World Cup Soccer
Germany-Costa Rica
TVNZ.co.nz
Suspended:
Mike Hanke (two games) for being sent off in their
final match at last year’s Confederations Cup. Injured: There appear to be no
serious injuries for either team but
captain Michael Ballack has
been rested from training and is trying to shake off a calf strain.Doubtful:
The only doubt appears to be Ballack, although he is
expected to play.
are at full strength with leading marksman Paulo Wanchope and defender Gilberto
shrugging off nagging knee problems. Talented young midfielder Carlos Hernandez
has not impressed in warm-up matches and is set to be sacrificed in favour of the more defensive-minded Danny Fonseca.
have been world champions three times but are not
among the favourites here. Coach Klinsmann
needs a convincing win over
to generate the fervent public backing that helped them finish third at the
Confederations Cup.
have never lost a competitive match against a team
from North or
Rica
expected to beat
but they have won their opening matches at both their previous World Cups
beating
1-0 in 1990 and
2-0 in 2002.
People’s Daily Online
in recent two weeks. In recent warmups against
European soccer giants,
were routed by
and lost to the
1-0.
Ecuador-Poland
Vital Football
Coach Luis Fernando Suarez seems to be bucking the recent
trend, choosing not to announce/play his starting line-up before the first
proper game. Only goalkeeper Cristian Mora has been
confirmed as a starter. The main worry on the injury front is striker Agustin
Delgado. The former
with a knee injury, though he’s expected to make the appearance as the nation
kick off their Group A match.
The Poles have no real injury worries and are looking strong after getting back
on track with a hard-fought 1-0 victory over
last week, having given an off-key performance, losing to minnows
previously. On a side note, the last time these two teams met the match
finished 3-0 to
last November!
SquareFootball.net
However
looked sharper when beating fellow finalists
recently, will be backed by plenty of support in
and are a side capable of scoring goals.
also did well in qualifying, finishing third in the South American group and
beating
and
along the way. All of their victories however came at altitude and they have
only played four full internationals in
struggle for goals in
TVNZ.co.nz
Injured:
Jacek Bak and Jacek Krzynowek are expected to
recover from minor injury and illness worries in time to start.
have no serious injury concerns.
Doubtful:
Carlos Tenorio is nursing a calf-muscle injury but is
fit enough to be considered for a starting role.
coach Janas’s new defensive formation ground out a
1-0 win over
on Saturday, giving the Poles a welcome boost just before a group opener they
see as crucial to their progress. Ecuador need to pick up after losing to
Netherlands, Japan and the former Yugoslav republic of Macedonia and drawing
1-1 with Colombia in friendlies since qualifying.
Coach Suarez nevertheless believes they have progressed since their World Cup
debut four years ago when losses to
and
them eliminated after their first two matches.
Paraguay-England
Aljazeera.net
Paraguay also have injury worries with striker Jose Cardozo pulling out of the squad due to a torn thigh muscle.The leading goal scorer for his country, Cardozo has been replaced by 22 year old Dante Lopez who
plays for Genoa in Italy. In better news for
Cardozo’s attacking partner Roque
Santa Cruz was declared fit to face
in the opening match of Group B on Saturday.
Reuters.uk
Having struggled to beat
and
since qualifying, Lampard believes
need to hit
with some Premier League pace and pressure.
Trinidad & Tobago-Sweden
Scotsman,com
Midfielder
Russell Latapy admits that he has a battle on his
hands to make it into the starting XI for
scorer of 28 goals in 66 international appearances, is not certain to be part
of Leo Beenhakker’s first-team plans. Latapy retired from international football in 2001 before
returning to the fold last September.
Readabet.com
The Swedes have not tasted a single victory since
qualifying for the World Cup last October, drawing against the likes of South
Korea, Saudi Arabia and Jordan, as well as losing 3-0 against Steve Staunton’s
new look Ireland back in March.
Admittedly, they were without a number of their bigger
names for some of those games, but even when the influential trio of Henrik Larsson, Freddie Ljungberg
and Zlatan Ibrahimovic
returned for Friday’s fixture with
they could only muster a less than convincing 1-1 draw.
Associated Press
Leo Beenhakker isn’t concerned
with Trinidad and Tobago’s struggles leading up to the World Cup.The coach hopes the exhibition losses to a young Wales
team, Slovenia and the Czech Republic will be a teaching tool for his most of
players who have little experience against some of the top Europeans.
Argentina-Ivory Coast
The Electric New Paper
The backline, probably Argentina’s weakest link, seems
sure to start with four defenders – Nicolas Burdisso,
Roberto Ayala, Gabriel Heinze and captain Juan Pablo Sorin, an attacking defender, whose move forward makes it a
backline of three. Heinze, who has not played since
damaging knee ligaments last September in a Champions League game at
Villarreal, said: ‘The team’s in good shape, there’s no problem. The exception
is me having just gone through a long period of inactivity. Our desire and our
hopes should erase any physical problems we have.’
RTE Sport
have been tipped to shine at this year’s World Cup by
German legend Franz Beckenbauer. The only man to have
won the World Cup as a player and coach believes that if the Elephants can
qualify from their group, they could become the first African nation to make
the final of the summer showpiece.
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