Monday, 14 June 2010

Group B Preview

This group surely has to be Argentina plus one to progress into the knockout rounds. Diego Maradona's men only just managed to finish fourth in the CONMEBOL qualifying despite having the quality on paper to romp many teams. Messi and Tevez form a formidable strike force with Liverpool's Mascherano providing extra defensive and possession qualities. One slight problem with Argentina is that they have a slow defence which could be penetrated via counter-attacks or pacy wingers.

The team I think will progress with Argentina is South Korea; a lot of people seem to rate them off and are ranked much lower than I think is fair. The possess a decent with Manchester United's Ji Sung Park captaining the side along with ex-PSV Eindhoven and Tottenham star Lee Young-Pyo adding experience to the refreshing side. One possibility for their premature write off is the fact that they've never won a World Cup match outside of Korea, where they co-hosted the World Cup in 2002.

Greece and Nigeria complete the group and I think will finish bottom of the group. Greece lack results and outstanding talent within their ageing side, they depend on the likes of Karagounis, Charisteas and Seitaridis who have seemingly been around for ever and don't have the legs to provide quality for ninety minutes.

Nigeria could pose a threat with the likes of Odemwingie, Martins and Yakubu leading the attack, as long as the tactics are correct and they receive decent service from the midfield. Another plus point for Nigeria is their highly rated goalkeeper, 28 year old Vincent Enyeama who currently plays for Hapoel Tel-Aviv in Israel.

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