Kick-off: 0000, 21/06/2019
Stadium: Arena do Gremio
TV: Premier Sports
Uruguay are hard to oppose when taking on Copa America guests Japan in Porto Alegre after these sides made contrasting starts to the tournament.
La Celeste enjoyed a 4-0 triumph over Ecuador, while the Samurai Blue were beaten by the same scoreline when taking on Chile in their Group C opener.
Past head-to-head encounters have been competitive, though, including a 4-3 friendly win for Japan in Saitama last October.
However, this is a less-experienced Asian outfit, so 11/5 for the South Americans to prevail and both teams to score takes the eye for our first Uruguay vs Japan prediction.
A Look At Uruguay’s Betting Odds
Uruguay benefited from the 24th-minute dismissal of Ecuador’s Jose Quintero, but it was still good to see star strikers Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez on the scoresheet.
Midfielder Nicolas Lodeiro had earlier opened the floodgates, while Arturo Mina’s own goal completed the scoring, with La Celeste denied another couple by offside decisions.
Lodeiro said: “After the red card, the game opened up and we dominated. It was an important victory and now we have to keep going game by game, always trying to improve.”
Cavani looked particularly sharp, testing Ecuador goalkeeper Alexander Dominguez with two close-range attempts before volleying into the back of the net.
Looking at the Uruguay vs Japan odds, we reckon 31/20 for the favourites to oblige and over 3.5 goals in the game is another good option.
A Look At Japan’s Betting Odds
Japan appear to be building towards next summer’s Tokyo Olympics, judged on the youthful squad they have taken to Brazil.
The Samurai Blue found 2015 and 2016 champions Chile too hot to handle, with Alexis Sanchez scoring one and setting up another.
However, Hajime Moriyasu’s men did create a couple of decent chances of their own, with Ayase Ueda and new Real Madrid signing Takefusa Kubo missing golden opportunities.
Leicester forward Shinji Okazaki has 50 international goals to his credit and playmaker Shoya Nakajima is another to watch out for following a €35million move to Qatar.
We think they can grab a consolation goal here, so 21/2 for La Celeste to win 3-1 completes our Uruguay vs Japan betting tips.
Additional stats
Last result:
URUGUAY 4-0 Ecuador – Lodeiro, Cavani, Suarez, Mina (og)
JAPAN 0-4 Chile
Head-to-head: Japan 4-3 Uruguay, Japan 0-2 Uruguay, Japan 2-4 Uruguay, Japan 1-3 Uruguay
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