Anyway, the bigger question here is what happens in the grand scheme of the World Cup Finals if Portugal makes it to the Round of 16 by snatching the second qualifying position in their group behind Brazil? This leads to a knockout stage matchup of H1-G2, or in layman's terms, an Iberian Peninsula showdown, namely (given that everyone assumes Spain will finish first in Group H) Spain vs. Portugal. Given that in a grudge match such as this, the outcome is incredibly difficult to predict with tension and emotions running high for all parties involved, this could certainly lead to busting a whole bunch of brackets. Although the Spanish team can field two entire midfields comprised of world class players with the talent on their roster, one can never count out the crafty Portuguese led by their Captain, (and arguably the world's best player) Cristiano Ronaldo, especially in a battle for glory and bragging rights, just like the match that the loss of Drogba potentially sets up later this month.
May the soccer gods heal Jozy's ankle,
Ryan
(Post your comments, thoughts, concerns etc. I'd love to hear them)
Breaking news today suggests that Drogba will not miss all of the cup. That being said his recovery from surgery on his broken arm, which took place in a Swiss hospital, doesn't have a clear time period. I fear that Ryan might be right here- that this injury catapults Portugal through to the second round behind Brazil. Unfortunately for Drogba and his teammates their first two games are versus Portugal (June 15) and Brazil (June 20) and without Drogba brutalizing those two defenses, respectively, I don't think Ivory Coast have enough firepower to get any points out of those first two games. I just don't see the likes of Kalou and Dindane (from Portsmouth) being able to step up their game against two very solid teams. I do expect them to pick up the points against DPRK in their last game with or without Drogba.
ReplyDeleteAnother reason that Ivory Coast may not make it through is the unlucky draw they got by playing Brazil and Portugal first. More importantly may be the last game of the group- Brazil v. Portugal. Both teams will most likely have atleast three points by this game (both having played DPRK) and maybe more depending on how well the Drogba-less Ivorians can play. In my eyes the only hope for Ivory Coast to leapfrog into the next round is if they get a point (or 3) from either Brazil or Portugal (more likely from Portugal) and then hope that Brazil and Portugal beat up on each other on the last day. In this scenario the team that Ivory Coast picks up its points on from one of the first two games must lose in this crucial third match. I hope that Drogba can recover quickly enough to make it for the Brazil game but this is all hullaballoo until the actual games kick off. PHEW- that was confusing.
In regards to the possible Portugal v. Spain match (if Portugal is the #2 qualifier in group G): If the teams played today I think Spain would easily win 2-0. Portugal struggled through qualifying and struggled, much to my amazement what with such an array of talented offensive players, to score goals. I would expect that with the likes of Twinkle Toes himself (CR7 for Portugal, confusing because he's CR9 for Madrid), Nani, Liedson, Deco, Hugo Almeida, Miguel Veloso, and Simoa goals would come fast and easy for this team. If Portugal does make it out of the group stages as the second seed I think they will need some momentum in order to challenge Spain in the second round. If Portugal can beat Ivory Coast and DPRK and get atleast a point from Brazil I think they will develop some confidence and self-belief that seemed to be lacking (though definitely not from CR7) in their preparations for WC2010. If they can score some goals, get atleast 6 points in the group stages, and get some swagger back (like the teams that knocked out England at Euro '04 and WC '06) than they might be able to make some noise against Spain. If they squeak into the second round I can't see them challenging La Furia Roja.
Long Live Rooney.
Matt