2018 FIFA World Cup – Group C Preview & Betting Tips

Posted on June 11, 2018 by | 0 Comments

The following is a team-by-team preview of Group C in the 2018 FIFA World Cup in Russia. Futures betting tips are also provided. The group consists of France, Australia, Peru and Denmark.

If you haven’t done so already, be sure to check out our 2018 FIFA World Cup Russia Wallchart, which supports all time zones.

FIFA World Cup odds can be compared in the odds comparison section.

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Other group previews:

 

France

France

  • FIFA World Ranking (as of June 7): 7
  • Rank by Elo rating (as of June 11): 4
  • Squad:
    • Coach: Didier Deschamps
    • Goalkeepers: Alphone Areola (Paris St Germain), Hugo Lloris (Tottenham Hotspur), Steve Mandanda (Olympique de Marseille)
    • Defenders: Lucas Hernandez (Atletico Madrid), Presnel Kimpembe (Paris St Germain), Benjamin Pavard (VfB Stuttgart), Benjamin Mendy (Manchester City), Djibril Sidibe (Monaco), Adil Rami (Olympique de Marseille), Samuel Umtiti (Barcelona), Raphael Varane (Real Madrid)
    • Midfielders: Blaise Matuidi (Juventus), N’Golo Kante (Chelsea), Steven N’Zonzi (Sevilla), Paul Pogba (Manchester United), Corentin Tolisso (Bayern Munich)
    • Forwards: Olivier Giroud (Chelsea), Antoine Griezmann (Atletico Madrid), Kylian Mbappe (Paris St Germain), Thomas Lemar (Monaco), Nabil Fekir (Olympique Lyonnais), Florian Thauvin (Olympique de Marseille), Ousmane Dembele (Barcelona)
  • Best World Cup performance: Winners (1998)
  • 2014 World Cup: 1st in the group stage, knocked out in the quarter-finals
  • 2010 World Cup: 4th in the group stage
  • Qualifying: Won Group A with a 7-2-1 record in the UEFA Confederation qualification.
  • Bookmaker odds: (sourced from bet365)
    • Win group: 1.28
    • Reach knockouts: 1.050
    • Fail to reach knockouts: 12.00
    • Win World Cup: 7.50
  • Analyst predictions: :
    • Shaka Hilsop (ESPN): 1st in the group, knocked out in the semi-finals
    • Craig Burley (ESPN): 1st in the group, knocked out in the semi-finals
    • Paul Mariner (ESPN): 1st in the group, tournament winners
    • Tom Carnduff (SportingLife): 1st in the group, knocked out in the semi-finals
    • SBNATION: 1st in the group
    • AccuScore win group probability: 73.2%
    • AccuScore qualify from group probability: 92.6%
  • Good News:
    • Finalists in Euro 2016 and defeated Germany 2-0 during that tournament.
    • Won a tough World Cup qualifying pool that included the Netherlands and Sweden.
    • Have had good continuity in the head coach position, with Didier Deschamps being at the helm since 2012.
    • Looked convincing in their pre-tournament friendly wins over Ireland and Italy, winning both by 2-goal margins.
    • Player for player they boast one of the most talented squads in the World Cup.
  • Bad News:
    • French teams can be mercurial, as evident in their awful 2002 campaign, where they finished bottom of their group, just four years after winning the 1998 World Cup. France then made the 2006 final before finishing at the bottom of their group again in 2010.
    • Have brought a relatively inexperienced squad, with just 23.8 average caps per player.
    • Antoine Griezmann has only 1 goal in 5 games for France in 2018, while fellow star Paul Pogba has been hit and miss for both club and country.
    • The character and mentality of the squad has been called into question by former French international Christophe Dugarry.
    • The team was considered to be less than the sum of its parts during qualifying, which raised questions over whether Didier Deschamps has been able to get the best out of the squad.

