As we march into the final of World Cup 2010 with two teams that have never won it, there is little doubt that it has proved itself to be a World Cup of firsts.
Very few would have predicted at the start of the tournament that Netherlands would be sitting in the final so it may not be very wise to count them out of winning it despite the fact that Spain are clear favorites.
Spain’s possession football master class against Germany will have convinced any emerging doubters that the pre-tournament favorites remain the team to beat despite being dethroned by Brazil just before the World Cup as the World’s top ranked team.
It has been said time and again that Spain plays just like Barcelona and this should be of little surprise given who features in their midfield, the most critical part of the modern game. Even Dutch legend Johan Cruyff has been on record predicting a Spanish victory and great admiration of their style of play likened to his own “total football.”
For the superstitious, renowned psychic Paul the octopus has also tipped Spain to emerge triumphant. He is said to have an unblemished record in the tournament and has been spot on, correctly predicting all the results of his native Germany during the tournament. We however still have his prediction that Germany will finish 3rd to watch for.
Generally regarded as the best team to never lift the World Cup, Netherlands on the other hand finally has a chance to make amends for their failings of 1974 and 1978. The class of 2010 may not be as flamboyant as that “total football” era but they boast a record of 25 games unbeaten. This run includes a record 100% qualifying campaign and World Cup so far, potentially matching the great 1970 Brazil team as the only other team to achieve the feat.
Under Bert van Marwijk, Netherlands are clearly a team that has learnt how to win and they do not care whether this comes with flair or if they just have to grind out the result. While more star-studded predecessor squads often had success compromised by differences within the team, the class of 2010 seems to be unified in their quest. They are also not under as much pressure as their predecessors because not many genuinely gave them a chance before the tournament and they are likely to thrive as underdogs in the final.
Ardent believers that history tends to repeat itself will have very little to refer to for this clash. The records read Played 8: Holland 4 wins, 1 Draw, Spain 3 wins. Netherlands has however won the last two meetings in 2000 and 2001, but these were only friendly games, and Spain has since grown by leaps and bounds with especially their European Championship to draw confidence from. The only ‘modern’ competitive matches between these two came in the 1984 European Championship qualifiers but they had a win apiece.
If Spain is allowed to control the game the way they did against Germany, they will undoubtedly prevail.
Just like Mourinho did against Barcelona’s possession game in the just concluded European Champions League, Bert van Marwijk may however just uncover the strategy to have the last laugh. He does after all in Wesley Sneijder have the same weapon to call upon to shut up the mouths of his critics and probably put Paul the octopus out of business.
Friday, July 9, 2010
Monday, July 5, 2010
Your Pick for World Cup 2010 Finalists
Many thought the quarter final trend would help direct predictions about this World Cup’s finalists. Unfortunately, after the preceding set of four games, we were left at exactly the same point we were before a ball was kicked in the quarter finals.
Out of the eight teams, there was an even distribution of four previous World Cup champions and four that had never won it. We have exactly the same ratio for the semifinals with two previous champions and two that have never won it, so trend can unfortunately not guide your predictions at this stage.
Although Uruguay are amongst a select group of only five teams that have won the world Cup more than once, you would have to consider Netherlands to be favorites in this one given how both teams have performed in recent months.
The Dutch never tasted defeat during the World Cup qualifiers while Uruguay needed a playoff win over Costa Rica to squeak into the tournament. That Netherlands has actually maintained a 100% record in the tournament is evidence that they simply do not know how to lose. Widely considered to be the best team to have never lifted the World Cup, Netherlands has added steel to their traditional flair with great success that has included a come from behind defeat on pre-tournament favorites and record five-time world champion, Brazil.
