World Cup 2010 Review

The 2010 FIFA World Cup has been over now for over a month, meaning enough time has passed to allow any lingering strong emotions towards the tournament to disappear, and a moderate, objective view can now emerge.

Which teams performed up to expectations? Which didn't? Who surprised? Who failed to shine?

Spain's victory over the Netherlands gave the Spanish their first World Cup title to go with their recently-won European championship from 2008. For the Dutch, it was their third final they've lost. It was a fitting end to the tournament, as the #1 team in the world faced off against #2. In the final, everyone expected Spain to play the way they had been playing: dominating possession, outpassing their opponent, slowly building up to make that final break into a goal. But few expected to see the Netherlands resort to the goon tactics that they employed, only rarely threatening the Spanish goal and accumulating multiple yellow cards throughout the match. Nigel de Jong's kung fu-style kick on Xabi Alonso epitomized this for the Dutch (though he received only a yellow).
Joy for Spain, heartbreak for the Netherlands, especially after they had done the rest of the world a favor in defeating Brazil so spectacularly. It was disappointing to see them sink below their own high standards in the final, but such is the fear of Spain that this was believed to be the only way to defeat them.

But what about the rest of the tournament? The opening round of matches were, for the most part, incredibly dull and boring, as most teams did not want to make a mistake and lose an advantage so early on in the tournament. However, by the time the group stages had ended, there were plenty of surprises and drama aplenty.

For the group stage:
THE GOOD
Japan
Japan came in to the 2010 World Cup with a decent chance to get out of their group, but a chance that they shared equally with both Cameroon and Denmark, as it was expected that the Netherlands would romp over all who came before them (which did, in fact, happen). Nonetheless, many were surprised when Japan emerged 1-0 victors over Cameroon in their first match, despite heavy Cameroonian pressure and some close calls. Japan's next match against the Netherlands ended in a Dutch win, but only just. The 1-0 defeat was not truly reflective of the play, as Japan had several chances to score, but didn't. Their final match came against Denmark, in which they showed a masterclass of play to simply dominate the Danes and score some spectacularly built-up goals, ending Denmark's tournament and qualifying themselves for the knockout rounds.

Argentina
Argentina entered the tournament with more doubts hovering over their heads than confidence. Many were questioning the wisdom of having Diego Maradona as manager. The opening three games in South Africa rapidly changed those negative opinions, however. An opening 1-0 win against Nigeria that they dominated was followed by a comprehensive 4-1 demolishing of South Korea, in which Gonzalo Higuain got a hat trick. Their final match against the Greeks was almost a joke, as Greece gave only token attempts to attack and allowed Argentina to come forward in waves, in a game that Greece needed to win. The 2-0 final result could have been much worse.

Slovakia
Slovakia came into the tournament as a distinct dark horse, needing to get out of a group that included reigning World Champions Italy and perennial non-pushover Paraguay. Their first match against New Zealand struck fear into no one, finishing 1-1 against the rather weak Kiwis. A 2-0 loss against Paraguay in their next match made it even more unlikely for them to get out of the group, as they'd have to then do a miracle and defeat the heavyweight Italians. That they did, however, achieving a stunning 3-2 victory, thereby qualifying the small Eastern European team for the next round and humiliatingly giving Italy not a single win at the tournament, making them finish last.

THE BAD
France
A train wreck before, during, and after the World Cup, literally no one was sad to see them exit at the first stage, including their own fans. After only managing to qualify for the tournament at the expense of Ireland by blatantly cheating, the French team's internal troubles spewed up, and their play suffered. Head coach Raymond Domenech had lost the team's confidence, and there were rumors that certain cliques of players disliked other cliques and would do things like, not pass to them in training. A draw and two losses with only one goal for put a mercifully fast end to the horrific excrement that was the France's style of play for the last 2 and a half years.

THE DISAPPOINTING
England, Italy, Honduras, the African teams
All of these teams had relatively positive expectations coming into the tournament, but when they got there, the level of play failed, bad mistakes were made (and punished), and those high expectations were to go wanting.

For England, a weak group made it even more embarassing with how bad they played, barely managing a shot on goal against Algeria and only just squeaking by Slovenia to qualify for the knockout round.

Italy never truly showed up. They were having difficulty scoring and winning in the several games they'd played in the tune-up to the World Cup, and that continued in South Africa. A 1-1 draw against Paraguay was their best result, as they were forced to dive and cheat to earn a penalty against New Zealand (really?) and still almost lost, if a late Kiwi shot had been a few inches in the opposite direction. Only after losing 3-1 late in the game against Slovenia did Italy wake up and attempt to play the way they know how to. Unfortunately, it was too little, too late, and they had to go home with their heads hung decidedly low.

Honduras had qualified for the first time since 1986, emerging out of a fiercely-competitive CONCACAF qualifying group, and their appearance sparked hope and excitement among their devoted fans. Unfortunately, Honduras never truly played the way they are able to play, only appearing to give half-hearted attempts against Chile, then parking the bus in front of the goal against Spain, and not really doing much of anything against Switzerland. Disappointing in the effort and execution, from beginning to end.

Many of the African teams were also expected to do well. After all, this was the first World Cup on African soil, and many of the elite African teams had qualified, like Nigeria, Cameroon, Ivory Coast, and Ghana. Yet, only Ghana would make it to the second round, but even they were more indebted to the two games in which they were awarded a penalty kick whilst simultaneously red-carding an opposition player.

Nigeria played well against Argentina, and could have gotten a draw. They then were leading Greece, before exploding, getting a man sent off for no good reason, before allowing 2 goals and losing to the previously-winless Greeks. To top it off, they had several gilt-edged chances to defeat South Korea in their final game and inexplicably screwed those up, eliminating them despite several chances to do otherwise.

Cameroon's offense was very well-equipped, but their defense was just not up to par. After narrowly losing to Japan, a game in which they should have at least drawn, they squandered a lead against Denmark, losing 2-1.

The Ivory Coast was, of course, once again in the Group of Death, along with Brazil, Portugal, and North Korea. However, many had given them a chance to go to the semi-finals, at least. This did not happen. A drab opening match against Portugal only lead them to get out-classed by Brazil in their second match, which saw the use of the most outrageous and despicable fake injury since Rivaldo in 2002 to get Kaka sent off when the score was already 3-1 for Brazil. A 3-0 win against North Korea wasn't enough for the Elephants, and their fans deserved a better showing.

For South Africa, not even their own fans really wanted to see them play, but after the first match ended in a draw against Mexico, suddenly their team wasn't so bad. Until they imploded and allowed Uruguay to walk all over them, winning 3-0 and rendering their final game against France basically moot. What was truly disappointing to see was the vast droves of fans that began leaving the game in the second half after Uruguay scored to make it 2-0. This was the World Cup and the home team's fans left the home team out to dry. Very disappointing.

