Uruguay meet The Black Stars the only team from the African Side to have come so far

July 2, 2010 by Richard · Leave a Comment

This is not the first time that Uruguay have played for the World Cup, however qualifying for the quarter finals has come only after 1970 and that’s a pretty long time. Ghana on the other hand who they meet in the quarter finals has never ever come so far in the World Cup matches. This is the first time ever that the Dark Horses have made it this far. Ghana the Black Stars is the only African team to have made it through the knock out phase.

Uruguay was considered to be a luck team to advance to the 16 squad, since they struggled to qualify for the finals. Their game with France ended up being a goalless draw, after which they headed for three consecutive wins thanks to their awesome strikers Luis Suarez and Diego Forlan. They proceeded to set back the hosts with a 3-0 win and a 1-0 against Mexico and then finally the 2-1 win against Korea Republic.

Ghana on the other hand have come this far the first time, and even if they fail you could blame it on them being raw and very new in the whole fight and politics of the quarter finals. However the Black Stars have a very formidable team with some of the youngest players to feature in this tournament. Infact there are several players from this very team who have won the coveted FIFA U-20 World Cup last year around. They’ve even finished as runner ups for the CAF African Cup of Nations that was held in January. The team is fit as a fiddle and this could be a big tackle for the Uruguay team players although they are seasoned and have much more experience playing the World Cup games.

Even the Uruguay forward Diego Forlan acknowledges that the Ghana team is fast and strong and that they would have to watch their backs if they are even thinking of triumphing.

Brazil and Netherlands up for a tough Friday game!

July 2, 2010 by Richard · Leave a Comment

Although fans of Brazil world over have turned on a critical eye towards them saying that they lack skill as compared to the previous World Cup Teams, Coach Dunga is not complaining. Infact all that’s on the coach’s mind is about winning the tournament and taking home the cup. His philosophy is very simple the World Cup is a game where all that matters is perseverance, strength and how well you defeat your opponents in the game. Skill is only a secondary attribute and the aim here is to take home the cup, not to hang someone’s picture up the wall of fame.

Their team is well known for their pragmatic style and the way they set the other team to pieces with their counterattacks. Monday night Brazil tossed out Chile 3-0 to make their way clear for the quarter finals. They are all geared up to take home their sixth World Cup but for that they will have to defeat the mighty Dutch on Friday.

Of the three games that were played so far, the last game in the knockout stage against Chile was their most impressive, and we only hope that they get better with every game. According to their coach Dunga “We already said in these World Cup games, we have to go forward and play open football. That’s what everyone wants to see.”

Kaka is still yet to shine and score his goal, although he has been a formidable player in the team there is more to what we currently see in the star. Infact Kaka can play better and we only hope that he shows why he was crowned the Player of the Year in 2007. After his suspension in the final group match he got back and bought in enough of fuel to add to the team’s potent counter backs. He will however have to watch out for the next yellow card that would suspend him again. Dunga lamented against the untoward incident saying, “Yes, it is a problem. Technical players are punished, and those who always commit fouls aren’t. This is lamentable.”

The Dutch, who all this while have been playing as a team seem to be splitting at the seams as the game against Brazil comes closer. There seems to have been an outburst between coach Bert van Maarwijk and Robin van Persie when the player was replaced in their Monday’s win against Slovakia 2-1. When he was taken out because of his rather insipid performance, he said, “It’s not me that should be substituted but Wesley Sneijder.”

This could be a crucial match for the Dutch and the split in the team has not come in the right time. However Persie added saying “But I said nothing bad to the coach nothing that could harm the squad.”

Friday however gives them enough time for the team to put back their differences and get back together as a squad and pla`y that crucial exciting match against the Samba favorites.

Filed Under: FIFA World Cup 2010
Tagged: brazil vs netherlands, Kaka, watch live online, World Cup Soccer