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The World Cup Final will be decided on Sunday afternoon on the pitches of South Africa, as Holland and Spain battle it out in their first ever appearances in the finale of this great tournament.
Holland vs. Spain (-175)
Sunday, July 11th
2:30 ET, Soccer City Stadium, Johannesburg, South Africa
Holland Notes: The Dutch are back at full strength once again after a few matches with some legitimate injury and suspension concerns. The key for winning this match is going to be finding a way to break through a very stout Spanish defense. Strikers Arjen Robben, Robin Van Persie, and Wesley Sneijder are going to be crucial to the effort. Both Robben and Sneijder scored goals in the semifinal against Uruguay, a 3-2 victory for La Oranje. It was just Robben's second goal of this tournament, as he has been hampered by a hamstring injury for the majority of the event. Sneijder, on the other hand, has been fantastic through all six fixtures, netting five goals and consistently appearing in the right place at the right time. The Dutch defense was fantastic over qualification in this tournament, allowing just two goals in ten matches. However, since shutting out both Japan and Denmark to start off the tournament, things haven't gone so well. The Netherlands has allowed five goals over its L/4 matches, including the two to Uruguay on Tuesday.
Spain Notes: The Spanish were the favorites to win this tournament at its outset, and now, they are favored to take down the crown for the first time in their country's history on Sunday afternoon. If by chance they do win the World Cup, F David Villa is most likely going to become a hero. Entering Saturday's third place match between Uruguay and Germany, Villa was tied with Sneijder for the lead in the Golden Boot race with five goals. His four-match goal streak came to a close against Germany in the semifinals of this event. D Carles Pujol was the man of the hour against the Germans, scoring off of a corner kick with a perfectly placed header in the second half for the lone goal of the match. The victory in the semifinal marked the third straight match that Espana fought through a scoreless first half and struck in the second half for a 1-0 victory. GK Iker Casillas has been paramount to that effort. He has stopped every shot that has come his way in the knockout rounds of this tournament, and he is looking to duplicate the efforts of GK Gianluigi Buffon of Italy four years ago, as he only allowed two goals en route to the Italians capturing the title.
The Final Word: Spain might not have more attacking options than the Dutch do, but it certainly has the right stuff to win this fixture. This is a bad matchup for Holland unless it can get out on the break on counterattacks. However, the Spanish have been great in that department all tournament long since allowing that first goal to Switzerland in the opening match. Quite frequently, Villa has been running on his own into the area, which is deadly for opponents and really limits chances to counter. Spain will get its goal once again in a very familiar looking score line.
Prediction: Spain 1 – Holland 0
