Football - World Cup 2010

[Majsju]

With Domenech, anything is possible, except for dropping Henry if he wants to play...

 

Domenechs reason was that Benz has had a poor season in Madrid. Which he surely has, but Henry has hardly impressed in Barcelona, and Gignac is just a shadow of he player he was last season.

 

 

[Apollo277]

French are out in the group stages. I could see them blowing it against Mexico and Uruguay, easy. I will be cheering for England as a good patriot, but I hate so many players in the squad that I'd really like to see the US do well.

[Majsju]

And Capello has announced his final squad...

Joe Hart (Manchester City)

David James (Portsmouth)

Robert Green (West Ham)

 

Jamie Carragher (Liverpool)

Ashley Cole (Chelsea)

Rio Ferdinand (Manchester United)

Glen Johnson (Liverpool)

Ledley King (Tottenham)

John Terry (Chelsea)

Matthew Upson (West Ham)

Stephen Warnock (Aston Villa)

 

Gareth Barry (Manchester City)

Michael Carrick (Manchester United)

Joe Cole (Chelsea)

Steven Gerrard (Liverpool)

Frank Lampard (Chelsea)

Aaron Lennon (Tottenham)

James Milner (Aston Villa)

Shaun Wright-Phillips (Manchester City)

 

Peter Crouch (Tottenham)

Jermain Defoe (Tottenham)

Emile Heskey (Aston Villa)

Wayne Rooney (Manchester United)

 

Worth noting is that neither Theo Walcott nor Darren Bent made the final cut.

 

I am sticking my head out and saying England should play like this:

Hart

Johnson Ferdinand Terry A.Cole

Lennon Carrick Lampard J.Cole

Gerrard

Rooney

 

England does not have two good strikers, so maybe it is time to abandon 442, and try something new. In this case a 4411 with Gerrard in a free role, linking Rooney and the midfeld.

Thoguh I think the squad hints at Capello starting with 442, and Heskey as Rooneys partner, otherwise Bent would have made the cut instead of that donkey.

[Majsju]

My favourite Swedish football blog had a fun post today, showing the evolution of the official ball... http://blogg.aftonbladet.se/bankoniva/2010/06/mundial-moments-vi#comments

 

In my eyes, Mexico -70 and Germany -74 is what a football should look like, classic black&white. But we must give some love to Chiles ball from -62, with 'Mr Crack' printed on it ;D

 

This years ball? Just awful.

[Apollo277]

Seriously disappointed that Capello's chosen Michael bloody Carrick over Parker or Huddlestone. Carrick is absolutely hopeless, as seen against Mexico. Huddlestone's slow, but has a brilliant eye for the pass, and Parker's a complete package, albeit with little international experience. Also gutted for Adam Johnson, but his time will come.

 

 

[Majsju]

Rio Ferdinand misses World Cup after a knee injury...Ouch! There goes Englands chances of winning the tournament. Carragher or King will take his place, players who barely would make it into New Zeelands starting 11.

[Majsju]

Heh, perhaps I spoke too soon about Englands chances, as other nations also have been hit by injuries the last couple of days.

 

Cõte d'Ivoire; Didier Drogba, broken arm. Had a successful operation, so he should be able to play. But how will his form be?

The Netherlands: Arjen Robben, probably out for the entire tournament;

José Heitinga, uncertain.

Italy: Andrea Pirlo, uncertain.

Germany: Michael Ballack, definitly out; René Adler, definitly out.

Portugal: José Bosingwa, definitly out.

Denmark: Simon Kjaer, very uncertain.

England: Rio Ferdinand, definitly out; David James, uncertain, but probably fit to play.

Brazil: Julio Cesar, uncertain, but probably fit to play.

Nigeria: Jon Obi Mikel, definitly out.

Ghana: Michael Essien, definitly out.

 

And that is jus mentioning the biggest names...Add all the stars left out by their coaches (Benzema, Ronaldhino, Rossi, Nasri, Totti...), and we can get a World Cup with a taste of 2002, rather than 98 or 06.

[Thorum]

Cõte d'Ivoire; Didier Drogba, broken arm. Had a successful operation, so he should be able to play. But how will his form be?

 

That's why it's called [glow=red,2,300]FOOT[/glow]ball

[Majsju]

Well, a striker tends to get a bit roughed up by defenders, and since you are not allowed to wear a cast during games, an arm injury can have quite an impact on your performance.

[Thorum]

But not on your form.

[Majsju]

The eventual drop of form would be a result of him sitting out pretty much all training before the first game, and probably most between games. Also, injuries can put themselves in the back of your head, making you lose valuable seconds because you hesitate just slightly.