On the other hand though, there is a football cliché that you have to be lucky to win tournaments and Uruguay has had that not only in booking their place to participate in the tournament but more so in getting to the semi-finals. Staring in the face of defeat, Ghana’s Asamoah Gyan with a perfect 2-in-2 World Cup spot kick record hit one that would have won the game and a place in the semifinals against the cross bar. While it is so hard to compete against luck, there is no arguing against Uruguay’s defensive organization and Forlan’s creativity in the final third. While Uruguay will definitely miss Luis Suarez who literally snatched history from Ghana and Africa’s hands, they are a very well organized – competitive outfit which still has the potential to snatch another victory especially if luck continues to smile on them.
The other semifinal will probably capture more attention as Spain the only truly surviving pre-tournament favorite facing arguably the best team in the tournament so far.
While many thought their inexperience would be exposed, the Germans have in stamping four consecutive goals against seasoned outfits of England and Argentina respectively done enough to create shock waves in any opponent’s camp.
Spain on the other hand had an unusually slow start to a major tournament losing to unfancied Switzerland in the opening game of the tournament. Many sports pundits believe that to win a tournament, a team needs to improve with each game and peak at the final hurdle.
With the experience of recently lifting the European Cup, generally considered to be tougher to win than the World Cup because the contesting teams are of a higher all round quality, you could say this Spain squad has now learnt how to win trophies.
With 3 previous titles under their belt, 3rd on the all time best list behind Italy and Brazil there will be no arguing against German pedigree. Thomas Muller with a record of 4 goals and 3 assists in the tournament will be a big loss for this game but with the traditional German organization and tactical awareness, they should be more than able to compensate for him.
Out of the eight teams, there was an even distribution of four previous World Cup champions and four that had never won it. We have exactly the same ratio for the semifinals with two previous champions and two that have never won it, so trend can unfortunately not guide your predictions at this stage.
Although Uruguay are amongst a select group of only five teams that have won the world Cup more than once, you would have to consider Netherlands to be favorites in this one given how both teams have performed in recent months.
The Dutch never tasted defeat during the World Cup qualifiers while Uruguay needed a playoff win over Costa Rica to squeak into the tournament. That Netherlands has actually maintained a 100% record in the tournament is evidence that they simply do not know how to lose. Widely considered to be the best team to have never lifted the World Cup, Netherlands has added steel to their traditional flair with great success that has included a come from behind defeat on pre-tournament favorites and record five-time world champion, Brazil.
On the other hand though, there is a football cliché that you have to be lucky to win tournaments and Uruguay has had that not only in booking their place to participate in the tournament but more so in getting to the semi-finals. Staring in the face of defeat, Ghana’s Asamoah Gyan with a perfect 2-in-2 World Cup spot kick record hit one that would have won the game and a place in the semifinals against the cross bar. While it is so hard to compete against luck, there is no arguing against Uruguay’s defensive organization and Forlan’s creativity in the final third. While Uruguay will definitely miss Luis Suarez who literally snatched history from Ghana and Africa’s hands, they are a very well organized – competitive outfit which still has the potential to snatch another victory especially if luck continues to smile on them.
The other semifinal will probably capture more attention as Spain the only truly surviving pre-tournament favorite facing arguably the best team in the tournament so far.
While many thought their inexperience would be exposed, the Germans have in stamping four consecutive goals against seasoned outfits of England and Argentina respectively done enough to create shock waves in any opponent’s camp.
Spain on the other hand had an unusually slow start to a major tournament losing to unfancied Switzerland in the opening game of the tournament. Many sports pundits believe that to win a tournament, a team needs to improve with each game and peak at the final hurdle.
With the experience of recently lifting the European Cup, generally considered to be tougher to win than the World Cup because the contesting teams are of a higher all round quality, you could say this Spain squad has now learnt how to win trophies.
With 3 previous titles under their belt, 3rd on the all time best list behind Italy and Brazil there will be no arguing against German pedigree. Thomas Muller with a record of 4 goals and 3 assists in the tournament will be a big loss for this game but with the traditional German organization and tactical awareness, they should be more than able to compensate for him.
Thursday, July 1, 2010
South Africa 2010: A World Cup of “Firsts”?
