World Cup Guide: Group H Preview

GROUP H

SPAIN

FIFA World Ranking: 2

Team Colours: Red shirts with yellow trim, blue shorts with yellow trim, red socks. Away kit is dark blue shirts with red and yellow trim, dark blue shorts with red and yellow trim, dark blue socks.

Manager: Vicente del Bosque came out of semi-retirement, having not coached since leaving Besiktas in 2005, to take charge of Spain following their Euro 2008 triumph and has carried on in much the same way that his predecessor, Luis Aragones, left off, relying on one-touch passing through midfield, and has had plenty of success. Del Bosque is best known for his four year stint at the helm of Real Madrid between 1999 and 2003, during which he won the Intercontinental Cup and twice won La Liga and the Champions League.

Form: Scary. Spain have won all but one game under del Bosque (the one loss being to the USA in the Confederations Cup semi last summer), including a 100% record in a qualifying group which included tricky sides like Turkey and Bosnia & Herzegovina. In the last few months they have comfortably beaten Argentina and France in friendlies, and more recently they’ve swept their warmup matches, beating Saudi Arabia, South Korea, and most impressively, Poland by six goals to no reply. At the moment Spain are something of a machine.

Captain: Goalkeeper Iker Casillas is right up there with Buffon and Julio Cesar squabbling over who gets to be called the best keeper in the world, and the 29-year-old, who has made nearly 400 appearances for Real Madrid, is an inspirational figure between the sticks, regularly pulling off saves that he has no right to make. Will forever be idolised in Spain for being the captain that broke their 44-year duck to lead La Seleccion to triumph at Euro 2008.

Key Man: It seems frankly rude to pick just one out of the Spanish line-up, but even in such mighty company, David Villa strikes out. The Barcelona-bound striker is simply the most impressive forward in the world game right now, terrorising defences all over the world with his searing pace, clinical finishing and, for Spain, his perfect understanding with Fernando Torres, who, you may have heard, is also a bit talented. He can drop deep to aid in the build-up play from around the midfield or drift wide only to cut back inside to devastating effect.

Man to Watch: The only reason why Sevilla winger Jesus Navas only has six caps to his name is a serious anxiety problem that forced him to retire from international football before making a single appearance soon after he emerged in the Spanish game, but last year he resolved to overcome his condition and force his way into the squad for South Africa. Spanish fans will be delighted – Navas has enjoyed his best season yet for the Andalucian side, maturing into a more effective, destructive player than ever before. His pace with and without the ball really has to be seen to be believed. Expect to see Navas come off the bench to run at tired left-backs down the right flank and cause havoc in the opposition box.

Prediction: There are a couple of injury worries over two-parts-of-the-same-player midfield passing robots Xavi and Andres Iniesta but they should be fit to play, but the Spanish need not worry all that much anyway – they have by far the deepest squad in the tournament, particularly in midfield, where world-class talents Cesc Fabregas, Juan Manuel Mata, Jesus Navas and Sergio Busquets will probably all be on the bench. The only barrier to Spain bulldozing their way to what could be the most beautiful World Cup win ever is the mental hurdle of the World Cup – obviously they got the monkey off their back by winning the Euros, but the biggest tournament of all is another kettle of fish,if you pardon my mixing of zoological metaphors. That said, I can’t look past Spain to win this year. Their probable final clash with Brazil should be a belter, as well.

