Saturday’s match between England and the United States has been the most talked about game since draw was announced. Both clubs are considered heavy favourites to finish one-two in the group, and the winner of Saturday’s clash will have the inside track to claim top spot in group C. Winning group C is considered very importment as it likely means avoiding a match with Germany in the second round. Slovenia and Algeria will both be fighting up hill battles in an effort to pull off a shocking upset, and extend their tournament for a least one match.
England is clearly the most talented team in the group even with injuries to Rio Ferdinand and David Beckham. The loss of Ferdinand is definitely the more devastation of the two injuries. Ferndinand was supposed to be one of the anchors on England’s back end, and his injury means Fabio Capello will now have to use the oft-injured Ledley King more then he was expecting. The injuries should not be a concern for England during group play given all of the firepower this squad has at its disposal, but Capello must hope to avoid any more injuries during the tournament, or it could be an earlier exit then what is being anticipated by fans.
While the United States is not expected to repeat the 1950 feat by beating England on Saturday, they are surely hoping to keep the match competitive. The States have been hampered with injuries during the lead-up to the tournament, especially at the back, and a good showing against the heavy favourites would put a number of concerns to rest. The Yanks would also like to end their recent trend of playing poorly at the outset of international tournaments. There is very little room for error in the World Cup, and the United States cannot afford to stumble out of the gate, and play poorly during any match. A victory over England would be a nice bonus, but Bob Bradley cannot let his squad get too caught up in the outcome of Saturday’s match either way. Victories against Slovenia and Algeria will ultimately decide U.S.A’s fate.
Slovenia has the most potential to upset one of the two favourites, and steal a spot in the second round. Manager Matjaz Kek’s side contains one of the most gifted goal scorers in the world, and that can sometimes be enough in international competitions to put a team through. Zlatko Dedic will be depended heavily upon to provide the offense, but he proved he can handle the load during qualifying, and Slovenia could be capable of pulling off the upset if the United States struggles during the copetition.
Meanwhile, not much chance is being given to Algeria despite their recent strong performance at the African Nation’s Cup. Their starting XI contains a number of world class players who are very capable of playing superb football when they are on their game, but this team has also shown to be wildly inconsistent. When Algeria plays bad, they play really bad, which is not good news considering the teams they find themselves up against in this group. Algeria will have to bring their A game and then some in each and every match to have any chance of extending their World Cup.
Everyone expects England and United States to move on, and that is exactly what should happen barring a major upset. The United States does enter the tournament with a number of injury concerns, but they still contain enough depth and talent to advance. Slovenia and Algeria will put up a decent fight, but the two other teams in this group are just too strong to overcome.
Prediction
1. England
2. United States
3. Slovenia
4. Algeria