FIFA 2010 REVIEWS

What did Cote d’Ivoire do to FIFA to deserve two terrible World Cup draws in a row? Back in 2006 they got Argentina, Netherlands, Serbia & Montenegro. Not kind. This time around they’re in World Cup 2010 Group G, along with #1 ranked team Brazil, Cristiano Ronaldo’s Portugal and the mysterious North Korea. OK, so they probably would have taken North Korea if offered. But maybe not the other two. Read on for my Group G prediction, and please add your own in the comments.

So, to recap (even though we’re only two paragraphs in) the Group G teams are: Brazil, Cote d’Ivoire (aka Ivory Coast), North Korea and Portugal. I’m going to open confidently by picking first and last place:

Brazil will win the group. Portugal and Cote d’Ivoire are strong teams, but Brazil is better than both in every area of the field. Especially in defence. ESPN’s Tommy Smyth disagrees, and is actually predicting Brazil to finish third in this group. Which is possibly part of the reason why Tommy Smyth has been relegated from TV to radio coverage this year. So ignore him. Brazil will finish first in Group G.

North Korea will finish last. I confess I don’t know much about them. But what I do know is that they are not as good at football as any of the other three teams in Group F. I’m not necessarily predicting three spankings. But I am predicting at least two defeats, maybe one heroic 0-0 draw, but definitely a last place finish.

Which leaves Portugal and Cote d’Ivoire fighting for second place behind Brazil. The big news for Cote d’Ivoire is obviously Didier Drogba’s injury. My thinking is that while an injured Drogba would be a big miss, it would also be an opportunity for other talented Elephants to take the spotlight. Salomon Kalou, for example, might revel in being the main man up front rather than being Didier’s sidekick. The bigger problem I see – and what I suspect will actually happen – is that Drogba will play injured, and below par, and so the team will play below par. Which brings us on to Portugal…

Have you noticed how quiet Cristiano Ronaldo has been lately? By his standards this has been a hush hush World Cup build up. I’m taking that as a positive sign, and suspect Ronaldo will start this tournament with a bang. Which is why I predict the final Group F table will look like this: