As I watch the South African team stay in the game despite missing many chances and largely thanks to the referees, HOW THE HELL IS THAT NOT A GOAL OFF OF THAT CORNER WHAT A BUNCH OF BULLSHIT! I give you a preview of Group B.
Argentina
Nickname: La Albiceleste (The Sky Blue and White)
Abbreviation: ARG (as in ARGH WHAT THE HELL IS MARADONA THINKING?)
Last World Cup: 2006: The Argentines put on a clinic for the Serbians and Montenegrins during the group stage and a victory against Ivory Coast tied them for first with the Dutch in Group C, the consensus Group of Death. Maxi Rodriguez then had that goal,
but they fell to the Germans on penalties in the round of 8.
How did they get here?: Boy did they barely get here. At one time they lost to Bolivia 6-1. They needed a victory in the final round of qualifying against Uruguay to avoid the playoff with Costa Rica.
Manager: Noted cocaine addict Diego Maradona. Maradona was a hero in 1986, managing to help Argentina rise from the national embarrassment that was the Falklands War by putting two goals on England, one of them extremely illegal,
and the other extremely amazing.
If this were basketball, he'd be shooting free throws after that one. Maradona may have been an important part of the democratic transition from the junta that ruled Argentina 1976-1983. And he really is incetivizing a win. I'd call that incentive if you like 2 Girls, 1 Cup.
Player to watch: Lionel Messi, Barcelona. Only 5'7", but putting Speedy Gonzalez to shame. The best player in the world will be asked to step up and get his country deep into the tournament after playing a largely supportive role in 2006. And the dude can play:
Player not to watch: Juan Riquelme, Boca Juniors. The Argentines will be very attack-heavy and though Messi can handle some midfield duties as a winger, Riquelme was a great stabilizer in the midfield. Riquelme is still one of the most dangerous free-kick takers in the world and will surely be missed on set pieces.
Prognostication: Again, Argentina will be very attack-heavy. Rumors are floating around of a 3-4-3, and the players are actually excited. I think this team will go very far. The attacking strategy will leave them vulnerable, but with so much coming at teams with Higuan, Tevez, Messi, Aguero, and Milito available after having on average some amazing seasons in Europe this past year.
Nigeria
Nickname: Super Eagles
Abbreviation: NIG (What happens when they play archrivals Niger?)
Last World Cup: 2002: Stuck in the Group of Death with England, Sweden, and Argentina. Argentina and Sweden each took 3 points from them and England could only draw in their 3rd game.
How did they get here?: African qualifying got them in as one of five besides the South African hosts, who were in their group in the second round. The third round was a cake walk.
Manager: Lars Lagerback, who was recently manager of his native Sweden's team until he was fired for failing to lead them into the Final.
Player to watch: Obafemi Martins, Wolfsburg. The striker will need to be on form, but if defenses are going to focus on him, look for the strong Nigerian supporting cast to
Player not to watch: Nigeria will play with no #10 as Mikel John Obi of Chelsea, the best player currently for the Nigerians, sat out a huge chunk of the Premier League season to nurse a bad ankle and knee.
Prognostication: Nigeria should get through to the knockout stage. Their outfield players are strong. Do NOT underestimate the capabilities of this midfield, even without Obi. Plus, they have three goalies playing in Israel, so what's not to like?
Greece
Nickname: None, according to wikipedia.
Abbreviation: GRE
Last World Cup: 1994: Things didn't go too well, as the Greeks absorbed defeats of 3-0, 4-0, and 3-0, one of which was at the hands of Nigeria.
How did they get here?: Forced into a playoff after finishing one point back of Switzerland in their group, they took a 1-0 aggregate over Ukraine to get into the Final.
Manager: Otto Rehhagel. The Lenny Wilkens of the Bundesliga, he is most famous for making Werder Bremen a competitor every year. Look for him to encourage the boring style of play the Greeks just love.
Player to watch: Georgios Samaras, Celtic. The striker needs to create something or the Greeks will be packing early. Yeah, they'll be packing up early.
Player not to watch: Traianos Dellas, AEK, a huge part of qualifying, he hasn't been called up since April 1. Really trying to not emphasize defense. We'll see how that goes...
Prognostication: A defensive approach made them the Euro 2004 champions, and then it helped them not qualify for 2006 and then get whooped in Euro 2008. It won't do much for them in this tournament either, I think they will bow out after the group stage.
South Korea
Nickname: Red Devils, Tigers of Asia
Abbreviation: KOR
Last World Cup: 2006: The Reds did not experience the same success as when they served as hosts, bowing out in the first round.
How did they get here?: Relatively easy qualifying since they are one of the higher-ranked teams in Asia. They did get North Korea in their group, playing two scoreless ties.
Manager:
Player to watch: Park Ji-Sung, Manchester United, the best Korean international of all time, playing in his third World Cup. He is a little spark, having been a huge part of ManU's Premiership and Champions League success. He'll be covering a lot of ground during this tournament.
Player not to watch: Seol Ki-Hyeon, Pohang Steelers. The striker has European experience, but never played that well over there. He did put in an equalizer against Italy in 2002 that helped the Red Devils get to the semifinal.
Prognostication: They'll give Nigeria a scare, but the Red Devils are not strong enough to overtake them in this group. Third place and knocked out before the knockout round.
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