US Look to Bounce Back Versus Underdogs Martinique
Who: USA v. Martinique
When: Wednesday July 11th, 2017 9:00PM EST
Where: Raymond James Stadium—Tampa Bay, Florida
As surprising as this might sound, the United States will be limping into their second Group B match at this year’s Gold Cup, while Martinique enter the match as group leaders. This may all sound upside down, and it is, but we have a strange feeling that there might be a bit of a changeup atop the Group B table when this match comes to an end.
Martinique enter this match on the back of a victory over Nicaragua. Though Nicaragua are no CONCACAF giant themselves, they were heavily favored to take care of the minnows that Martinique really and truly are. Still, by the time the final whistle had blown Martinique emerged 2-0 victors thanks to goals from Kevin Parsemian and Steeven Langil. Being that Martinique consist of players that have very little top level experience, it is going to be a very tough go of things against the United States.
The United States, after scoring early in the 2nd half in their Group B match against Panama, conceded a late goal to see them only earn one point from their first group match. Panama are no team to take lightly, but most agree that the United States should have taken care of them fairly easily. Being that this did not end up being the case, they will have to ensure a sizeable victory in their second match of the group. That being said, scoring goals should not come as much of a challenge for the United States in this match.
Match Overview and Analysis
Martinique (+1300) are extremely heavy underdogs and are, quite frankly, outmatched on every part of the pitch. The simple fact of the matter is that Martinique does not produce high level players like you will find coming from countries like Costa Rica, the United States, and Mexico. Though their French roots have helped them in the way of a few lower-level French players, but other than that there isn’t much to write home about. The one shining spot for the side from Martinique is their coach, David Regis. Regis is a former internationalist for the United States, and has the expertise and experience to take Martinique from a fringe squad to one that has the chance to compete for something in future Gold Cups. This time around, however, I do not think that Martinique will find much luck against the strong United States (-500).
To be completely honest, I think what happened against Panama was nothing more than a bump in the road. Despite only coming away with a single point, the Americans did not play poorly for much of any portion of their opening match. What we saw there was nothing more than a Panamanian team that knew what they were up against and were fully aware of what needed to be done. Against Martinique, I am not thinking that the United States will have many issues. In that same vein, it seems as though the US manager, Bruce Arena, feels the same way. The rumor is that he is already going to experiment with a new lineup to get some players a bit of time on the pitch. That is the action of a manager who is fully confident that his team can earn all 3 points from this match.
Betting Prediction
Seeing as the United States are -500 on the moneyline at Bovada and other sites, I would not recommend placing a moneyline wager. While it is a near certainty that the United States will emerge victorious from this match, you need to risk an absolute boatload of money in order for it to be a profitable endeavor.
Rather than the moneyline, I recommend that you take the USA -1.5 (-150) alternate spread. As we have previously mentioned, I do not foresee the United States encountering much of any issues with Martinique. I fully expect them to score goals early and often. As such, the -150 odds you are getting on this wager are not very bad at all. If you are feeling a bit more risky than that, Bovada also offers a first-half spread that sees the United States -.5 (-165). The odds are slightly worse than the alternate, full match spread, but I still think there is a high likelihood that you will win this wager with relative ease.
Finally, the last wager I am going to recommend is an over/under you will find on Bovada. Right now, the over/under is listed at 3 goals (-120/-110). Being that the US are looking to bounce back from their first group match, I think they will come out with goals on the mind. What’s more, I do not think that Martinique have much of any hope of stopping the US attack. As such, I would be the least bit surprised to see the total number of goals scored in this match to exceed 3.