 

But in a sense, this is worse for Africa, than Cõte d'Ivoire. This tournament was Africas chance to shine, success here would be a huge boost on many levels. Now, two of the biggest African stars, Essien and Obi Mikel are definitly out, Drogba will probably play, but may not be on his top level. Which leaves Eto'O to carry an entire continent on his shoulders.

[mcs0083]

Hey guys

 

We actually have a World Cup pool on another site I'm involved with if anyone is interested. Just go to alldigitalradio.com, and you'll see it on the front page of the site. Just follow the instructions on the post. Hope you guys join, and that you have fun :)

[Majsju]

Well, only days to go. Time to start examining the groups a little closer.

 

Group A

South Africa

One of the weaker teams in the tournament. That Evertons Steven Pienaar is the biggest star says something about the team. But, a fanatic homecrowd has carried teams before, and might very well do it again.

Weakness: Concedes way to many goals.

Strength: Thousands of supporters, armed with those horrible vuvuzuelas.

 

France

Evra, Ribery, Henry, Malouda, Gourcuff...On the paper, France has a team that can beat anyone. but it does not work on the pitch. They need someone to step forward and carry the team, much like Zidane did in 2006.

Weakness: Raymond Domenech. A coach who uses astrology when he picks his team, and lacks any deeper tactical understanding.

Strength: Individual skill, top quality on every position, and good backup on the bench.

 

Uruguay

As a team, Uruguay is not very impressive. Defence and midfield is at best decent. It is the two blokes up front that gives hope of advancing from the group stage.

Weakness: Defence. They have a habit of picking up yellow and red cards, and the backup is nowhere near the necessary quality.

Strength: Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez. Forlan is one of the tournaments best strikers, and Suarez a rapidly rising star.

 

Mexico

An interesting mix of experience and young talent. Likes to play a fast and technical football. Unfortunatly, not skilled enough to pull that off against tougher opposition.

Weakness: Size, most player are quite short, which leaves them vulnerable at set pieces.

Strength: Coach Aguierre, who have managed to get a bunch of individualists to play as a team.

 

Group B

Argentina

One of the favourites to win the tournament. The best player in the world, Messi, and plenty of quality all around. However, Maradonas tactical skills has yet to show themselves, as this team had to struggle to even make it to the World Cup. And there is a risk that there will be so much focus on Maradona that the team suffers.

Weakness: Maradona. Lacks any real training as a coach, and compensates with quite erratic behaviour. ("You can suck my 'Little Diego' and keep sucking" turned into a very classic quote when he faced the Argentinian press)

Strength: Lionel Messi. He is tiny, he is shy. And he is the best player in the world, capable of defeating most teams on his own. But to really shine, he must find the same form for Argentina as he shows in Barcelona, something he has not quite managed so far.

 

Nigeria

Physical team, with a healthy amount of individual skill. Question is, has Swedish coach Lagerbäck also managed to bring in European organisation? Major blow when the biggest star Obi Mikel got injured.

Weakness: Defence, not because they have conceded a lot of goals (4 clean sheets in the qualifiers), but because that part of the team simply does not work, other than to kick the ball away.

Strength: If Lagerbäck has managed to make the team more disciplined, that is it. Then they can start acting as a team.

 

South Korea

Technical and speedy players, many of them have picked up routine from playing in Europe, as well as the World Cup. Yet, the most exciting players besides Manchester Uniteds Park Ji-Sung are two youngsters, Ki Sung-Yong and Lee Chung-Yong.

Weakness: Problem with scoring goals. For all the speed and technique, there is no player with that real killer instinct.

Strength: The collective. Noone is bigger than the team, and everyone works together towards the same goal.

 

Greece

Won Euro2004 with focus on discipline and defence. Many of the players are still on the team.

Weakness: Still relies a lot on the old heroes from 2004, but that is more because of a lack of young talent, than the old players still keeping form.

Strength: Discipline. And Theofanis Gekas, who despite the defensive focus managed to be the qualifiers best scorer with 10 goals, aheah of players like Rooney, Klose and Dzeko.

[Majsju]

Group C

England

Same old England, same old story...A key player gets injuried, Gerrard and Lampard still can not play together, and the keeper (most likely James) is not exactly world class. Yet, never count out a team coached by Capello.

Weakness: The Gerrard-Lampard dilemma. The entire midfield suffers from this.

Strength: Wayne Rooney. One of the best strikers in the world, and even though he is not the captain, he is a player who leads by example.