For the knockout rounds:
THE GOOD
Germany
Germany's 4-1 demolishing of England and 4-0 emasculation of Argentina were enough by themselves to make Germany's World Cup a smashing success. Though they were defeated by the superior Spanish, it was Germany's 3rd straight semi-final appearance in a World Cup, as they finished third for a second year running.

Uruguay
Not many expected Uruguay to finish fourth, ahead of the other South American heavyweights, Argentina and Brazil. But not only did they make it to their first semi-final since for 40 years, they did it with style and panache - the only blight being Suarez's blocking of a sure goal with his hands. The game against the Netherlands ended in a heartbreaking loss, but no one expected this team to get that far, and they are to be commended for it.

THE BAD The other South American teams
This was the first tournament in which all 5 of the South American teams had qualified for the second round, with Chile being the only one to not finish as a group leader. Despite South American teams outnumbering European teams for the first time in the knockout rounds of a World Cup, the semi-finals would feature only Uruguay, and three other European teams. Brazil and Argentina's poor performances against the Netherlands and Germany respectively were hard for their fans to take, and Paraguay's penalty mishaps against Spain ensured they weren't getting past La Furia Roja.

Overall, the 2010 edition of the FIFA World Cup was exciting and dramatic. Not a ton of goals, to be sure, but some spectacular ones.

Spain lost to Switzerland in their first group match, and in winning the final, became the first team to lose their first match and go on to win. This was the also the first tournament in which a European team won a World Cup that wasn't in Europe, and the first time any team has won their first World Cup in a tournament that they didn't host.

The only undefeated team at the end of the tournament was New Zealand, of all teams.

Some big guns misfired (Italy, Ivory Coast, Portugal, Brazil, Argentina, Cameroon, etc) and some smaller guns made their presence known (USA, Japan, South Korea, Ghana, Uruguay, Slovakia, Slovenia).

The Uruguay-Ghana and Spain-Paraguay games were exciting and tense as any in recent memory, especially due to the penalties involved. Both semi-final games were boring, unless you were paying attention.

All in all, it was a truly memorable, surprising, and dramatic World Cup with a fitting end.

World Cup 2010 Review: Germany

Current Rank: 4
Expectations going in: Low
Finished: 3rd place

Germany went into the 2010 World Cup with a mixture of youth and veterans, inexperience and experience. Most pundits predicted the German team would struggle to perform up to their usual high standards, especially when talismanic captain Michael Ballack was injured before the beginning and ruled out of the tournament.

With expectations so low, the Mannschaft had nowhere to go but up. In their opening game against Australia, Germany scored early and dominated the match, absolutely destroying the Socceroos 4-0 thanks to goals from Mueller, Podolski, Klose, and Cacau. Almost immediately, the press labeled them once again as contenders for the title, after having finished in 2nd in 2002 and 3rd in 2006.

Cacau punctuated Germany's dominance with the fourth goal against Australia

However, the Germans' group was no easy task, the lopsided score against Australia not withstanding. Germany next played a strong Serbian side, looking to stave off elimination after having lost their first game against Ghana.

The Germans started out strong, but Miroslav Klose accumulated (harshly) 2 yellow cards early on in the match, and the resultant advantage for Serbia resulted in a goal shortly thereafter. However, despite being down to 10 men and losing 1-0, Germany went on to dominate the rest of the match. A penalty midway through the second would have tied the game, but Lukas Podolski saw his shot saved, and the Serbians held on for the win, thereby also giving Germany its first group-stage loss at a World Cup since 1986.

The stage was set, then, for Germany to take its World Cup destiny in its own hands for the last group match against the hitherto undefeated Ghana. Being unable to rely on the predatory instincts in front of goal of Miroslav Klose, the Germans were relegated to attempting to pass their way into the goal and taking long-distance shots - both of which, for much of the match, were unsuccessful. However, a brilliant act of creativity by Mesut Oezil saw the youngster's rocket from the top of the box fly into the corner, thereby giving Germany the win they needed to advance out of the group stage.

Mesut Oezil celebrates his goal with teammates

Awaiting them in the knockout rounds was traditional rival England. A rematch of the 1966 World Cup final had many neutral observer and rabid fans's mouths alike salivating. England had been disappointing up to that point in the tournament, and for the first 30 minutes of the match, it continued in much the same vein, with Germany taking a quick 2-0 lead through Klose and Podolski (who else?).

However, the looming threat of elimination seemed to galvanize England, and they pulled a goal back quickly before culminating in what they thought was the equalizer from Frank Lampard on the stroke of halftime. However, despite the ball crashing in off the crossbar and clearly going over the line, the referee did not award a goal and the score at halftime was 2-1 for Germany.

The possibilities of what would have happened after that goal had been allowed could be discussed endlessly, but the reality of the 2-1 score meant England had to attack to have any chance of coming back into the game. However, Germany was expecting this and transitioned effortlessly into a brutal and punishing counterattacking style that rewarded them with another 2 goals, to finish the game 4-1. Cue wild celebrations across Germany and despondence and despair in England.
If England had been feared to give Germany a run for their money, their next opponent were even more so: Argentina. Argentina had been running through their opponents, easily winning their group and looking classy while doing so. Two favorites entered this quarterfinal match in what was thought to be a very entertaining and attacking match.

An early mistake by the Argentinian goalkeepr allowed Thomas Mueller to score early on for Germany, and from that point on, Germany was content to simply soak up Argentina's relentless attacks and respond quickly on the counterattack. As Argentina became more frustrated by their lack of results in front of goal, their play became sloppier and this allowed Germany's forwards to slip by them. Once the second goal went in, Argentina's players seemed to deflate, and the next two seemed to just be for fun for Germany. A 4-0 final scoreline emphasized Germany's attacking and defending strength. Germany was simply dominating every team they met, with scores of 4-0, 4-0, and 4-1 padding their goal differential.

Defender Arne Friedrich's goal was the icing on the cake against Argentina

After tearing through their opponents in the group stage and the knockout rounds, Germany finally met a team that had had their number in previous meetings: Spain. The reigning European Champions had faced a defensive-minded team in every game they played, which allowed them to simply play to their strengths in outrunning and outpassing their opponents. It was hoped that Germany's attacking talents would be able to counterbalance the Spanish domination in passing and a remarkable game would emerge.

However, Germany would have to do without a vital player in forward Thomas Mueller, who had received an accumulation of yellow cards that forced him to sit out. Against Spain, this missing link was crucial, as Mueller was often the driving force behind the strong German counterattacks that created so many chances and ended in so many goals.

Germany tried to stifle the Spanish passing through the middle and attempted to create swift counterattacks, but these mostly proved ineffective and eventually the Spanish goal came late in the second half off of a corner kick, and once again Germany lost to Spain 1-0 in a major tournament's knockout rounds.

Though Germany were naturally disappointed, they could still hold their heads up high. The Germans reached their third semifinal in a row at the World Cup, following their performances at the 2002 and 2006 World Cups. A 3-2 win in the third-place match against Uruguay helped restore some of the lingering negative effects of the semifinal loss to Spain.