 
Australia

Australia

  • FIFA World Ranking (as of June 7): 36
  • Rank by Elo rating (as of June 11): 32
  • Squad:
    • Coach: Bert van Marwijk (Netherlands)
    • Goalkeepers: Mat Ryan (Brighton), Danny Vukovic (Genk), Brad Jones (Feyenoord)
    • Defenders: Aziz Behich (Bursaspor), Milos Degenek (Yokohama F. Marinos), Matthew Jurman (Suwon Bluewings), James Meredith (Millwall), Josh Risdon (Western Sydney), Trent Sainsbury (Grasshoppers Zurich)
    • Midfielders: Mile Jedinak (Aston Villa), Jackson Irvine (Hull), Robbie Kruse (Bochum), Massimo Luongo (Queens Park Rangers), Mark Milligan (Al Ahli), Aaron Mooy (Huddersfield), Tom Rogic (Celtic)
    • Forwards: Tim Cahill (Millwall), Tomi Juric (FC Luzern), Matthew Leckie (Hertha Berlin), Andrew Nabbout (Urawa Red Diamonds), Dimitri Petratos (Newcastle Jets), Daniel Arzani (Melbourne City), Jamie Maclaren (Hibernian)
  • Best World Cup performance: Round of 16 (2006)
  • 2014 World Cup: 4th in the group stage
  • 2010 World Cup: 3rd in the group stage
  • Qualifying: Third place in Group B with a 5-4-1 record in the AFC third round. Defeated Syria 3-2 on aggregated in the play-off for 5th place in the AFC, then defeated Honduras 3-1 on aggregate in the inter-confederation play-offs.
  • Bookmaker odds: (sourced from bet365)
    • Win group: 21.00
    • Reach knockouts: 5.00
    • Fail to reach knockouts: 1.16
    • Win World Cup: 301.00
  • Analyst predictions: :
    • Shaka Hilsop (ESPN): 4th in the group
    • Craig Burley (ESPN): 4th in the group
    • Paul Mariner (ESPN): 4th in the group
    • Tom Carnduff (SportingLife): 2nd in the group, knocked out in the Round of 16
    • SBNATION: 4th in the group
    • AccuScore win group probability: 1.1%
    • AccuScore qualify from group probability: 8.2%
  • Good News:
    • Only suffered one defeat during the AFC third round of qualifying.
    • Head coach Bert van Marwijk has good international experience, having previously coached the Netherlands from 2008–2012 and Saudi Arabia from 2015–2017.
    • Australia are playing in their 4th consecutive World Cup, so there’s plenty of World Cup experience in the squad.
    • Beat the Czech Republic 4-0 in a pre-tournament friendly.
    • Not burdened by expectations after being drawn into a tough group.
  • Bad News:
    • The lowest placed qualifier from the Asian confederation.
    • Head coach Bert van Marwijk was only appointed in January so he hasn’t had much time to mould the team to the way he wants them to play.
    • In terms of both the FIFA World rankings and Elo ratings, Australia is the clear minnow in this group, with every other team ranked inside the top 12 compared to Australia’ rank of 36.
    • Had a dismal 2014 World Cup in which they finished bottom of their group with a 0-0-3 record and a -6 goal difference.

 
Peru

Peru

  • FIFA World Ranking (as of June 7): 11
  • Rank by Elo rating (as of June 11): 10
  • Squad:
    • Coach: Ricardo Gareca (Argentina)
    • Goalkeepers: Gallese (Veracruz-MEX), Carlos Caceda (Veracruz-MEX) and Jose Carvallo (UTC)
    • Defenders: Aldo Corzo (Universitario), Luis Advincula (Lobos BUAP-Mexico), Miguel Araujo (Alianza Lima), Alberto Rodriguez (Junior-Colombia), Christian Ramos (Veracruz-Mexico), Anderson Santamaria (Puebla-Mexico), Luis Abram (Velez Sarsfield-Argentina) and Miguel Trauco (Flamengo-Brazil)
    • Midfielders: Renato Tapia (Feyenoord), Pedro Aquino (Lobos BUAP), Yoshimar Yotun (Orlando City), Sergio Pena (Granadan), Edison Flores (Aalborgk), Paolo Hurtado (Vitoria de Guimaraes), Wilder Cartagena (Veracruz), Nilson Loyola (Melgar), Christian Cueva (Sao Paulo), Andre Carrillo (Watford)
    • Forwards: Jefferson Farfan (Lokomotiv), Andy Polo (Portland Timbers), Raul Ruidiaz (Morelia)
  • Best World Cup performance: Quarter-finals (1970), Second round (1978)
  • 2014 World Cup: Absent
  • 2010 World Cup: Absent
  • Qualifying: Fifth place in the CONMEBOL qualifiers with a 7-5-6 record. Defeated New Zealand 2-0 on aggregate in the inter-confederation play-offs.
  • Bookmaker odds: (sourced from bet365)
    • Win group: 11.00
    • Reach knockouts: 2.62
    • Fail to reach knockouts: 1.50
    • Win World Cup: 201.00
  • Analyst predictions: :
    • Shaka Hilsop (ESPN): 2nd in the group, knocked out in the Round of 16
    • Craig Burley (ESPN): 2nd in the group, knocked out in the Round of 16
    • Paul Mariner (ESPN): 3rd in the group
    • Tom Carnduff (SportingLife): 4th in the group
    • SBNATION: 3rd in the group
    • AccuScore win group probability: 10.3%
    • AccuScore qualify from group probability: 42.1%
  • Good News:
    • Head coach Ricardo Gareca has managerial experience dating back to 1996.
    • Captain and striker Paolo Guerrero has been cleared to play after his doping ban was temporarily lifted.
    • Peru haven’t lost a game since a 2-0 defeat to Brazil in November 2016.
    • Have kept 7 clean sheets in their last 9 games, which included fixtures against Argentina, Colombia, Croatia and Sweden.
  • Bad News:
    • Neither the coach nor any of the players have previous World Cup experience.

