeria can’t score if they don’t have the ball. And even if the Algerians do gain possession, captain and holding midfielder Philippe Lahm will be on hand to stop any potential threat.
Betting on Algeria
Algeria were expected to be the whipping boys of Group H, but the Desert Foxes caught everyone off-guard to snatch second place and advance past the World Cup group stage for the first time in their history.
The Algerians have proven to be quite the well-rounded team. They managed to keep group winners Belgium out for over an hour before succumbing to defeat, and displayed their attacking flare in an impressive 4-2 defeat of South Korea.
In the deciding match against Russia, they displayed their grit and determination to come back from a goal down to earn the draw they needed to go through. Striker Islam Slimani provided that all-important equalizer, his second goal of the tournament.
With an opponent as powerful as Germany, coach Vahid Halilhodzic will more than likely set his team out to play the conservative and defensive approach which almost worked against Belgium. But if they try to endure a relentless wave of pressure from the Germans, they will almost surely be worn down eventually by the Germans.
Slimani and winger Sofiane Feghouli, the team’s main threats going forward, will be important in trying to relieve the pressure on the team’s defense by keeping possession on Germany’s half. Feghouli in particular should look to target Germany’s left fullback, Benedikt Howedes, who has looked unconvincing in that position.
Writer’s Prediction
Germany has too many weapons upfront for Algeria to handle. Take the Germans to win by a comfortable margin. Create a betting account today and take part in the latter stages of the World Cup.
