Source: FOOTYMAD
Cloggy's World Cup Preview - Group F
Time to turn our attention to group F in which world champions Italy take on South America's runners up Paraguay, first time World Cup finalists Slovakia and lowly rated New Zealand. Italy *Nickname: La Squadra Azzuri (the ocean blue squad) *FIFA Ranking: 5th *Manager: Marcello Lippi *One to look out for: Simone Pepe, the latest acquisition of Juventus. Pepe is one of the very few natural wingers Italy have and a very talented one too. The 26 year old has caught the eye in the Serie A for a number of seasons as one of Udinese's most consistent performers (hence why Juve wanted to buy him). Able to get past a man and deliver delightful crosses into the box, Pepe offers Italy something different to their usual 4-5-1 or 4-4-2 system. *Team's pros: The man who led them to glory in 2006 is back in charge. Experienced and quality wise good squad. Able to play badly and still win games. *Team's cons: Defense isn't as water tight as it used to be. Depend a lot on players who are not in their best form (such as Cannavaro) Some of Lippi's decisions selection wise are odd to say the least. *Cloggy's verdict: Did I ever mention I'm 1/8th Italian? Just putting it out there! Anyway, Italy have revolutionized their squad since the last time they won the world cup. Players such as Totti, Materazzi, Del Piero, Grosso, Nesta, Bonera, Cassano and Toni have been left out of the squad whilst the likes of Bonucci, Marchetti, Marchisio, Criscito, Bonetti etc. have been added to the squad to provide them with fresh blood. Lippi's decision to leave out the likes of Toni, Cassano, Totti (who openly pleaded for his inclusion in the final 23 man squad) and penalty king Fabio Grosso was greeted with disbelieve and surprise in Italy. It doesn't make their team a bad one all of a sudden, but I do think it lacks a few things here and there. What's most striking though about this Italian team, is that they concede goals quicker. Italy's hallmark of being defensively as solid as rock has crumbled somewhat. This has for a large part to do with the fact captain Fabio Cannavaro is playing on his last legs. 4 years ago he was voted man of the tournament for his heroic displays at the back for Italy. Now however, Italians openly discuss whether or not Lippi should start with the former Real Madrid player in the starting 11. Still, despite their defensive insecurities they do have a strong team overall and I fail to see it being tested much in their group. Perhaps Paraguay might, but the other two teams certainly won't. Italy will go through to the second round as number 1. Forza Italia! Paraguay *Nickname: La Albirroja (the red and whites) *FIFA Ranking: 31st *Manager: Gerardo Martino (Argentine) *One to look out for: Without a shadow of a doubt, recently naturalized striker Lucas Barrios. I've tipped him as being one of the top scorers of this WC edition, largely due to the fact he's been in terrific form this season for his club Borussia Dortmund where he finished the campaign with 19 goals in 33 games (!). Both tall and pacey, the 25 year old striker is originally an Argentine like his coach, but qualified for Paraguayan citizenship through his Paraguayan mother. Has already bagged 4 goals in 3 friendly matches for the side, and will look to add more to that tally in South Africa. *Team's pros: Very organized side. Lot of attacking options, and good ones too (see Barrios). A side which finishes 2nd in the South American qualifying group has to do something right in my opinion. *Team's cons: Not here to pick up the 'most exciting footballing team' award. Midfield is too defensive minded; who's gonna feed the strikers? Like with neighbors Uruguay; their toughness might lead to a lot of bookings. *Cloggy's verdict: Organized team, hard working, good group of strikers even without Salvador Cabanas (who, infamously, was shot in the head this year) I can see them qualifying for the 1/8th finals. And let's be honest: if you have a player like Roque Santa Cruz (who's still a class act despite his injuries) Oscar Cardozo (top scorer in the Portuguese league for Benfica), Lucas Barrios (one of the best strikers last season in the Bundesliga) and the pacey Haedo Valdez (also Borussia Dortmund striker) to pick from, you'd think scoring goals won't be a problem for them. Yet, Paraguay depend more on their sturdy back four line with goalkeeper Justo Villar than on their forwards. Paraguay will not be one of the most entertaining sides in South Africa, but they