 

USA

Other than Donovan, there is little individual skill in the team, especially since Davies did not make it back from his injury. Compensates with speed, physical players, and a never-say-die attitude.

Weakness: Defence and attack, both saw key players hit by injuries. Onyewu made it back to the team, but huge question about his form, as he has barely played this season.

Strength: The attitude. We have seen USA beat stronger opponents before, just because they refuse to give up.

 

Algeria

Several players schooled in France gives a technical team, and they have better organisation than most African teams. That they went to the World Cup by beating gypt speaks for a great deal of potential. Yet, feels a number too small for this stage.

Weakness: Attack, only striker to have scored more than 4 games total is 35 yearold Saifi, and his goals came years ago. Chances are they will return home with an embarassing 0 in the column for scored goals.

Strength: The experience from the playoffs. Having gone through those conditions (Egypt-Algeria is a major hate-game), they should have easier than most to handle the pressure of the World Cup, which can result in an unexpected point or two.

 

Slovenia 

Like the other Balkan nations, physical players with good technical ability. A step or two behind Serbia and Croatia, but compensates by playing as a collective.

Weakness: Lack of a proper key player, someone who can add that extra dimension.

Strength: The collective, who work for eachother and listens to the coach. Unlike last time they played the World Cup...(Zahovic vs Katanec is a classic)

 

Group D

Germany

You know what you get with Germany. Discipline, hard work, physical players, but not without technical ability. After Michael Ballacks injury there is however a question who will step up as a leader. Schweinsteiger has the potential, but is he ready?

Weakness: Goalkeeper. It looked good a year ago, then Enke committed suicide, and the backup Adler got injured. So they come with Neuer, who just last year played Euro with the U21 team. He has loads of potential, but lack of experience, which causes him to make mistakes.

Strength: German organisation. Everyone knows exactly what to do, and how to do it.

 

Australia

Has some real quality in Cahill and Schwartzer, but the rest of the squad is not very exciting. Cahill suffers a little from often being played out of position. Bit of a USA Light, trying to compensate lack of skill with attitude, which was quite successful last World Cup.

Weakness: Defence. That Moore, 34 years old and not playing for any club has a place in the starting 11 is quite alarming.

Strength: Schwartzer. Top 5 keeper in the EPL, with loads of experience.

 

Serbia

Another Balkan team with physical and technical players. Much better than Slovenia though. Several players above 1.85 makes them lethal at set pieces. A defence that can handle pretty much any threat, and a monster like Zigic up front.

Weakness: Keeper. Stojkovic spends his club games on the bench.

Strength: Defence. Big, mean and skilled. And Vidic.

 

Ghana

Most quality sits on the midfield, which makes Essiens injury an even bigger blow.

Weakness: Essien not playing.

Strength: Still the midfield. Annan and Asamoah can cause problems for most teams.

 

 

[Thorum]

Predictions:

 

A)

1. Mexico

2. South Africa

3. France

4. Uruguay

 

B)

1. Argentina

2. South Korea

3. Nigeria

4. Greece

 

C)

1. England

2. USA

3. Algeria

4. Slovenia

 

 

D)

1. Germany

2. Ghana

3. Australia

4. Serbia

 

E)

1. Netherlands

2. Denmark

3. Cameroon

4. Japan

 

F)

1. Paraguay

2. New Zealand

3. Italy

4. Slovakia

 

G)

1. Portugal

2. Brazil

3. Ivory Coast

4. North Korea

 

H)

1. Spain

2. Chile

3. Honduras

4. Switzerland

[Thorum]

8th finals

Mexico defeats South Korea

Ghana defeats England

New Zealand defeats the Netherlands

Portugal defeats Chile

 

Argentina defeats South Africa

Germany defeats the USA

Denmark defeats Paraguay

Spain defeats Brazil

 

 

Quarter Finals

Mexico defeats Ghana

Portugal defeats New Zealand

 

Germany defeats Argentina

Spain defeats Denmark

 

Semi finals

Portugal defeats Mexico

Spain defeats Germany

 

Small final

Germany defeats Mexico

 

Big final

Spain defeats Portugal

[Majsju]

Predictions:

 

 

 

D)

1. Germany

2. Ghana

3. Australia

4. Serbia

 

 

 

*blinks* Are you high?

[Thorum]

We played them twice for the 2006 qualification, and they didn't make that huge an impression. At that time, it was a super-young team.

[Majsju]

 

New Zealand defeats the Netherlands

 

 

And I repeat my question, Are you high?  ;D

 

And about Serbia, they almost never impress, yet they do get their results, as long as Vidic is fit.

