Brazil and Colombia Can Combine For Olympic Goals

The Olympic men’s football tournament lit up for the hosts during the week when they thrashed Denmark 4-0 to confirm their place in the quarter finals. Having been on the verge of a humiliating exit after successive 0-0 draws with South Africa and Iraq, the Neymar-inspired side finally got into their groove as they look to win the country’s first ever Olympic football gold.

Argentina were the big midweek losers as an insipid 1-1 draw with Honduras saw them dumped out at the group stage by the finest margin on goal difference. Defending gold medal winners, Mexico, also fell short after a 1-0 defeat to South Korea; but Colombia did pull through by beating already-qualified Nigeria to finish second in group B.

The quarter final line up is as follows:

Brazil v Colombia
South Korea v Honduras
Nigeria v Denmark
Germany v Portugal

The final game in that list looks incredibly hard to call and it’s one that we’ll leave alone. Portugal beat Argentina and Honduras to qualify with a game to spare and went on to draw a ‘dead rubber’ with Algeria in the last group match. Germany meanwhile, faced potential elimination after a 2-2 draw with Mexico and a 3-3 draw with South Korea, but a 10-0 thumping of Fiji saw them finish in 2nd spot behind the Koreans.

Each of the other three quarter finals presents a betting opportunity though, and we Nigeria and South Korea to book their place in the last four, while Brazil and Colombia could combine for a goal-fest.

Brazil v Colombia

Over 2.5 goals looks a great bet at 1.73Bet €100 to win €17373/100Bet £100 to win £173-137Bet $100 to win $1730.73Bet HK$100 to win HK$173-1.37Bet Rp100 to win Rp1730.7300Bet RM100 to win RM173  with Paddy Power and SkyBet when these two powerhouse of South American football meet in the early hours of Sunday morning.

Those two 0-0 draws in the group stages for Brazil were not for lack of attacking football, but they simply couldn’t hit the back of the net. over the course of the two matches they registered 41 attempts at goal, and things eventually fell into place against Denmark in the final group game.

Barbosa and Gabriel Jesus both found themselves on the scoresheet, and the win will undoubtedly have given the whole team a boost in confidence. Neymar’s selection for this squad rather than the one that contested the Copa America earlier in the summer was designed to give the Olympic host nation their best chance of winning gold on home soil, and despite the pressure, he is sure to have an impact on the competition sooner or later.

Colombia also drew their first two group matches, with 2-2 draws against Japan and Sweden, but a 2-0 victory over Nigeria last time out saw them safely through. They were fancied as dark horses by some in the build up to the tournament and have plenty of class among the young squad.

Essentially, both teams are more than capable of scoring goals here, and historic rivalries will ensure a frenetic atmosphere. Brazil are fancied to come out on top – whether in 90 minutes or via extra time and penalties – but the better bet could well be on goals aplenty as two very attacking teams go toe-to-toe.

Nigeria v Denmark

Nigeria were tipped as Africa’s best hope at these games, and they are 1.57Bet €100 to win €15757/100Bet £100 to win £157-175Bet $100 to win $1570.57Bet HK$100 to win HK$157-1.75Bet Rp100 to win Rp1570.5700Bet RM100 to win RM157  with SkyBet to beat Europe’s third representative in the last eight.

Germany and Portugal are both rated higher than the Danes, who are an organised and workmanlike side. Denmark qualified in 2nd place behind Brazil ahead of tournament minnows South Africa and Iraq, but they have hardly set the world alight. In fact, they have scored just a single goal in these Olympics in the 1-0 win over South Africa. A 0-0 draw with Iraq and the 4-0 drubbing by Brazil give a good representation of their limitations.

Nigeria on the other hand have lived up to expectations, and were one of only two teams to qualify with a game to spare. A remarkable 5-4 win over Japan was followed by a 1-0 victory against Sweden, and that put them top of group B with six points. They were beaten 2-0 by Colombia in their final group match, but having already qualified, it would be dangerous to read too much into that result. They should be well prepared for this and are expected to have too much savvy for the young Danish side.

South Korea v Honduras

South Korea are rated a 2.00Bet €100 to win €2001/1Bet £100 to win £200+100Bet $100 to win $2001.00Bet HK$100 to win HK$2001.00Bet Rp100 to win Rp2001.0000Bet RM100 to win RM200  chance with BetVictor, Ladbrokes and Paddy Power and they are another side that has performed superbly in this summer’s games.

They opened their group C account with an 8-0 thrashing of minnows Fiji, before securing a 3-3 draw with Germany. They led that game 3-2, and it was only a last minute deflected free kick from Germany that snatched a point. The group was finely poised going into the last game with Mexico, and even though a draw would have seen the Koreans through in the end, they took no chances and beat the current title holders 1-0 through Kwon Chang-hoon’s 73rd minute winner.

Honduras have exceeded expectations to reach the last eight, particularly as it was at the expense of Argentina. On paper group D should have been a cakewalk for Portugal and Argentina, but while the Portuguese made light work of their opponents, the young Argentine side struggled. Honduras beat Algeria 3-2 in their opening game before losing 2-1 to Portugal in the next. That goal against Portugal proved to be crucial, as after drawing 1-1 with Argentina in the final game they finished in 2nd spot in the group by virtue of a goal difference one better than Argentina’s.

The fairytale should come to an end on Saturday against South Korea though, who have demonstrated their quality throughout the competition.

Tips Summary

Brazil v Colombia – Over 2.5 Goals
Sunday 14th August, 02:00 GMT
Odds: 1.73Bet €100 to win €17373/100Bet £100 to win £173-137Bet $100 to win $1730.73Bet HK$100 to win HK$173-1.37Bet Rp100 to win Rp1730.7300Bet RM100 to win RM173

Nigeria to beat Denmark
Saturday 13th August, 20:00
Odds: 1.57Bet €100 to win €15757/100Bet £100 to win £157-175Bet $100 to win $1570.57Bet HK$100 to win HK$157-1.75Bet Rp100 to win Rp1570.5700Bet RM100 to win RM157

South Korea v Honduras
Saturday 13th August, 23:00 GMT
Odds: 2.00Bet €100 to win €2001/1Bet £100 to win £200+100Bet $100 to win $2001.00Bet HK$100 to win HK$2001.00Bet Rp100 to win Rp2001.0000Bet RM100 to win RM200