Spain v Portugal betting odds

We have already had some thrilling World Cup last sixteen matches, but perhaps the best is saved for last with these two Iberian neighbours squaring off at Greenpoint Stadium for a place in the quarter finals of this competition.

This ground will hold happy memories for the Portuguese as they ran seven goals past North Korea here a little over a week ago. It didn’t look like a team that had struggled to qualify for South Africa, although they might have their work cut out trying to contain a Spain team which has seemingly recovered from a slow start.

As far as that opening game defeat to Switzerland is concerned, it’s a case of ‘no harm done’ for the Spanish, who still ended up topping the group thanks to victories over Honduras and Chile. It has seen Vicente Del Bosque’s team shorten to a best price 9/2 (Sporting Bet) in the betting, while they are no bigger than 11/10 (Boylesports) to win Tuesday night’s game in normal time.

It appears as though Xabi Alonso is struggling to be fit for the match in Cape Town after picking up an injury against the Chileans last Friday, although Spain have a ready-made replacement in Cesc Fabregas. The biggest concern for La Furia Roja is the form / fitness of Fernando Torres, with the Liverpool forward proving to be sluggish in the matches he has played so far.

The team will need El Nino to be at his best against a tight Portugal defence and he is 11/2 (Paddy Power) to open the scoring, although he often acts as a foil for strike partner David Villa, who scored three times during the group stages and has looked highly dangerous so far. It’s little wonder that Barcelona want to shell out so much money for a player that makes things happen and he’s a tempting 4/1 (William Hill) to break the deadlock for the third game running.

Not that the Portuguese will be easy to break down, with the team one of only two (Uruguay being the other one) not to concede during the group phase. However, while defensive performances against Ivory Coast and Brazil sandwiching that North Korea goalfest helped them qualify, they might need to bring more to the party if they are to knock out the pre-tournament favourites.

Carlos Queiroz’s men are the 10/3 (bet365) outsiders to win in ninety minutes, or you can back them at 7/4 (Ladbrokes) to qualify for the quarter finals in some shape or form (penalties is a possibility as they have a superior record over Spain). It’s likely to be more evenly-matched than the odds suggest, especially if Portugal can get Cristiano Ronaldo on the ball. The forward will have noticed that the Spanish defence is capable of creaking and he’s 6/1 (bet365) to break the deadlock in Cape Town.

If you think that Spain will lead at half-time and full-time for the third match running, you can get odds of 5/2 (Stan James) and there’s the possibility that the Euro 2008 winners will start moving through the gears after a tough qualifying group.