World Cup 2014 ... Some thoughts

The Best Team :

Without any doubt the most complete team of the world cup so far has been Colombia. Only four teams have won all the three group games, Netherlands, Belgium, Colombia and Argentina. Colombia is the only team that looked comfortable in all three of its victories. Not only that, Colombia is playing with a reckless sense of fun. Colombia's Argentine coach Pekerman is highly experienced in training youth teams. He has created an extraordinary mix of youth and experience and is likely to go a long way in this World Cup. When Radamel Falcao, arguably the best no.9 in the world was ruled out there were some concerns about Colombian team. But in my opinion, it has actually worked in favor of the team. It actually relieved the team from the pressure of playing in a system that would suit its star. On the contrary, it allowed James Rodriguez and Cuadrado to move a lot more freely and the results are there for everyone to see.

The Luckiest Team :

There are many contenders for this award. Brazil was lucky to escape unscathed against Mexico and won against Croatia after an utterly underwhelming display for almost 88  minutes. Argentina was lucky enough that Iran was denied a valid penalty claim and that some ten years ago Lionel Messi decided to play for country of his birth, Argentina. However the luckiest so far has been Nigeria. Against Bosnia-Herzegovina, Nigeria started well but Bosnia went on improving. In about 18th minute, Manchester City's Dzeko scored a goal which was ruled off-side. Replays showed it was a mistake. Ten minutes later Nigeria scored a goal. However Nigerian player Emenike had committed a foul before giving the deadly pass to Odemwingie which eventually proved vital in sealing Nigeria's spot in last sixteen.

The Best Coach

Without doubt this honor goes to Miguel Herrera of Mexico. Mexico's route to qualification was far from satisfactory. They actually sneaked in from back door because USA defeated Panamá in the last qualification game and Mexico had a chance to go for playoffs against New Zealand. Miguel Herrera was their fourth coach in the entire qualification route and didn't have much time to actually create a formidable group. Herrera recalled charismatic leader Rafa Marquez back and built up a team around youngsters like Giovanni Dos Santos, Peralta and Chicharrito Hernandez, and what he has achieved is truly amazing. Nobody in Mexico gave him any chance. He was severely criticized during the warm-up games as well.  But in the very first game he showed that finally he had managed to create a team (The game that Mexico won 1-0 but with 2 legal goals not allowed due to poor refereeing). And with every game Mexico has looked better and better.
By the way, he is the worst paid coach of the world cup ($153,000 against  some 9 Millions earned by Fabio Capello).

The Best Player

It's a close contest. For many this is Messi's best world cup and he has won all three games for Argentina on his own. For some it's Bryan Ruiz of Costa Rica, for some it's James Rodriguez. For sheer variety, both in attack and in defense offered by Cuadrado it's difficult to look beyond him. But if there's one player whose performance has, not only saved the side but has actually concealed tactical loopholes of the side, it's Neymar. Neymar not only has performed well in all the games, he has done it despite defensive tactics of his coach, he has done it despite poor performances of his much less talented teammates (except Oscar). If Brazil wins the world cup, Neymar will have won it single-handed, a la Maradona in 1986.

Joachim "Jogi" Löw's unhealthy diet......

Joachim "Jogi" Löw comes across as a very stylish, rational, well-behaved, cultured and passionate middle-aged man. Well except the last one, all other adjectives could be debated.

He is supposed to be a very strict coach and he maintains a very strict control over most of the things of his players' lives, including their diet. But in the process he completely ignores his personal diet. Consequences could be really bad.

Look at the video.....what is he having for dinner?

I am sure, before Argentina Vs Germany quarter-final, when two coaches meet for a formal handshake, Diego Maradona, for sure will tell him..."Bon Appetite Jogi"!

England Vs Germany : Preview - Goalless Excitement

Well, here they come. Two giants of world soccer, the contest that always guarantees entertainment, excitement, goals, controversies, penalties and English defeat. In this world cup both England and Germany entered as favorites. After the first game, everybody started talking about the new-look, youthful Germany as potential winners. But their loss against Serbia and their unconvincing display against Ghana has shown that they are vulnerable at the back and that they heavily depend on Podolsky, Schweinsteiger, Klose and Ozil. This German outfit has some resemblance to the team of Bayern Munich of this year. They both know their weaknesses in defense and that's why they attack in order to defend. Mesut Özil has been a revelation and Miorslav Klose has been very effective in the very first game. While he was absent, after he was shown the red card against Serbia and consequently missed the next game, Germany looked a different outfit. Podolsky is their leader in the attack but his form has been very inconsistent in last three games.