From that moment in Zurich when FIFA announced that South Africa would host the African continent’s first World Cup; the stage was arguably set for a number of World Cup “firsts”.
During the first round of the tournament, commentators were thriving on mentioning one monumental moment after another.
Slovakia contested in a World cup game for the first time as an independent nation against New Zealand while Slovenia won its first world cup point in the last gasp victory against Algeria.
In the last game of Group D, Kevin - Prince Boateng of Ghana and Jerome Boateng of Germany marked the first time that brothers played against each other in the tournament’s Eighty (80) year history.
While earlier World Cups have been graced by pairs of brothers featuring in the same national squad, Wilson, Johnny and Jerry Palacios of Honduras created a unique piece of history as the first trio to be listed in the same World Cup squad.
South Africa created less enviable history as the first host nation to be knocked out in the first round, while the United States took pride in topping a World Cup group for the first time since 1930. Ghana made it to the quarter finals for the first time in its very short World Cup history.
If the endless list of “firsts” at the inception of the tournament created a sense of expectation that we would have a first time World Cup winner, this was quickly diminished as we progressed through the second round.
After all the optimism the United States team had generated with its strong finishes to a series of first round games, they must have been hit with a sense of déjà vu when the final score read 1:2 to Ghana in the next round, the same score line of their last World Cup meeting in 2006.
When England faced Germany for the fifth time in World Cup history, not even their vastly superior experience would help them overcome an opponent that has consistently had their number since England’s famous 1966 triumph in the final.
Continuing with the familiar run, Argentina beat Mexico just like it did in 2002 and South Korea failed to win its first knock out game away from home soil.
So what trend is likely to prevail at the last hurdle and should guide our predictions on who will win World Cup 2010?
Of all quarter finalists, only Spain, Ghana, Paraguay and Netherlands have never won the World Cup.
Many predict that one of the most successful World Cup nations in Brazil or Germany will prevail. That no European team has ever lifted the World Cup on a foreign continent may lead many to quickly place their expectations on Brazil but this is quickly diluted by the fact that only two World Cups have been played outside Europe or South America.
During the first round of the tournament, commentators were thriving on mentioning one monumental moment after another.
Slovakia contested in a World cup game for the first time as an independent nation against New Zealand while Slovenia won its first world cup point in the last gasp victory against Algeria.
In the last game of Group D, Kevin - Prince Boateng of Ghana and Jerome Boateng of Germany marked the first time that brothers played against each other in the tournament’s Eighty (80) year history.
While earlier World Cups have been graced by pairs of brothers featuring in the same national squad, Wilson, Johnny and Jerry Palacios of Honduras created a unique piece of history as the first trio to be listed in the same World Cup squad.
South Africa created less enviable history as the first host nation to be knocked out in the first round, while the United States took pride in topping a World Cup group for the first time since 1930. Ghana made it to the quarter finals for the first time in its very short World Cup history.
If the endless list of “firsts” at the inception of the tournament created a sense of expectation that we would have a first time World Cup winner, this was quickly diminished as we progressed through the second round.
After all the optimism the United States team had generated with its strong finishes to a series of first round games, they must have been hit with a sense of déjà vu when the final score read 1:2 to Ghana in the next round, the same score line of their last World Cup meeting in 2006.
When England faced Germany for the fifth time in World Cup history, not even their vastly superior experience would help them overcome an opponent that has consistently had their number since England’s famous 1966 triumph in the final.
Continuing with the familiar run, Argentina beat Mexico just like it did in 2002 and South Korea failed to win its first knock out game away from home soil.
So what trend is likely to prevail at the last hurdle and should guide our predictions on who will win World Cup 2010?
Of all quarter finalists, only Spain, Ghana, Paraguay and Netherlands have never won the World Cup.
Many predict that one of the most successful World Cup nations in Brazil or Germany will prevail. That no European team has ever lifted the World Cup on a foreign continent may lead many to quickly place their expectations on Brazil but this is quickly diluted by the fact that only two World Cups have been played outside Europe or South America.
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