South Africa vs Uruguay Preview and Predictions

South Africa and Uruguay both looking for three essential points

With both teams coming off of draws in their opening Group A games, hosts South Africa and Uruguay will be looking to post a win this time out when they meet at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria on June 16.

South Africa, who are ranked 83rd in the World by FIFA, didn’t play anything like their lowly ranking would suggest in an entertaining 1-1 draw with Mexico in the tournament opener. Uruguay, who are ranked 16th, didn’t look too impressive in their first match as they played to a goalless draw with France, even though they were down to 10 men. Points are essential here as this is one of the toughest and most even groups in the competition.

It’s the Youth Day holiday in the country on the 16th, and nothing would be better for the South African fans than a win to top off the celebrations. They’re perfectly capable of doing it too. The match against Mexico should have been a huge confidence booster for the Africans, while Uruguay doesn’t really have anything to build on from their first performance.

South African manager Carlos Alberto Parreira of Brazil said he believes the squad has gotten through the worst of it when it comes to nerves and feels they will be able to settle down now and play even better football. However, there’s still a lot of pressure on the team as they’re trying to make sure they don’t become the first home nation to get put out in the first round of a World Cup.

The Youth Day holiday commemorates the 1976 uprising in Soweto in which students protested against the Apartheid regime in the country and it could be a good motivator for the South Africans. Midfielder Steven Pienaar said it would be a double celebration for the country if three points were earned and the team would be a huge step closer to making the second round.

Pienaar, who plays for Everton in the English Premier League, is a key player for the Africans, but was disappointed in his performance against Mexico as he wasn’t in top form and was replaced during the second half. He said his legs are becoming tired after a grueling season in Britain.

Uruguay hasn’t advanced past the first round since 1990 and needs to show some more aggression in its attacking game after getting only three shots on net against France. They also need to finish the game with all 11 players on the field.

Manager Oscar Tabarez could start the game with three forwards to get something going. Look for Diego Forlan and Edinson Cavani to be joined up front by Luis Saurez. Cavani is thought to have a bright future, but the team is depending on Forlan and Suarez to produce now. Forlan has hit the back of the net 56 times for his Spanish club team Atletico Madrid during the past two seasons and Suarez led the Dutch Eredivisie in scoring by netting 35 goals for his club Ajax last season.

Odds and Predictions

Forlan is expected to play just behind Cavani and Suarez. The last time the two teams met, it ended in a 0-0 draw back in 2007 in South Africa. However, look for some goals in this game, in a 2-2 draw. This gives you 15 times the money with Bodog.

Expekt.com lists the odds at 2/1 for a South African win, while a draw is listed at 9/4 and a win by Uruguay is 29/20.

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