2010 World cup: B group analysis
Argentina is looking to regain lost glory and is in easy group. Greece, Nigeria and South Korea will fight for second spot. Argentina coach may use group stage games to test all forwards and its sunstitutes are much better than first team members of other squads. But, injury to John Obi Mikel (Nigeria) changed equations in this group.
Qualification of Group B teams:
1. Argentina: Qualified by finishing fourth in tough South American group behind Brazil, Chile and Paraguay.
2. Nigeria: Qualified in last minute as Tunisia lost its final qualifier.
3. Greece: Qualified in last minute by defeating Ukraine in play-off.
4. South Korea: Decimated opponents in qualifiers and are unbeaten in qualifiers.
Prospects of Group B teams:
1. Argentina: Despite non-selection of Javier Janetti and Esteban Cambiasso, team still has enough players to take it to quarter-finals. Its substitute forwards are miles ahead of others. Your defence needs to be at its best to control these forwards.
2. Nigeria: These unpredictable players can reach second round or exit from group stage. Africa has lot of hopes on Nigerians. Among African teams, they got easiest draw. They need to improve in defence. Without Obe Mikel, they lost balance.
3. Greece: It has experienced players but form is not encouraging. Their perofrmance in warm-up games is not encouraging. But, they can now fight for second spot after Mikel injury.
4. South Korea: It may be difficult for South Koreans to reach second round. But, South Korea has best chance among Asian nations to reach second round. Japan and North Korea are in tough groups. South Koreans are one of few teams who qualified for last 6 world cups.
Predictions on group B teams:
1. Argentina: Can easily win group and has potential to go to semi-finals. It may face Germany in quarter-finals and Spain in semi-finals.
2. Nigeria: Can reach second round if players can play as a unit.
3. Greece: Tough fight for second spot with Nigeria and Korea.
4. South Korea: Difficult to reach second round but can surprise opponents.
Final analysis of Group B:
Argentina can easily win group. Nigeria, Greece and South Korea will fight for second spot. Nigeria has slight edge over Greece and South Korea. Argentina has best forward line-up in entire tournament but has weak coach. Nigeria hopes reduced after Mikel injury. Top 2 finishers can hope to reach quarterfinals as group A opponents in second round are not in roaring form.
Schedule of Group B games:
Date | IST | Venue and City | Soccer Game |
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June 12 | 5 PM | Nelson Mandela stadium, Port Elizabeth | |
June 12 | 7:30 PM | Ellis Park, Johannesburg | |
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June 17 | 5 PM | Soccer city stadium, Johannesburg | Argentina Vs South Korea |
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June 17 | 7:30 PM | Free State stadium, Bloemfontein | Greece Vs Nigeria |
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June 23 | 12 AM | Durban stadium, Durban | Nigeria Vs South Korea |
June 23 | 12 AM | Peter Mokaba stadium, Polokwane | Argentina Vs Greece |
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Group B sqauds and analysis:
| Argentina | Nigeria | Greece | South Korea |
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World Cup Appearances: | 14 times | 3 times | Once | 7 times |
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Best Performance: | Won world cup in 1978 & 1986 | Second round in 1994 & 1998 | Exited from group stage in 1994 | Semi-final in 2002 |
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FIFA ranking: | 7 | 21 | 13 | 47 |
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My Rating: | 8/10 | 6.5/10 | 6/10 | 6/10 |
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| Coach Name: | Lars Lagerback | Otto Rehhgel | Huh Jung-Moo | |
Coach rating: | 4/10 | 6.5/10 | 7/10 | 6/10 |
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Captain: | Javier Mascherano | Kanu | Giorgos Karagounis | Park Ji-sung |
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Squad: |
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Goalkeepers: |
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1. | Sergio Romero | Austine Ejide | Costas Chalkias | Lee Woon-jae |
2. | Mariano Andujar | Vincent Enyeama | Michalis Sifakis | Kim Young-kwang |
3. | Diego Pozo | Dele Ayenugba | Alexandros Tzorvas | Jung Sung-ryong |
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Defenders: |
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1. | Walter Samuel | Danny Shittu | Papadopoulos | Oh Beom-seok |
2. | Martin Demichelis | Joseph Yobo | Vangelis Moras | Kim Dong-jin |
3. | Gabriel Heinze | Taye Taiwo | Vassilis Torosidis | Cho Yong-hyung |
4. | Clemente Rodriguez | Chidi Odiah | Sotiris Kyrgiakos | Lee Jung-soo |
5. | Nicolas Burdisso | Elderson Echiejile | Stelios Malezas | Kim Hyung-il |
6. | Nicolas Otamendi | Ayodele Adeleye | Papastathopoulos | Cha Du-ri |
7. | Ariel Garce | Rabiu Afolabi | Giourkas Seitaridis | Kang Min-soo |
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| Nikos Spiropoulos | Lee Young-pyo |
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Midfielders: |
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1. | Angel Di Maria | Sani Kaita | Giorgos Karagounis | Park Ji-sung |
2. | Juan Veron | Dickson Etuhu | Costas Katsouranis | Lee Chung-yong |
3. | Javier Mascherano | Ayila Yussuf | Christos Patsatzoglou | Ki Sung-yong |
4. | Maxi Rodriguez | Peter Osaze | Thanassis Prittas | Kim Bo-kyung |
5. | Jonas Gutierrez | Lukman Haruna | Sotiris Ninis | Kim Jung-woo |
6. | Javier Pastore | Brown Ideye | Alexandros Tziolis | Kim Jae-sung |
7. | Mario Bolatti |
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| Kim Nam-il |
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Forwards: |
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1. | Obafemi Martins | Fanis Gekas | Park Chu-young | |
2. | Gonzalo Higuain | Nwankwo Kanu | Dimitris Salpingidis | Lee Seung-ryul |
3. | Diego Milito | Yakubu Ayegbeni | Angelos Charisteas | Yeom Ki-hun |
4. | Carlos Tevez | Ikechukwu Uche | Georgios Samaras | Ahn Jung-hwan |
5. | Sergio Aguero | Chinedu Obasi | Pantelis Kapetanos | Lee Dong-gook |
6. | Martin Palermo | John Utaka |
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| 7. |
| Victor Obinna |
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Share your views on Group B teams and predict their progress in 2010 football world cup.
