The midfield-rich Swiss team and the high-powered offense of the Ecuadorians should make for an outstanding start to Group E play, as we discussed in our Group E preview.
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Ecuador vs. Switzerland, World Cup 2014, Group Stage Betting Preview and Prediction
Ecuador doesn’t boast of a star-studded squad, but they did beat a strong Uruguay team to secure a fourth place finish in the CONMEBOL group, sending them to the World Cup. A chink in their armor would be their lack of defense, but they make up for it with a fast-paced, devastating attack that has scored an average of 1.43 goals in their last seven friendlies. Despite their offense, they struggle to win away from their home.
[sc:Soccer240banner ]Two key components for Ecuador’s offensive front will be Felipe Caicedo and team captain Antonio Valencia. Caicedo will be one of the South American nation’s primary scoring threat. To prepare for the World Cup, Caicedo played for FC Lokomotiv Moscow, where he scored a single goal in 11 appearances. The result was a stark contrast to his stint in La Liga, in which he played for Valencia in 27 appearances to record 13 goals.
Looking to set up Caicedo will be (the player) Valencia, who is arguably Ecuador’s best player. Playing for Manchester United last season, he appeared 30 times and helped set-up five goals. Aside from his duties in executing offensive plays, he’ll keep the ball away from their side with his excellent crosses. There is no doubt to his talent, but he has been inconsistent of late.
This will be Ecuador’s second appearance in the three most recent World Cups.
Betting on Switzerland
There’s some value to be had on the Swiss at +300 to win Group E, as they’re France’s biggest rival in the initial stage. In the last World Cup in South Africa, the team showed potential in beating the eventual champions, Spain, in the Group Stage, but ultimately failed to advance. Switzerland is making its third straight World Cup appearance after topping their qualifying group by remaining undefeated.
Managing the relatively young team is the experienced and successful Ottmar Hitzfeld. The decorated manager owns two UEFA Champions League championships splitting them between Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. He also owns seven Bundesliga titles, winning two for Dortmund and five for Bayern.
The fruitful manager is a canny tactician who likes to reinforce discipline, something this young Swiss team will need in the upcoming World Cup.
Although they are likely to advance through the Group Stage, the team lacks a top quality striker. Defender Fabian Schär was the team’s top scorer in the qualifiers with three goals – never a good sign.
However, the team does build from a strong midfield with the likes of Valentin Stocker, Gokhan Inter, and Xherdan Shaqiri creating through the middle. Among the three, Shaqiri is the one most capable of offense, having scored six goals for Bayern in the Bundisliga last season. Cutting inside the defense is the left-footed midfielder’s specialty, and against the defensively-challenged Ecuadorians he will have several occasions to unleash his goal-scoring potential.
Switzerland is 3-1-1 in its last five international friendlies, including a 1-0 win over Brazil.
Writer’s Prediction
Switzerland’s rich midfield will be able to cut through Ecuadorian defense to score goals and win the game. Take the total to go over 2.0 as Ecuador will likely fire back with fast-paced attacks.