How did Germany achieve such a fantastic result with players who have so limited experience? Many of the younger players had been on the German youth teams that won every tournament they entered in. That's right. The UEFA U-17, U-19, and U-21 champions were all Germany in the years leading up to the 2010 World Cup. No other nation has achieved that feat before. Watching the 4-0 win over England in the U-21 final, many of the players on that squad also made the full squad in 2010.



Germany's youth program is clearly one of the best in Europe and the world. Following disappointing results in the 90's and early 2000's, the Deutscher Fussball Bund made changes to its youth policies, and since then, every Bundesliga side has invested heavily into their youth program, which has resulted in a vast quantity of talented players coming through the ranks that look as though they are more than able to fill the shoes of aging players.

Though they came up just short in 2010, the German team looks like it will be a major contender for several more tournaments to come. The more experience and playing time their youth players get at the international level, the more the team will acquire cohesion, and this can only mean bad things for the rest of European football. The future is definitely bright for German football.

World Cup 2010 Review: United States of America

Current Rank: 13
Expectations going in: Medium
Finished: Round of 16

For the first time in its World Cup history, the United States entered the tournament with a group that it could reasonably expect to advance from, with matches against England, Slovenia, and Algeria.

Many fans remembered the U.S.'s fantastic appearance at the 2009 Confederations Cup, also in South Africa, when the Americans surprised the number one ranked Spanish 2-0 and lead 2-0 against Brazil before succumbing in the final. It was hoped that this kind of performance could be repeated a year later at the World Cup.

The United States surprised the world in 2009. Could they do it again in 2010?

Most of the pre-tournament hype focused on the opening game against an England squad full of superstars and expected to go far. The expectations among many American fans was that the U.S. would lose the first game against England, but then go on to defeat Slovenia and Algeria to qualify for the Round of 16, and then who knows what could happen?

It seems, however, that this group was one in which predictions weren't really terribly accurate.

In the first game against England, the U.S. had trouble focusing early on and gave up an easy goal to England with under 10 minutes played. The Americans fought back, however, and managed to squeak one by the beleaguered Robert Green to even the score. It could have even ended in a USA victory, had Jozy Altidore not had his shot parried on to the crossbar in the second half.

With a better-than-expected point against England, the U.S. could now look towards their next game against Slovenia, who had not looked very impressive in laboring to a 1-0 win on another goalkeeping error over Algeria.

The Americans again started slow, this time being much more severely punished, as Slovenia ripped open the United States defense for a 2-0 halftime lead. It seemed then that the U.S.'s dreams at the World Cup had been destroyed in only 45 minutes, as England were due to play Algeria later in the day, and it was widely expected for the English to prevail quite easily.

The United States showed its comeback spirit, though, and Landon Donovan smashed home a goal early in the second half to spark the revival. The U.S. slowly gained more and more momentum, finally equalizing late in the game through Michael Bradley.

Michael Bradley

The match was now 2-2, but it wasn't quite over yet. There was still time for Maurice Edu to convert a Landon Donovan free kick to give the United States an improbable but highly-deserved 3-2 victory in the dying moments....except Malian referee Koman Coulibaly blew his whistle for a phantom foul, drawing vehement protests from the American players. Upon further review, the call was even more ludicrous, given that there were no players offsides, and several American players were actually being pulled down by Slovenian defenders - which should have been a penalty, in any case.

American players were outraged

American fans took this as yet another case of a FIFA conspiracy to rob the United States of legitimate goals (another example is the non-call on a handball in a quarterfinal match against Germany in 2002), and after offering no explanation as to what made him decide to blow his whistle, no one was satisfied.

So with a 2-2 draw, and not a 3-2 win, the U.S. went into its final match still in control of its destiny - win or go home. England's embarrassing 0-0 draw against Algeria meant any team in the group still had the ability to either advance or be eliminated. The U.S. knew they had to defeat Algeria and they'd go through.

The game was for almost the entire match going one-way, with the U.S. constantly attacking, trying to find that opening goal. Algeria hit the crossbar when they really should have scored, and the U.S. scored a legitimate goal that was wrongly called back for being offside (again).

In the 92nd minute, Tim Howard collected a rare ball brought forward by Algeria, distributed it halfway down the field to Landon Donovan, who brought it forward and crossed for Clint Dempsey. Dempsey's shot was saved, but Donovan got the rebound, and the celebrations began. Across the United States. delirious fans joyously reacted and partied like it was August 14, 1945:







More videos can be found here.

Landon Donovan and Clint Dempsey

Thanks to Donovan's goal, the United States advanced to the round of 16, finishing first in their group ahead of England. Next up would be Africa's only remaining side: Ghana. Ghana was the side that had defeated the United States in the third group match of 2006, eliminating the Americans and allowing Ghana the chance to play Brazil in the round of 16. Of course, the only way the Ghanaians could do so was through an incredibly dubious penalty call immediately following a U.S. goal on the stroke of halftime (yet another example of American fans' bitterness towards FIFA). The stage was set for revenge.

However, coach Bob Bradley erred in his starting eleven and Ricardo Clark gave up the ball in the opening few minutes of the game which directly lead to Ghana's opening goal. He was soon thereafter replaced. After once more giving up a goal in the opening minutes of the game, (3rd time out of 4 matches), the United States fought back once more, equalizing on a Landon Donovan penalty midway through the second half. The teams could not be separated, and the match went to extra-time. Ghana was again allowed a defensive breakthrough and scored early in the extra period, putting the Americans on the backfoot yet again. This time, however, there would be no reply. The U.S. just could not muster yet another comeback, and they fell 2-1 in extra time to Ghana.

Going out in extra time in the round of 16 is a respectable result, and clearly soccer in the United States has come a long way since the dark days of the late 80's and early 90's, when the country first started regularly qualifying for the cup. In addition to the vast outpouring of support and passion for the national team across the country, television ratings were extremely high: 14 million Americans watched England vs the U.S., and more than that watched the game against Ghana. If counting Univision's Spanish-language coverage, more than 20 million people watched games involving the United States, which is much more than either the Stanley Cup or the NBA Finals enjoyed.

Hopefully these statistics, as well as the United States' performance, can put to an end the constant deliberating about whether or not soccer has "made it" in America. What's clear is that the sport already has "made it", and it's been there for a long time. It just took this World Cup to reveal that part of American soccer culture to the rest of the skeptics, and hopefully this can equate to future growth for the sport.

While the future looks bright for U.S., with more and more players coming through the youth ranks and turning professional earlier and earlier, what is worrying for the United States Soccer Federation is that, for the second tournament in a row, a U.S. forward failed to score a goal. Also, the core backline of the defense is aging, and something must be done to repair the early-game mentality to eliminate those deficits that occurred so often. There is also a question of what to do about Bob Bradley: Has he taken the team as far as he can take them? Should the USSF bring in a foreign coach, or someone with inside knowledge of the American soccer landscape? Should he stay on?

