TeamUSA Can Advance in World Cup with Win or Tie Against Germany

Updated: June 26, 2014

Soccer Betting Odds – TeamUSA vs Germany

By Charles Jay

For a while it looked as if the German World Cup soccer team was going to wind up just another upset victim in what was been, in many ways, a crazy tournament thus far. After 70 minutes, they had blown a one-goal lead and fell behind by a 2-1 count to Ghana, which had previously been beaten by the United States. Then they got saved by 35-year-old Miroslav Klose, who put one through to salvage a 2-2 tie.

A tie would be just fine for either Germany or the United States in Thursday’s World Cup action, because that result would enable both of them to move on to the Round of 16, which is a single-elimination phase. Playing at the same time will be Portugal and Ghana, and the result of their game may impact on who moves out of Group G, depending on whether the U.S. loses or not.

It will certainly be an eventful afternoon as World Cup betting action gets underway at Noon ET in Recife.

In the soccer odds that have been posted by the people at Chinese Bookie, the Germans go into the game as the favorites:

The World Cup
United States vs. Germany (Group G)
Thursday, June 26 – Noon ET
Arena Pernambuco, Recife

Handicap Line
Germany -1/2, -161
United States +1/2, +146

Moneyline:
Germany -154
United States +906
Draw +219

Total:
Over 2.5 Goals -127
Under 2.5 Goals +112

United States coach Jurgen Klinsmann, as most Chinese Bookie customers are aware, is a naturalized American citizen, but he was one of the driving forces behind Germany’s run to the World Cup championship in 1990. He later coached the German World Cup team, and his assistant was Joachim Low, who subsequently took over the program.

The suspicion of some people who have analyzed the situation is that Klinsmann and Low might have made an arrangement to settle for a tie if it came down to it. While that might not be the worst case scenario for either of these clubs, those wagering on the soccer odds here have to wonder whether either team would be pre-disposed to play that way. Klinsmann has won the favor of many observers of the sport in the United States, and he is being lampooned a bit in the German media. Maybe they didn’t like how he “defected” and went to the U.S. (where reportedly he used a phony name his first few years). Word is that he would like nothing better than to pin a loss on his former club. That would be a big feather in his cap, and Chinese Bookie customers should remember that he is making $2.5 million a year to coach this team.

Also, as World Cup bettors know, Klinsmann would dearly love to get aggressive with this team. He has the ability to attack wide against the German defense anchored by Jerome Boateng and Per Mertesacker, so why not? By the way, Jozy Altidore remains out; Clint Dempsey’s nose is still broken, although he says that he can breathe out of it just fine, and fewer and fewer people are talking about how Klinsmann cut Landon Donovan. Maybe that talk will escalate again if the U.S. fails to make it through the group.

But the Americans would be able to trace their problems to other things; namely, a silly giveaway by Geoff Cameron early in the game with Portugal, which led to an easy goal, and an absent-minded play by the entire backline that enabled Silvestre Varela to take Christiano Ronaldo’s cross and head the tying goal past Tim Howard. Against an all-world attack contingent from the German team (+435 to win the World Cup at Chinese Bookie) that includes the likes of Klove, Thomas Muller (the Golden Boot winner in the last World Cup), Mesut Osil, Toni Kroos and others, the U.S. can ill-afford to make those kinds of mistakes.

Get the most extensive selection of World Cup betting possibilities, as well as the ability to wager during the game with Live Betting Extra – it’s all at Chinese Bookie!

Summary