And the winners of the Fifa World Cup 2010 are……

January 26, 2010

The first world cup to be held on African soil is less than 4 months away and already people have decided on who is going to win it: Brazil, Italy, Spain, France, England, Germany to name a few but It’s not that simple to predict a winner…

The first nation to consider, that most people believe to be the favourites, is the reigning European champions Spain. Spain has the squad that most nations only dream of, they have the best central midfield partnership in the game as well as at least three to four world class centre midfielder’s sitting on the bench. Their strike pairing is lethal to say the least and to top it all off they have the best goalkeeper as well! Not only on the International front are they achieving though, their domestic scene is one of the best around and Barcelona topped off their incredible year of six trophies with the club world championship title in December. A sensible man wouldn’t put his money against Spain winning this World Cup on this evidence but then again I am not sensible! Prediction – Semi-Final/Final

The next nation I believe to be in contention of winning the title is ‘Les Bleus.’ The French national team may not have been ‘hand-picked’ in qualification for the tournament but it is something about a major tournament that awakens them. Just delve into the history books over the past twelve years, Winners of world cup ’98 and Euro 2000, and finalists in 2006 World Cup. However with Raymond Domenech at the helm I do not believe they will be able to conquer the world this summer, even with the lightning fast Benzema! Prediction – Semi-Final/Quarter-Final

The next nation to consider are the Italians, never underestimate the heart and soul of this team. In a summer where their domestic scene was plunged into darkness, the players showed the world just how much passion they had inside them by battling France through an eventful Final in 2006 to finally emerge victorious after a penalty shoot-out. The players may not be as world class as the likes of: Ronaldo, Messi and Rooney, but what they may lack in skill, they more than make up for in teamwork, courage and determination. However Lippi is determined on sticking to a lot of his ‘golden oldies’ and unless he is able to gamble on a few younger stars then I do not believe that Italy will be able to match Brazil’s record of five World Cup titles. Prediction – Semi-Final.

England have transformed dramatically under the Italian guidance of Fabio Capello. He has taken them from the dark days of missing qualification to Euro 2008, to the un-beaten run of qualifying for the 2010 World Cup. He has instilled confidence and a degree of discipline that was necessary for such a team. They arguably have the second best quad in the tournament with players such as: Rooney, Gerrard, Ferdinand and Terry, who all make such a big difference for their respective clubs. However it is just not an England theme to perform under intense pressure and I think that this philosophy will not change come summer, and no matter who is in charge of the team it will be a while before England win a major tournament in my personal opinion.

Prediction – Quarter-Final.

The other teams that I believe have an outside chance of taking home the glory include: Germany, who always seem to perform to a very high level always reaching the latter stages of the tournaments, just look at ’02, ’06 and ’08 for starters! Don’t forget they have also won the World Cup on three occasions in the past. Holland have a few players who seem to be key to their success such as Sneijder and Van Persie, who come June, may be able to lead their country to success. Argentina just don’t seem to be themselves of late and sadly the guidance of Diego Maradona has not had the desired effect and the last day drama of qualification is proof enough. Outside shot. Don’t forget as well the potential of an African team grabbing the headlines, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Nigeria and Cameroon to say the least. They all have players with enough quality but will in-experience get the better of them?

That leaves only one team to discuss. ‘Les Selecaos.’ Brazil, in my eyes, are the favourites for this tournament. They have experience, flair, skill and above all raw talent. Their squad is very talented and consists of arguably the two best right-backs in the world, Maicon and Dani Alves. The goal-keeper is a no-brainer and Julio Cesar is on fire with Inter Milan at the moment. Ronaldinho is rediscovering his old form and is competing for a place in the Brazil squad. Stars such as Pato and the captain Lucio are also very important. However the star of the show has to be Kaka, the player is a magician in midfield and he can turn a game on its head with one touch of the ball. Un-touchable. Brazil have the quality and experience to go on and win this tournament but they will not be in for an easy ride and the likes of Spain, Italy and France may cause them problems in the latter stages.

Prediction – Final/Winners

The Fifa World Cup 2010 is not too far away and it is set-up to potentially be the best World Cup to date!

Fabio Sarlo

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