The Portugal national team will battle it out with the Ghana national squad for their first match in Group H. It's time to continue our World Cup odds series with a Portugal-Ghana prediction and pick.
Cristiano Ronaldo starts off his final World Cup journey with a favorable opponent. All eyes are going to be on him but don't count on Ronaldo to do most of the damage for his squad. Bernardo Silva, Bruno Fernandes, and Rafael Leao are all on top of their game right now and should help Ronaldo try and get his first World Cup title. It certainly won't be easy, as Portugal hasn't really been dominant since the 2016 Euros when they took down France in the final.
Does anyone remember 2010? Ghana become the third African team to reach the quarter-finals of the World Cup, which happened to take place in South Africa. In 2014, they happened to be in a tough group with USA, Germany, and Portugal where they were the only team to not lose to Germany during their championship run. They return to the tournament and will face Portugal once again as they look for redemption.
Here are the Portugal-Ghana World Cup odds, courtesy of FanDuel.
World Cup Odds: Portugal-Ghana Odds
Portugal: -260
Ghana: +700
Draw: +360
Over 2.5 Goals: -108
Under 2.5 Goals: -118
Why Portugal Will Beat Ghana
Portugal comes in as a huge favorite to take down the 61st-ranked team in FIFA. Fernando Santos' squad is ranked 9th and has a lot of expectations with the group they were seeded with. They need to win this game and gain a crucial three points as they face Uruguay on Monday.
Portugal took down Nigeria in a friendly back on Nov. 17 just days before the World Cup. Fernandes scored twice as the second was a penalty in the 35th minute. They played that match as well as they could have and it was a good send-off before the major tournament. With Ronaldo expected to be back in the lineup, this squad could make some serious noise in the group stage.
Nigeria beat Ghana 2-0 back on Sept. 3rd and that should tell you a lot about Portugal's chances to win this match. The tournament has seen some upsets so far but don't count on Portugal to allow Ghana to defeat them on Thursday. Portugal is (6-3-1) in their last 10 matches.
Why Ghana Will Beat Portugal
This will be a long shot, but Ghana's best chance of winning this game would be from a dramatic late goal. They must do everything in their power to not let Portugal score early. If they go into the half tied at zero, then Ghana can pull off an upset if they keep up their play. Portugal has a ton of offensive threats and will certainly have their chances to score. Ghana will be playing the majority of the match in their own half of the pitch. If they can stay in formation and force Ronaldo, Fernandez, and Silva to attempt tough shots then they might have a chance.
Ghana is (3-3-4) in their last 10 matches but have won their last two against Nicaragua and Switzerland and didn't allow a goal in either match. Thomas Partey, Jordan Ayew, and Daniel Amartey are all players to watch for. Those three all play in the Premier League and have played against some of the players on Portugal in the past.
Final Portugal-Ghana Prediction & Pick
This should be an easy pick. -260 isn't a lot of value to take Portugal but they should win this match. Don't count on it to be a high-scoring affair, so take the under 2.5 goals as well. Portugal might just need one goal to seal the deal.
Final Portugal-Ghana Prediction & Pick: Portugal -260; Under 2.5 (-118)
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