[Majsju]

Group E

The Netherlands

Starting to take back their classic totalvoetbal again, although in a somewhat modernized version, that is more 4231 than the old 433. Flowing, attacking football. Less naive when it comes to defence than they used to be, only two goals conceded during the qualifiers. Time to get rid of the "title" Best team to never have won the World Cup?

Weakness: Despte the improvements, still the defence. They have problems with quick and technical opponents.

Strength: The attack. Comes with five attackers, all with slightly different skills, so Oranje can pick their attack based on the opposition. Extra boost that Robbens injury was not as serious as first feared, he will be back after the group stage.

 

Denmark

Charmed an entire world in 1986, when Laudrup lead a team that reminded more of Brazil than the football we usually associate northern Europe with. Todays Denmark is a different story. There is no Laudrup in this team, instead we see a hardworking collective.

Weakness: When Kjaer got injured, the defence immidiatly jumped up as the weak point.

Strength: Experience. Several key players are 30+, but still able to perform at a high level.

 

Japan

Plays with quick passes on the ground, as most players are quite speedy, but not very great dribblers.

Weakness: Strikers. Okazaki is a rising star, but has not really been tested.

Strength: Keisuke Honda. The midfielder has a wicked freekick that can be a nasty surprise for the keepers, look him up on Youtube. 

 

Cameroon

Those who remember Dancing Milla from Italy 1990 might think of Cameroon as a bunch of, well, clowns. Think again. This is a well organized (for an African team...) and physical team. Perhaps too physical, as they have a tendency of attracting the referees attention a lot.

Weakness: Red cards.

Strength: Samuel Eto'O. Fights with Drogba over the title of Africas best striker. Unlike Drogba, Eto'O really loves his country and team though.

 

Group F

Italy

Italy always comes with a squad based on old(ish) players, but Lippi might have set a new record this year. Which means that they have experience and organisation enough for three teams. On an individual level, it looks a bit worse. Several key players are on the wrong side of their peak, and they lack a really iconic player like Totti to push the team.

Weakness: Midfield. With Pirlo completely out of form, there is little creativity here.

Strength: Marcello Lippi. One can criticize the old coach for his strange choices when picking the squad, but few coaches have more tactical tricks than him. A World Cup, a CL and five serie a titles speaks for itself.

 

Paraguay

The team might seem a bit boring now that there is no Chilavert to entertain us. But without his antics, they have managed to build a team with a fair bit of potential, not everyone beats Brazil in a qualifier.

Weakness: Midfield. Does not have any real playmaker, which tends to halt their attacks before they get anywhere near the opponents box.

Strength: Strikers. When they actually do get near the box, Santa Cruz and Barrios are absolutely lethal.

 

Slovakia

While big brother Czech Republic just sinks deeper and deeper into mediocricy, Slovakia gets to enjoy their first World Cup. A fairly weak team, that will rely on counter attacks.

Weakness: Defence. Skrtel is not fully fit after his injuries, and his partner Durica spends most of the time on the bench.

Strength: Miroslav Karhan & Marek Hamsik. Karhan has a great ability to win the ball, and hamsik is one of the most exciting creative midfielders in Serie A.

 

New Zeeland

Weakest team in the tournament. Might steal a point, perhaps even win against Slovakia from pure inspiration, but that is about as fun as it can get for the lads in white.

Weakness: Uhm, the entire team.

Strength: Ryan Nelsen. Only player in the team to play at a decent level (Blackburn), and actually performing quite well.

[Thorum]

 

New Zealand defeats the Netherlands

 

 

And I repeat my question, Are you high?  ;D

 

The Netherlands are so sure they'll win, they'll loose when you least expect it.

And is there ANY country they would expect themselves to loose from less than New Zealand??

[Majsju]

Group G

Brazil

After the massive failure in 2006, Brazil called in Dunga to sort things out. Dunga was a no-nonsense defensive midfielder, and takes a similar approach as coach. Gone are open trainings, clownery from Ronadlhino et al, etc. Instead we see a disciplined collective, but of course not completely without technical brilliance. Perhaps not as fun to watch as they have been in the past, but i can not recall having seen a better Brazil, and I have watched the world Cup since 1986.

Weakness: None.

Strength: Quality on every single position. They even have world class backup for the keeper.

 

Portugal

Plenty of individual skill, but shockingly unable to function as a team. And the injury on nani does not make things any better.

Weakness: Queiroz. He has shown in Manchester United that he is a tactical genius. He is however not much of a leader, and that is what portugal desperatly needs, someone who can make them work together as a group.

