Onto Group B now and it’s a group that could be one of the most hotly contested in the whole competition.

Group B

Argentina

Strengths: The depths in their attacking talent. In Gonzalo Higuain, Lionel Messi, Diego Milito, Angel Di Maria and Carlos Tevez the Argentinean’s have plenty of top class options going forward with the best strike-force in the competition. Lionel Messi is the best player in the World at the minute and Messi and Higuain were the top two scorers in La Liga. Another advantage is the fact they can leave out Esteban Cambiasso and Javier Zanetti and still look like they have a top quality World Cup squad.

Weaknesses: The manager; Diego Maradona. The man is quite simply barmy but superbly entertaining at the same time. Whether it is telling journalists that “they take it up the a**e” or  making sure his team had 24 hour access to ice-cream during the World Cup, that was most likely just for him judging by his figure, he makes the headlines. He called up 104 players during the South American qualifying campaign where a talented Argentinean squad scrapped through and looks set to play with four centre backs in South Africa

Key Player: Could it be anyone else but Lionel Messi? The best player in the World can match his manager’s fame in his native country if he can excel on the international stage and bring the Jules Remit trophy back to Argentina. In recent seasons his international form has been good without reaching the scintillating standards he has for ‘Barca’. Many point the finger at Maradona for not allowing him to roam like the Catalonian outfit do but a player of Messi’s talent will be impossible to keep quiet in South Africa.   

Greece

Strengths: They are organised and always are the underdogs, the status which they thrive under. Otto Rehhagel the manager has done a sterling job with a fairly average Greece side up to now. The side are organised and will not allow teams to simply beat them by their own errors; to beat the Greek’s you have to play well. This is highlighted by the fact they only conceded more than one goal in qualifying once. This strategy has seen Greece rise up the football ladder in recent times winning Euro 2004 and the side are still ranked 13^th in the World. Severely under-rated.

Weaknesses: The lack of real talent and creativity in the squad. Giorgios Karagounis used to provide this but he is now 33. There is also a lack of young players coming through with only one player in the squad under the age of 23.

Key Player: Theofanis Gekas. The striker spearheads the Greek attack and has done for many years now. He was top goalscorer in European qualifying netting ten times in as many games. He will need to continue this form for his country to provide them with the goals needed to reach the second round.

South Korea

Strengths: Experience in major competitions. The South Korean’s have qualified for the World Cup 9 times in their history, as many times as the likes of Holland have. They also have two very creative wingers in Park Ji-Sung and Lee Chung-Yong and are very well drilled, their unbeaten qualification campaign which saw them only concede four goals highlights this. As a bit of useless information, every one of their players has a double-barrelled surname.

Weaknesses: A lack of fire power up-front means they may struggle to score goals against the talented Argentinean’s and the organised Greeks. Veteran striker Ahn Jung-Hwan still starts up front but his goalscoring record is poor – 17 goals in 71 appearances. Unlikely to repeat 2002’s heroics.

Key Player: Park Ji-Sung. The talented player has become a key part of the Manchester United team in recent times and has become his country’s star performer. He works tirelessly and is very comfortable on the ball. He would be a real asset to most the teams in the competition.

Nigeria

Strengths: The Nigerian’s posses real pace and power. Peter Odemwingie and Chinedu Obasi are both lightening over on the wings. Obafemi Martins is a whippet up-front and the familiar Yakubu provides the power to trouble any defence in the competition. Victor Obinha is also very quick and generally used as an impact substitute.

Weaknesses: Sticking to trend with the African teams the defence is very suspect. Joseph Yobo and Danny Shittu do not fill supporters with confidence. Unfortunately they have had an injury to their best player, John Obi Mikel, which has ruled him out of the competition and will be a major blow to their chances. The fact that their squad could all be about 4 years older than they say they are is also a danger – it is very hard to track Nigerian player’s birth dates.

Key Player: Yakubu. An explosive striker that can be a real threat on his day; he is well rounded with pace, power and a thunderous shot. He is key to the Nigerian’s style and holds the ball up for the faster players around him to be able to come into play and he can also score a fair few himself. He has a decent record of 20 goals in 50 caps so far for his country.

 

Prediction For Final Group Standings

1) Argentina

2) Nigeria

3) South Korea

4) Greece