2018 FIFA World Cup Betting Preview: Day 6 (June 19)

On Tuesday, we will see the final two openers of group play in the 2018 World Cup, as Group H features Colombia against Japan and then Poland against Senegal. Then, we will see a second group play game from Group A, as Russia takes on Egypt. Russia demolished Saudi Arabia in a 5-0 rout on the first day of World Cup play, while Egypt looked like they were headed to a 0-0 draw against Uruguay but lost on a late header, 1-0, deciding to leave Mohamed Salah on the bench rather than risk his shoulder. Salah is likely to play against Russia as Egypt looks to deliver against the current Group A leader (by virtue of goal differential). Check out our World Cup betting preview for tomorrow’s action.

FIFA World Cup Betting Preview: Day 6 (June 19)

Banking on My Polish Heritage: Day 6 of @thespinzone’s World Cup Challenge ..and we are giving it to you free of chargehttps://t.co/YaEpu50aT6 pic.twitter.com/FTFTTYty6h

— The Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) June 18, 2018

Group H: Colombia vs Japan (3:00pm local time, 7:00am Eastern time, FS1/fuboTV)

Odds: Colombia -139 / Draw +259 / Japan +504 / O/U 2

This has been a difficult tournament so far for favorites from South America, as Argentina only managed a single goal in a 1-1 draw with Iceland (a match in which Lionel Messi failed to convert a late penalty that would have won the game for Argentina), and Brazil had an identical 1-1 result with Switzerland. Now Colombia enters against a Japanese team that has qualified for each World Cup since 1998 and has made it to the knockout rounds in two of the last four Cups. Shinji Okazaki is their experienced veteran, with 113 international experience, but the team also has seven players who each have more than 80 caps. The team did just replace Vahid Halihodzic with Akira Nishino, and the drama could influence Japan coming in. Colombia had a terrific World Cup in Brazil, making it all the way to the quarterfinals, and many of their players from 2014 have returned. James Rodriguez and Radamel Falcao have combined for 50 international goals. However, Colombia had an easier group in 2014 than they do this year, and the fact that Japan had a lot shorter trip to the tournament than Colombia did could play a role as well. I see Japan playing well enough here to earn at least a draw.

Group H: Poland vs Senegal (6:00pm local time, 10:00am Eastern time, FOX/fuboTV)

Odds: Poland +136 / Draw +214 / Senegal +257 / O/U 2

Poland is the seeded team in Group H thanks to some timely play in qualification and a decided avoidance of tough friendly matches, so that their international ranking would remain high enough to earn them the top spot in a group. However, Poland had not even qualified for the World Cup since 2006 and has not been in a knockout game in 32 years. They do have Robert Lewandowski (Bayern Munich) leading the attack, with Jakub Blaszczykowski and Kamil Glik behind him. Senegal last appeared in a World Cup in 2002 — but then they rolled all the way to the quarterfinals. They have Idrissa Gueye leading a solid defense, and Sadio Mane is a dangerous scorer. However, after him, the offense starts to sag a big, and the Lions of Teranga will need to be able to move through a solid Polish midfield to find some chances. Poland has the advantage of not having to travel nearly as far as Senegal, and Lewandowski will be the best player on the field. Those two factors lead me to favor a Poland win here.

Group A: Russia vs Egypt (9:00pm local time, 1:00pm Eastern time, FOX/fuboTV)

Odds: Russia -116 / Draw +249 / Egypt +384

Russia looked terrific in their rout of Saudi Arabia in their opener, and they would clinch a spot in the knockout rounds if they get three more points against Egypt. With that said, Saudi Arabia was the lowest ranked team in the world to qualify for the World Cup, and Russia had a raucous home crowd behind them in that opener. Egypt will represent a much more challenging experience for the host nation. They held Uruguay scoreless until the waning minutes, and Uruguay is one of the more offensively stacked teams in the tournament. It was baffling that Egypt did not use Mohamed Salah in that match, and since they need every point they can get now to think about coming out of a relatively easy group to the round of 16, I expect Salah to play at least a half, if not start the game — and I see Egypt pulling off at least a draw here.