World Cup Betting - Group G Betting Preview

The French squad had its hands full making it to Germany. A 4-0 win over Cyprus put "Les Bleus" in the tournament, but the 1998 World Cup champions drew twice against Israel and Switzerland and once against Ireland in qualifying. The French had a miserable defence of their 1998 World Cup title four years ago, losing to Senegal in the opening match, failing to score a goal in their three group matches and thus going home after the first round. There has been little else for the French to be excited about since. Following their exit from the 2004 European Championship quarter-finals, France barely scraped through in qualifying for the World Cup. The squad does not appear to be happy a bunch. Zidane and Lilian Thuram - French heroes in 1998 - are at the end of their careers, and doubts persist whether the manager has the total backing of the team, something Aime Jacquet had eight years ago. To be fair to Domenech, who took charge in July 2004, France has lost only once in eighteen matches during his reign, although in that time goals have been hard to come by. Despite a striking partnership of Henry and Trezeguet, the two don´t seem to click on the International stage. Evidence of their difficulty in finding the net was there for all to see during their qualification campaign, despite them finishing top of their group; France managed only fourteen goals in ten games, and eleven of those against the Faeroe Islands and Cyprus. Given the uncertainty surrounding the former World Champions, backing them at the ridiculously short odds of 4/9 makes very little sense. A far more appealing option is to back Switzerland, who managed two draws against France during qualification, at 4/1 to win Group G with bsquare. The Swiss were involved in a titanic stuggle with France, Ireland and Israel for much of the campaign, and in the end had to settle for a play-off with Turkey. Although not the desired route, beating the 2002 semi-finalists over two legs will have been a massive confidence booster ahead of this year's tournament. Coach Koebi Kuhn has assembled aside featuring a near perfect balance of youth and experience. The likes of veteran goalkeeper Pascal Zuberbuhler, Hamburg midfielder Raphael Wicky and skipper Johann Vogel are natural leaders. Such individuals have helped to cultivate young rising stars such as Arsenal defender Philippe Senderos, Bayer Leverkusen's Barnetta and Alexander Frei from French first division outfit Stade Rennes. The last-named is a predator in front of goal and will leave any opposition defence knowing that they've had a game! These emerging stars have tasted success on the International stage - many of them played their part in Switzerland's UEFA European U-17 Championship victory in 2002. Although they have failed to make the cut for the last two World Cups, the Swiss are no strangers to the latter stages of the competition, having reached the quarter-finals on no less than three occasions - 1934, '38 & '54. And, moreover, they have lost just one of their last fifteen competitive matches and are very much a side on the up. All in all, it wouldn't be at all surprising to see them usurp the French at the top of this group. No disrespect to South Korea and Tongo, but it's hard to see either of them troubling France or Switzerland in this group and, as such, they're readily passed over. Verdict - 1pt Switzerland to win World Cup Group G @ 4/1 (bluesq)