Under normal circumstances, Uruguay should be worried by the prospect of facing both England and Italy during the group stage. These teams share Group D alongside Costa Rica which is the obvious underdog and has a snowflake's chance in hell to advance. The reason for why the South Americans are not very worried about these two confrontations is that they have one of the best offensive players in the world.
On a good day, the trio made by Edinson Cavani, Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez is unstoppable, not to mention that the Italian defense is not what it used to be. England is also just a pale shadow of its former self, so Uruguay has a decent chance of making the elimination phase with relative ease.
From that point onwards everything is possible and if the defenses hold, the South American could produce the surprise. The odds for Uruguay to win the World Cup are 26 to 1 with Bet365.
Group stage and event prospects
Uruguay qualified for the World Cup 2014 fairly easy, mostly due to the fact that their opponents were downright frightened by their formidable attack. Trying to defend against Cavani and Suarez is intimidating, but they're expected to be joined by Forlan throughout the group stage. Costa Rica has one of the best teams in the country's history, but it is still no match for the group favorites, while Italy and England are struggling to restore their former glory.
This explains why bookies are willing to take a leap of faith with Uruguay and offer odds of 2.62 for them to win the group stage. Exactly the same value is offered to Italy, so those who have no faith whatsoever in England could hedge against the risk by indicating one of the two favorites to win Group D. The South Americans have many gaps to fill in the defense and they can't afford to have key players suffering injuries, but this doesn't mean that they would rest anyone in the group stage.
A 4-3-3 formation will be used throughout the tournament, as Oscar Tabarez is expected to stick to the strategy that turned Uruguay from an underdog into a serious contender. Compared to Argentina and Brazil, they are the weaker side, but when it comes to offensive prowess the small South American country is second to none. Expectations are not very high for them, which is a bonus for Oscar, who can follow his strategy without worrying about what the media will say about him back home.
Key players for Uruguay at the World Cup
Suarez is the most important player for Uruguay, not only because he enjoyed a spectacular season with Liverpool, but also due to the fact that he is a highly intelligent striker. The same can be said about Forlan who despite his age is always a worthy addition to the starting formation and is expected to provide Luis Suarez with top quality balls.
Their opponents have to worry about more than these two strikers, as Cavani hopes to make World Cup 2014 a memorable event after the mildly disappointing performance with PSG. He was never really given a chance and Ibrahimovic was often preferred by the coach, so he failed to replicate the awe-inspiring performance from Napoli. He will be given plenty of opportunities to prove his worth for the national team and he's a worthy choice for the tournament's top scorer at 34 to 1 with Bet365.
The bottom line
This is the first time since 1950 when Uruguay has a decent chance at winning the World Cup and they are even worth a speculative bet at odds of 26 to 1. Suarez to score the most goals at odds of 17.00 could also be a choice, but the striker will need his team to make a deep run in Brazil.