The U.S. team watches a replay of Landon Donovan's goal against Algeria after the Americans won, 1-0

For now, these questions can go unanswered, while the afterglow of 2010 fades away. Even though the U.S. was eliminated a bit earlier than many would have liked, they can hold their heads up high, and soccer fans will always have Donovan's goal to look back on and smile.

World Cup 2010 Review: England

Current Rank: 7
Expectations going in: High
Finished: Round of 16

England qualified for the 2010 FIFA World Cup with relative ease, and there was much talk before the tournament about how this could be "England's year" to finally bring home a coveted second World Cup title from South Africa. The English, actually, could not have asked for a better group, with the United States, Slovenia, and Algeria rounding out the first couple of games for them. The Sun summed up this feeling quite nicely:
With a core group of elite players, many of whom play in the "best league in the world" on some of the best teams in the world, England fans were dreaming big. It seemed as though things had finally come together, especially after finally getting a world-class manager in Fabio Cappello, who had a pedigree of success in his prior endeavors.

Unfortunately, the English let down their fans, as they so often do, in less-than-noble fashion. Their opening game against the United States was much hyped, both in England and the States. England started out at a fast, brilliant pace, with Gerrard opening the scoring in under 5 minutes, and boy, for those first couple of minutes, England could have beaten anyone.

This level of play, however, was not to last, as goalkeeper Robert Green, in another incident in which an English goalkeeper has blundered on a big occasion, fumbled a weak shot from Clint Dempsey in embarrassing fashion, allowing the Americans to draw level, which is how the game finished.
While a draw against the United States could be seen as a bit surprising, it was still respectable. England next faced an Algeria team that they should have been able to dominate, on paper. In what was essentially an England home match, with English supporters being by far more numerous than Algerian, neither team could really establish themselves or even convince spectators that they were, in fact, watching a game of football, and not just a bunch of men running around in shorts who were trying to break a sweat for the fun of it. The match finished 0-0 and was so poor, so disappointing, that England fans began to boo at the final whistle, prompting Wayne Rooney to criticize them to the camera.

Fortunately, England still controlled their own destiny, as the United States was robbed of a last-minute goal against Slovenia, leaving their match also drawn, 2-2, and ensuring that any team could still qualify or be eliminated going into the final group match.

All England had to do was defeat Slovenia and they would qualify for the next round. On this day, the English showed up, at least for the first hour or so, and managed to get a goal through Jermaine Defoe. The last quarter hour, though, saw Slovenia manage several near-misses that must have been giving players, supporters, and management all kinds of fits and chewed-down nails.

England managed to hold on for the 1-0 win, although they failed to win the group, finishing second behind the United States. Apparently, the group was not as "easy" as predicted.

This, however, set up a mouth-watering clash with Germany in the round of 16, a team that had shown its scoring abilities in a 4-0 demolition of Australia in those teams' first match.

The Germans had a formidable attacking formation, and this was proven in no uncertain way when they opened up a 2-goal lead over a tired-looking and unmotivated England side. An amateurish mistake allowed German goalkeeper Neuer to simply clear the ball down the field to Miroslav Klose, who ran by England's defense and prodded the ball past a hapless David James. Lukas Podolski capitalized on another flowing German move by arrowing the ball past James some minutes later, making it absolutely do-or-die time for England's World Cup hopes after barely having even played 30 minutes.

Being down 2-0 seemed to finally awaken England, as they upped the tempo and pulled one back through Matthew Upson. Shortly after that, at 2-1 and just before halftime, Frank Lampard hit a shot that appeared to go across the line before being pulled back out again. With the referees in perfect position to judge, they got the call wrong, and the scored stayed 2-1 at halftime.



In the second half, England knew they needed to attack to break down a solid German defense, and this is exactly how Germany punished them, scoring 2 goals in quick succession on the counterattack, to flatter the scoreline a bit, but also send English football into a tailspin of doubt, humiliation, and despair.

And thus begins, after such an ignoble defeat, and on the back of 1 win and 3 goals in 4 matches, the soul-searching for what went wrong and how to improve in the future for English football.

One obvious answer is youth development and the Premier League. The core group of the England side that went to South Africa (Lampard, Rooney, Gerrard, Terry, etc.) are world-class athletes, but most are not getting any younger, and the depth of talent that exists to replace them, should they need to, is frankly inadequate. The younger talent coming up through the ranks in England are just not good enough. Compared to Germany, which invests over 4 times as much in its youth program as England does, the difference in depth and talent is startling.

With over 60% of players in the Premier League coming from outside of England, many English players are not getting quality time playing football at a very high level. There is no single body that oversees youth development in England, again in contrast to Germany. Many clubs in England have enough money that they can simply spend millions on cheaper, foreign imports rather than the inflated price given many times to home-grown players. Germany had this same problem in the mid-90's, lasting through to their disastrous EURO 2000 and EURO 2004 performances. England has had troubles of their own, failing to qualify for EURO 2008 and disappointing at the 2010 and 2006 World Cups.

Further hampering England's chances at winning a major trophy is their attitude. The media doesn't help this, no doubt, but England's players and fans all expect their team to be in among the elite, playing at a level akin to Brazil, Spain, or the Netherlands. This is simply an illusion, and a dangerous one at that. How many legitimately good, quality, world-class teams have England beaten in the past several years? They did recently defeat Croatia in Zagreb, which was very impressive. Aside from that, all that comes to mind is going out to Portugal on penalties in two straight tournaments, almost beating France in EURO 2004, and barely squeaking by a deplorable Argentina side in 2002 thanks to a David Beckham penalty.

If the results haven't really been that great in the past several years, where does England get this attitude from, that they're better than any other team simply because they know they are? It's arrogant, and it costs them games. From expecting to easily win their group at the World Cup (why do the other teams even bother to show up?), to looking down upon nations with players who, gasp!, don't play in England, the English have a mental problem that is inconsistent with reality. It doesn't matter whether you have Wayne Rooney, Frank Lampard, or John Terry if you cannot play well and win games with them. England lacks depth, flair, style, and humility.

So what can England do to fix their problems? By investing more into their youth academies, restructuring the organization of developing youth in England, reducing the amount of foreign players in the Premier League, and eating a good, healthy dose of humble pie, the English have a great chance at seeing themselves destroy another big team in the knockout rounds of a major tournament, and maybe even more than that, if they follow through with these steps outlined above.