Squad List:

Goalkeepers

1. Iker Casillas, captain (Real Madrid)

12. Victor Valdes (Barcelona)

23. Pepe Reina (Liverpool)

Defenders

2. Raul Albiol (Real Madrid)

3. Gerard Pique (Barcelona)

4. Carlos Marchena (Valencia)

5. Carles Puyol (Barcelona)

11. Joan Capdevila (Villarreal)

15. Sergio Ramos (Real Madrid)

17. Alvaro Arbeloa (Real Madrid)

Midfielders

6. Andres Iniesta (Barcelona)

8. Xavi (Barcelona)

10. Cesc Fabregas (Arsenal)

13. Juan Manuel Mata (Valencia)

14. Xabi Alonso (Real Madrid)

16. Sergio Busquets (Barcelona)

20. Javi Martinez (Athletic Bilbao)

21. David Silva (Valencia)

22. Jesus Navas (Sevilla)

Forwards

7. David Villa (Barcelona)

9. Fernando Torres (Liverpool)

18. Pedro Rodriguez (Barcelona)

19. Fernando Llorente (Athletic Bilbao)

SWITZERLAND

FIFA World Ranking: 24

Team Colours: Red shirts with white trim, white shorts, red socks. Away kit is the inverse.

Manager: Ottmar Hitzfeld’s CV commands respect – one of only three men to win the Champions League with two different clubs (Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich), he’s won the Bundesliga seven times and the Intercontinental Cup twice. He’s more than familiar with Swiss football having played there for nine years and managed three Swiss clubs before going on to achieve so much in Germany, where he was named the greatest Bundesliga coach of all time as well as Bayern Munich’s best ever coach. Not bad.

Form: Switzerland started qualifying very slowly – a 1-1 draw with Israel was followed by an embarrassing loss to Luxembourg – but picked themselves up to finish top of their group ahead of Greece, including a five-game winning streak. Their warmup games haven’t been much good, though – they lost against Uruguay and a distinctly average Costa Rica side, but picked up enough to draw 1-1 with Italy on Saturday.

Captain: FC Basel striker Alexander Frei is his country’s all-time leading goalscorer and certainly one of the most capable players in the Swiss squad. He scores hatfuls of goals wherever he goes – including 48 in 100 games for Rennes, 31 in 69 for Borussia Dortmund and now 15 in 19 for his hometown club which he returned to last summer. With 40 in 73 internationals, Frei is very much the focal point of the Swiss attack and will want to make up for Euro 2008, where he was taken off injured during the first match and never featured again in the tournament.

Key Man: Udinese defensive midfielder Gokhan Inler has long been linked with a move a big Premier League club, and if Switzerland do well you can be sure those rumours will resurface. Sitting in the centre of the Swiss engine room, Inler’s tough, dominating approach governs his team’s play, and if he can be shut out of the game, opponents will find a much less cohesive unit in their way.

Man to Watch: Known amusingly as “Forrest Gump” for the way he’s constantly running, Lazio right-back Stephan Lichtsteiner should be an energetic presence for Switzerland. After ignoring interesting from Paris Saint-Germain and Everton following his performances at Euro 2008, Lichtsteiner has formed a potent partnership with Serbian man to watch Aleksandar Kolarov at Lazio and can be deployed further forward at right midfield if required.

Prediction: Switzerland are plenty willing but, Frei aside, lack attacking potency. If anything happens to their captain I can’t see where the goals are going to come from and they should be too rigid to trouble the likes of Spain and Chile in this group. An early exit for Hitzfeld’s boys beckons.

Squad List:

Goalkeepers

1. Diego Benaglio (Wolfsburg)

12. Marco Wolfli (Young Boys)

21. Johnny Leoni (FC Zurich)

Midfielders

2. Stephan Lichtsteiner (Lazio)

3. Ludovic Magnin (FC Zurich)

4. Philippe Senderos (Fulham)

5. Steve von Bergen (Hertha Berlin)

13. Stephane Grichting (Auxerre)

17. Reto Ziegler (Sampdoria)

22. Mario Eggimann (Hannover 96)

Midfielders

6. Benjamin Huggel (FC Basel)

7. Tranquillo Barnetta (Bayer Leverkusen)

8. Gokhan Inler (Udinese)

11. Valon Behrami (West Ham United)

14. Marco Padalino (Sampdoria)

15. Hakan Yakin (Luzern)

16. Gelson Fernandes (Saint Etienne)

20. Pirmin Schwegler (Eintracht Frankfurt)

23. Xherdan Shaqiri (FC Basel)

Forwards

9. Alexander Frei, captain (FC Basel)

10. Blaise Nkufo (Seattle Sounders)

18. Albert Bunjaku (Nurnberg)

19. Eren Derdiyok (Bayer Leverkusen)

HONDURAS

FIFA World Ranking: 38

Team Colours: White shirts with blue trim and a short horizontal stripe across the chest in various shades of  blue, white shorts, white socks. Away kit is blue shirts with both lighter and darker blue trim and the same stripe, blue shorts, blue socks.

Manager: Colombian Reinaldo Rueda’s first management job saw him lead the Colombian Under-20s to third place in the 2003 FIFA World Youth Championship, and soon after he was promoted to the main job for qualifying for the 2006 World Cup, where he picked up a team in disarray and steered them to a mid-table finish in South America. Since taking the reins at Honduras in early 2007 he has won great popularity by returning Honduras to the tournament they last participated in in 1982.

Form: Honduras surprisingly came top of their third round qualifying group ahead of Mexico, as well as Jamaica and Canada, before edging out Costa Rica on goal difference to reach South Africa automatically, and condemning Costa Rica to a playoff with Uruguay that they went on to lose. They never really set the world alight, though, and would have missed out on the trip to South Africa if the USA had not come from behind to snatch a draw with the Costa Ricans. Their warmups could have gone a lot better – losses to Venezuela and Romania and draws with Belarus and Azerbaijan aren’t good enough to signal that this team will be competitive this summer.

Captain: Attacking midfielder Amado Guevara is Honduras’ most capped player of all time, having won 135 caps over 16 years in the international side. He spent a few years in the MLS with the New York Red Bulls and Toronto FC but now plies his trade in the Honduran league with Motagua. The crowning moment of his career so far was being named MVP in the Copa America in 2001, a tournament which Honduras only entered a day before it started when Argentina pulled out, and he led them to a shock semifinal finish that year – I doubt he’s dreaming that far ahead in South Africa though.

Key Man: Look no further than evergreen striker Carlos Pavon, according to a poll, the most popular footballer in the world. The 36-year-old journeyman, who’s played for 14 different teams, some of them two or three times, has nabbed 57 goals in exactly 100 international games and remains Honduras’ main man up front. Currently still banging them in for Real Espana in Honduras, his first club whom he has played for in five separate spells, Pavon will be keen to take this last chance on the world stage.

Man to Watch: Keep an eye out for Pavon’s understudy, the magnificently named Georgie Welcome, another Motagua player who scored an incredible goal for Honduras in a friendly against Latvia in November.

Prediction: Despite a couple of very good players – Tottenham’s Wilson Palacios is another, more well-known face who can cause problems for any team – Honduras look pretty limited and results recently have been far from encouraging. A lack of high-level know-how throughout the team will be a stumbling block when it comes to overcoming canny sides like Switzerland and Chile, and though they have the potential to manage it, it would be an upset if Honduras won a game here.

Squad List:

Goalkeepers

1. Ricardo Canales (Motagua)

18. Noel Valladares (Olimpia)

22. Donis Escober (Olimpia)

Defenders

2. Osman Chavez (Platense)

3. Maynor Figueroa (Wigan)

4. Johnny Palacios (Olimpia)

5. Victor Bernardez (Anderlecht)

14. Oscar Boniek Garcia (Olimpia)

16. Mauricio Sabillon (Hangzhou Nabel Greentown)

21. Emilio Izaguirre (Motagua)

23. Sergio Mendoza (Motagua)

Midfielders

6. Hendry Thomas (Wigan)

7. Ramon Nunez (Olimpia)

8. Wilson Palacios (Tottenham)

10. Julio Cesar de Leon (Torino)

13. Roger Espinosa (Kansas City Wizards)

17. Edgar Alvarez (Bari)

19. Danilo Turcios (Olimpia)

20. Amada Guevara, captain (Motagua)

Forwards

9. Carlos Pavon (Real Espana)

11. David Suazo (Inter)

12. Georgie Welcome (Motagua)

15. Walter Martinez (Marathon)

CHILE

FIFA World Ranking: 18

Team Colours: Red shirts with white trim, blue shorts, white socks. Away kit is white shirts with blue trim, white shorts, blue socks.

