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Back England to reach Fabio's World Cup target

"I am focused to find the best way and we are one of the best teams in the World Cup. We hope to arrive at the semi-finals, minimum, and then, after a lot of years, win the World Cup."

So there we go, Fab will be informing his 23-man squad that he wants a semi-final spot, minimum, before they jet out to Rustenburg in June. It follows the same target set by the FA when Don Fabio was first appointed as Steve McClaren's successor two years ago, so can they do it?

Betfair's Team Specials allows you to bet on the stage of elimination for England, with the current favourite, somewhat depressingly, being the [4.0] available on the Three Lions crashing out at the first knockout stage.

With - one would expect - a relatively straight-forward group consisting of USA, Algeria and Slovenia, only a real pessimist should look to make money on backing the [8.8] on England going out at the first hurdle - something they've not done at a World Cup since 1958 when they came third in their group behind Brazil and the Soviet Union. While the Americans prove a much sterner test these days, Algeria and Slovenia shouldn't make life too hard for a full or near-strength England team.

Should Rio and co. top the group, as we've predicted in our Group C preview, they will face the side finishing second in Group D. We reckon that'll be Ghana, a strong and youthful outfit, but not a side England should be running scared of. A win would see a quarter-final tie against the winner of Group A (France?) or the runner-up of Group B (Nigeria?).

It'd be a tricky tie undoubtedly, but given both sides' current form, it's most certainly a winnable match to set up England's first semi-final since 1990. So it's clear to see why Fabio is confident. Who would be next up? Brazil, more than likely. Which is why we're just as confident...backing the [4.9] on a semi-final elimination.

Disagree with us? Will England crash out to France in the quarters? Or are we being too negative - can they see off a potential semi-final with Brazil? They're [8.0] to finish as runners-up, while [6.8] is the price for them to win it...

Published: 11 Mar 2010 - Tags: Fabio Capello , Rio Ferdinand , World Cup