Brazil and Honduras present what is likely to be the most anticipated match of the day. With Spain out of the picture, Brazil is the undisputed favorite of the tournament to win gold. Honduras will look to stop the party from happening.
Kick-off Date & Time:
Saturday, August 4, 2012
5:00 p.m. London Time
12:00 p.m. EDT
Brazil
Through three matches the Samba Kings have looked dominant with three goals in each game. At 9 goals, they are the best offensive team in the league. At three goals against, they are the second worst of the eight remaining teams left in the tournament. Only Egypt has more (5) and three of their goals against were scored by this very Brazilian squad. Brazil will win on offense, but in order to make a deep run they must tighten up defensively.
Neymar has been a powerhouse through three matches with two goals and one assists, though the stats do no justice to how much of a force he has been.
Key Player: Anyone. Neymar is the clear candidate here. But ultimately, if Neymar is shutdown, the rest of the team has shown itself more than capable of stepping up.
Honduras
Honduras had never made it past the group stage of a FIFA tournament, but progress is clearly being made as the Catrachos got through Group D with one win and two draws. The single victory came against Spain no less. Honduras has looked weak on the backend where they were exposed by Morocco and Spain a plethora of times, but their attack has been sneaky. Thye can score against Brazil, who has not been particularly tight on the backend.
Key Player: Jerry Bengston. He has all three Honduras goals and will need to be as aggressive and potent as he has been. If he is quiet, the Brazilian defense will have a cakewalk. If he makes his presence felt, he will disrupt the Brazilian attack and force them to play a style they don't want to.
Brazil will Win IF...
They play their game and attack Honduras. The Catrachos are weak on the backend and can easily be exposed.
Honduras Will Win If...
I wouldn't bet on this, but they can win if they attack the Brazilians and force them into mistakes. This may expose their backend, but it may be their only way to beat Brazil. If Honduras wins, this will be a high scoring match.
Prediction: Brazil knows that they are the favorites and that the opposition is far inferior in skill. They will trounce Honduras with another three goal output. 3-1 Brazil.
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