Two European giants, two South American rivals fight tonight

Germany has made it to the World Cup semifinals three straight times, and they are the betting favourite to do so again facing France.
Still, the German giant has looked less than impressive in their last three matches. France got off to a great start in the World Cup, but they have also not looked great in the last couple of matches.
Sportsbooks monitored by Odds Shark have odds on this quarterfinals match posted at 3-2 for favoured Germany, with France at 2-1 and a draw line of 5-2.
Since 1996, France has won four of their last six matches against Germany.
Neither of these squads have been in top form on the attack in the last couple of matches. Still, France beat Nigeria in the round of 16, and Germany has to feel a little lucky having done the same against Algeria.
The Germans have a good defence, but keeper Manuel Neuer had to bail out the defence on several occasions in the Algeria match by coming out of the box.
Karim Benzema, who leads the French with three goals, looked out of sync in the Nigeria match.
The French do not have the strength in the middle of the pitch like the Germans do, but they have the players to press forward, which they will do in this match.
Thomas Muller and company were thwarted, for the most part, in the Algeria match, and they will need more help from the midfield. They will get it in this match, and the defence will play a much better match than their last one.
However, if the Germans play like they did in their last match, they will be in trouble.
Germany is the favourite, but the French may be playing better and have more confidence. In a clash of two of Europe's top soccer nations, the Germans have more resolve to keep their string of World Cup semifinal appearances intact and will win.
AP adds: Brazil and Colombia enter the World Cup quarterfinals with totally different mindsets.
Brazil is surrounded by doubts after a more difficult start than expected to the tournament it is hosting. Colombia is upbeat after convincing performances and four straight wins.
While the hosts narrowly beat Chile in a penalty shootout to avoid elimination in the second round, the Colombians had a convincing 2-0 win over Uruguay to reach the quarterfinals for the first time.
The South American rivals play today( Friday) in the northeastern city of Fortaleza, with Brazil hoping to keep alive its quest for a sixth World Cup title and Colombia aiming to extend its best ever run in football's showcase event.
Despite its tradition and home-field advantage, Brazil is far from a big favourite. An uncomfortable opening win over Croatia, a draw with Mexico and a win over Cameroon in the group stage preceded the tight knockout match against Chile, when Brazil advanced on penalties.
''It's normal to have people demanding that we play better,'' Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said. ''But it's also normal what we have been seeing in this World Cup so far. There were a lot of even matches. There is no difference between teams that have tradition and world titles and the rest of the teams. Matches are being decided on penalties, in the final minutes, on mistakes.''
Colombia has won all of its matches without any real difficulty, thanks in part to the tournament's second-best attack with 11 goals, one less than the Netherlands. It also has a strong defence with only two goals conceded. Brazil, meanwhile, has scored eight goals and conceded three.
''We're very happy because we are making history,'' said Colombia midfielder James Rodriguez, the tournament's leading scorer with five goals. ''We want to do even more because this is a team that really wants to win.''    —Internet