One of the most-awaited matches of the FIFA World Cup 2014 - Germany vs Portugal – will take place on Monday night. Both the teams from Group G are expected to quality for the knockout round but there is lots of attention on the opening match as it will determine which team stay on the top.
Germany recieved a big blow before the start of the tournament following Marco Reus' injury but with the likes of Mario Gotze, Mesut Ozil, Thomas Muller, Lukas Podolski, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Philipp Lahm and Miroslav Klose in the line-up, they are still a formidable team. Their statistics in World Cup group stages have been great, losing one of their last 18 games.
Joachim Low's men will come into the game as the favorites with their current form looking a little intimidating, winning the last six matches played. They enjoy 9-3 win-loss record against Portugal.
On the other hand, Portugal can surprise any team on their day. There was apprehension on their star player, Cristiano Ronaldo's fitness ahead of the tournament but he has proved in the friendly matches that he is fit and raring to go. He has the skill to penetrate into Germany's vulnerable defence, and his team will look up to him to start their World Cup campaign on a winning note. Experienced players like Hugo Almeida of Besiktas, Helder Postiga and Nani are there to assist the captain.
While predicting a tight game, odds on popular betting markets have touted Germany as the favorite to beat Portugal. Here is what betting odds say according to Betting Dictionary.
| LIST | Ladbrokes | Paddypower | bet365 | Betvictor | Betfred | William Hill | Sky Bet | Betfair | Winner |
| Germany | 19/20 | 10/11 | 19/20 | 20/21 | 19/20 | 19/20 | 20/21 | 17/20 | 10/11 |
| Draw | 5/2 | 12/5 | 13/5 | 13/5 | 13/5 | 13/5 | 27/10 | 53/20 | 5/2 |
| Portugal | 16/5 | 16/5 | 14/5 | 3 | 16/5 | 10/3 | 31/10 | 16/5 | 16/5 |
According to betting platforms, Ronaldo leads first goalscorer odds followed by Klose and Muller.
Betting odds on popular platforms ahead of the tournament placed Germany in the fourth position with host Brazil taking the first place followed by Argentina and Spain. However, Portugal was placed in the 10th position behind countries like Belgium, France, Italy, England, and Uruguay.
Interestingly, an armadillo named Norman has predicted that Germany would beat Portugal in their opening World Cup match on Monday. The Animal chose the German flag pasted ball instead of the one with Portuguese flag.
