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England striker Wayne Rooney is hoping that the England fans will be behind John Terry on Wednesday night during the friendly against African Cup of Nations Champions, Egypt. Chelsea Captain Terry was roundly booed in his team’s defeat against Wayne Bridge’s Manchester City on Saturday, and this is the first time that he will pull on an England shirt since all of the media barrage he has faced. Terry was stripped of the England captaincy by manager Fabio Capello in light of all the media surrounding Terry, choosing to hand the armband to Manchester United’s Rio Ferdinand instead. Ferdinand will be missing from the match, as he was from the Carling Cup final because of injury.

The match against Egypt is just one of three that England have before the World Cup starts on June 11th, with the other two against Mexico and then Japan. Manchester United star, Rooney, was left on the bench for the start of Sunday’s Carling Cup triumph over Aston Villa, but that did not stop him making his mark again as he netted the winner with a header. There were worries that Rooney wouldn’t be fit for the friendly, and the last thing England want is to hear any news about injury their star player. England need him fit and healthy for the World Cup, and Capello has already alluded to the belief that he thinks the England star is being overworked by Alex Ferguson. The fears were over a niggling Rooney knee problem, but Rooney insists that it was because of a stomach virus, and Ferguson wanted an excuse to give him a rest. Thankfully he should be fit for Wednesday, but probably won’t play the whole match.

The race for Rooney’s strike partner hots up, with Carlton Cole and Theo Walcott being named in the squad. Walcott is a move towards getting him more experience, as he hasn’t been on top form this season, with injury problems. Spurs’ Aaron Lennon misses out through injury. While Rooney has urged England to show support for Terry, the vacant left back position, vacated by Terry’s team-mate Ashley Cole because of injury, and Wayne Bridge’s decision not to play for England, will draw the spotlight. Capello has drafted in Leighton Baines from Everton as expected, along with Aston Villa’s Stephen Warnock. These are two recognised left backs, but there is also speculation that Villa’s James Milner may fill in there, but his great form in attacking roles for Villa should warrant him being used further forward.

One surprise name in the England defensive corps, was that of Ryan Shawcross, from Stoke, who would be in line for his debut if he makes an appearance. His call up game just hours after a wayward tackle broke the ankle of Arsenal’s Aaron Ramsey, in Stoke’s first defeat of the year. It has been Stoke’s stubborn displays which has earned Shaw cross a call up to the senior squad. The left side of midfield will also be contested, as Chelsea’s Joe Cole, who had made the spot his own, hasn’t been selected for the squad, instead Stewart Downing makes a comeback to the England fold, after nearly a year on the sidelines. Birmingham keeper Joe Hart, after a string of impressive performances, is one of three keepers alongside David James and Robert Green.

This friendly match does have some importance, as it will be the final match before Capello names his provisional squad for the World Cup on May 12th, while the final squads have to be named for FIFA on June 1. It is a big opportunity for players to stake a claim for a World Cup spot, especially with the likes of Ashley Cole and Rio Ferdinand missing, it could also be a chance for one of the strikers to step forward, should the worst happen, and Rooney can’t start. Egypt should not be too much of a pushover, not on the back of their performances at the African Cup of Nations, where they successfully defended their title. They looked a confident passing side, with an eye for attack, and for goal. They missed out on the 2010 World Cup, after being eliminted by Algeria in qualification decider.

England v Egypt Stats: The two sides have only met twice, and only once in competition at Italia 90.
The first time was a friendly in 1986, in Cairo. England won 4-0 with goals from Trevor Steven, own goal, Danny Wallace and Gordon Cowans. The second meeting between the two teams was at the 1990 World Cup, in Cagliari, where England won 1-0 with a goal from Mark Wright (assisted by Paul Gascoigne).

Match Prices:
England to win: 4/11 at Bet365
Draw: 4/1 at SkyBet
Egypt to win: 8/1 at Paddy Power

England Squad v Egypt:
Keepers: David James, Rob Green, Joe Hart
Defenders: Wes Brown, John Terry,  Matthew Upson, Joleon Lescott, Ryan Shawcross, Leighton Baines, Stephen Warnock.
Midfielders: James Milner, David Beckham, Theo Walcott, Frank Lampard, Gareth Barry, Steven Gerrard, Michael Carrick, Shaun Wright-Phillips, Stewart Downing.
Forwards: Emile Heskey, Jermain Defoe, Wayne Rooney, Peter Crouch, Carlton Cole.

While the snowy weather will see many matches postponed in England throughout January, there should be no such problems in Angola, where the 27th African Cup of Nations will take place. While many Premier League managers would describe this tournament as nothing more than an inconvenience, there’s no denying that this is a vibrant competition featuring many of the world’s best footballers. It’s also an opportunity to check out several of the teams who will be lining up at the 2010 World Cup, although here are a few pointers when it comes to placing your bets on the ANC.