On the other end, England looked tired and clueless against USA and Algeria. After the second game John Terry led a failed coup against dictator-like coaching style of Manager Fabio Capello, which Capello in a dictator-like style handled successfully. Against Slovenia, in the must-win game Fabio Capello did some changes and somehow England looked a far better team.  I don't know if it's because they now know what to do of whether Slovenia was not as good an outfit as everybody thought it to be. Introduction of Jeramine Defoe and James Milner especially worked wonderfully. Milner was especially effective on the right flank and if Rooney finds his mojo, Milner can be a great support on the right flank. Apart from that, England has looked ineffective in retaining possession, making passes and creating chances. They sorely miss David Beckham in set-pieces.

So, given the inconsistency shown by both the teams so far, it's difficult to predict what might happen today. Both teams are rather cautious and we might not see too many goals. But surely the match will be one with lot of excitement. Both teams are afraid of going all the way upto penalties but if the match goes into Penalties, nobody should be surprised.

Verdict : Given the nature of these teams and the way they have evolved in this competition so far, I think England have a slight advantage. If the game doesn't go into penalties, England might win, 1-0.

Players to watch: James Milner (England) and Mesut Ozil (Germany). If Germany wins, Özil for sure, will have played a key role.

Prequarter Final Preview & Prediction - USA vs Ghana ...... The game of the tournament...

Ladies and Gentleman, this is going to be the game of the tournament! Simply because this is going to be a contest between two of the most valiant, attacking and emotional teams of the tournament. 

Apart from Japan, USA is one of the most entertaining underdogs of this world cup. USA's game has been one played with lot of heart. Sid Lowe  last night on the debate at Gol TV mentioned that USA reminds him the way young boys play in England or for that matter anywhere else. Everyone attacks and if you end up conceding a goal or two, doesn't matter....keep attacking. Looking at it from a different perspective, one can argue that USA has shown lot of character and confidence. In first game they were against one of the favorites to win the cup, England, and they conceded a goal all too quickly. Despite that they didn't change their style and finally they got lucky with the now famous, Robert Green howler. Against Slovenia they were trailing by two goals and they almost won the game, had their third goal not been disallowed in one of the most baffling decisions of the world cup. US coach Bob Bradley and son Michael Bradley have especially caught everybody's attention. Dad Bradley made some very interesting and important tactical decisions in last two group games and both changed the scenario of the game. It was interesting to see that at the half time in both the games, Bob Bradley replaced a striker with a midfielder. In the beginning it looked defensive but in both cases, it allowed Son Bradley (Michael) to show his versatility and his ability to play as an attacking midfielder. In fact Michael Bradley's influence on USA's performance in this tournament is probably second only to Keisuke Honda's influence on Japan. Michael Bradley is a wonderful talent with a great ability to mix attacking play with creative playmaking. No wonder comparisons have been made with Zidane in his youth and a much younger Steven Gerrard. While Bradley is the creative brain of the team, Dempsey, Donovan and Altidore can rattle any defense of the world on their day.

On the other hand Ghana is the last African hope. They displayed great attacking football and truly deserve to be in the second round. However, their lack of ability to score might worry them. While the trio of Gyan, Ayew and Boateng form the core of this team, the rest of the team has yet to show the same fighting character. Both their goals scored have come in form of Penalties and despite creating some very good chances in their last group game against Germany, it seemed that they quickly ran out of ideas and played for a draw. However, being the only African team in the knockout stage, expectations are high and so is the support for them. 

Verdict : Given their tendencies to attack and ignore their defense at times, this game might go all the way to penalties. If USA can score early they can create great pressure and Ghana might not be able to recover. Given both teams play attacking game, the one that attacks first will have a greater chance to win. 

Player to Watch. Michael Bradley. The way he has performed so far, he might be one of the biggest stars to emerge from this world cup.

