World Cup 2014: 8 Players Who Can Win It For Their Country

6. Mario Balotelli (Italy)

Current Odds: 22/1

In at #6 are 4-time champions Italy who find themselves in a very similar situation as to pretty much every other time they've ever entered a major international tournament: armed with technicians, stoic defenders, scarce attacking options and fancied as relative outsiders. However, as they proved in 1982 and 2006, they don't always mind such a tag.

The main thing that this Italian squad lacks, besides youth, is pace, particularly in the midfield. With question marks abound as to whether Prandelli will line-up with Serie A champion Juventus' trademark 3-5-2 or stick with a more commonly used 4-2-3-1 is a big issue, yet to be addressed. In 2012, en route to a runners up performance at the 2012 European Championships, they actually switched from 3-5-2 to 4-2-3-1 mid-tournament, to decent results.

Whilst Andrea Pirlo is once again being positioned as Italy's star man, I believe, a la Paolo Rossi in 1982, it is Mario Balotelli who will make the difference between a potential group stage exit or a Quarter/Semi Final birth. Erratic in of himself, Balotelli's performances are always impossible to predict but, as proved in 2012, at his best, Balotelli can make or break a game and he remains the only player in the Italian attack (asides perhaps Lorenzo Insigne) with any real dynamic pace or power.

The Italians are sure pressed, with the climate, to attempt to slow the pace of games right down and dominate with possession play, which, in turn, is probably going to lead to some hideously boring matches that will require a player to stand up and break the game open. Balotelli looks poised to be that exact man.