Samba Style Suits Kilbane

With 103 caps from a 13-year – and counting – international career, Kevin Kilbane jointly holds the record for Republic of Ireland appearances alongside gloveman Shay Given. He was a key member of the Irish squad that reached the second round at Korea/Japan 2002 and will be on RTÉ Sport during the summer wearing his pundit’s hat for this tournament.

Kevin has spent virtually the whole of the past decade in the Premier League thanks to a club career that has taken in stints at Preston, West Brom, Sunderland, Everton, Wigan and Hull. All in all, he’s very well-placed to take on the Punt – here’s what he had to say:

“Brazil are the best bet for me, I played against them for Ireland earlier this year and they are the form team after topping the South American section. They’ve got quality right through the side and even the younger players who aren’t yet household names will invariably produce on the big stage.”

Kevin Kilbane’s charity choice is Down’s Syndrome Association
Down’s Syndrome Association is the only organisation in this country focusing solely on all aspects of living successfully with Down's syndrome. Since 1970, it has grown from being a local parent support group to a national charity with over 20,000 members, a national office in Teddington, Middlesex, offices in Northern Ireland and Wales. Despite this, the organisation is run by a total staff of only 33 (many of them part time), and a network of around 126 regional volunteer-led support groups.
www.downs-syndrome.org.uk

Mr Betdaq
When someone with the international experience of Kevin Kilbane delivers their World Cup verdict it is worth paying attention – especially when he has faced many of the men that will be out in South Africa.

You might say that Kevin’s playing it safe by going for the nation that has won the trophy more times than any other, but his prediction is one that I agree with. Dunga’s side simply seem too strong. The USA ’94 winning captain commands the respect of the dressing room and has imposed some of his own playing style onto his troops which makes them even harder to beat than usual.

Spain, the pre-tournament jolly, cannot be ignored and England definitely have a chance as do a number of other front-runners like Holland, Alan McInally’s tip, and Argentina. So for those that would prefer to look elsewhere for a wager on the Samba Stars, Luis Fabiano looks worth backing at 7/4. He top-scored at the Confederations Cup with five goals in as many games last year and was Brazil’s number one marksman in qualification with nine strikes in 11 matches. If his country go as well as expected he is also a great Golden Boot shout at 12/1 on Betdaq owing to the extra game time he can look forward to.

Latest odds on Betdaq:
World Cup Outright (top-10 only):
Spain 4/1
Brazil 9/2
Argentina 7/1
England 8/1
Holland 9/1
Germany 14/1
Italy 16/1
France 20/1
Portugal 28/1
Ivory Coast 66/1

Golden Boot (top-10):
David Villa 15/2
Lionel Messi 10/1
Wayne Rooney 11/1
Luis Fabiano 12/1
Robin van Persie 12/1
Fernando Torres 14/1
Gonzalo Higuain 18/1
Cristiano Ronaldo 22/1
Diego Milito 28/1
Miroslav Klose 33/1