Will Huntelaar take his chance to outshine Arsenal hero?
Klaas-Jan Huntelaar could be a great goalscorer punt if he gets the nod for Holland's crucial game against Germany, either with or without Robin van Persie.
This game between old foes was always going to be one to grab the attention of Europe, but after the opening results, Holland can afford nothing less than three points against neighbours Germany.
While Germany were celebrating a hard-earned three points against a defensive Portuguese side on Saturday night, Bert van Marwijk and his Dutch players were trying to understand how they lost to Denmark despite having 32 attempts at goal and two very strong penalty claims.
Van Marwijk acknowledged the difficulty of the task his side now face in order to progress from the group and said after the match that “it is clear we have to beat Germany”.
Thankfully for Van Marwijk and the Dutch fans, they have every chance of doing just that if history is anything to go by.
| Confederation Cup - Group A | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brazil | 2-0 | Mexico | £135.00 | (23/4) |
| Brazil | 1-0 | Mexico | £160.00 | (7/1) |
| Brazil | 2-1 | Mexico | £165.00 | (29/4) |
| Brazil win | £26.80 | (17/50) | ||
| Draw | £95.00 | (15/4) | ||
| Mexico win | £175.00 | (31/4) | ||
Holland enjoy a favourable 8-6 win record over Germany and have not lost in either of the two previous clashes between the sides at European Championships.
In 1992, the Dutch were 3-1 winners in the group stage and the 2004 meeting in Portugal ended 1-1.
As good as that record is, after the defeat to Denmark it is the Germans who are favourites for this match at 13/10, although the Dutch are only slightly longer at 2/1.
The draw, which would leave Holland needing a win to have any hope in their final game against Portugal, is available at 12/5.
Despite the strong record the Dutch have against their bitter rivals, Germany ran out as 3-0 victors back in November when the sides met in a friendly.
This result made it four encounters out of five between the sides where there have been three goals or more and bwin is offering 87/100 on over 2.5 goals on Wednesday or 11/5 on over 3.5 goals.
The chances of that many goals in this game will be greatly reduced if the Dutch show the same profligacy as they did against Denmark, but there are likely to be changes to the Oranje side.
Robin van Persie wasted a number of chances on Saturday, but after the season he has enjoyed with Arsenal he is likely to be given another chance, but he could be shunted to the left to make way for Klaas-Jan Huntelaar to play in the central striker role.
Huntelaar is 33/1 to finish the tournament as top goalscorer, but is far shorter priced to get the Dutch off the mark on Wednesday at 11/2, or 3/2 to notch at some point in the game.
The Schalke man scored an impressive 12 goals in qualifying for the tournament and will be desperate to make his point to Van Marwijk after being reduced to a role as Van Persie’s understudy against Denmark.
Punters joining bwin.com receive a free £25 bet and placing this on Huntelaar to score would return £62.50 if the former Ajax striker hits the back of the Germans’ net.
In truth, the Dutch won’t care who scores as long as someone does, because anything other than a win will see their tournament odds, which have already doubled from 7/1 to 14/1, lengthen even further and their European Championship dreams will be hanging by a very thin thread.
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