Spain take on the Czech Republic in Prague this evening.
Czech Republic's 2-2 draw with Scotland at Hampden Park last month has put Michal Bilek's side in the driving seat to secure the playoff spot in Euro 2012 qualifying Group I. The Czechs need only to win one of their two remaining matches (assuming Scotland lose to Spain in Alicante) to ensure they finish second in the group.
They are, however, unlikely to win the first of those matches, against Spain on Friday. The World Cup winners have won all six of their qualifiers and look unbeatable at the moment. The squad, made up predominantly of Barcelona superstars, will head to Poland and Ukraine as hot favourites and it is easy to see why.
Cesc Fabregas may not be in the squad that travels to Prague but Xavi, Xabi Alonso, Juan Mata and Santi Cazorla can more than make up for the absence of the former Arsenal midfielder, while David Villa and Fernando Torres are perhaps the most fearsome strike force in world football.
The latter has hit form for Chelsea and he will be keen to add to his 27 international goals on Friday and odds of 5/1, at
bet365, that he opens the scoring look very tempting. Similarly, the 4/5 that Spain beat the Czechs looks far too big a price to ignore, even if the hosts have more motivation than the visitors.
Czech Republic, who are 7/2 to win on Friday, are simply not good enough to threaten the world champions. Milan Baros (15/2) and Tomas Pekhart (10/1) won't trouble Carlos Puyol and Gerard Pique, while the home defence, which conceded twice to Scotland, won't be able to cope with the strength of the Spanish attack.
The only thing preventing a chunky bet on Spain is the fact that Vicente Del Bosque's side don't need to win in Prague. However, with competition so high for places in the Spanish squad, impressing the manager in competitive matches is vital and sending a message to Euro 2012 rivals is also very important for the visitors. Trusting in quality is always a good idea when placing a bet and there is no team in the world (perhaps all time?) that possesses more quality than Spain do at the moment.
Recommendation
Win Market - Spain (4/5,
bet365)