 
Denmark

Denmark

  • FIFA World Ranking (as of June 7): 12
  • Rank by Elo rating (as of June 11): 16
  • Squad:
    • Coach: Åge Hareide (Norway)
    • Goalkeepers: Frederik Ronnow (Brondby), Jonas Lossl (Huddersfield), Kasper Schmeichel (Leicester)
    • Defenders: Andreas Christensen (Chelsea), Henrik Dalsgaard (Brentford), Jannik Vestergaard (Borussia Monchengladbach), Jens Stryger Larsen (Udinese), Jonas Knudsen (Ipswich), Mathias Jorgensen (Huddersfield), Simon Kjaer (Sevilla)
    • Midfielders: Christian Eriksen (Tottenham), Lasse Schone (Ajax), Lukas Lerager (Bordeaux), Michael Krohn-Dehli (Deportivo La Coruna), Thomas Delaney (Werder Bremen), Willian Kvist (FC Copenhagen)
    • Forwards: Andreas Cornelius (Atalanta), Kasper Dolberg (Ajax), Martin Braithwaite (Bordeaux), Nicolai Jorgensen (Feyenoord), Pione Sisto (Celta Vigo), Viktor Fischer (FC Copenhagen), Yussuf Yurary Poulsen (RB Leipzig)
  • Best World Cup performance: Quarter-finals (1998)
  • 2014 World Cup: Absent
  • 2010 World Cup: 3rd in the group stage
  • Qualifying: Runners up in Group E with a 6-2-2 record in the UEFA Confederation qualification. Defeated the Republic of Ireland 5-1 on aggregate in the UEFA Second Round playoffs.
  • Bookmaker odds: (sourced from bet365)
    • Win group: 5.50
    • Reach knockouts: 1.72
    • Fail to reach knockouts: 2.10
    • Win World Cup: 101.00
  • Analyst predictions: :
    • Shaka Hilsop (ESPN): 3rd in the group
    • Craig Burley (ESPN): 3rd in the group
    • Paul Mariner (ESPN): 2nd in the group, knocked out in the Round of 16
    • Tom Carnduff (SportingLife): 3rd in the group
    • SBNATION: 2nd in the group
    • AccuScore win group probability: 15.4%
    • AccuScore qualify from group probability: 57%
  • Good News:
    • Head coach Åge Hareide has been managing clubs and national teams since 1985.
    • Denmark are on a 13-game unbeaten streak.
    • Have conceded just 1 goal in their last 6 games and have kept clean sheets in their last 4.
    • Star player Christian Eriksen has been in great form when playing for his country.
    • Boast a tall squad which should match up well at set pieces against Peru, who will be a key threat to progression to the Round of 16.
  • Bad News:
    • Both France and Peru are ranked 10th or higher based on Elo ratings, compared to Denmark’s rank of 16.
    • Will be heavily reliant on Christian Eriksen and would be exposed if he got injured.

 

Betting tip:

France are heavily expected to progress, but Peru and Denmark could make life difficult for them. Peru look to be underrated by the market compared to Denmark, so I would back Peru to progress to the Round of 16.

Back Peru to qualify for the Round of 16 at 2.75 (CrownBet)

 

Notes

 

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