You cannot expect an easy task in the Round of 16 of the FIFA World Cup, so both Uruguay and Portugal are certainly ready for their big head-to-head meeting at Fisht Stadium in Sochi set for this Saturday, June 30th, 2018. Both sides possess plenty of talent among their squads, so the bettors should see a tremendous battle, as only one team can reach the Quarter-Finals of the 2018 World Cup in Russia.
Uruguay vs. Portugal
3-Way: 1: Uruguay +187; X: +190 Draw; 2: Portugal +200 at BetDSI Sportsbook
Spread 0: Uruguay -108; Portugal -102
Total +2: Over +112; Under -130
Both Teams to Score Yes/No: +125/-175
URUGUAY
Uruguay has finished on the top of the Group A ahead of the hosts Russia, recording three wins out of three matches, while La Celeste is the only team who managed to keep the net intact in the group stage of the 2018 World Cup. After a couple of unconvincing 1-0 victories over Egypt and Saudi Arabia, Uruguay has smashed Russia 3-0, showing they still have some ammo in the trunk.
The manager Oscar Tabarez leads this Uruguay team for more than twelve years, and he continues to develop a rigid 4-4-2 formation where eight guys mostly think about defense, while at the front, everything depends on Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani. This forward duo is one of the most dangerous in the world, for sure, but Tabarez is also happy to have Diego Godin and Jose Maria Gimenez in the team, as both are exceptional defenders and great leaders on the pitch. However, Uruguay’s midfield looks quite poor, and it could be a huge problem against heavyweight rivals.
PORTUGAL
Portugal was on the verge of the elimination in the final match of the Group B against Iran (1-1) as Mehdi Taremi ruined a terrific scoring opportunity in the dying moments of the match, so Iran went home while Portugal proceeded to the knock-out stage as the second-placed team behind Spain. They played a magnificent 3-3 draw with the Red Fury in the opening game thanks to Cristiano Ronaldo hat-trick, while against Morocco, CR7 scored for a narrow 1-0 victory.
Fernando Santos’ boys didn’t impress with their performance in the last two weeks, but they already won the EURO 2016 in a similar fashion. At the front, the team mostly relies on Cristiano Ronaldo who scored four out of five Portugal’s goals in Russia, while they definitely need more from the talented forward Bernardo Silva who’s far away from the top form. At the back, the experienced duo Pepe and Jose Fonte is holding the things, but the whole team will have to defend better if they want to reach the Quarter-Finals.
Uruguay vs. Portugal – Match and Odds Breakdown
The stake is so high in the knock-out stage of the World Cup, so the cautious approach is something quite ordinary, but it seems like these two teams would play a tight game even in a friendly. On the other side, with Cristiano Ronaldo in one team, and Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani in the other, who can be sure we wouldn’t see at least a couple of goals here? The odds on the over 2.5 goals in the total are set at +187, while the price is +125 on both teams to score which sounds more tempting, as this clash could be easily finished in a 1-1 draw.
Fernando Muslera is unbeaten for 270 minutes at the 2018 World Cup, and Uruguay has kept the net intact in the last six games overall, so I’m afraid they could kneel in this one. On the other side, Portugal has conceded four goals in three tilts of the group stage, but I just cannot separate these two sides. Hereof, I’ll go with a draw, as a 0-0 or a 1-1 stalemate seems like a quite possible outcome, but the bettors can check out all lines and odds on BetDSI Sportsbook.
The Pick: Draw (+190)
