Lionel Messi – Top Goal Scorer Betting Odds | World Cup 2010

Lionel Messi

Argentina’s phenomenal Lionel Messi is the bookies’ second favourite pick to be the top goalscorer at the 2010 World Cup finals this summer.

Odds on the Golden Boot going to the Barcelona star who many believe to be the best current player in the world, range depending on your bookmaker. The longest odds on Messi at the time of writing appear to be 11-1, which a number of bookies including Extrabet, Sky Bet and Tote Sport will offer you. The worst price at present is 7-1 from bwin, the only major bookmaker aside from Betfred (with Messi at 8-1) who has Messi as their favourite over David Villa of Spain.

Ladbrokes, who seem to be offering some of the worst prices on favourites but some of the best moving further out, are surprisingly bang in the middle on this bet with 9-1.

Messi’s goal scoring abilities are in no doubt, and he has an almost endless list of accolades to his name, including three Young Player of the Year awards, the Player of the Year award last season (both awards issued by FIFAPro), European Player of the Year and UEFA Champions League Player of the year (with his Spanish club) in 2009, and, possibly most relevant here, he was the top goalscorer in both the 2005 U-20 World Cup and the 08-89 UEFA Champions League.

Just why the odds are slightly longer on Messi than on Villa probably have more to do with the teams than the men themselves. Villa’s Spain are the favourites to win, with Argentina fourth at around 8-1, but Spain do have – on paper at least – a much easier group round than Argentina.

Spain face Honduras, Chile and Switzerland, whereas Argentina have drawn Nigeria, South Korea and Greece. Once the cup moves into the knockout stages and games become more evenly matched, scorelines on the whole stay low. Bear in mind also that goals scored in penalty shootouts don’t count. This means that the key to the Golden Boot could be how many these players can put past the weaker opposition in the group stages.

Doubles bets on Messi as top goalscorer and a prediction of the outright winner are available from some bookmakers too. The best odds for Messi and Argentina appear to be 33-1 from William Hill or Bet365. Other offers are lower, with Ladbrokes and Betfred at 20-1.

Combining Messi for the Golden Boot with Spain as champions will get you 66-1, and with England 100-1, both from Paddy Power.

Messi thriving on centre stage

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The fans packing the Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg were treated to a veritable master class from Argentina’s Lionel Messi this evening in his side's 1-0 win over the Super Eagles. With the ball glued to his left foot, every dribble and feint had the spectators off their feet as he tested the Nigerian backline throughout.

“I always want to see Lionel near the ball, and that’s where he was today. When he’s enjoying himself, everybody enjoys themselves. Football wouldn’t be such a beautiful game if he didn’t get on the ball,” said La Albiceleste coach Diego Maradona on the FIFA World Player for 2009. “I’m happy for him, he deserves this acclaim,” said Juan Sebastian Veron, who shares a room here in South Africa with La Pulga.

And what did the man himself have to say after making only his second start at the finals of a FIFA World Cup™? “I felt really comfortable with the ball today, which is what really matters to me,” said the Barcelona superstar in the dressing room. “We were able to put some passages of good football together and we deserved to have won by more. It was really important to win our opening game, much more so than how I played today.”

“We knew that we had to kick off the tournament on the right foot and we didn’t slip up,” continued the Rosario-born footballing magician. “We shed the pressure that we’d been under in qualifying, which was important, and we put the bad things behind us. Now we need to start thinking about Korea [Republic], but we’ve got time.”

Universal appeal
Over in the Nigeria camp too, there was only praise for the Argentinian No10. “He’s the best player in the world and he proved it this evening,” said Super Eagles’ keeper and Budweiser Man of the Match Vincent Enyeama. “The Argentinians are good going forward but he’s simply unbelievable. Our defence did what they could but we just couldn’t handle him.”

On the same wavelength was his colleague Peter Odemwingie: “We’ve just been talking to each other in the dressing rooms and we all said how difficult it is to play against Messi and how fast he is. I think we did the best we could to try and stop him and the rest of them, but they’re a first-class team.”

Up next for Messi and Co in Group B are Korea Republic, 2-0 victors over Greece earlier in the day, while Nigeria have the opportunity to get their bid for a place in the knockout stages back on track against the Greeks in their second encounter.

RONALDO’S REAL MADRID WANT DOWN

Cristiano Ronaldo was mulling how it can usually be a single prize in a deteriorate in Spanish football career after yesterday degraded Real Madrid 2-0 in Santiago Barnebeu.

Goals Lionel Messi as well as Pedro gave Barca a profitable feat in a Spanish capital, a additional further of 3 points from Madrid, a jot down head-to-head Barca have been additionally safe. These things have been a good when both teams have next to points.

“Always ambience improved if you win. But you contingency sense from defeat. you do not wish to remove a suggestion of this team, “Ronaldo was quoted as portugoal.net.

“Barca have been improved than us though you still have an additional diversion as well as you should quarrel tooth as well as spike in a superfluous finish of a deteriorate since of all a possibilities still mingkin happen,” pronounced Ronaldo.

“We know will be really critical for us to win. But that’s football boa. The group which scored initial would win easily. We will be influenced by these goals, “explained a former Manchester United player.