Le Violence au Parc des Princes: Un problème récurrent pour le PSG

Avec le résultat d'une victoire 1-0 contre les amateurs de Quevilly en demi-finales de la Coupe de France, le Paris Saint-Germain peut-être a une chance de sauver encore une fois une saison qu'il pourrait oublier (au temps d'écrire, le PSG est au 11ieme place de Ligue 1). Bien que certains résultats aux finales de la Coupe de France ou de la Coupe de la Ligue française ont étés de première force pour le club parisien, la classement à la fin de la saison a été en mauvaise forme. 2004-2005 et 2005-2006, neuvième place. 2006-2007, quinzième. 2007-2008, seizième. Ces classements vont aussi avec des triomphes de 2004 et 2006 en la Coupe de France (finaliste en 2008 et 2003) et 2008 en la Coupe de la Ligue. Mais ce que les supporteurs veulent proprement dit est le championnat.

Le PSG est le seul club de football d'Île-de-France à jouer en Ligue 1 et recueille, selon un sondage Ifop (Institut français d'opinion publique), 11% des suffrages pour savoir qui est-ce que le club de football le plus préférés des français (l'Olympique de Marseille est le seul club qui a reçu plus, avec 20%). Ayant tant de supporteurs et n'ayant gagné le trophée du championnat depuis 1994 fait de frustration au Parc des Princes.

Dans les dernières quelques années, le problème du racisme et des incidents violents aux matchs de foot en France est grandi, avec plusieurs d'exemples. Mais le centre du problème se trouve à Paris. Il est bien connu qu'il y a des sections et des supporteurs du PSG qui sont et qui avaient étés toujours racistes. Ces sections ne veulent pas rien que de venir au stade et de faire connu leurs convictions désagréables et effrayantes. Les principales accusées s'appellent le Kop of Boulogne.

L'action le plus récent du Kop démontre ce qu'il peux accomplir: Le 28 février, 2010, un supporteur du club parisien est grièvement blessé à la tête et au visage, lors du match PSG-Marseille, et puis est évacué vers l'hôpital en un état critique, où il meurt. 19 supporteurs du PSG sont déférés au parquet.

Incident violent entre les supporteurs parisens lors du match PSG-OM

Un incident plus choquant est du 24 novembre, 2006 lors d'un match entre le PSG et l'Hapoël Tel-Aviv d'Israël. Âpres la défaite des parisiens 4-2, un des supporteurs du PSG est poursuivi par certains des supporteurs antisémites des Boulogne Boys (appartient du Kop of Boulogne). Un policier a tué le partisan du PSG en tirant deux coups de feu. Deux personnes des Boys aussi ont été touchées.

Ces deux incidents de violence ne sont pas tous que les racistes et antisémites de certains parts de supporteurs du PSG a fait dans l'histoire du club. Pour éluder un cas de violence dans le futur, non seulement pour le PSG mais aussi pour le football français, il faut agir en France pour des changements aux matchs de foot. Il ne faut pas que dissoudre le PSG, comme Christophe Barbier de l'Express dit, et l'arborant d'un brassard avec les mots « Un parc sans violence » est un début dans la juste direction. Ce pourrait être que le PSG, s'ils ont des incidences violents dans le future, jouera les prochain nombres des matchs avec un stade sans supporteurs. Il faut que éliminer le racisme au Parc des Princes, et si ça signifie que le Kop of Boulogne est annulé, c'est bon pour le football parisien et français.

FIFA World Cup 2010 Preview, Part Two

GROUP E

The Netherlands (Rank 3)

The Netherlands returns to the World Cup on the back of yet another dominating qualifying campaign in which they won every game they played, conceding just twice and scoring 17 in the process. Boasting a star-studded lineup, the Dutch will be looking to finally come away with a trophy to show for their efforts, after having gone so close in previous tournaments. The Netherlands has a tendency to win games earlier in the tournament in style, but then when it comes to the do-or-die part, they will crash, as shown in their quarterfinal exit from Euro 2008 and the round of 16 match against Portgual in the 2006 edition of the World Cup. With Arjen Robben, Dirk Kuyt, and Mark van Bommel pulling the strings and shooting lights out, the Dutch should be a strong favorite for a semi-final place, if not the promised land of winning the tournament.

Arjen Robben

Denmark (Rank 34)

The Danes make a return to a big international tournament, after missing the World Cup 2006 in Germany and Euro 2008 in Austria/Switzerland. Denmark has shown that they are a very smart, capable team, after finishing ahead of favorites Sweden and Portugal in their qualifying group. Denmark has had strong showings at prior World Cups, advancing to the second round in 2002 and the quarterfinals in 1998, before losing to England and Brazil, respectively. If they want to do more of the same in South Africa, Denmark will need to rely on more of the same style of solid defense, controlled passing, and clinical shooting that got them through their qualification group at the expense of heavyweights Portugal and Sweden. Christian Poulsen, Dennis Rommedahl, Nicklas Bendtner, and Daniel Agger are the talents that have the ability to change a game in Denmark's favor, and they have a very good chance to get through this group and possibly spring a surprise once they get to the knockout rounds.

Japan (Rank 45)

Perennial Asian heavyweights Japan return for their fourth appearance at a World Cup. In 2006, Japan had a disappointing tournament, losing two and drawing one in the group stages. After reaching the second round at home in 2002, Japan would like to do the same in 2010. Finishing second to Australia in qualifying was something new for the Japanese, but perhaps a bit of competition in the Asian zone is just what Japan needs to get the extra cutting edge to advance out of their group. Japan's most well-known star is free kick specialist and midfielder Shunsuke Nakamura, who spent several seasons in Europe before heading back to Japan in the past year. Japan will have a tough time getting out of such a competitive group, similar to the strength of the group they were in in Germany. Japan will need to shore up their defense and look to the midfield to create plays that will allow them to not lose control of the game. A great result for Japan would be the second round, but it is more likely that fans will be disappointed once again.

Cameroon (Rank 20)

Cameroon is Africa's highest ranked nation, according to FIFA, and they will look to improve upon their last three outings at a World Cup, in which they failed to advance past the group stage. After starting their qualifying campaign with two straight draws, Cameroon pulled out four straight wins and finished ahead of Morocco. Star forward Samuel Eto'o will be relied upon to score the goals for Cameroon, with midfielder Alexandre Song hoping to provide the service required. The African nation will come in to the World Cup as a bit of an underdog, considering their inconsistent results over the past couple of years, but should they keep the goals out of their own net, they have a great chance at avoiding an early elimination at the group stages once again.

GROUP F

Italy (Rank 5)

Defending World Cup champions Italy are being touted as one of the favorites to win it all again, with head coach Marcello Lippi sticking around after the triumph of 2006. Italy hasn't played with the penache that they've been known for recently, but it was enough to finish top of their group with a game to spare in qualifying. Striker Alberto Gilardino will be relied upon to score goals for the Azzurri, while world-class goalkeepr Gianluigi Buffon will be tough to beat, as always. Italy definitely have the skill required to get out of their group, but many players on their squad are aging or already old, and they might not have the gas in the tank to keep up with other teams who have fresher legs. If they can rely upon experience as they did in 2006 to take up the slack, then Italy can go far again.

