Italy Must Beat Costa Rica if England Hopes To Advance
Published on June 19th, 2014 6:34 pm ESTBad news for English football fans earlier today as Uruguay managed to defeat England 2-1 in World Cup action.
The result was a devastating blow to England and their hopes of advancing to the knockout stage. England still has a chance of making it through, but they need Italy to beat both Uruguay and Costa Rica, while England must beat Costa Rica by a healthy margin.
Probable? No. Possible? Yes.
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In order for England to hope to make it through, Italy must first beat Costa Rica on Friday. Here are the odds for that contest:
Italy, 1.53
Draw, 3.80
Costa Rica, 7.00
Sure, Italy is the clear favourite to win, but Costa Rica has already surprised one team (Uruguay) and their side has absolutely nothing to lose. Italy needs a win in order to take the pressure off for their upcoming game against Uruguay, while Costa Rica could considerably strengthen their chances of advancing to the knockout stage with a win or draw.
Italy will be relying on the boot of superstar Mario Balotelli, while Costa Rica will be relying heavily on Joel Campbell. Here are the odds for each player to score on Friday:
Mario Balotelli, 2.00
Joel Campbell, 3.60
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The entirety of England will be watching this match with bated breath.
