The Best Bet: Tensions to run high in fiesty affair between Uruguay and Portugal

Uruguay and Portugal may not be the most easy game on the eye but there should certainly be a lot of drama. La Liga rivalries will resume on Saturday evening with Atletico Madrid ace Diego Godin tasked with marking Real Madrid legend Cristiano Ronaldo and his former team-mate Pepe up against Barcelona’s Luis Suarez.

The South Americans haven’t conceded a World Cup goal in their last 310 minutes of match action, which will only place further pressure on Cristiano Ronaldo, who missed a penalty in Portugal’s last match, to end that streak. Few defenders will know Ronaldo’s game better than Godin and Uruguay will be boosted further if his Atletico team-mate Jose Gimenez can recover from injury in time to start Saturday’s round of 16 clash. 

At the opposite end, things will likely be even more heated between Suarez and Pepe. The latter plies his trade in Turkey now but will have fond memories of his match ups with Suarez when Madrid played Barcelona. Those memories will not be forgotten by either player when they step foot onto the Fisht Stadium in Sochi.

Team news and odds in our match preview

A low-scoring affair is anticipated between two sides that could well end up cancelling each other out. They are similar in many respects, not least for their relatively underwhelming playing style. Given the significance of the match and what is at stake, it’s likely that tensions will run high at some point during the match. Players like Suarez and Pepe are masters of the dark arts and will be out to give their side the advantage by any means possible.

If individual quality is not enough to separate the two teams, a red card could well prove decisive in the outcome of this knockout tie. Unibet are offering odds of 4.60 for someone to be sent off on either side on Saturday night.