On June 20th in the 2010 World Cup, Slovakia and Paraguay will play each other. In Group F, these teams have been placed. This will be an important match for each team.

In the first round, Slovakia will have just played New Zealand. To take a win early in the group play, their match against New Zealand will be an obvious opportunity. If they are able to come away with a win, they will be playing with everything that they have in order to advance as they take on Paraguay.

On the other hand, Paraguay will have just taken on Italy. To win the group, Italy is the favorite. If they lose to Italy, they will be fighting for their life as they take on Slovakia. As these teams square off, this match will likely have a lot at stake.

At a comparable level, offenses of Paraguay and Slovakia play. To score some goals, each team has the potential, but they probably won’t blow you out. This fact favors Paraguay. Paraguay is significantly better on defense, although they may have a slightly worse offensive attack.

To shut a team out, Paraguay’s defense has the potential, and they will be playing for a shutout as these teams faceoff. If Slovakia hopes to succeed in this match, they will need to get a lot of shots on goal early. They may be in trouble, if they allow Paraguay’s defense to set the tone of the game. Paraguay will definitely be the favorite in this one.

In Group F of the 2010 World Cup, Slovakia and New Zealand will play. For each squad, this will be a key match, and it will likely decide the fate of each team as they go on in their matches in the group.

After their first matches here in Group F, these two teams are unfortunately the overwhelming favorites to be knocked out of the competition. These teams are expected to buckle under superior play when they take on these squads, with two strong teams to play (Italy and Paraguay).

Their match against each other is therefore so important. It will give the winner the opportunity to build momentum going into their second match, the fact that they are playing each other first. If the winner of this match can bring that momentum to their match against Paraguay or Italy they might be able to sneak away a 2nd victory. They will likely advance to the next round of play, if they win a second game.

This is a long-shot…but it’s really their only shot. World Cup betting favorite, Slovakia, is definitely the favorite to win the match, out of these two teams. They are significantly stronger on both the offensive and defensive aspects of play. You can expect Slovakia to win the opener, if things play out the way they should on paper.

Don’t count New Zealand out just yet. When the pressure is on, some teams are able to rise to the occasion and perform. Look for New Zealand to come out early with some strong play. To take this game though, they will need a miracle.