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Portugal vs. Ivory Coast kicks off the World Cup "Group of Death" showdown with odds that have Portugal at +110, Ivory Coast +230 and the draw at +220 at SBG Global. Don't be fooled by the rather lopsided odds in this matchup, Group G is made up of three power houses in 2010 World Cup play with Ivory Coast widely considered the best team in Africa.
Tuesday, 10:00 am Eastern - ESPN
The big question regarding this match is the status of Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba who has a broken arm. He underwent surgery just over a week ago but it remains questionable as to whether he can play. Normally a player that suffers a broken arm would have no chance to play just a week after the injury but Ivory Coast realizes the importance of this soccer opening match against Portugal. It seems unlikely either of these teams will beat Brazil so the winner of Portugal vs. Ivory Coast would be in position to advance while the loser would probably need to upset Brazil to have a chance of advancing.
Ivory Coast does have other talented players including Salomon Kalou, and Yaya Toure but they really need Drogba if they expect to advance. Four years ago, Ivory Coast didn't make it out of the group stage and they are looking at a similar result this time unless they can find a way to win on Tuesday.
When you look at this match between Portugal and Ivory Coast you might immediately think that Ivory Coast would have a big edge in fan support but that is not going to be the case. There are about a half a million Portuguese immigrants who live in South Africa and in their warmup match against Mozambique last week, more than 30,000 fans turned out to watch Portugal win 3-0. Head coach Carlos Queiroz believes it will be like playing a home game on Tuesday at Port Elizabeth.
Portugal is led by Cristiano Ronaldo who is capable of having a big World Cup. Portugal has a number of other talented players including Hugo Almeida. Their defense is solid as well and should be bolstered by the addition of Pepe who was cleared to play this week.
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