By Kenneth Tan/Red Sports
Local English Premier League (EPL) fans must have found it hard waking up to the reality that they won’t be able to catch their favourite England stars in South Africa anymore, after the overly-glamourised national team were outclassed by their old rivals Germany 4-1. Meanwhile, Manchester City’s Carlos Tevez helped Argentina to beat Mexico 3-1.
However, other EPL stars like Robin Van Persie, Dirk Kuyt and Robinho will still be in action today as their respective national teams will take on underdogs Slovakia and Chile respectively.
In yesterday’s matches, Les and Erwin Wong got the Germany win correct, while all three of us correctly predicted an Argentina win in regulation time.
Holland vs Slovakia
Kenneth Says: 3-0 Holland Win
Slovakia must be on a real high now after toppling defending champions Italy 3-2 to qualify for the last 16. However, their fairytale run is about to come to an end when they take on the Oranje. With players like Van Persie, Van der Vaart and Sneijder in the ranks, Holland possess too much firepower for them.
Oh, did I mention Arjen Robben is back? The man is capable of creating havoc on the flanks. Just don’t mention his name to Manchester United fans (I’m one of them)! Even when they run out of ideas on the pitch, they can call on bench warmers like Eljero Elia and Ryan Babel.
If Holland can shut out Slovakian tailsman Marek Hamsik and top scorer Robert Vittek, the battle will be half won.
Les Says: 4-0 to Holland
Holland will tear a limited Slovakia to shreds. Slovakia’s 3-2 win over the Italians looked good only because the their opponents were so poor. Don’t forget — Slovakia tied 1-1 with New Zealand.
We’re still waiting for Holland to explode and with Arjen Robben back, time for some fireworks.
Erwin Says: 2-1 Holland Win
Five of the previous seven second round stages have yielded only one three-goal win, so with Germany doing the honours against a hapless England team last night, the Dutch will settle for a modest victory – with much more left in the tank for bigger fish to fry.
Slovakia are happy to even be in contention at this stage, and will bow out with their heads held high. They won’t be orange squashed and definitely will not be beaten to a pulp.
More News on Holland vs Slovakia
Slovakia coach Vladimir Weiss calls for repeat of performance against Italy
Goal.com: A stern test for Slovakia
Brazil vs Chile
Kenneth Says: 1-1 Draw, 2-1 Brazil Win in Extra Time
The Samba boys should be the overwhelming favourites in this game. However, after watching the earlier performances by Chile in the group stage, I reckon they will put up a very strong fight tonight. I dare say they play a more Samba-style of football than the five-time winners.
They deserved much more from that 1-2 loss against Spain as they dominated the Europeans with their fearless and slick attacking football. However their downfall will be their poor defence that was at fault for both Spain goals.
The Chileans will hold the Brazilians to a draw at the end of regulation time, but it will still be heartbreak for them as their naively single-mindedness in attack will result in loopholes in defence during extra time for Dunga’s boys to exploit.
Les Says: 3-2 to Brazil
This is an intriguing tie because Chile are a skilful side and they out-Brazil Brazil in the styles stake. Since Chile cannot defend for nuts, they have to attack Brazil’s nuts … er, I mean goal. (Sorry, haven’t slept much.)
So this match has the potential to be a one of those good, old shootouts. You score, I score, we all score together. Watch Dunga’s eyes pop out in shock as his defence goes missing and Kaka lights up the tournament with a hat-trick. (Alright, I can dream. This is Brazil after all.)
Erwin Says: 1-0 to Brazil
The 1-0 scoreline will not do justice to the attacking pedigree that the two teams will bring, but it will be the most pulsating of single-goal matches yet.
We can expect end-to-end stuff in a wide open game and after getting the all-important goal, the Brazil team will knuckle down, dig deep and defend stoutly.
This is the not-so-Samba version of Brazil, but still wonderful to watch, and getting the result to boot.
More News on Brazil vs Chile
Chile coach Marcelo Bielsa plots Brazil downfall
Goal.com: Brazil v Chile: The Key Battles
Previous Encounter in 2010 World Cup Qualifiers: Brazil 4-2 Chile
Previous Encounter in 1998 World Cup: Brazil 4-1 Chile
2010 FIFA World Cup Round of 16 Fixtures
| SGP DATE/DAY | SGP TIME | COUNTRY A | COUNTRY B | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jun 26, Sat | 10pm | Uruguay  | 2 | South Korea  | 1 |
| Jun 27, Sun | 2.30am | USA  | 1 | Ghana  | 2 |
| Jun 27, Sun | 10pm | Germany  | 4 | England  | 1 |
| Jun 28, Mon | 2.30am | Argentina  | 3 | Mexico  | 1 |
| Jun 28, Mon | 10pm | Holland  | 2 | Slovakia  | 1 |
| Jun 29, Tue | 2.30am | Brazil  | 3 | Chile  | 0 |
| Jun 29, Tue | 10pm | Paraguay  | 0 (5) | Japan  | 0 (3) |
| Jun 30, Wed | 2.30am | Spain  | 1 | Portugal  | 0 |
For the World Cup fixtures list with Singapore broadcast timings as well as group tables and the list of CCs with free screenings, go to: http://redsports.sg/2010-world-cup-fixtures-groups/
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