Manager: Marcelo Bielsa’s last appearance at the World Cup, as coach of Argentina in 2002, did not go so well, with his native side being knocked out of the Group of Death, but he was surprisingly allowed to continue until he resigned in 2004. He didn’t take another job until Chile came calling in 2007 and has been busy turning them into a seriously good side since then. Fans are currently campaigning for him to renew his contract, which ends after the World Cup, so he must be doing something right.

Form: The youngest South American side at the finals romped to second in the South American qualifying group, clinching their plane tickets with a game to spare thanks to an entertaining 4-2 defeat of Colombia. They scored more than half of their points away from home and were the second highest scorers in the group, playing a strange 3-3-1-3 formation and winning with style and resolve. A 1-0 loss to Mexico aside, their friendlies have gone well, with wins over Trinidad & Tobago, Zambia, Northern Ireland and Israel, the latter two being played on the same day by two separate Chilean XIs, as Bielsa tested out every one of his 23-man squad plus a few extra players to make up the numbers. There’s strength in depth in this side.

Captain: Claudio Bravo, who plays in goal for Spanish second divison side Real Sociedad, has recently returned from an injury that ended his league season in February, shortly after he scored his first career goal with a free kick. He has captained the side ever since legendary striker Marcelo Salas retired from internationals in 2007. Chile will be hoping he has no lingering fitness worries as they don’t really have an adequate backup in his position.

Key Man: Definitely Monterrey striker Humberto Suazo, a brilliant forward man who topped the South American goal charts in qualifying with ten goals, and has spent the past few months on loan at Real Zaragoza. A prolific scorer in the Chilean leagues with a strike rate in the region of two in three, it’s a wonder the 29-year-old hasn’t been snapped up by a European side yet, but he may well get his chance with a good showing in South Africa.

Man to Watch: Sitting in behind Suazo and the strikers will be Sporting CP’s Matias Fernandez. The former Villarreal man is brilliantly creative with a magical dribble and is a serious dangerman for Chile, whose three forwards will either feed off him to get in a scoring position or draw the defenders away from him and allow him to pop up at the last minute to tuck the ball away. Only 24 years old, Fernandez could become a big star as a result of the exposure here.

Prediction: Chile were excellent in qualifying and look ready to impress people in South Africa. They’ll score plenty of goals and their unusual formation should create problems for the European sides who only really play 4-4-2 or 4-3-3 these days. I don’t think they’ll have any trouble coming second in this group and might even give Spain a scare, and if anyone can beat Brazil in the second round, it’s them.

Squad List:

Goalkeepers

1. Claudio Bravo, captain (Real Sociedad)

12. Miguel Pinto (Universidad de Chile)

23. Luis Marin (Union Espanola)

Defenders

2. Ismael Fuentes (Universidad Catolica)

3. Waldo Ponce (Universidad Catolica)

4. Mauricio Isla (Udinese)

5. Pablo Contreras (PAOK)

17. Gary Medel (Boca Juniors)

18. Gonzalo Jara (West Brom)

Midfielders

6. Carlos Carmona (Lazio)

8. Arturo Vidal (Bayer Leverkusen)

10. Jorge Valdivia (Al-Ain)

13. Marco Estrada (Montpellier)

14. Matias Fernandez (Sporting CP)

19. Gonzalo Fierro (Flamengo)

20. Rodrigo Millar (Colo-Colo)

21. Rodrigo Tello (Besiktas)

Forwards

7. Alexis Sanchez (Udinese)

9. Humberto Suazo (Monterrey)

11. Mark Gonzalez (CSKA Moscow)

15. Jean Beausejour (America)

16. Fabian Orellana (Xerez)

22. Esteban Paredes (Colo-Colo)

World Cup Guide: Group A Preview

Only eight days to go! I am becoming ludicrously excited about the World Cup, and so it’s about time to get started on the group-by-group team preview. One will be posted here every day and then on Friday the 11th, the real action starts.