will be hard to beat (even for Italy I'm sure) and when they do attack you, they have the players upfront to really hurt you, which is exactly something their opponents New Zealand and more or less Slovakia don't have. The problem remains that Paraguay don't have a Kaka, who can carry the ball from midfield to attack to link up the play. Oh well, that's something to worry about later on in the tournament. For now, I predict a second spot finish for the men in red, blue and white. Slovakia *Nickname: The Fighting Jondas (no idea what that means though) *FIFA Ranking: 34th *Manager: Vladimir Weiss *One to look out for: Another winger, namely Miroslav Stoch. The former Chelsea academy player shot into promise last season when he played for Dutch outfit FC Twente and had a large part to play in the club's title winning season. Compared in the Netherlands to Marc Overmars, the speedy small winger is most comfortable playing on the left hand side of midfield where he can run at his opponent and cut inside to release a fearsome shot or cross with his right foot. Was bought by Fenerbache not so long ago and is considered as being part of a new generation of fantastic Slovakian players. *Team's pros: Great down the wings with Weiss and Stoch providing the width. Counter attacking won't be a problem (see 1) Have in Marek Hamsik a player worthy of following in the footsteps of the great Panenka. *Team's cons: Qualified largely due to their home results. Were dreadful away from home. How will they do on foreign soil? Lack the goalscorer Italy and Paraguay have in a plenty. Not keen on building up from the back; just give the ball to Hamsik and let him figure out what to do with it. *Cloggy's verdict: Their first World Cup as an independent nation and I fear there will be an early bath for them. I do rate a couple of their players such as Skrtel, Hamsik (fantastic cultured left foot), Stoch and Weiss. It's the other players who I don't rate. I feel that Slovakia will need to compete with Paraguay for the second spot in this group and when I compare the two teams I see that Slovakia have the midfield maestro Paraguay lack (Hamsik). On the other hand, Paraguay's defense and attack are much stronger than Slovakia's. Slovakia don't have a group of strikers able to pose a real threat to Paraguay whereas I feel Santa Cruz, Barrios, Cardozo and Valdez would waltz over Skrtel and co if they got the ball in or around the box. So overall, I feel Slovakia will go home with 3 points from 3 games (getting the win against New Zealand) and will have to start planning for a tough EC 2012 campaign. New Zealand *Nickname: The All Whites *FIFA Ranking: 78th *Manager: Ricki Herbert *One to look out for: Central defender Winston Reid. The 21 year old plays for Danish outfit FC Mydtjylland and could have become a Danish international. Instead, he chose to represent the country of his birth where he made his debut for on the 24th of May 2010 in a friendly against Australia. Seen as a genuine talent in Denmark, he has already attracted interest from a few German and English based clubs. The 6 ft 3 tall player is a welcome addition to the Kiwi nation and will surely be kept busy during this summer's World Cup. *Team's pros: Most players know each other really well as most of them play in either New Zealand or Australia. As the underdog among the underdogs they can cause a surprise (ask Serbia) The bond between the manager and the players is really good. *Team's cons: Very few good players in the side. Most players are not regulars for their respective clubs. Scraped through to the World cup by narrowly beating Bahrain, do I need to say more? *Cloggy's verdict: I hope they brought their Polaroid cameras with them to take a few pictures of South Africa, because New Zealand are just the tourist side of the tournament with all due respect. There just isn't enough of anything to compete with the other teams in this group, or any other group for that matter. Ryan Nelsen is obviously a big player for them and upfront Shane Smeltz is too, but to say a Blackburn Rovers defender and Gold Coast United striker will save their sorry arses from getting pounded right, left and center is ridiculous. I just hope they will spare their own blushes by putting in a good shift and not suffering humiliating defeats. Perhaps though there is a chance of them causing an upset against either Paraguay or Slovakia. I mean, if they can beat Serbia in a friendly game, why couldn't they repeat the trick against any of these two?
