First here are all the groups:
Group AGroup BGroup CGroup DGroup EGroup FGroup GGroup HI have already discussed Group A in a prior post. So let us look at the other groups. We will tackle Group B & C in this post:
Group B - Clearly the favorites are Argentina to emerge from this group. Even with the Ablicelestes struggling to qualify out of South America they have too much talent, depth and Messi not to get out of the groups. Maradona has 6 months to figure out how he wants to
approach the tournament, while he is under tremendous pressure from his home nation, much like Domenech, unlike his French counterpart I think he has the support of his players. He is also stubborn like Domenech in who he calls up...Higuain? Zanetti? If Maradona finds his senses I think he will look to put Heinze and Zanetti as his defensive cornerstones in the back with Gago and Mascherano as the midfield holders and figure out how to get the most out of Messi, maybe go with a three pronged attack of Messi, Aguero and Higuain. That would be frightening. Again too much raw talent and depth for this squad not get through.The battle will be for second place in the group. Greece had to play the Ukraine to get through. They will once again look to their manager "King Otto" to manage this club through to the knock out stages. While they are still seen as a strong defensive side, well organized and also boring...they did have the top scorer in the European qualifiers - Theofanis Gekas - with 10 goals to his count. They will be pushed by Nigeria who is getting the least amount of press of the African nations in the tournament. The Super Eagles are usually the team seen as Africa's best chance to see a team reach the semi finals or further, this title has passed to the likes of Ivory Coast and Ghana...but no one should overlook this talented side. With the likes of Martins and Mikel they have some talented players that grace the pitches in Europe on weekends. While many would argue they have underachieved during qualifiers, I would see them as a sleeper in this tournament. Finally South Korea finds themselves in this challenging group. Not playing the Cup on home soil has brought this nation back to where the
y belong, a nice team that has some good players but 3rd tier power at best. Without the genius of Hiddink, which coupled with home cooking carried the South Korean's to an improbable 4 place in the 2002 World Cup, I am not sure that they have enough to cause too many problems to the other 3 nations in this group. Park Ji-Sung will be asked to shoulder the load, unfortunately he does not have the Rooneys, Giggs, Vidics, Van de Saars he can rely on with his club!Prediction - Argentina, Nigeria, Greece, South Korea finish
Player to watch - Higuain the Argentine striker is overshadowed by Messi, but the Real Madrid man scores goals and I think he will demonstrate this goal scoring in South Africa.
Group C - This group will get a lot of hype between now and the tournament...especially due to the first match between the US and England. The book makers have already placed England as the second favorite behind Spain...wow...talk about irrational exuberance! Speaking of England they should go through to the knock out stage. However I think the hype that will surround the Three Lions will grow exponetially before the tournament...yet I am not sure that they have solved the problems that plagued them in the last World Cup - a shaky defense. Do you really have faith in Calamity James in goal? Cashley Cole is a good left back, but not as good as he is hyped up to be. Terry and Ferdinand, a strong pairing but have been injury prone as of late. The real issue - who is the holding midfielder? Barry? Gerrard? We all know Lampard will not track back unless it is to celebrate his own goal. Much will be expected of Rooney, especially considering how he exited the last tournament...
and what about the wingers? Will Walcott be healthy? Will the "greatest footballer ever" Beckham showcase on the wing? I think this team remains too similar to the one that failed to get to the Euros, while the presence of Capello is encouraging, the weight of irrational expectations will be too much for the 3 Lions, they will go far but not far enough. Much the same will saddle their former colony, The United States. I am already seeing the press and the statements of an easy draw and "we are through to the next round." When the talking heads like Alexi Lalas start saying this is an easy group and the US will go through, you need to take a step back and take a deep breath. I think the US will go as far as Altidore can shoulder offensively and without Charlie Davies this will become more difficult the young American striker. Much will also be asked of Deuce - Clint Dempsey. I think his time spent at Fulham has helped h
im grow as a player and leader. And of course we have Landycakes, the question will be - will he finally show up in a major tournament? Or will he revert back to Landycakes and disappear. What the US do have is a strong and experienced keeper in Howard and have some confidence from the last Confederation Cup, but that tournament is very different from the World Cup! I think the neither nation should overlook Slovenia. They came out of a tough group with Slovakia, Czech Rep and Poland - then they had to defeat the Russians to get through. Least we forget this team from a land of 2million residences is not afraid to punch well above its weight class. Surprising many at the Euro 2000 and qualifying for 2 World Cups. They play a counterattacking style which may frustrate the favorites in the group. Finally everyone is writing off the Algerians something I am not sure is wise. The North Africans are making only their third appearance in the biggest sporting event on the planet, they did more than hold their own the first time! With players such as Ziani and having gone through a difficult qualifying campaign Les Fennecs will be looking to play spoiler in this group. I do not think they have enough to go through, but cannot nor should not be overlooked.Prediction: England, USA, Slovenia, Algeria
Player to Watch: Rooney will have a lot of expectations on his shoulders, he will need to have his goal scoring boots on and he must keep his cool on the global stage. The other player to watch is Altidore for the US, he too will be expected to be the offensive threat for the US.
Stay tuned for Groups D&E...
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