Rambo Goes Double Dutch

We’ve rounded-up a number of players and ex-pros to have a World Cup wager. First-up is Alan McInally, a man who needs little introduction as our first-ever returning Celeb Punter, but we’ll give him a short one anyway...

‘Rambo’ was a member of Scotland’s Italia ’90 squad and is now a commentator and analyst on Sky Sports as well as a pundit on Betdaq Extra (www.betdaqextra.com). Alan’s overlooking the favourites and has turned to Holland for his World Cup tip:

“I’m not going to go for Spain just because everyone else is – Argentina and Holland offer by far the better value for me. Of the pair, it’s got to be the Dutch, with Mark van Bommel, Wesley Sneijder, Rafael van der Vaart, Klaas-Jan Huntelaar, Arjen Robben and Robin van Persie to call on. Besides, any manager who can leave Ruud van Nistelrooy out of his squad entirely must be pretty confident.”

Alan McInally’s charity choice is Sparks
Sparks’ mission is to help all babies be born healthy and stay healthy. They raise money to give all babies the best start in life – a healthy one. Their research, carried out by leading doctors and researchers nationwide, is saving and improving the lives of children throughout the world.

The charity’s vision is for a world where all babies are given the best possible start in life and where a medical condition or disability at birth is not a barrier to opportunity and fulfillment. Sparks aim to achieve this by funding high quality medical research that is intended to have a practical and positive effect on the lives of children.
www.sparks.org.uk

Mr Betdaq
Considering the production line of talent to have come from Holland, it is a surprise that the Dutch have never lifted the World Cup. Generation after generation have failed to live up to expectations and the country have developed a reputation for in-fighting and bottling it on the biggest stage. Runners-up at Germany ’74 and Argentina ’78, they have since achieved just one semi-final appearance which came 12 years ago in France.

In contrast to many previous tournament squads, Bert van Marwijk has managed to create a harmony and spirit not often witnessed, but it is yet to be seen whether his side can lay the ‘chokers’ tag to rest.

At 11/1 on Betdaq, the Oranje represent decent value, but the suspicion is that they will again come away empty-handed. As Alan points out, they have some of planet football’s finest players, but I’d rather see how they gel before backing them. That said, they played Ghana off the park in a 4-1 warm-up win.

Those looking to wager on the Dutch might also want to back them in the group stage on Betdaq. With Cameroon, Denmark and Japan for company, they should top Group E, but rather than go for the 8/15 in that market I’d prefer to take the 12/5 about Holland 1st/Cameroon 2nd in a straight forecast.

Latest odds on Betdaq:
World Cup Outright (top-10 only):
Spain 4/1
Brazil 9/2
England 7/1
Argentina 7/1
Holland 11/1
Germany 14/1
Italy 16/1
France 20/1
Portugal 33/1
Ivory Coast 40/1