With the group stage of the Confederations Cup complete, the final four teams battling it out for the title are now known, and so far, the tournament has gone almost exactly as predicted. European champions Portugal and Copa America winners Chile are joined by Germany and Mexico in the semi-finals, with little to choose between the teams. Many bookmakers are still offering odds on both individual matches, as well as the outright tournament winner, with plenty of opportunities to win big over the remainder of the competition.
The Final Four
With Cristiano Ronaldo in their ranks, it is little surprise that Portugal have made it through to the latter stages of the Confederations Cup. The Real Madrid star has two goals from his teams opening three matches, making him the tournaments joint top scorer to date. Portugal qualified for the semi-finals thanks to seven points from their three group stage encounters, including wins over New Zealand and hosts Russia. As well as the reigning Ballon d’Or winner, Portugal boast one of the finest squads in world football, featuring the likes of Pepe, Nani and Andre Silva.
Meanwhile, despite being unbeaten in their group stage matches, Chile finished second in Group B, meaning that they will face off against Portugal in the semi-finals. The skill of Alexis Sanchez always makes the South American’s a threat, with Bayern midfielder Arturo Vidal adding steal to the middle of the park. Having experimented with their line-ups to date, coach Juan Antonio Pizzi is expected to name his strongest possible line-up against the Euro 2016 winners.
European giants Germany are no stranger to the latter stages of major tournaments, with Joachim Loew’s men the favourites to reach the final having topped Group B. The goals of Timo Werner and Lars Stindl have helped them on their way so far, with the experience of Julian Draxler and Shkodran Mustafi making them a tough opponent. Germany defeated both Australia and Cameroon to reach the last four.
Having only missed out on top spot in Group A thanks to goal difference, Mexico will fancy their chances of causing an upset in their semi-final. With Bayer Leverkusen man, Javier Hernandez, in attack, they are always in with a chance of finding the back of the net, with new PSV signing Hirving Lozano having also impressed so far. The Mexican’s demonstrated in their opening match of the tournament that they are no push-overs, twice coming from behind to earn a draw with Portugal.
Top Betting Tips
With such little separating the teams, it comes as no surprise that the odds offered by bookmakers are similarly tight. Ladbrokes offer Portugal and Germany as joint favourites with odds of just 2/1, while Betway back the 2014 World Cup Winners at 15/8 favourites. For those fancying a South American winner, the same bookmakers offer odds of 11/4 and 13/2 respectively for Chile and Mexico. Meanwhile, for those fancying Cristiano Ronaldo to continue his goal scoring form, the superstar is 6/4 with William Hill to win the golden boot award.