Weekend International Friendly Soccer Match Tips

This week sees a round of International Friendlies for the teams already qualified for the World Cup and the first leg of the World Cup playoffs for teams like France and the Republic of Ireland who need to win their two leg match to get into the World Cup. For the England squad it is their last chance for some time to remind Fabio Capello to monitor their form for the remainder of the season as the race for squad places gets hotter. Here are my selected bets for the series of friendly matches taking place this weekend.

The football betting odds are subject to change and come from bwin.com.

Brazil 2.15 Draw 3.20 England 3.30

New Dad Wayne Rooney will be starting this match and looks likely to be partnered by Jermaine Defoe as Capello considers who the starting striker alongside Wayne for the World Cup will be. It is also likely that Darren Bent will feature in this game having forced his way into the squad with some fine performances for Sunderland this season and Capello will be keen to see what he can do against the quality of Brazil. England could be value at 3.30 however with the news Frank Lampard has withdrawn due to an injury picked up in training today you should tread a little carefully.

The first goalscorer betting market has Luis Fabiano and Hulk of Brazil as favourites to score first at odds of 5.50 and 7.00 respectively. With attackers like Kaka, Baptista, Nilmar and Robinho at their disposal England could be in for a tough night. My tip for the match would be a draw, with 1-1 being the most likely result. A bet on the draw is 3.20 and the correct score bet is 6.50 could be two bets that turn out to be worthwhile. The speed of Shaun Wright-Phillips could be an asset for England and his first goal odds of 17.00 look attractive for a player who can always make something special happen. A bit of magic may be required against the quality of Brazil’s overall team.

The match itself is more about the performance than the win but since when has Capello settled for anything less than maximum effort? I think both teams will score and the draw is a likely result. As a patriot, however, I shall be cheering on England all the way!

Denmark 2.00 Draw 3.35 Korea Republic 3.55

Denmark looks like they are favourites here to beat the Koreans. Nicolas Bendtner of Arsenal is playing well for them and has the quality to cause them lots of problems up front. I tip Denmark to win, we shall see if Bendtner can fulfil his pledge to become the best in the world starting here.

Wales 2.60 Draw 3.20 Scotland 2.60

The bookmakers seem to feel that the injury-ravaged Welsh side can still draw against Scotland without the likes of Craig Bellamy, James Collins, Chris Gunter, Jack Collison, David Vaughan and Simon Davies. Players like Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey will need to be on top form to help a depleted Wales side eager for a performance for pride in this International derby. Scotland are without Craig Gordon and Darren Fletcher amongst other key players who have withdrawn. The outcome of this match will be decided by the impact of withdrawn players, for that reason a draw seems a good selection here.

Having a football bet at bwin.com will ensure these friendlies, which do not have any real meaning in terms of competition, will have meaning for you as a football fan. I would back the draw double between Brazil-England and Wales-Scotland which will return, including your stake, £107.20 to a £10 stake. There is value in this bet I believe considering the teams will be focusing more on performance rather than the victory.

By Malcolm Clarke