Alberto Gilardino

Paraguay (Rank 23)

Paraguay will have high hopes of performing the best they ever have at a World Cup, coming off of their best-ever showing in qualifying for the South America zone. Paraguay has always been known to be efficient in defense, and this year's squad is no different. What is different, is their offense, which is led by Roque Santa Cruz. Paraguay should be able to do enough to get out of their group, but it remains to be seen whether their offense can create enough chances to do more damage than just the second round.

New Zealand (Rank 79)

The Kiwis will be returning to the World Cup after 28 years in the wilderness, following their spectacular playoff series win over Bahrain. Though they say they aren't there to just make up the numbers, the odds don't look good for this tradtionally rugby-mad country. Captain Ryan Nelsen will be relied upon for his experience and consistency in defense, but the truth is, New Zealand simply lacks the firepower up front or creativity in the midfield to truly compete at this World Cup.

Slovakia (Rank 33)

Surprise qualifiers Slovakia will be making their first ever appearance at a FIFA World Cup. Slovakia finished top of their group ahead of Slovenia after defeating Poland 1-0 away on the last matchday. While not as star-filled as Italy or Denmark, Slovenia have some aces up their sleeves in Martin Skrtel and Stanislav Sestak. Their opponents in qualifying underestimated them, and it's likely that the same could happen in South Africa. However, Slovakia hasn't been at this stage of football before, and their lack of experience may hinder them. It could come down to a battle with Paraguay over who will finish behind Italy and advance to the next round.

GROUP G

Brazil (Rank 2)

You can't talk about World Cup contenders without talking about Brazil, too. The five-time champions are once again heavily favored to add to their trophy cabinet in South Africa. Brazil finished top of the South American qualifiers, but some early setbacks incensed the fans and put pressure on inexperienced coach Dunga. Brazil has such a deep roster that they could even possibly field a second team and win the whole thing. Recent international triumphs, like winning the 2007 Copa America and the 2009 Confederations Cup will give Brazil the confidence they need to avenge the quarterfinal defeat to France they suffered in 2006. The South American heavyweights will be hoping that the pressure to win doesn't get to them, and if they don't have any mishaps, they should be considered a lock-in for the semifinals, if not the finals themselves.

Can Brazil win another World Cup?

Democratic People's Republic of Korea (Rank 105)

After spending more than 30 years in the wilderness, North Korea makes a surprising return to football's largest tournament. Getting there wasn't easy: starting from the very first hurdle of qualifying, the North Koreans had to endure 20 months and 16 games before finishing second behind their brethren, South Korea. North Korea's best result at a World Cup came in 1966, when they defeated Italy 1-0 before losing to Portugal in the quarterfinals. Don't expect such magical results this time, as the Koreans find themselves in a veritable group of death, with Brazil, Portugal, and Côte d'Ivoire competing for the top two spots. They may be able to spring a surprise draw, but that's about all you can expect to see from North Korea at this year's edition of the World Cup.

Côte d'Ivoire (Rank 25)

The Ivory Coast is seen by many as Africa's best chance at winning a first World Cup. Boasting star players Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou on offense, as well as Yaya Toure and Emmanuel Eboue on defense, the Africans are well-suited to go far in the tournament. Unfortunately, they were drawn in one of the hardest groups of the tournament, after a similar experience in Germany in 2006, where they exited early after 1-goal losses to the Netherlands and Argentina. The Ivorians will hope to learn from that experience, and if they can manage to get out of this tough group, they have a great chance at advancing far in the tournament.

Didier Drogba

Portgual (Rank 4)

Portugal will be looking to add to previous good showings at tournaments, but hopefully this time going a bit farther. A disappointing start to qualifying had Portugal on the cusp of being eliminated, but they turned it around for the second string of matches and managed a 2-0 aggregate win over Bosnia-Herzogovina to qualify for South Africa. All eyes will be on Cristiano Ronaldo, as his dazzling skills and spectacular goals are well-known. Portugal will have their hands full in Group G, however, and they will have to play much better than they did in qualifying, or there will be yet more disappointment and another 4 year wait for silverware.

Group H

Spain (Rank 1)

There hasn't been a better team in the world in the past 2 years than Spain. The Spanish kept rolling from the highs of winning Euro 2008 through World Cup qualifying, winning all 8 games they played. Spain has world-class players at virtuall every position, with Iker Casillas in goal, Xavi Hernandez in midfield, and Fernando Torres and David Villa at forward. Spain has gotten over their traditional disappointing performances at big tournaments after winning Euro 2008, and they look to have gotten the right mix of experience and desire to go all the way in 2010. They are one of the main favorites to win the tournament, and any team they face will have a tough time handling them.

Fernando Torres

Switzerland (Rank 20)

After making it to the round of 16 in Germany, the Swiss are returning and hoping for more in 2010. They almost didn't make it, after drawing to Israel and losing to minnows Luxembourg in the first two games of qualifying. However, the Swiss turned it around, with 5 wins on the trot to seal top spot ahead of the Greeks and qualify for South Africa. Striker Alexander Frei is the star player and captain for Switzerland, and they will have to rely on him to score goals, as their defense and midfield are strong enough to keep out the goals. If Switzerland can solve their offensive problems, they have a good chance at advancing out of this group and possibly going farther in the tournament.

Honduras (Rank 36)

Honduras makes a triumphant return for the second World Cup finals after missing out for over 28 years. If it hadn't been for a last-gasp equalizer by the Americans against Costa Rica, the Central Americans wouldn't be making this historic trip. Forwards Carlos Pavon and David Suazo are the main attacking threats for Honduras, with a strong defense rounding out the back. However, a lack of depth may be Honduras' undoing, as they'll face stiffer competition than they're used to. Their fans would like to argue differently, but Honduras will have too much of a hill to climb to get out of this group in June.

Chile (Rank 13)

Chile will be making a return to the World Cup after 12 years of being away. Boasting the youngest squad in South America, Chile finished only a point behind traditional heavyweights Brazil in qualifying, and their fans will be hoping to have more of the same cutting edge in South Africa. Chile's offense is not to be underestimated, as they scored 32 goals in helping to gain 10 wins, more than any other country in qualifying. The South Americans have the grit and resolve, as well as the offense needed to get the job done, Chile will be hoping to make up for lost time and should battle Switzerland for second spot in Group H.

Contenders: Brazil, Spain, England, Germany, the Netherlands, Argentina

Pretenders: Italy, Portugal, Côte d'Ivoire

Dark Horses: Australia, Serbia, Chile, United States

FIFA World Cup 2010 Preview, Part One

2010 FIFA World Cup Preview

The 2010 edition of the FIFA World Cup looms ahead of us, beginning in June. Much has been said about the problems the host country, South Africa, has or may have in hosting such a large event, but for now, we'll leave that part of the tournament aside. What footy fans are interested in are the games, and this tournament promises to be one to remember. Looking at all the qualified teams and the different groups, there probably has not been a prior World Cup with so many strong, competent teams and so few minnows, or teams that were expected to be destroyed. 32 teams in 8 groups of 4 teams each, playing in stadiums in 10 different cities in South Africa, the first country from that continent to host football's largest spectacle. With only the top two teams from each group going on to the next round, every single game takes on a monumental importance, as entire nations will hold their breath over the 90 minutes of the match. Who will do well? Who will disappoint? Who will surprise?

