2010 World Cup Betting Final Expert Picks: Netherlands vs. Spain – Battle Of Losers

Surprisingly, the Netherlands and Spain have never won a World Cup tournament. Both nations will try to avenge a history full of World Cup exits and disappointments this Sunday in the 2010 World Cup betting final.

World Cup Finals Betting Matchup

Spain vs. Netherlands 2:30 pm EST Sunday, July 11, 2010

World Cup Betting Odds

Spain -0.5 (115) +115 Over 2 (120)

Netherlands +0.5 (-135) +240 Under 2 (100)

In their 1-0 semifinal victory against Germany, the Spanish played one of their best games of the tournament in terms of controlling the game.

Spanish midfielders Andres Iniesta and Xabi Alonso orchestrated most of Spain’s attacks with precision passing and exceptional ball control.

Meanwhile, Spanish forward David Villa, who is tied for the most goals in the tournament with 5, was successfully contained for the first time in this 2010 World Cup betting tournament.

Although Villa’s lackluster performance in the semifinal could be a concern for Spain going into the final, it was the decision of head coach Vincente del Bosque to change formations and employ Villa as a lone striker that ended up as a detriment to Villa’s production against Germany.

Villa has played the entire tournament with a second forward, allowing him to dribble in from the flanks and create space for his deadly accurate shots on goal.

It will be interesting to see the formation that del Bosque chooses to use against the Netherlands as Villa was easily neutralized as a lone striker by the German defense.

The Netherlands are coming off an exciting 3-2 victory over Uruguay. Although the Netherlands have not been extremely impressive in their last two victories against Brazil and Uruguay, timely scoring has been the recipe for success for the Dutch.

Netherlands midfielder Wesley Sneijder has performed exceptionally well since the knockout stages began. Sneijder has four goals in his last three games and is now tied with Spain’s David Villa for leading goal scorer in this 2010 World Cup betting tournament.

The Netherlands typically stout defense, however, has shown signs of weakness as they have conceded four goals in their last three 2010 World Cup elimination games.

It will be interesting to see if the Dutch defense can withstand the constant pressure that Spain utilizes to wear down opposing defenses.

As a testament to how the Spanish gradually breakdown opponents over the course of the game, in Spain’s three elimination round victories, every goal the Spanish have scored came in the second half.

Furthermore, Spain’s defense has yet to concede a goal since the group stage of their 2010 World Cup betting campaign.

This will be a tough matchup for a Netherlands team going up against a Spanish side that has been getting stronger will every game they play.

Unfortunately for the Dutch, they will yield to the Spanish and have to wait for their first World Cup victory.

World Cup Betting Finals Expert Pick:

Spain (+115) and the Over 2 (120)