Frank LorenzoThe opening match of the 2014 World Cup will have Brazil hosting Croatia in Group A, this Thursday June 12 at the Arena Sao Paulo, in what should be an exciting game to be played at 3 PM ET.
The opening match of the 2014 World Cup will have Brazil hosting Croatia in Group A, this Thursday June 12 at the Arena Sao Paulo, in what should be an exciting game to be played at 3 PM ET.
Brazil is the ultimate favorite, not only to win the group but to win the tournament; they have 5 FIFA World Cup trophies and are planning on getting number six at home.
The Brazilians, however, don’t have a team filled with stars and Neymar is their most impressive weapon; although he had a bad season with Barcelona and has been injured for a month.
‘I did not like training, I liked nothing. Everything was wrong,’ coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said one week before the World Cup begins.
‘When I don’t like things, I have to find a solution and field it on the pitch until I am satisfied,’ Scolari added.
Brazil has won every single first game in the World Cup since 1978, but most of them by one score difference.
Croatia had been to three World Cups in the past but only in 1998 when they debuted managed to advance to the second round; in fact, they made it all the way to the semifinals.
The 2014 World Cup odds have Brazil as the favorite listed at -350 to win the game and Croatia is +850, while the draw is at +360. The over and under for the game is at 2.5 goals.
Brazil won 1-0 the only game they played in the World Cup against Croatia, back in 2006.
