by Tom Allen
South Korea were magnificent in defeating Greece 2-0 in their opening World
Cup fixture but now face the mighty Argentina in Group B.
This pair look destined for the second round on the early evidence in South
Africa, the South Americans were 1-0 victors over Nigeria on Sunday, and I'd be
surprised if we weren't treated to one of the very best early matches of the
tournament.
The first round of games were on the whole disappointing, no side wanting to
taste defeat in their opening match led to often cagey encounters, but the
shackles should now come off and with the cushion of three points in the bag
already this should be an entertaining clash.
South Korea and Argentina should really have won more emphatically than their
respective score lines, both wasting several clear-cut chances, but the
incentive on Thursday is a place in the knockout stages for the winner and I'd
be surprised if each team didn't start on the front foot.
The much-maligned Argentina manager Diego Maradona no doubt has his tactical
flaws, I'm pretty sure he still has no idea what his best eleven is, but the one
aspect abundantly obvious in defeating Nigeria was the high regard the Argentine
players have for him and they seemingly won't fall short due to lack of effort.
It was defender Gabriel Heinze's header that proved the difference five days
ago but it was unsurprisingly Lionel Messi that was at the centre of all things
positive for Argentina and he is likely to be so once again versus Jung-Moo
Huh's side.
Carlos Tevez looked fairly quiet in Johannesburg, perhaps not enjoying his
role alongside Messi, but Gonzalo Higuain appeared lively for the 1986 champions
and on another day the Real Madrid man could well have been in the goals.
It's unlikely Argentina will be as forgiving going forward again but their
defence was opened up at times in the dying stages and they were nearly made to
pay for their wastefulness in front of goal when Nigeria squandered a couple of
decent opportunities to equalise late on.
Having already advised the Argentina/South Korea dual forecast at a now
handsome looking 5/1 I'm more than happy to sit back and enjoy what should be a
decent match and I expect there to be goals.
Ji-Sung Park, scoring for the third World Cup finals in a row, was a constant
threat for South Korea versus Greece but it pays to stick with the favourites
and surely Higuain is overpriced at the standout 8/5 with VC Bet to find the net
at anytime.
Higuain's goal scoring record for Real Madrid last season was phenomenal and
with Lionel Messi the chief supplier he couldn't wish for a better provider. The
selection is significantly shorter elsewhere, only Evens with
Titan Bet, and looks like a decent wager.
2pts Back Gonzalo Higuain Anytime Goal Scorer (vs. South Korea) @ 8/5 (Victor
Chandler)