Pre-quarter final Preview - Uruguay vs. South Korea

One of the best results of the way first round of the World cup has concluded is that out of Uruguay, South Korea, USA and Ghana we will have one semi-finalist and probably a finalist too. This world cup has been a reminder that in a gradual but definite way, global inequalities in terms of talent and power are being done away with. Uruguay came into this world cup as the weakest Latin American side and nobody thought that they would be able to qualify ahead of France or even South Africa. But they enter prequarter finals with a much enhanced reputation and as favorites. Uruguay has emerged as a solid, disciplined and a very effective outfit. In Forlan and Suarez, they have probably the most dependable striking duo of the tournament.  While we shower praise on Forlan and Suarez, let's not forget the fact that Uruguay is one of two teams (other team being Portugal) not to have conceded any goal so far in this tournament. Most importantly no other team has shown so much tactical flexibility as shown by Portugal. They played a closed and defensive game against France and denied them any opening. While against South Africa and Mexico, they played a much more free flowing and open game. Against Mexico they had their biggest test. Against brilliant Mexican midfield they not just managed to defend effectively, contrary to what was expected,  they managed to create lot more chances than Mexico, and made them truly deserving winners of the group.

South Korea was and is the Asian hope. Nobody considered them to be winners but given the quality of players they have, everyone thought that they would be able to leave a strong impression on this edition of the world cup. They were the second best in the group but, are they good enough to advance further, is something to be seen. South Korea has looked fluent and comfortable when they play attacking football. That was the reason they won so comfortably against ultra defensive Greeks. But when it comes to defending Koreans looked a bit unorganized. It was their lack of organization at the back which helped Argentina tear them apart and helped Maradona gloat more than before. The area where Uruguay should be worried is the efficiency South Korea has shown with set-pieces so far. While Park Ji-Sung, Park Chu-Young and Lee chung-yong are hogging all the limelight, Ki Sung-Yueng has shown great discipline in midfield (especially in regaining possession) and of course in delivering set-piece assists. 

Verdict : Given their tendencies to attack, these teams won't like to leave it to Penalties and we may have a result in normal time. I predict a 2 - 1 victory for Uruguay.

The man to watch : Diego Forlan. Simply because after playing in crazy Atletico Madrid for two seasons, he is just so used to carry weight of entire game on his shoulders and win games single-handed, it would be little surprise if he emerges as the lone differentiating factor between these two teams.

Portugal Vs. Brazil......Shame on you both!!! - An Ex-player's plight

Brazil is disappointing me more and more! Dunga, should for once get rid of his obsession with results and realize that when the whole world was gripped by ugly physical unfair tactics in mid 1990s, it was Canarinhas that saved the game. 

Today watching (intermittently though) Brazil play Portugal was a torture. Brazil could and should have put on some more pressure to finish the group with three straight victories. Instead it seemed that Brazil was keener on making sure that Portugal also advances as the runners up of the group, which everyone would agree, they never deserved. (Forget that 7 - 0 drubbing of North Korea please).

Someone like me, who has played at the No.10 position in the Brazilian national team, I really feel like coming back, renouncing my retirement and start playing again.

Honda's Performance - Real Madrid Effect???

Keisuke Honda's performance against Denmark can probably be highlighted as the single best individual performance. His speed, his flair, his skills and his accuracy baffled lackluster Danes. His first goal is probably the best free-kick we have seen in this world cup so far. Well, I don't remember any other straight goal from a direct free-kick (except the next one scored by Yashuito Endo). In fact, for first seventy five minutes Honda showed such a high level of intensity that in last fifteen minutes, he clearly looked tired and gradually losing steam. But precisely when it felt that Denmark was on the verge of breaking loose and were in mood of trying everything to snatch an improbable win, Honda reappeared and created another fantastic goal and sentenced the game. In fact, it was difficult to believe whether it was Honda's performance which inspired entire Japanese team to come up with one of the best team performances of the tournament or it was sheer strong motivation of Japanese team that helped Honda perform at his best. 

However, if one is to believe rumors in Japanese press, Honda's performance may have been motivated by Real Madrid scouts present in the stadium. As mentioned by Japanese blogger Kentaro Matsuura, Real Madrid scouts were present in the stadium to observe Honda's performance. After signs that Kaká might go for an operation after World Cup and may be absent from Mou´s outfit in the first half of the next year, it's understandable that Real would look for a dependable and not so costly striker-winger.

Well, whatever the reason be. Japan played wonderful football last night and if this is the way they keep playing we are assured of a great spectacle in the pre-quarter final when they face impressive Paraguay.

(Photo Courtsey : The Stuff, New Zealand)