1)    The host nation tends to do well

Home advantage shouldn’t be underestimated in Angola, especially when you consider that every host nation has qualified for the knockout stages since 1992. Furthermore, since the biennial competition began in 1957, there have only been four occasions when the team playing on home soil hasn’t reached the semi-finals. Benfica’s Pedro Mantorras is a classy striker who can certainly help them on their way out of Group A, while former Manchester United forward Manucho should also be a force to be reckoned with. While we shouldn’t place too much pressure on a team that’s just emerged from a civil war, it’s worth noting that Tunisia (2004) and Egypt (2006) both won the competition recently as hosts.

2)    Egypt have won the last two renewals

While Egypt winning the tournament on home soil in 2006 was a great achievement, it was even more impressive when they successfully defended their crown two years later. While the Pharaohs controversially missed out on a World Cup place after losing in a play-off to Algeria, it might make them all the more determined to win this tournament and complete a hat-trick. Although Mido and Amr Zaki will not be featuring for the Egyptians this time around, the team have a quality striker in Mohamed Zidan, while former Spurs midfielder Hossam Ghaly will bring plenty of experience.

3)    There should be plenty of goals scored

While many people associate the ANC as a competition featuring low-scoring matches, this trend was bucked in 2008 and there’s every reason to suggest that the goals will be flying in this time around. Of the 32 matches played two years ago, 19 featured three goals or more, with five of the six Ivory Coast games involving Over 2.5 Goals. While Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou offer plenty in attack, the Cote D’Ivoire are also vulnerable at the back.

The Ivory Coast are currently favourites (5/2 Stan James) to win the 2010 African Cup of Nations, although the market leaders will have to cope with high expectations and their last triumph came along in 1992. Two victories and one runner-up place in the past five tournaments suggest that Cameroon (11/2 Sporting Bet) might be a better bet at twice the odds, especially with the excellent Samuel Eto’o leading the line.

Last Friday, 32 nations discovered their fate as the draw for next summer’s World Cup took place in Cape Town. Never before has the draw received so much attention, with the media keen to identify ‘Groups of Death’, despite the fact that every team playing in the competition are there on merit (with the exception of South Africa).

A couple of bookmakers have already decided to offer a generous cashback special on the World Cup, with Sky Bet offering to refund all losing outright bets if England are triumphant. This is possibly an attempt to encourage less English people to back their own country, with many UK bookmakers likely to run up liabilities on Fabio Capello’s team ahead of the tournament starting.

Similarly, Boylesports are offering to refund all losing outright bets if France repeat their 1998 victory and win the World Cup for the second time. This is a reaction to the controversial way in which Ireland were eliminated from the play-offs by Les Bleus, although this is not a vintage French team, with Blue Square offering 16/1 that Raymond Domenech steers them to glory.

The bookmakers have already gone into overdrive with a wide range of markets on the 2010 World Cup, with every group match already priced up by the likes of Paddy Power and Sky Bet. In addition, betfair have set up the matches on their website, although it might be some time before there is reasonable liquidity. Paddy Power have also priced up correct score, double chance and HT / FT opportunities for each game, with each of these related to the match betting.

Coral, Sky Bet, Paddy Power and bet365 have also priced up a ‘Stage of Elimination’ market for 14 of the 32 teams, with England available at 9/2 (Coral) to go out of the competition at the semi-final stage. For those that think that Brazil might suffer in the ‘Group of Death’, Paddy offer 5/1 that the five-time winners go out at the group stage, although Portugal might be a more sensible bet with the Irish firm at 6/4.

Totesport have priced up a ‘Top African Team’ market and it’s no surprise to see Ivory Coast available at even money, although a tough group could see Ghana (9/2) or Cameroon (11/2) go further than their continental cousins. Totesport also offer ‘Top European Team’ which is naturally a competitive market, but will anyone get further than Euro 200 winners Spain (11/5)? It’s no surprise to see Europe a best price 4/9 (bet365) to be the winning continent, with South America next at 9/4 (Blue Square).

Finally, Blue Square have opened a market on which England players will make the 23-man squad that jets out to South Africa in the summer. Shaun Wright-Phillips is clearly a borderline decision at 10/11, with Gabby Agbonlahor an interesting price at 9/4. His Villa team-mate James Milner looks more likely to take a place on the plane, with his odds at 4/11 right now.

Don’t forget that England’s World Cup fate hangs in the balance tomorrow, as Fabio Capello attends the Cape Town Convention Centre for the 2010 FIFA World Cup Draw. There are potential Groups of Death at stake, with Portugal and Holland missing out on being seeded. Those will be the big names that Capello will want to avoid, along with the strongest of the nations from the African and South American pot. This will be a World Cup packed with very strong contenders for the coveted title of being football Champions of the World.

