Seasons greetings everyone (yet again)! Before the year is over, I decided it was about time I dedicated some space in this blog to some of the biggest football events of the year that's just one day ahead of us. Of course, the grandest of those events is none other than the World Cup itself. Next year the FIFA WC will be held in Brazil, from June till July. Back in November all the teams that had qualified were made known and in a grand event that was held in Salvador, the draw of the group stage was made. Let's take a closer look.
In group A, hosts Brazil welcome Croatia, Mexico and Cameroon. Luis Felipe Scolari's side will be looking to take full advantage of the crowds cheering in their favor, and they seem to have quite the adept squad in the likes of Neymar, Daniel Alves, David Luis, Thiago Silva, and so many others. The presence of both Kaka and Ronaldinho remains a mystery. Croatia made it to the World Cup by knocking out Iceland in the European play-offs after a 2-0 victory in Zagreb. Everyone will be looking to the likes of Mandzukic and Modric for leadership in this squad. Mexico qualified from the inter-continental play-offs against New Zealand (9-3 aggregate), although no one expected them to have that much trouble. They could provide a few surprises. Cameroon are a force not to be taken lightly in African and worldwide football, with the likes of Eto'o, Song and Makoun behind their efforts.
Group B gave us the final of the World Cup 2010 in South Africa. Spain and the Netherlands, the winner and finalist of the previous tournament, are going to play right off the bat! And although for Vicente del Bosque's side not much has changed (still the same midfield type of play, dominated by possession football with the likes of Xavi Alonso, Xavi, Fabregas, Iniesta and Busquets), for the Dutch things appear to be even better than they were back then. With a youthful side full of talent and with Luis van Gaal guiding them, they reached the World Cup before anyone else in the European zone and thrashed their opponents while playing modern football! Along with the aforementioned two in the group are Chile and Australia. Chile made it through the South American zone as third and they have made some impressive performances in recent matches, including a 0-2 victory against England in the Wembley. A team with the fire-power of striker Alexis Sanches can do damage if underestimated. Australia qualified as second behind Japan from the Asian zone. They are currently experiencing a shift in managers since Ange Postecoglou replaced Holger Osieck, and the "Socceroos" seem to be playing with a more offensive style now.
Group C has no clear-cut favorites. Falcao's Colombia, who made it as second from the South American zone could be said that they potentially outshine their opponents at the moment, currently dominating the FIFA rankings at 4th. But who could underestimate Greece, who qualified from the play-offs of the European zone, making it look easy against Romania. Or the always ready for an upset Japan, who qualified as first from their respective group in the Asian zone. And then again, there's always Cote d'Ivoire, who possess players like Drogba and Yaya Toure who could easily make a difference against pretty much any opponent.
Three previous World Cup winners in group D... How's that for interesting? A relatively unpredictable Uruguay (considering they made it as fifth from the South American zone and needed the inter-continental play-offs against Jordan to qualify for the World Cup, where last time they won the third place final!), is pitted against Balotelli & co.'s Italy and never-down-for-the-count England. Joining them will be Costa Rica, with nothing to lose and plenty to go for!
The next group might seem easy, but it's anything but! Didier Deschamps' France, after that nail-bitter of a qualifier against Ukraine, are pitted against the rising power Switzerland, who have old-fox Ottmar Hitzfeld on the bench. Also in the group is the Honduras, with Wilson Palacios's striking power and Ecuador, who have United's Antonio Valencia on their wing.
It seems a recurring coincidence that these two teams meet. Argentina and Nigeria, after U.S.A. '94 and South Africa '10, have yet again been pitted against each other. Joining them this time are first-timers Boznia-Herzegovina, who will look to leave a good impression with the likes of Dzeko, Pjanic, Ibisevic and many others in their squad, and Carlos Queiroz's Iran.
Looks like Cristiano Ronaldo can't catch a break. After having to knock out Ibrahimovic's Sweden almost by himself (in what was admittedly the best European knock-out qualifier), he is now forced to go up against Joachim Low's Germany. And considering they were the ones that sent Sweden to the knock-out qualifiers of the European zone, taking first place of the group from early on, it seems CR7 has his work cut out for him! Also contending for a place in the last "16" will be Jurgen Klinsmann's (former main coach of Germany) U.S.A. and Mikael Essien and Kevin-Prince Boateng's Ghana. In a group full of twists, since the two Boateng brothers (Germany's Jerome and Ghana's Kevin-Prince) will be forced to play against each other just like in South Africa 4 years ago.
In the final group of the competition, the rising stars of world football Belgium will have their metal tested against the likes of Algeria, Russia and Korea Republic. All eyes will be on Eden Hazard and the rest of his teammates since they are considered, believe it or not, World Cup favorites! Yet against Arshavin, Kerzhakov, Shirokov and the rest of Capello's men, that will remain to be seen. Korea Rep. also shouldn't be put down since they possess the likes of Son Heungmin and Koo Jacheol. Algeria qualified in style from the African zone against Burkina Faso and also demand respect and attention. Their key players are Madjid Bougherra and Sofiane Feghouli.
