One of the four nations making their World Cup debut, Uzbekistan, faces Colombia, who are back on the world's biggest football stage after missing the finals four years ago.
Uzbekistan are in their golden age, but their success is not solely due to a strong generation of players. The country has invested heavily in soccer, and thanks to this effort, the Uzbeks achieved their ultimate goal after several close attempts.
The national team also has a new manager, namely 2006 World Cup champion Fabio Cannavaro. The Italian specialist did not get off to a good start, as Uzbekistan lost both of their friendly matches immediately before the World Cup. The task ahead of him is extremely difficult, but even a single point would bring immense joy to the debutants.
On the other side, Colombia have some catching up to do after missing the last World Cup. The South American nation also boasts a strong generation, having easily secured third place in the CONMEBOL qualifiers.
Two years ago, they reached the Copa America final, so they can certainly be considered favourites for at least second place in Group K. The team is led by Nestor Lorenzo, who was part of Colombia’s coaching staff at the 2014 and 2018 World Cups, which were the most successful in the country’s history.
How the bookies view it: The White Wolves will have a sad debut
The bookmakers are firmly backing Colombia, but after seeing how many favourites have faltered in their opening matches, we certainly shouldn’t count out the newcomers.
Right now, you can back Uzbekistan at 8/1, a draw at 7/2, or Colombia at 2/5.
Recent head-to-head: No better place for their first-ever clash
As expected, this is the first match between Uzbekistan and Colombia, given that this is Uzbekistan’s debut appearance at the World Cup, and the distance between the two countries makes it impractical for them to arrange friendly matches.
Players to watch: Back Luis Diaz to have a famous summer
A large percentage of Colombia’s squad plays in the major European leagues and is therefore accustomed to competing at the highest level. But the one player who stands out the most is Luis Diaz, who arrives in Mexico after the best season of his career.
In addition to winning the domestic double in Germany with Bayern Munich, Díaz scored 25 goals and provided 19 assists in 50 regular-season matches. During World Cup qualifying, he was Colombia’s top scorer with seven goals and three assists in 17 matches.
Backed a player to find the net? Check our Goalscorer Betting guide to see how the markets work and where to find value.
Probable line-ups
Uzbekistan: Yusupov, Ashurmatov, Abdullaev, Khusanov, Sayfiev, Mozgovoy, Shukurov, Nazrullaev, Urunov, Fayzullaev, Shomurodov
Colombia: Vargas, Mojica, Lucumi, Sanchez, Munoz, Rios, Lerma, Diaz, Rodriguez, Arias, Suarez
Anything else catch the eye?
Uzbekistan are improving year by year, but they are still a long way from the level of a Top 15 team like Colombia. Yes, we’ve seen that even Spain can stumble against a debutant, but surprises like that don’t happen every day.
The gap in quality between Uzbekistan and the top teams was evident in their last two friendlies against Canada and the Netherlands. Meanwhile, Colombia looked fantastic in their two friendlies leading up to the World Cup and are sending strong signals about what we can expect from them.
They should be able to handle the challenge convincingly, and given the low odds for a straight win, we plan to combine Colombia with over 1.5 goals. Additionally, given our expectation that the South Americans will attack down the wings, we also expect to see corners.
In our view, betting on Colombia to reach five corners first at 4/5 on Bet365 is a good option.
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