A noble collection of haircuts in the Colombian lineup. Some of those lads wouldn’t have looked out of place in Scarface. Great to see the legend Higuita posing for his photo…
Did anyone else have the big folder for the 1990 World Cup where 20 different editions came out every week leading up to the World Cup??
I think I still have it at home fully completely.
that’s what we were just talking about.
I just went looking for a picture of it there but the one on ebay didn’t work, but I did see that a good quality, complete book went for £296!!
I must have a look for it at home this weekend!
The greatest show on earth is fast approaching. Yes folks, the Chelsea Garden Show is almost upon us. After that, well its World Cup time. John Delaney’s punt on Ireland becoming the thurtythreeandathurd team didnt quite work out so another major championship will pass by without Irish involvement.
This World Cup will mark the last international tournament for many of the best footballers in Europe over the past ten years. Its unlikely Ferdinand, Lampard, Carvalho, Puyol, Senna, Buffon, Cannavaro, Zambrotta, Grosso, Pirlo, Ballack, Klose, Van Bommel, Gallas or Henry will be adorning our summer screens again. Great players who have illuminated major championships at club and international level looking for a final glorious swansong ala Zinedine Zidane last time out. It feels as if its an aging tournament to be honest. With the exception of Spain and to an extent Holland, the other major European hopes will require a sting in the tail from some of their stellar names from times gone by to make a significant impact. The cooler temperatures in South Africa will suit the Europeans a lot more particularly the older players. But it could be the heat of a Dutch oven that sets the tournament alight.
A cursory look at the betting will see Spain predictably at the head of the market at 4/1. 10 straight wins after a superb European championship title will tend to do that. Brazil (5/1) under the management of Dunga are cut in his image, hardworking, resolute and stronger defensively than at any time I can remember. England with the benefit of an easier draw are 6/1 but once again more in hope than anticipation. Maradona’s Argentina barely made it to the finals but are 8s, holders Italy, Germany and Holland can be got at 14s, France at 18s while Sven’s Ivory Coast and Portugal are 30s. The rest don’t count.
To my mind Spain are justifiable hot favourites. They have a superb manager, superb players, great team spirit and a winning mentality. There is no doubt that they are the best side going to the championships. An easy group to get the strikers moving and you may think that 4/1 aint that bad of a price. I would worry though about Fernando Torres injuries. I just cant see him staying fit for the entire tournament. Villa has been in fantastic form and is more prolific but would prefer to play deeper while the other replacements aren’t in the same class. The option of moving the also injury prone Fabregas closer to goal is also there but they have a very tough draw. 2nd round will see them play either the Ivory Coast or Portugal. No doubt they should be too strong for either of those sides but far from a gimmee either. It is likely they will meet reigning champions Italy in the quarters if results go as expected. Italy even at their worst tend to be put out only by penalty shoot outs in the knockouts as Spain proved in the Euros. A semi final victory over perhaps Argentina would put them in the final. At 4/1 that is a tough ask imo.
Brazil realistically should not be unduly troubled until a potential clash with Holland in the quarters. This is a strong Brazil side at the back. Inter trio Maicon, Cesar and Lucio have been in fine form. Alex if starting has improved Chelsea markedly in the second half of the season. Up front is where I would worry slightly about Brazil. Robinho is unlikely to have too much trouble knocking them in against Korea but has always been a flat track bully of a player. Kaka has disappointed somewhat in recent years while Dunga’s formula favouring functional players like Gilberto Silva and Melo has left Ronaldinho and Pato out of favour. Yet strong defences tend to be the bedrock of championship winning sides and Brazil have that in abundance.
England come to the World Cup in disarray for the second successive championship. Injuries have seen their best players play bit part roles this season. Hopes rest on Rooney’s shoulders but he crashed under pressure last time out carrying an injury. Despite a soft enough group England face a very tough second round fixture. Group D is the hardest one to call on paper and England are very vunerable at the back with captain Rio Ferdinand a shadow of the player he once was amidst a host of other injuries concerning Johnson, Ashley Cole, Hargreaves, Lennon, Gerrard and even Beckham.
Maradona’s Argentina will be the circus act of the competition. But provided at all that he keeps his head they should make the quarters relatively stress free. A criminal lack of pace in the defence could well be exposed but that forward line… At 8/1 I reckon its worth watching their first game to see what side he picks but I fancy Maradona’s flaws as a manager to be exposed at the business end of the championships.
Italy are aging and lack a top striker but that was the case last time too and they went all the way. With a top manager in charge and a definite tournament know how in their locker it would be foolish to dismiss them. They should have a straight forward enough task to the quarters and after that they will be very hard to beat but I dont see them as realistic winners either. Germany are similar enough. Plenty of tournament know how. They have had fine tournaments with average sides but I feel dont have the players to carry them anymore. Ballack and Klose have had awful club seasons and the players coming through are nowhere near the same vintage. In the real group of death I think the Germans will do well to make it out of the group.
The Dutch are an interesting prospect for me. I liked the three pronged attack they used at the last Euros with Robben and Van Persie out wide. If both are fit the Dutch should be decent going forward. Van Bommel is as good as any player at holding the midfield, De Jong too has had a good season in the EPL. They will certainly be required to protect a very ropey looking back four. Its high time for the likes of Sneijder, Van der Vaart, Robben and Van Persie to show their undoubted talents on a winning stage. Of course the back four is a worry but I’ll be keeping a close eye on their opening game v Denmark which should be a decent test to see how they will fare. They strolled through qualifying and if they top the group they will be playing Paraguay most likely for a quarter final place. I tend to leave my betting until after the first round of games, as 2002 proved a lot can go wrong before the tournament so my advise is wait and see if Oranje is truly your colour.
France with half interested players and an idiot manager have no chance. Didier Drogba’s hernia problem could halt Sven’s bid somewhat. Kalou is finishing the season strongly but by all accounts their keeper is rank. Sven’s appointment though has been welcomed by Drogba who didnt try a leg in the African Nations. Realistically they are up against Portugal for a place in the knock outs. Portugal scraped into the playoffs for the World Cup but good performances from Pepe as a holding midfielder and Nani saw them comfortably through. However injuries to Carvalho and Boswinga weaken them at the back and in truth this is a poor Portugese side even with players like Ronaldo and Nani. I reckon Sven will get the Ivory Coast through.
NCC, how do you rate your homelands chances in this? Are they worth a punt at 14/1?
i always rate our chances very highly- proven manager- star players-ability to press space etc etc
That’s a start, but you really need to learn to type out letters and full sentences to use a keyboard properly.
Torres out for six weeks.
World Cup starts in seven weeks.
have you been diagnosed with asperger syndrome?
Fuck off.
:o 
Phew…I was beginning to think noone was going to read my Official World Cup preview…
I read it KIB Man. How is Rio Ferdinand one of the best players in Europe in the last ten years?
:rolleyes:
Superb performances at the highest level of the EPL, Champions League and at international level perhaps? Not to mention a bag full of medals. Superb reader of the game, quick (or was…), comfortable on the ball etc etc. Didnt like to get his shirt dirty but he was so class he didnt have to.
You omit the fact that he is a drug cheat.
Guilty of arrogance and maybe a few line of charlie.
Quite a few of the marquee players over the past 15 years were drug cheats. Juve ran an EPO factory aswell as fixing matches.
A cursory glance of the first paragraph mate tells me you don’t do humour very well. Probably the main reason nobody has finished it yet.
Like many Dublin based taxi drivers, I’m not a racist but it was just brought to my attention that if Nigeria advance to play Germany at some stage in the tournament then the top left corner of certain TV screens will say NIG-GER.