GROUP A

South Africa (Rank 88)

The hosts will finally get the chance to show the world how good their country can play. Unfortunately, this is probably not a good thing for them. Currently ranked 88^th, the Samba Warriors are missing the star power and talent that the powerhouses in Group A have. Their recent friendlies have been mixed, sometimes being terrible, sometimes mediocre, managing losses against Germany, Ireland, Norway, Serbia, and Iceland, with wins against Madagascar and Namibia to go with draws against Jamaica and Japan. However, no host nation has ever been eliminated before the second round, and South Africa's rabid fans will no doubt give them an extra advantage against their opponents. Home fans, while massive for motivating and improving performance (see: Korea, 2002) does not necessarily equate to results (see: Austria and Switzerland, Euro 2008). If South Africa play their hearts out, and are able to stay focused for every game, they may be able to pull an upset or two, but it's more likely that they go out, as their defense isn't strong enough and their offense not powerful enough to keep out the likes of France or Mexico.

Mexico (Rank 17)

Mexico comes into this World Cup with the expectations of a nation of 100 million, all hoping their country finally delivers on potential and breaks through the glass ceiling of the quarterfinals that has kept them in check at prior tournaments. Earlier in the qualifying campaign, it was unclear at one point whether Mexico would even qualify, as their form away from home was the exact opposite of when they were playing at their fortress of the Azteca stadium. However, coach Javier Aguirre seems to have righted the ship and they finished second in CONCACAF behind the United States. With players of the likes of Omar Bravo and Giovani Dos Santos, among others, Mexico is a very talented and dangerous team, capable of playing at the highest level and against the most elite nations. However, Mexico has a tendency to underperform in World Cups as of late, and when the time comes in big games, they implode. If they are able to keep their cool, stay on track, and play the way they can play, they have the potential to go quite far in South Africa.

Uruguay (Rank 18)

Though only a small country of 3 million, Uruguay is a regular competitor at FIFA World Cups, and this edition should be no different. Finishing 5^th in qualifying once again (they finished the same in 2005 but were eliminated in the play-off by Australia), Uruguay completed a 2-1 aggregate win over Costa Rica to qualify for the finals in South Africa. Uruguay has a squad of players coming from both South America and European leagues, with star players such as Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez adding firepower. Hardworking on both offense and defense, the former 1930 World Champions will be looking to advance past the round of 16 for the first time since 1970. Uruguay has shown they are capable of competing against the big teams, which they will have to do if they want to get out of the group. They also sometimes come up short in matches that they need to win, such as the 1-0 loss at home to Argentina that would have guaranteed them qualification. Look to Uruguay to be competitive in their chances at advancing to the round of 16.

France (Rank 8)

France is a traditional powerhouse of European and international football, but the past couple of years have left much to be improved upon for the French. After their disastrous showing at Euro 2008, France finished second in their qualifying group behind Serbia, with less-than-stellar performances against Romania and Lithuania along the way. It took a second-leg handball in Paris to put away the Irish in the play-offs, but France got the job done. Offensive firepower with the likes of Thierry Henry, Franck Ribery, and Nicolas Anelka to go along with defensive and midfield stalwarts such as William Gallas and Jeremy Toulalan providing balance to what should be, on paper, a team capable of challenging for the cup. However, coach Raymond Domenech has consistently appeared to manage to turn France into a bumbling, boring, and underperforming monstrosity. If his players play the way they know they can, despite his influence, than they can achieve a similar result to the World Cup 2006, where France finished second. Recent results, though, paint a different picture, and it could very well be that the French fans will be disappointed come June.

How France qualified

This group is, like many of the other groups, very interesting, and not easy to say who will definitively qualify for the next round. All the clubs have a very good chance of advancing and being eliminated earlier than expected. It will come down to which side shows up; if Mexico and France play up to their potential, they'll advance. If not, it could come down to goal differential, as each match should be closely fought.

GROUP B

Argentina (Rank 9)

Like France, Argentina is a traditional football powerhouse who just managed to qualify and is coming in playing under their normal high standards. Head coach and veritable god Diego Maradona managed to prove the doubters wrong and eaked out back-to-back 1-0 wins to secure qualification, saving face for what had truly been an awful campaign, with a 6-1 loss to Bolivia and an even more painful defeat at home to arch-rivals Brazil, only the second time ever that Argentina had lost at home. La Albiceleste boast immense star power, with Lionel Messi prominent among them, widely regarded as the best player in the game today. Despite their prior stumbling in qualifying, Argentina should easily get out of their group, but it remains to be seen how they willl fare in crunch time against bigger opponents.

Lionel Messi

Nigeria (Rank 22)

African powerhouse Nigeria has seen their fortunes dip a bit in the past couple of years, but their resilience is alive as ever, as evidenced by their qualifying campaign, in which they got off to a bad start with three straight draws before barely finishing ahead of Tunisia, courtesy of a come-from-behind 3-2 win against Kenya in the last match that sealed their place in South Africa. Nigeria will be looking to at least equal their prior achievements of reaching the second round at the World Cup in 1994 and 1998. The team, nicknamed the Super Eagles, will be relying upon star player Obafemi Martins to score the goals needed to get out of Group B. Nigeria has a better chance than either Korea or Greece at finishing behind Argentina, but the gap is really not that large, and it will most likely end up being a three-way fight for second place in the group among those countries.

Republic of Korea (Rank 49)

Korea is a frequent and consistent player at the World Cup. The problem is doing something once they're there. Fans can point to the fourth-place finish at the 2002 edition, which they hosted, but the reality is, Korea has not accomplished much of anything else at a finals hosted outside of their own country. As well, their qualifying campaign got off to a bumpy start before finally squeaking through with a 2-0 win against the United Arab Emirates. Captain Park-Ji Sung will be relied upon to orchestrate Korea's attack, which will need to extra-potent, as their defense is usually strong enough to keep the score low. If the offense doesn't show up, Korea will make yet another premature exit at the sport's most high-profile event.

Greece (Rank 11)

After coming out of nowhere to win Euro 2004 against all odds, Greece performed quite disappointingly, missing qualification for the 2006 World Cup and leaving Euro 2008 at the group stages. However, this is only the second ever World Cup Greece will have participated in, and excitement is running high. German coach Otto Rehhagel has shown what he is capable of, as Greece defeated the likes of Portugal, France, and Spain at Euro 2004 despite not having anywhere near the amount of famous names as those countries. However, it is likely that Greece will prove that Euro 2004 was more of a fluke than anything, although it is still possible they can get out of this group with strong performances against teams not named Argentina. Anything beyond the second round would be fantastic beyond most people's expectations of the Mediterranean nation.