The draw, which starts around 6pm on Friday, will be divided into four pots. Pot 1 will be the seeded teams, which are Brazil, England, Germany, France, Argentina, Italy, Spain and South Africa. Pot 2 will house the teams from Asia and CONCACAF, Pot 3 has the African and South American teams, and finally Pot 4 will have all of the other qualified teams from the UEFA zone. It is this dangerous Pot 4 which all of the seeded teams will be keeping a nervous eye upon until Portugal and Holland get drawn out of the hat.

The draw isn’t just a straight forward pulling of teams, however. Over the course of the 90 minute spectacle which will include a feast of African themed song, dance and glitterati celebrations, the groups for World Cup 2010 will come to fruition. South Africa for definite will be the first name, for as hosts they will occupy position 1A. Each of the seeded teams will then be drawn into a group, and subsequently then, the following pots. Geography plays its part, as South Africa for example, cannot draw another African team, likewise Brazil cannot draw another South American team.

There is one exception, and that is with the UEFA teams, and why Capello will be fearing pulling out Portugal, who have ruined England’s last two international tournaments by beating them on penalties. Because UEFA supplies the most nations to the World Cup, there can be a maximum of two European teams per group, hence the potential Group of Death scenario that will be worrying England fans. England, Portugal, USA and Ivory Coast makes for a fascinatingly difficult group.

But all eyes from the footballing world will now turn to Friday’s showcase, igniting the fuel behind the qualified teams’ drive to push on towards South Africa 2010. The 32 nations are lined up and ready to go, the world knows the seeded teams for the World Cup Draw, and now all that is left is to see who gets matched up with who in the Group Stages.

The 2010 FIFA World Cup Draw has thrown up some interesting betting opportunites, notably a punt on who England will draw out of each Pot…

The best odds for Pot 2, has all teams at equal length (as obviously there is as the exact same chance of pulling out Australia as there is North Korea). Blue Square and 888Sport have England’s potential Pot 2 opponents at 7/1.

From Pot 3, William Hill are offering 6/1 on the South American teams, while SkyBet have the African teams at 7/1.

From Pot 4, it is back to parity as all of the UEFA teams are available at 7/1 with 888Sport.

We now know the 32 teams who will contest the 19th renewal of the World Cup next summer in South Africa. France’s progress to the finals was heavily controversial, although Stan James offer a best price 16/1 that Raymond Domenech’s team repeat their success of 1998. The big surprise on Wednesday evening was the exit of Russia, although the bookmakers don’t rate Slovenia’s chances in their first ever tournament. Coral make them 400/1 outsiders, although they are there on merit after finishing second in a tough qualifying group.

Portugal managed to ease through against Bosnia despite missing Cristiano Ronaldo, although they are sure to have officially the world’s best player back for the finals. Sporting Bet offer 18/1 that Carlos Queiroz steers the team to glory, although they continue to lack a cutting edge up front. Meanwhile, the dream is still alive for Euro 2004 winners Greece, who landed a 1-0 win in Ukraine to go through this week. Otto Rehhagel’s tactics worked a treat in Kiev, although the bookies are less convinced that they’ll make an impact in South Africa. Victor Chandler offer 150/1 that they are triumphant.

Some people are suggesting that the 2010 World Cup winner is going to come from a select group of two. Spain proved during Euro 2008 that they are an outstanding team and Ladbrokes make them slight favourites at 4/1 to prove that they’re the best nation on the planet. Manager Vicente del Bosque is blessed with some technically brilliant players and it’s hard to pick holes in them at the moment. Similarly, Brazil have an excellent World Cup pedigree and Paddy Power are lifting their heads above the parapet by offering 5/1. The South Americans have featured in three of the last four finals and qualified easily. Perhaps backing both of these teams will prove to be a profitable excursion.

In recent months, one of the big market movers have been the Ivory Coast, with William Hill going as short as 20/1 that they become the first African nation to win the tournament. They very nearly beat Germany in a friendly recently and have arguably the world’s best striker in Didier Drogba. The Elephants will have plenty of competitive match action in the African Nations cup and are the continent’s best chance of success. While the hosts will obviously have home advantage, they looked to be a mediocre team during the Confederations Cup and Coral are prepared to lay them at 200/1.

One of the teams that has drifted the most is Argentina and the rumour on the grapevine is that the bookmakers are out to get Diego Maradona’s team next summer. Bet Fred offer a standout 10/1 about the Albicelestes, although they were slightly fortunate to qualify and having Lionel Messi in the team does not equal success. However, firms are reporting a brisk trade on the Netherlands and England to win next summer’s competition. The Dutch blew the opposition away in qualifying and have been cut to 14/1 (bet365), while England are 13/2 (Coral), with Fabio Capello fielding a weakened team against Brazil recently. It might be worth taking this price now as there will be a flood of patriotic money coming for the Three Lions by the time next summer comes around!