Strength: Christiano Ronaldo. Has shown in both United and Real madrid that he can carry a team by himself. Has had a surprisingly hhard time reaching the same level for portugal, and if they are to survive the group, that must change.

 

Cõte d'Ivoire

On the paper, the best African team. Plenty of stars playing for top uropean clubs, and coming to the World Cup with a European coach.

Weakness: keeper. Playing in the Belgian league is not that impressive (sorry Thorum), and he has struggled with injuries during the season.

Strength: Didier Drogba. Full of confidence after having won the EPL, and being the best goal scorer during the season. Has also grown into a great leader for his nation lately.

 

North Korea

Comes to the tournament with a 532 formation, so at least they are realistic about how their games will look. The players are similar to south korea, but lacks all of SKs experience from playing in Europe, as well as in the World Cup.

Weakness: Midfield/Attack. Quick and fairly technical. But quite small, so they will be bullied around quite a bit.

Strength: Defence. An extremely defensive formation, combined with their best players being in the back.

 

Group H

Spain

Always a favourite, always failing to live up to the expectations. But perhaps winning Euro08 have broken wha many Spaniards has seen as a curse. Extremely skilled team, and unlike most teams, no real injuries that worries (though Iniesta is not 100% fit).

Weakness: Too attackminded, almost noone wants to take defensive responsibilities, which makes them vulnerable to counterattacks.

Strength: Fabregas, Torres, Xavi x2, Casillas, Ramos, Iniesta, Villa...Spains starting 11 can give any opponent nightmares.

 

Suisse

While they are making a huge investment in their youth football, the youngsters (who won the U23 World Cup last year) are still not quite ready for the next step, and the key players in this squad are around 30. Traditional 442, where everything is based on a strong defence.

Weakness: Can field a starting 11 that is competent, but lacks players who stand out and can reach that next level.

Strength: The collective. German coach

Hitzfeld knows how to build a team, which five Bundesliga titles with Bayern Münich shows.

 

Honduras

Plays almost European, with a straight 442.

Weakness: Keeper. Vallederes is competent, not much more. The backup is more or less rubbish.

Strength: Wilson Palacios. Has had an impressive season with Spurs, and he is the key to Honduras attack.

 

Chile

Often plays an odd version of 343. Not afraid to play attacking football, even against stronger opponents.

Weakness: Size. Both defence and midfield could really use some extra centimeters and kilos.

Strength: Speed, almost all players are quite speedy, and comfprtable on the ball.

 

And there you have it, kids, the teams who will fight for the finest trophy in the world.

Now, predictions.

A

South Africa

Mexico

France

Uruguay

 

B

Argentina

South Korea

Nigeria

Greece

 

C

England

US

Algeria

Slovenia

 

D

Germany

Serbia

Australia

Ghana

 

E

Netherlands

Cameroon

Denmark

Japan

 

F

Italy

Paraguay

Slovakia

New Zeeland

 

G

Brazil

Cõte d'Ivoire

Portugal

North Korea

 

H

Spain

Honduras

Suisse

Chile

 

1/16

South Africa vs South Korea

England vs Serbia

Netherlands vs Paraguay

Brazil vs Honduras

Germany vs US

Argentina vs Mexico

Italy vs Cameroon

Spain vs Cõte d'Ivoire

 

1/8

South Africa vs England

Netherlands vs Brazil

Germany vs Argentina

Cameroon vs Spain

 

1/4

England vs Brazil

Germany vs Spain

 

Bronze

England vs Germany

 

Final

Brazil vs Spain

[Majsju]

 

New Zealand defeats the Netherlands

 

 

And I repeat my question, Are you high?  ;D

 

The Netherlands are so sure they'll win, they'll loose when you least expect it.

And is there ANY country they would expect themselves to loose from less than New Zealand??

 

*sniff* Is that a little neighbourly rivalry I smell? Jealous of big brother, eh? ;D

[Thorum]

Italy winning their group?

Yes, they don't have much hard competition, but they're playing SO terribly badly...

 

I also don't think Portugal will be ousted by the Ivory Coast, but this is possible.

 

Ghana can impossibly defeat Serbia, but England can??? I wouldn't go so far... I think you're seriously overestimating Rooney. You need a team. Same with South Africa.

[Majsju]

Italy got lucky, with one of the easiest groups. There are several groups where I could easily see them knocked out instead.

 

Ghana can not beat Serbia for one reason: Essien is injuried.

England is more than Rooney. Joe Cole has showed amazing form lately. And never underestimate a team coached by Capello, that guy knows how to dig out victories.