So, what do you think? Anxious yet? Is your country among those participating in next year's celebration? Do you think they can get far? Will there be any upsets, or will all the favorites make it? Will Brazil reclaim their throne on home soil? All that remains to be seen... Next June, in Brazil!!!
In group A, hosts Brazil welcome Croatia, Mexico and Cameroon. Luis Felipe Scolari's side will be looking to take full advantage of the crowds cheering in their favor, and they seem to have quite the adept squad in the likes of Neymar, Daniel Alves, David Luis, Thiago Silva, and so many others. The presence of both Kaka and Ronaldinho remains a mystery. Croatia made it to the World Cup by knocking out Iceland in the European play-offs after a 2-0 victory in Zagreb. Everyone will be looking to the likes of Mandzukic and Modric for leadership in this squad. Mexico qualified from the inter-continental play-offs against New Zealand (9-3 aggregate), although no one expected them to have that much trouble. They could provide a few surprises. Cameroon are a force not to be taken lightly in African and worldwide football, with the likes of Eto'o, Song and Makoun behind their efforts.
Group B gave us the final of the World Cup 2010 in South Africa. Spain and the Netherlands, the winner and finalist of the previous tournament, are going to play right off the bat! And although for Vicente del Bosque's side not much has changed (still the same midfield type of play, dominated by possession football with the likes of Xavi Alonso, Xavi, Fabregas, Iniesta and Busquets), for the Dutch things appear to be even better than they were back then. With a youthful side full of talent and with Luis van Gaal guiding them, they reached the World Cup before anyone else in the European zone and thrashed their opponents while playing modern football! Along with the aforementioned two in the group are Chile and Australia. Chile made it through the South American zone as third and they have made some impressive performances in recent matches, including a 0-2 victory against England in the Wembley. A team with the fire-power of striker Alexis Sanches can do damage if underestimated. Australia qualified as second behind Japan from the Asian zone. They are currently experiencing a shift in managers since Ange Postecoglou replaced Holger Osieck, and the "Socceroos" seem to be playing with a more offensive style now.
Group C has no clear-cut favorites. Falcao's Colombia, who made it as second from the South American zone could be said that they potentially outshine their opponents at the moment, currently dominating the FIFA rankings at 4th. But who could underestimate Greece, who qualified from the play-offs of the European zone, making it look easy against Romania. Or the always ready for an upset Japan, who qualified as first from their respective group in the Asian zone. And then again, there's always Cote d'Ivoire, who possess players like Drogba and Yaya Toure who could easily make a difference against pretty much any opponent.
Three previous World Cup winners in group D... How's that for interesting? A relatively unpredictable Uruguay (considering they made it as fifth from the South American zone and needed the inter-continental play-offs against Jordan to qualify for the World Cup, where last time they won the third place final!), is pitted against Balotelli & co.'s Italy and never-down-for-the-count England. Joining them will be Costa Rica, with nothing to lose and plenty to go for!
The next group might seem easy, but it's anything but! Didier Deschamps' France, after that nail-bitter of a qualifier against Ukraine, are pitted against the rising power Switzerland, who have old-fox Ottmar Hitzfeld on the bench. Also in the group is the Honduras, with Wilson Palacios's striking power and Ecuador, who have United's Antonio Valencia on their wing.
It seems a recurring coincidence that these two teams meet. Argentina and Nigeria, after U.S.A. '94 and South Africa '10, have yet again been pitted against each other. Joining them this time are first-timers Boznia-Herzegovina, who will look to leave a good impression with the likes of Dzeko, Pjanic, Ibisevic and many others in their squad, and Carlos Queiroz's Iran.
Looks like Cristiano Ronaldo can't catch a break. After having to knock out Ibrahimovic's Sweden almost by himself (in what was admittedly the best European knock-out qualifier), he is now forced to go up against Joachim Low's Germany. And considering they were the ones that sent Sweden to the knock-out qualifiers of the European zone, taking first place of the group from early on, it seems CR7 has his work cut out for him! Also contending for a place in the last "16" will be Jurgen Klinsmann's (former main coach of Germany) U.S.A. and Mikael Essien and Kevin-Prince Boateng's Ghana. In a group full of twists, since the two Boateng brothers (Germany's Jerome and Ghana's Kevin-Prince) will be forced to play against each other just like in South Africa 4 years ago.
In the final group of the competition, the rising stars of world football Belgium will have their metal tested against the likes of Algeria, Russia and Korea Republic. All eyes will be on Eden Hazard and the rest of his teammates since they are considered, believe it or not, World Cup favorites! Yet against Arshavin, Kerzhakov, Shirokov and the rest of Capello's men, that will remain to be seen. Korea Rep. also shouldn't be put down since they possess the likes of Son Heungmin and Koo Jacheol. Algeria qualified in style from the African zone against Burkina Faso and also demand respect and attention. Their key players are Madjid Bougherra and Sofiane Feghouli.
So, what do you think? Anxious yet? Is your country among those participating in next year's celebration? Do you think they can get far? Will there be any upsets, or will all the favorites make it? Will Brazil reclaim their throne on home soil? All that remains to be seen... Next June, in Brazil!!!
No comments:
Post a Comment