Chris Boline
- Ghana v Uruguay
- Friday, December 2, 2022, 10:00 ET
- At the Al Janoub Stadium, Al Wakrah
Uruguay has to beat Ghana in its last game in Group H otherwise will miss out on the knockout stages.
Who do Bettors Favor?
Checking out the best-rated online sportsbooks we can see that Uruguay is considered the strong favorite for this game among bettors. The South American team is rated as a -140 chance with bookies, while Ghana is ranked at between +380 and +435 and the draw is priced at +280.
| Ghana v Uruguay |  |  |  |
| Ghana | +435 | +380 | +415 |
| Draw | +285 | +280 | +280 |
| Uruguay | -140 | -139 | -145 |
World Cup Group H Betting Briefing
World Cup Group H has proven to be a fascinating section, and although Portugal has been the strongest team and is already through to the Round of 16, all three of the other teams can still qualify going into the last round of games on Friday.
Ghana is in the strongest position, as a draw against Uruguay would most likely be enough to take it through to the next round, assuming that South Korea does not beat Portugal in its final game.
Uruguay, meanwhile, is facing a must-win game against Ghana, although those calculations would also be thrown into chaos if South Korea beat Portugal. Given what we have seen so far from these teams, that seems an unlikely prospect, but then few predicted big wins for Saudi Arabia over Argentina or for Japan to beat Germany, so in an unpredictable tournament, anything is possible.
Getting to the knockout stage is one thing, but progressing beyond that, however, will be quite another as it seems likely to be Brazil facing whichever team can grab the second Group H qualification place.
Entertaining Ghana In a Strong Position
Ghana was the third-ranked team in Group H before the tournament began, but it has played with an entertaining style that has won friends and given it a great chance to progress.
Two late goals in its opening game against Portugal made for an entertaining finish, and there was more goalscoring action in the second round of Group H games when Ghana opened up a 2-0 lead over South Korea, allowed the South Koreans to level the game and then scored a third to grab all three points.
That adventurous and entertaining style, however, may not be suited to Ghana’s final game of the Group stage, when it only needs a draw to progress.
That said, Ghana’s head coach Otto Addo will know that Uruguay tends to be cautious and that may give his team the chance to get on the front foot and dominate the game. Emulating the 2010 Ghana team that reached the World Cup quarter-finals may be a tall order, given that Brazil is likely to be the opponent if Ghana makes it to the Round of 16 but qualifying from this Group would be an achievement in itself.
Uruguay Frustrate Once Again
Uruguay almost always has one of the top ten squads at a World Cup, in terms of individual talent, and yet consistently plays within itself and often proves to be frustrating to watch.
This is a well-balanced Uruguay squad, with a steady defense, plenty of talent in midfield and top-quality strikers in Edinson Cavani, Luis Suarez and Darwin Nunez. And yet, so far we’ve only seen hints of what these players can do.
Uruguay’s opening game against South Korea was a disappointing match, and although some of the Uruguay players showed moments of individual brilliance against Portugal, the team was ultimately well beaten, leaving Suarez and teammates facing a must-win finale.
The nightmare scenario for Diego Alonso and his team would be a South Korean victory over Portugal in its final game, which could mean Uruguay going out of the tournament even if it wins its final Group game. Yet if that happened, the Uruguayan coach and players would only have themselves to blame for their cautious approach over the opening two games.
World Cup Group H Match Betting
The ideal scenario for neutral fans would be for Uruguay to go toe-to-toe with Ghana and provide us with an end-to-end, winner-takes-all encounter to sign off Group H.
That isn’t going to happen. Uruguay will have to be more expansive than usual, but Ghana appears only to know one way to play, so this game will likely be a case of Ghana having most of the territory but Uruguay looking to break with more purpose than has been the case to date.
Uruguay has the better squad, but that may not count for much if that talent is not matched by an attacking attitude. This is a genuinely difficult game to forecast but at the current odds, all of the value in the match betting market lies with Ghana winning a high-scoring contest.
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