Cameroon looked awful in Brazil, advancing to the Round of 16 would actually seem like a formality for Brazil, Cameroon will have to play without Barcelona's Alex Bilong Song after his moment of madness with Mario Mandzukic and was redcarded afterwards. Cameroon’s results belie the quality that they have on their roster. Samuel Eto’o was once one of the best strikers in the world, and Benoit Assou-Ekotto might be the best attacking left back in the tournament so far.
Hosts Brazil are the heavy favorites to win the whole tournament, but if results don’t go their way on Monday evening, the Selecao might not even make it to the knockout stages. But for a team looking to add a sixth star to its crest, squeaking through to the next round isn’t enough. Brazil will want to win, and win big, to make sure they finish on top of Group A. With a win or a tie against Cameroon,
Brazil will secure themselves a spot in the next round. Simple enough. If they lose, it gets tricky. A loss would
see the Selecao finish with four points, a total that Group A rivals Croatia could match with a draw against Mexico in the evening’s other game. At that point goal differential
would come into play, with Mexico finishing tops.Brazil’s offense is immensely talented. But it also got completely stonewalled in its last
outing. Mexico goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa was brilliant in a 0-0 draw , and even in their first game of the
tournament, the Brazilians had to rely on questionable refereeing and goalkeeping to come out with a 3-1 win over Croatia. The skeptics will be out in force if they stumble again.
The Indomitable Lions will have to manage without the services of their Song and might as well be forced back to defend all the that the Samba boys will offer tonight. Brazil haven’t played like Brazil yet, but this Cameroonian defense might just be able to usher them into the next round in grand style.
Verdict: Over 3.5 goals
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