Fifa World Cup 2014, Japan vs. Colombia: Where to Watch Live, Predictions, Preview and Betting Odds

world cup japan ball — Keisuke Honda Reuters

Japan will take on Colombia in a Group C clash of the 2014 Fifa World Cup at Arena Pantanal, Cuiaba on Tuesday.

Where to Watch Live

Kick-off is set for 9pm BST. Live coverage is on BBC One and BBC Red Button. Radio commentary of the game will be available on BBC Radio 5 Live.

Overview

Japan come into this crucial fixture after their last match ended in a goalless draw against Greece. The Samurai Blue had dominated the game against the Greeks as they had 68% possession throughout the match.

Despite having superior shots on target when compared to Greece, Japan failed to find the much needed win. They lost the opening game 2-1 to Ivory Coast after taking a lead. Japan need to win the tie in Cuiaba, and hope Greece register a narrow win over the African nation to progress to the next round of the tournament.

Alberto Zaccheroni will hope his side can win comfortably and wait for the tie between Greece and Ivory Coast to go against Greece's favour to qualify for the Round of 16.

Japan have one last throw of the dice against Colombia to find their #WorldCup form @jfa_samuraiblue - http://t.co/anEBXxrmKx
— FIFAWorldCup (@FIFAWorldCup) June 23, 2014

Meanwhile, Colombia have already made it to the next round of the World Cup after their 2-1 victory over Ivory Coast in the last fixture. James Rodriguez opened the scoring for Jose Pekerman's side in the 64<sup>th minute before Juan Quintero doubled the lead.

AS Roma star Gervinho netted a goal for the Elephants in the 73<sup>rd minute. However, it was not sufficient to stop Colombia from winning the match and also progressing to the next round of the World Cup.

Pekerman would be looking forward to give players on the bench some minutes in order to get some game time under their belt against Japan on Tuesday.

What Managers Say

Alberto Zaccheroni (Japan): "We needed to win this game at all costs and that was what we trained for all week. We ended up with the players switching their individual positions a lot. By doing that, we hoped to get an edge both in defence and attack once the Greeks went a man down."

Jose Pekerman (Colombia): "We still have to face Japan, who are going to grow in their game and are capable of fighting for qualification. We will see how we deal with it as we move on."

Prediction

Japan 1-2 Colombia

Betting Odds (Bwin)

Japan to win: 3.00

Colombia to win: 2.25

Draw: 3.40

Team Form

Japan