Colombia

Group H: Colombia – World Cup Betting Odds & Tips

Colombia will be hoping to kick on in Russia after reaching the quarter-finals of the last World Cup but they will be looking to improve on their recent form. Los Cafeteros will appear at consecutive World Cups for the first time since the 1990s after they finished fourth in the CONMEBOL standings.

Brazil, Uruguay and Argentina finished in the top three but a 1-1 draw against Peru on the final match day was enough to grant them automatic qualification. Colombia won seven of their 18 qualifiers but Jose Pekerman’s men will be under pressure in the summer.

They reached the final eight in Brazil before being knocked out by the hosts but the conditions in Russia will not play to their strengths.

The attention will be on midfielder James Rodriguez following his eye-catching displays four years ago. He was a Golden Boot winner in 2014 and he is currently on loan at Bayern Munich from Real Madrid. Their recent form will worry their supporters, with just one win in five matches.

Pekerman’s troops will get the chance to respond in March as they prepare to face France and Australia in friendlies.

Colombia’s squad contains plenty of experience from around Europe with Arsenal’s David Ospina between the posts. Midfielders Juan Cuadrado, Rodriguez have proven to be match winners in their own right and it is easy to overlook Monaco’s Radamel Falcao.

Two poor spells in the Premier League are now forgotten and he is in top form in Ligue 1 after scoring 16 goals in 18 appearances.His form could be crucial as Colombia look to go all the way and Pekerman’s men are 29.00 to win the tournament in Russia.

They will need to wait until June 19 for their first game and they are 1.83 favourites to beat Japan. The draw is 3.40, while Japan can be backed at odds of 4.33.