My apologies for not posting any World Cup Buzz yesterday, but to be honest for once the coverage of the tournament, whether in newspapers, magazines, on television, radio or online, was overshadowed by a feast of goal-scoring and three very watchable Group Stage ties. How many would term last night's result a shock, given how poor France looked in the first game and the presence of Raymond Domenech in the dug-out, Mexico's 2-0 victory still can be said to have been an upset. Many would have expected France to at least improve on their lacklustre performance against Uruguay, but they were given a footballing lesson by a dynamic, quick, intelligent and inventive side. Recent Manchester United signing Javier Hernandez opened the scoring, cleverly beating the French offside trap, before rounding 'keeper Hugo Lloris to slot the ball home. Watching the game on television, it very much appeared that Hernandez had been offside when the ball was lofted through Les Blues' defence by Rafael Marquez. Indeed many of Domenech's players were quick to raise their arms in protest, but in fact Hernandez had timed his run to perfection, and the linesman's decision, to his credit, had been spot on. Mexico's second came through 37-year old Cuauhtemoc Blanco, who converted from the spot after Pablo Barrera had been clearly scythed down in the penalty area by Eric Abidal. The result leaves France needing a "miracle", according to Domenech, but whilst many in this country may already be revelling in the French failure, don't rule them out entirely just yet. Whilst it would be remarkable easy for Uruguay and Mexico to engineer a nice 1-1 which would send both teams through, it is unlikely that this would happen, as both sides still have their eyes on top spot in Group A.Back to today's action, and the opening fixture sees Germany, arguably the only team in the first round of matches to really put on a show, take on Serbia, who if defeated would face a huge struggle to make it out of Group D. Whilst bookies, pundits and fans will be unanimously tipping Germany, and certainly they should be looking to win, this will not be an easy game. Joachim Low's side, unlike last week's 4-0 thrashing of hapless Australia, will actually have to turn up this afternoon. Serbia are a strong international side, with many players capable of causing problems. Zdravko Kuzmanovic, despite his bizarre handball against Ghana, is more used to causing problems at the other end of the pitch, and alongside him Serbia have an impressive array of European stars. Defenders Nemanja Vidic, Aleksandar Kolarov, Branislav Ivanovic, Nenad Milijas, Dejan Stankovic, Nikola Zigic and Marko Pantellic and Milan Jovanovic are all capable players who will not simply roll over in Port Elizabeth. Whilst the Germans will be riding high and full of confidence, they would be unwise to approach this fixture in the wrong manner, and simply assume they will be able to slice the Serbs open as they did to the Australians. Were I a betting man I would back Germany to come through this game, but only just. A 2-1 scoreline, despite not having the headline value of Germany's 4-0 victory last week, would to my mind be a far more credible result, and establish the Germans as true contenders to lift the trophy. As yet, they are a team with a good goal difference, which has ultimately been untested as yet. Today's game, and Germany's final group match against Ghana, could be very telling indeed.
In undoubtedly the least attractive match on paper of all today's ties is the United States against surprise, to the say least, Group C leaders Slovenia. Without meaning to detract anything from Slovenia's victory over Algeria, they were essentially gifted the win, which neither side had done enough to deserve, by an awful mistake from the Algerian 'keeper. Today's tie will require the Slovenes to up their game, and really put on a performance if they are to avoid defeat. Whilst I would expect the United States to begin the match cautiously, they have a sound team and a strong international record. They are also capable, despite some of the derisory comments made about the Americans by journalists from this great country of ours, of holding their own against supposedly superior opposition, as they demonstrated against England. Landon Donovan, as he showed during his successful loan spell at Everton, is an excellent playmaker and added to his vast experience and influential position in the American side, he could be the one to make the difference. Meanwhile the pace of Jozy Altidore, which troubled England in Rustenberg last Saturday, could be a factor today as well, and Slovenia will need to be alert to the threat he possesses from long balls over the top, or well placed, incisive passes through the middle. In terms of a prediction, I would be inclined to go for a tight 1-0 victory for the United States. I don't feel too many goals will be scored by the teams in Group C, and it may perhaps take another goalkeeping error or stroke of luck to break the deadlock.
In today's most high-profile match, although naturally only in this country, England take on Group C's bottom side Algeria in Cape Town. With 25,000 England fans descending on the resort, there should be no shortage of passion, commitment and dedication in the stands. However, are the players able or willing to demonstrate similar qualities on the pitch? The return of Barry should add some bite to the England midfield, and finally break the lacklustre and much-maligned, often fairly so, Gerrard-Lampard midfield combination. Furthermore Barry's comeback from injury will free up Steven Gerrard to play the more attacking role he is used to occupying for club side Liverpool, whilst possibly providing a bit of impetus for Frank Lampard to up his game, after a poor peformance in England's opener. The goalkeeper issue appears to be the one most England fans are concerned with, given that Fabio Capello has resisted calls to drop his policy of informing players that they are playing just two hours before the game is due to begin. However I don't see why it should be such a bone of contention; for if Robert Green was the Number One England goalkeeper prior to the game against the United States, that meant by implication that Fabio Capello and the England coaching staff deemed him to be the best goalkeeper out of the three. One mistake does not make Robert Green a bad goalkeeper. So Capello has no reason to drop him, unless he feels his all-round ability isn't as good as David James' or Joe Hart's, but if Capello does choose to demote Green, it will stand as a stain on his pre-tournament judgement. Heskey is likely to start, to the general annoyance of many England fans, who will promptly ignore the excellent contribution he makes to the team and the integral role he plays in the England attack, and make him into a scapegoat for the nation's footballing woes. The fact that the stats back up mine, and Fabio Capello's assessment of Heskey's importance is quite telling, and should be enough to justify his inclusion to the majority of England supporters. So, on to the game. England have to win, it's that simple. If we happen to be unable to defeat Algeria, then we quite simply do not deserve to progress past the group stages. England should be looking to triumph over Algeria, who are one of the tournament's outsiders, to put it kindly, by at least two goals to nil. Should Wayne Rooney be able to rediscover his goalscoring form, and should England finally get their act together and start performing, we could well be looking at a 3-0 or 4-0 victory. It's probably rather unlikely that such a scoreline could occur, but it would certainly be a perfect antidote for those England fans whose high expectations were brought crashing down to earth by the disappointing result against the USA.
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