Argentina hot favourites in 2011 Copa America Betting

June 30, 2011

The 2011 Copa America gets underway this Friday (1st July) and the hosts Argentina are the hot favourites to win the tournament for the fifteenth time. Bet365 are offering a decent betting special whereby if you place a pre-match Correct Score, Half-Time/Full-Time or Scorecast bet on any match and that game finishes 0-0, then the bookmakers will refund all losing bets on those markets.

As always Argentina and Brazil are the obvious favourites. Argentina edge it in the betting due to their home advantage and, lets not forget, the abundance of high quality attacking players they have at their disposal. With a team consisting of the likes of Lionel Messi, Carlos Tevez, Gonzalo Higuain and Sergio Aguero goals are most definitely on the cards. Messi comes off the back of yet another phenomenal season where he has ruthlessly torn apart some of the best defences in the world with exquisite skill and panache. The Barcelona player is the bookies favourite to come away as the tournament’s Top Goalscorer with odds of 10/3 with Bet365, but he faces some stiff competition from teammates Tevez (15/2) and Higuain (8/1).

In such an attack minded team it is crucial that you have a resolute defence with a solid backbone, something that Argentina have lacked in the past. Although hosting the tournament is a great advantage the players must not let the immense pressure and expectation get to them, otherwise they will crumble. Argentina will need no reminding that they haven’t won a Copa America since 1993.

At 2/1 Brazil look like a very good pick. Not only have they won four of the last five Copa America tournaments but they head into the tournament with an effective blend of youth and experience. In their ranks they have the talented, young Chelsea target Neymar, who caught the eye of Europe’s biggest club’s last season after his excellent performances for Santos, and the striker looks good value at 8/1 to come away with the golden boot. It is no secret that Brazil would love nothing more than to life the trophy on the soil of their fiercest rivals, which will give them extra motivation as the tournament reaches its later stages. Importantly, the Brazilians may also hold the edge mentally as they have beaten Argentina in the last two Copa America finals.

Let us not forget that this tournament does not just consist of two teams, as Uruguay can rightly be proclaimed as realistic challengers for the trophy. As they showed in their impressive run to the World Cup semi-finals in 2010, they have the talent, determination and drive to be a real force. They also have an enviable attack consisting of the lethal Luis Suárez and Diego Forlan, who can be found at 14/1 and 16/1 respectively to finish as the tournament’s leading goalscorer. If the two strikers can replicate the form they showed in South Africa then Uruguay could well be worth a punt at 10/1.

Other teams that could pose a threat to the big guns include Chile (12/1), Paraguay (18/1) and Colombia (33/1), all of whom are definitely worth keeping an eye on.

Group A – Argentina, Bolivia, Colombia, Costa Rica

Group B – Brazil, Venezuela, Paraguay, Ecuador

GRoup C – Uruguay, Peru, Chile, Mexico

Copa America Outright Winner Odds

Leading Goalscorer Odds

  • 10/3 – Lionel Messi (Argentina)
  • 15/2 – Carlos Tevez (Argentina)
  • 8/1 – Gonzalo Higuain (Argentina)
  • 8/1 – Junior Neymar (Brazil)
  • 14/1 – Luis Suarez (Uruguay)
  • 14/1 – Sergio Aguero (Argentina)
  • 16/1 – Diego Forlan (Uruguay)
  • 16/1 – Alexandre Pato (Brazil)
  • 16/1 – Edinson Cavani (Uruguay)
  • 16/1 – De Souza Robinho (Brazil)
  • 20/1 – Fred (Brazil)
  • 20/1 – Radamel Falcao (Colombia)
  • 25/1 – Ezequiel Lavezzi (Argentina)

All odds supplied by Bet365

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