Italy's Balotelli celebrates his goal against England with Verratti during their 2014 World Cup Group D soccer match at the Amazonia arena in Manaus
Italy's Mario Balotelli (L) celebrates his goal against England with teammate Marco Verratti during their 2014 World Cup Group D soccer match at the Amazonia arena in Manaus June 14, 2014. REUTERS/Ivan Alvarado

Italy and Uruguay, the favorites to win Group D, are suddenly headed into a do-or-die affair. On Tuesday, these two former champions will play for a seat in the round-of-16 at 12:00 a.m EST (2:00 a.m Sydney Time).

What's at Stake?

*Italy opened the World Cup with an impressive 2-1 victory over England, but surprisingly bowed out to a surprising Costa Rican side 1-0 despite having so many chances to score a goal. Mario Balotelli and Andrea Pirlo are the two main catalysts for the Azzuri in the tournament, but other players have to step up for them to avoid elimination.

A win or a draw would push the Italians to the next round, while a loss would see them leaving the World Cup as early as the group stages for the second straight time.

*Uruguay, on the other hand, saw their World Cup hopes revived, thanks to scintillating goals by ace striker Luis Suarez, who sat down the opener against Costa Rica with knee problems.

On Tuesday, Uruguay will once again lean on the broad shoulder of Suarez as they look to advance into the next round and better their semifinal appearance in the World Cup four years ago. Edinson Cavani and Diego Forlan need to come alive in the all-important game against Italy.

Injury Report

Italy: Ciro Immobile could play upfront for the Azzuri, while PSG midfielder Marco Verrati could be tapped as well to give them creativity on the offensive end.

Uruguay: captain and defender Diego Lugano is expected to sit out the game with knee problem and Alvaro Pereira is listed questionable because of concussion. However, Maximiliano Pereira could return following suspension.

Predicted Lineup

Italy (Predicted Lineup, 4-5-1): Buffon; Abate, Barzagli, Chiellini, Darmian; De Rossi, Pirlo, Verratti, Marchisio, Candreva; Balotelli.

Uruguay (Predicted Lineup, 4-4-2): Muslera; A Pereira, Gimenez, Godin, Caceres; M Pereira, Gargano, Rodriguez, Arevalo; Suárez, Cavani.

Experts' Pick

The Telegraph expert John Ley predicted a 2-2 draw between two desperate teams in Uruguay and Italy. If this happens, Italy will be the second team to advance out of group D because of better goal difference than Uruguay.

"Luis Suárez won the game for Uruguay against England and will be expected to do it again. But Andrea Pirlo may have a say in just how potent the Liverpool striker will be in Natal," according to Ley.

ESPN FC's Mina Rzouki predicted a 2-2 deadlock as well, while partner Filipe Miguel is also predicting a 1-1 draw.