Friendly: Italy vs NetherlandsCurrent world champions easily finished the World Cup qualifications, but we must mention that they didn't have a worthy opponent in their group, so they will face a real test in the friendly with Netherlands. The Dutch also had maximum efficiency in their qualifying group and if they keep this up, they can hope for a good finish in South Africa.
Lippi is testing the youngsters
Four-fold world champions will face one of the best European teams this weekend to prepare for the big challenge of defending the title. Coach Lippi won’t be able to count on several injured starters, so this match will be an ideal opportunity to test some other internationals. When it comes to regular starters, we definitely must mention Mauro German Camoranesi, a Juventus midfielder, who has been one of the strongest links in Italian national squad for years now, regardless of his Argentinean background. This player has been in top form in the last four weeks and he usually crowned his unstoppable actions with goals, which makes him one of the best scorers of the team. That is why you should think about William Hill’s offer of 7.00 for Camoranesi to score.
Trophy-winning coach, Marcelo Lippi summoned several regular starters like Nicola Legrottaglie, Alessandro Gamberini, Andrea Dossena, Riccardo Montolivo, Daniele De Rossi, Gennaro Gattuso, as well as Luka Toni, who will miss the match due to a minor injury. Lippi wants to give a chance to young players like Claudio Marchisio, a Juventus member and Domenico Crisoto from Genoa, Who will make their debut in the national squad on this friendly. Also, most of young players that played in the recently finished U21 EURO, like Giovinco Balotelli will get a chance to prove their quality and draw coach's attention before the trip to South Africa. These two strikers of Italian best clubs are in great form and the rest of the teams in Serie A have no solution for them, as they are technically flawless. That is why we have no doubts that these two strikers will, with the help of experienced Iaquinta create a lot of problems to Dutch defense, that is the weakest spot in this team, so you might want to consider Sporting Bet's offer of 2.60 for the hosts to score over 1.5 goals.
Flying Dutchmen
After eight rounds, Netherlands have as many wins with impressive goal margin 17-2. They definitely want to keep the impression from the group stage, so we expect them to go out of their way to continue the maximum efficiency. The Dutch are flawless this year and they won ten of thirteen games, drew two friendlies with Tunis and England. The offensive style has always been their feature and they won't back out on the formation with three strikers, which will most likely be Huntelaar, Van Persie and Robben. Inter’s new player, Wesley Sneijder is in great form, which he confirmed in the Champions League, when he helped Neroazzuri overturn the deficit in Kyiv, so Netherlands' play will again depend on his creativity in the midfield. Having in mind that Sneijder is best at set-pieces in both world and European football and that he seems reborn after leaving Real Madrid, Paddy Power's offer of 6.00 for Sneijder to score might just pay off.
The attack is the leas problem in this squad, while defense is not doing so well. Captain Giovanni van Bronchorst, as well as Andre Ooijer are not so young anymore and it will be a big success to say goodbye to the national squad after playing in South Africa. Mark van Bommel, Ibrahim Afellay and Khalid Boulahrouz won’t play due to injuries, which is one of the reasons why we believe that Dutch defense will capitulate in this match. Having in mind that Italian defense is not so stable either, we suggest that you think about William Hill’s offer of 2.00 for both sides to score.
Betting verdict
These teams have identical record in three duels played so far. The duels between Netherlands and Italy are never friendly, having in mind the huge rivalry between them, so we expect ruthless fight on both sides. Since both teams were more than dominant in their qualifying groups, this duel will be a real treat for football fans and we expect plenty of goals here, as usual.
Looking for livestream! Here it is! Our tip: Bet 6 on Over 2.5 goals
Odds +135 at
Bookmaker: BetCRIS
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