GROUP A
South Africa

FIFA World Ranking: 83

Team Colours: Yellow shirts with green trim, green shorts with yellow trim, yellow socks. Away kit is the inverse.

Manager: 67-year-old Brazilian Carlos Alberto Parreira is in his second spell in charge of South Africa, having previously resigned in April 2008 before being brought back in October last year. He is hugely well-traveled, and shared the world record of having been one of only two coaches to take four different teams to a World Cup (Kuwait in 1982, UAE in 1990, Brazil in 1994 and 2006, and Saudi Arabia in 1998). He will catch up with the man who overtook him, the Serbian Bora Milutinovic, this summer. He’s also managed in Ghana, Turkey, and the USA, so certainly won’t be short for knowledge, but he doesn’t have a great deal to work with.

Form: As hosts, South Africa did not have to qualify for this tournament, although ironically a lack of competitive football was exactly what this team did not need. They finished fourth at the dress-rehearsal tournament the Confederations Cup last summer and performed reasonably well though they failed to beat a big team.

Captain: Aaron Mokoena has endured a pretty horrific season with relegated penniless scumbags (bias mine) Portsmouth, where he has at least been able to get plenty of defending practice in. The 29-year-old is a solid defensive midfielder who can play at centre-half as well, and he celebrated winning his 100th cap in their last friendly against Guatemala, where he wore the squad number 100 to commemorate the occasion. He will need to prove himself an inspirational leader, though, to help his country through their group.

Key Man: Undoubtedly Everton’s sought-after midfielder Steven Pienaar, who is the only touch of real class in the South African squad. He can play wide on either side or as an advanced midfielder through the middle, and you can be sure that Bafana Bafana will constantly be aiming to give him the ball in the hope that his silky dribbling can work some magic.

Man to Watch: With Benni McCarthy omitted due to lack of fitness, 32-year-old striker Siyabonga Nomvethe has been given a chance to return to the international fold having been overlooked for the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations and the Confederations Cup last summer. He doesn’t have an outstanding scoring record for club or country but is by far the most experienced of the short-staffed South African frontline and will need to step up if South Africa are to have any chance.

Prediction: Everyone wants to see the hosts do well at the World Cup but realistically, South Africa are not going to progress from this group. (There aren’t many groups they would get out of.)  They just don’t have enough quality players to make an impact at this tournament and would do well to get a single win against any of the other teams in the group. Fourth place in Group A beckons.

Squad List:

Goalkeepers

1. Shu-Aib Walters (Maritzburg United)

16. Itumeleng Khune (Kaizer Chiefs)

22. Moeneeb Josephs (Orlando Pirates)

Defenders

4. Aaron Mokoena, captain (Portsmouth)

14. Matthew Booth (Mamelodi Sundowns)

3. Tsepo Masilela (Maccabi Haifa)

2. Siboniso Gaxa (Mamelodi Sundowns)

5. Lucas Thwala (Orlando Pirates)

19. Anele Ngcongca (Genk)

20. Bongani Khumalo (SuperSport United)

21. Siyabonga Sangweni (Golden Arrows)

Midfielders

6. MacBeth Siwaya (Rubin Kazan)

10. Steven Pienaar (Everton)

11. Teko Modise (Orlando Pirates)

8. Siphiwe Tshabalala (Kaizer Chiefs)

13. Kagisho Dikgacoi (Fulham)

17. Surprise Moriri (Mamelodi Sundowns)

7. Lance Davids (Ajax Cape Town)

23. Thanduyise Khuboni (Golden Arrows)

12. Reneilwe Letsholonyane (Kaizer Chiefs)

Forwards

15. Siyabonga Nomvethe (Moroka Swallows)

9. Katlego Mphela (Mamelodi Sundowns)

15. Bernard Parker (FC Twente)

MEXICO

FIFA World Ranking: 17

Team Colours: Green shirts with red trim, white shorts with red trim, white socks with red trim. Away kit is all black with red trim everywhere and some green trim on the shirts.

Manager: In his last spell in charge of Mexico, Javier Aguirre took his country to the last 16 in 2002 without hugely impressing. He has since enjoyed a successful period at the helm of Osasuna in Spain, whom he took to an unexpected Champions League qualification in 2006. After that he went to Atletico Madrid, whom he returned to a strong position in the Spanish league following some poor previous seasons. Despite returning them to the Champions League he was sacked in 2009, which turned out to be just in time to bail out ailing Mexico. Has a reputation of being somewhat difficult to get along with.

Form: Under the management of Sven-Goran Eriksson, Mexico’s qualifying campaign started poorly, with the team struggling to impress themselves on their opponents, and only scraped through to the final phase of qualifying on goal difference over Jamaica. Losses against Honduras and the USA in the first three games of the final phase saw Sven removed and replaced with Aguirre, who, despite a bad start, losing 2-1 to El Salvador of all people, revitalised the team who eventually qualified with a game to spare. Have been impressive since, their stylish display against England in a recent friendly evidence of their youthful verve in attack.

Captain: Cultured defender-midfielder Rafael Marquez was surprisingly replaced by Aguirre as captain in favour of the more tenacious midfield general Gerardo Torrado. The Cruz Azul captain is amusingly known as “El Borrego” or “The Sheep” for his bushy hairstyle. Spent the first half of the 2000s in Spain but never managed to hold down a regular place at any of his several clubs there, but has prospered back home in Mexico resulting in his elevation to the international captaincy. A strong, bustling player, Torrado is highly influential for Mexico.

Key Man: PSV Eindhoven left-back Carlos Salcido is an adventurous, attacking full-back whom Mexico are keen to utilise at every opportunity. The 30-year-old perhaps doesn’t posess the technical ability of some of his teammates but his work rate and determination are second to none and you can expect to see him pop up on the left wing frequently. If opponents can shut him down they limit Mexico’s attacking options.

Man to Watch: It’s hard to look past Manchester United-bound striker Javier Hernandez, who has recently burst onto the international scene with 7 goals in 11 games on the back of a similarly promising scoring rate for his hometown club Guadalajara. Looks pacy and exciting, and will likely be used by Aguirre as a secret weapon coming off the bench to finish teams off.

Prediction: Having recovered from the poor Sven era, Aguirre’s side look an exciting prospect. There are plenty of options in a youthful forward line (as well as 37-year-old veteran Cuauhtemoc Blanco, coaxed out of retirement by Aguirre) who can do all kinds of damage to teams who are not prepared for it. They have an excellent chance of claiming top spot in the group and could go quite far, realistically the quarter-finals.

Squad List:

Goalkeepers

1. Oscar Perez (unattached)

13. Guillermo Ochoa (America)

23. Luis Ernesto Michel (Guadalajara)

Defenders

2. Francisco Javier Rodriguez (PSV)

3. Carlos Salcido (PSV)

4. Rafael Marquez (Barcelona)

5. Ricardo Osorio (unattached)

12. Paul Aguilar (Pachuca)

15. Hector Moreno (AZ Alkmaar)

16. Efrain Juarez (Pumas)

19. Jonny Magallon (Guadalajara)

20. Jorge Torres Nilo (Tigres)

Midfielders

6. Gerardo Torrado, captain (Cruz Azul)

8. Israel Castro (Pumas)

18. Andres Guardado (Deportivo La Coruna)

Forwards

7. Pablo Barrera (Pumas)

9. Guillermo Franco (unattached)

10. Cuauhtemoc Blanco (Veracruz)

11. Carlos Vela (Arsenal)

14. Javier Hernandez (Manchester United)

17. Giovani Dos Santos (Tottenham)

21. Adolfo Bautista (Guadalajara)

22. Alberto Medina (Guadalajara)

URUGUAY

FIFA World Ranking: 16

Team Colours: Blue shirts with white trim, black shorts, black socks. Away kit is white with blue trim.

Manager: 63-year-old Oscar Tabarez, another manager in his second spell in charge of his team, having previously led Uruguay in Italia ’90. Plenty of experience, having managed Boca Juniors and Cagliari twice, as well as a short spell some years ago with A.C. Milan.

Form: Uruguay nearly benefited from Diego Maradona’s managerial circus to qualify automatically from the CONMEBOL group, but eventually had to settle for their third straight play-off, overcoming Costa Rica to return to the tournament, having missed out in 2006 at the hands of Australia. They scored more goals than Paraguay and Argentina who finished ahead of them in qualifying, and they do look more competent in attack than defence.

Captain: 29-year-old centre-back Diego Lugano is Uruguay’s best defensive asset, who scored one of the crucial goals to get the team past Costa Rica. Can be somewhat temperamental (something of a tradition for Uruguayan captains) and also likes to make the odd expedition into the opponent’s box. Uruguay will need him to be at the top of his game.

Key Man: You can’t look past experienced striker Diego Forlan, who since enduring a torrid time at Manchester United has been reborn in Spain at first Villareal and now Atletico Madrid, scoring at just about a goal every other game for the past six years and frequently topping the La Liga scoring charts. He is the man who Uruguay will turn to to power their way out of the group, and if he can get the service, he will put them away.

Man to Watch: Ajax’s exciting 23-year-old forward Luis Suarez will play just behind Forlan in the Uruguayan starting lineup, and can also play on the wing if necessary. Has a phenomenal scoring record for the Dutch club of 74 goals in 97 games, and manager Martin Jol entrusted the youngster with the club captaincy following the departure of Thomas Vermaelen to Arsenal. Together with Forlan he forms a potent front line that every team in this group will be scared of.

Prediction: If Forlan and Suarez can fire then Uruguay could surprise a few people. Much will depend on their first game against vulnerable France. If Uruguay can get a result in that game it should give them the confidence to capitalise and get out of this group, but if not their frailer defense may see them overtaken by France and Mexico. I reckon they may just sneak through at France’s expense.

Squad List:

Goalkeepers

1. Fernando Muslera (Lazio)

12. Juan Castillo (Deportivo Cali)

23. Martin Silva (Defensor Sporting)

Defenders

2. Diego Lugano, captain (Fenerbahce)

3. Diego Godin (Villareal)

4. Jorge Fucile (Porto)

6. Mauricio Victorino (Universidad de Chile)

16. Maxi Pereira (Benfica)

19. Andres Scotti (Colo Colo)

22. Martin Caceres (Juventus)

Midfielders

5. Walter Gargano (Napoli)

8. Sebastien Eguren (AIK)

11. Alvaro Pereira (Porto)

14. Nicolas Lodeiro (Ajax)

15. Diego Perez (Monaco)

17. Egidio Arevalo Rios (Penarol)

18. Ignacio Gonzalez (Valencia)

20. Alvaro Fernandez (Universidad de Chile)

Forwards

7. Edison Cavani (Palermo)

9. Luis Suarez (Ajax)

10. Diego Forlan (Atletico Madrid)

13. Sebastian Abreu (Botafogo)

21. Sebastian Fernandez (Banfield)

FRANCE

FIFA World Ranking: 10

Team Colours: Blue shirts with red and white trim, white shorts with blue trim, red socks with white trim. Away kit is white with thin red and blue stripes and trim, blue shorts with white trim, white socks with blue trim.