GROUP C

England (Rank 7)

A reinvigorated English squad comes into South Africa looking to add to their sole World Cup trophy in 1966. Bouncing back from the disappointment of failing to qualify for Euro 2008, England sailed through their World Cup qualifying group, winning nine out of their ten games and scoring 34 goals in the process, the highest for any European country. Under Italian coach Fabio Capello, England appears to have finally transformed their enormous potential into performance. With household names such as Lampard, Terry, Ferdinand, Rooney, and Gerrard, the English team is packed full of players who ply their trade in one of the best leagues in the world, the Barclay's Premier League. Under Capello, England has achieved many impressive results, and there is no reason to suggest that this cannot continue in South Africa. One factor which may hamper England is the length of their domestic season, which, unlike other countries, does not take a Winter break and plays well into May, which may exhaust players before heading to the World Cup in June. If Wayne Rooney is healthy, look for him to score the goals that could propel England to a much-awaited second World Cup title.

Wayne Rooney

United States (Rank 16)

The United States enters sixth consecutive finals aiming to improve upon their 2006 showing, where they were eliminated from a tough group that included Italy and the Czech Republic with one draw and two losses, only scoring one goal. The U.S.'s qualifying run started off in the best possible way, with yet another 2-0 win over arch-rivals Mexico. After disappointing losses to Costa Rica and Mexico away from home, the Americans secured qualification with a nerve-wracking 3-2 win in Honduras, with the game-tying penalty kick for the Hondurans missing in the final minutes. Coach Bob Bradley has often fiddled with the lineup in friendly matches, but he is guaranteed to pick Landon Donovan to come to South Africa. The Los Angeles Galaxy star will look to control play and create goals, along with the likes of Clint Dempsey, Oguchi Onyewu, Michael Bradley, and Jozy Altidore also hoping to play a role. The U.S. will hope they can emulate their performance at the 2009 Confederations Cup, which saw them hand Spain a surprising defeat and jump out to a 2-0 lead over Brazil before finally succumbing. All eyes will be on the first match of the finals against England, but the true litmus test for the U.S. will come against Algeria and Slovenia. Barring any hiccups, the Americans should be able to at least advance to the second round, with their hopes on something beyond that as well.

Algeria (Rank 27)

Algeria made it to the first finals appearance in 24 years on the back of a nailbiting playoff win against Egypt, a result which caused riots in Africa and Europe. Despite their excitement at beating their rivals and finally returning to the world stage, Algeria will have their work cut out for them. A lack of experience at this type of tournament will probably harm their prospects, as their 4-0 loss in the semifinals of the Africa Cup of Nations showed. However, in the same tournament, Algeria defeated heavy favorite Côte d'Ivoire 3-2 and will be looking to do more giant-killing in South Africa. Unless Algeria can shore up its defense, figure a way for its midfield to be more creative, and capitalize on the chances they get, their stay at the tournament will end like their other trips, at the group stage.

Slovenia (Rank 29)

The small eastern-European nation of Slovenia defied the odds to beat bigger teams like the Czech Republic, Poland, and Russia to qualify for their second tournament since independence in 1991. Slovenia's bread and butter in qualifying was their defense, allowing a measly four goals in ten matches. a feat only bettered by the Netherlands (who played 2 games fewer). If Slovakia hadn't beat Poland 1-0 away in the final match of the qualification period, Slovenia wouldn't have needed to go through a two-legged playoff against Russia. Despite being the overwhelming underdog, Slovenia produced a masterful effort to defeat the Russians 1-0 in the second leg to achieve a 2-2 tie on aggregate, with their goal scored in Moscow counting for twice due to the away-goals rule. Lacking the star power that fellow group members England or USA have, Slovenia will have to rely upon their opponent underestimating them once again, as well as their defence staying as airtight as possible to secure the points needed to advance. A realistic goal would be for second place in Group C, with the reward of advancing to the second round being phenomenal for the Slovenians.

GROUP D

Germany (Rank 6)

The reliable Germans are once again among the contenders at the World Cup. Die Mannschaft finished first in their group, courtesy of a 1-0 win in Moscow that forced Russia to go to the playoff against Slovenia. Germany will be looking to once again go deep in the tournament, hoping to add to their three wins of 1954, 1976, and 1990, along with a second place in 2002 and third place in 2006. Captain Michael Ballack will hope to finally guide his country to glory, after falling short in the final of Euro 2008 against Spain. Miroslav Klose will most likely be there to put the ball in the back of the net, and the Germans will more likely than not find their way in the latter stages of the tournament, though they may not be pretty or stylish in doing so.

Michael Ballack

Australia (Rank 19)

Australia has improved by leaps and bounds since switching their conference from Oceania to Asia several years ago. At the 2006 Wold Cup, only a cruel last-minute penalty by Italy eliminating them in the second round. Australia bounced back remarkably well, cruising by in their qualifying group, going undefeated and finishing five points ahead of Japan, their nearest challenger. Dutch coach Pim Verbeek has shown his tactical brilliance in prior matches, and he will look to do the same again in Group D. Australia's defense is generally solid, and they will rely on Tim Cahill and Harry Kewell to provide the goals that will secure their progress to the second round, the minimum that the Australians can expect in South Africa. The Socceroos have the potential to possibly go farther, and much will depend on how they perform against the more traditional footballing countries, like Germany.

Serbia (Rank 15)

When the qualifying groups were made known for the European zone, many expected France to come out on top. However, Serbia would be the ones finishing first after defeating Romania 5-0 on the last matchday. South Africa 2010 will be Serbia's first since independence in 2006, although it would really be more like their second in a row, considering they appeared as Serbia-Montenegro in Germany. Serbia will be counting on their defense, headed by Manchester United star Nemanja Vidic, to anchor their team in this competitive group. Serbia will have to learn their lessons from the last World Cup, where they also showed up with a fantastic defensive record before losing all three games they played in. If they can play the way they did against Romania or Japan, where they won 3-0 in Osaka, Serbia have a great chance at advancing to the second round, or even further.

Ghana (Rank 31)

The Black Stars are back again, after being the only African country to make it out of the group stage in 2006. Ghana will be looking to repeat their performance from then and add to their impressive results in international competitions, which include several Africa Cup of Nations titles, as well as two FIFA U-17 World Cups. Ghana was the first African country to qualify for the finals, losing just once and only conceding one goal throughout the entire phase. Ghana's strength is their midfield, led by Michael Essien, who, together with Sulley Muntari, will help to orchestrate attacking threats and clogging opponents' advances. If the midfield plays up to their potential, and the defense can over-perform somewhat, Ghana have a good chance at advancing to the second round, but they will need to have more in the engine if they want to be able to out-fox teams the bigger, more talented teams. They will likely have their hands full in each of their matches in a very competitive Group D.