Manager: Raymond Domenech is to leave his post at the end of this competition, and it is utterly inexplicable why it has taken the French authorities so long to ask him to do so. Since taking control of Les Bleus in 2004, Domenech has been making ridiculous tactical and selectional decisions left, right and centre, and has been dining out on France’s fluky road to the final in 2006. As a keen astrologer, he admitted publicly that the reason he did not pick Robert Pires was because he “distrusted Scorpios”, and after the 2006 World Cup when Claude Makelele announced his retirement from international football, Domenech quite insultingly announced that he would keep calling up Makelele regardless, saying “as long as he can walk, he will play. I have the right to pick him”. French fans will be rejoicing at the news that Bordeaux’s Laurent Blanc is to replace him after the tournament, but will be desperately wishing that he was already in charge.

Form: A highly uninspiring qualifying tournament saw France finish second behind Serbia and requiring a play-off against the Republic of Ireland to make it through, and we all know what happened there. France, as they always have been under Domenech, have been deeply average and underperforming recently, and there seems little reason to get excited about this team.

Captain: Disgraced cheater Thierry Henry says he will not have a problem with being used as a supersub, having replaced Nicolas Anelka from the bench in recent games. This is a rare astute decision by Domenech, as Anelka is in the form of his life and Henry has passed his peak. The va-va-voomster does still have something to offer but is no longer the world-beater that he used to be, as evidenced by his expected imminent move to the New York Red Bulls. William Gallas will probably start with the armband in his absence.

Key Man: No question about it, Franck Ribery is the main man for France. His presence was sorely missed by his club Bayern Munich in the Champions League final this year, and his highly intelligent wing play will be the main attacking outlet for France this summer. A successful tournament could elevate him to the top tier of players in the world today.

Man to Watch: Look out for Bordeaux’s hugely exciting playmaker Yoann Gourcuff. At 23, he should already be the focal point of the French midfield, but of course isn’t under Domenech. He has an astonishing range of passing and will get forward and make things happen. If he is given the proper freedom to play his game, he and Ribery could make France great to watch. (If that doesn’t happen, you can be sure that Blanc will build the team around him in future.)

Prediction: On paper France have a decent squad with potential to play some really exciting football. However, everything comes down to how badly Raymond Domenech is going to mess this team around. He doesn’t know how to make them play well and he doesn’t know how to change a game when things aren’t going his way. Unfortunately I don’t think France should expect a particularly successful campaign, and, as said above, that first game against Uruguay will be crucial. I think the winner of that game will join Mexico in the second round, and I have a sneaky feeling that that winner will not be France.

Squad List:

Goalkeepers

1. Hugo Lloris (Lyon)

16. Steve Mandanda (Marseille)

23. Cedric Carrasso (Bordeaux)

Defenders

2. Bacary Sagna (Arsenal)

3. Eric Abidal (Barcelona)

4. Anthony Reveillere (Lyon)

5. William Gallas (Arsenal)

6. Marc Planus (Bordeaux)

13. Patrice Evra (Manchester United)

17. Sebastien Squillaci (Sevilla)

21. Gael Clichy (Arsenal)

Midfielders

8. Yoann Gourcuff (Bordeaux)

10. Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille)

14. Jeremy Toulalan (Lyon)

15. Florent Malouda (Chelsea)

18. Alou Diarra (Bordeaux)

20. Abou Diaby (Arsenal)

22. Franck Ribery (Bayern Munich)

Forwards

7. Sidney Govou (Lyon)

9. Djibril Cisse (Panathinaikos)

11. Andre-Pierre Gignac (Toulouse)

12. Thierry Henry (Barcelona)

19. Nicolas Anelka (Chelsea)