June 6, 2006

by Louis Bennett

Any group in the World Cup that has Brazil in it is one of the most entertaining groups. Why? First, the Brazil tradition, and second, that any team playing them in group play is going to bring their best. They want to show the world they can play with the benchmark. Six World Cup trophies to the Brazilian's credit -- fantastic! The most exciting football in the world comes from the Brazilians.

Brazil is led by the world's best player, Ronaldinho. If you are not a soccer purist, you don't know who he is. If you are a casual fan and are going to watch the World Cup, he is good enough to make you order Fox Soccer Channel. Ronaldo did his magic in 2002 but he is older and may not have the World Cup that some may be expecting.

Australia is a relative unknown to the soccer world. They have not enjoyed the World Cup since 1974. They do however have an experienced manager who has performed well in the World Cup. Having an experienced manager may give them an edge -- look at what Bruce Arena did for the States. Australia has any players playing in the EPL, but I would say the ticket for them to advance is with their manager, Guus Hiddink.

Croatia is going to make an impact at the World Cup. Croatia doesn't have Suker or Prosinecki or even Boban, but it is a resilient and organized side. In qualifying, they ran through their group and finished ahead of Sweden in doing so. The man to look for on the Croatian side is Niko Kranjcar. He is the son of Zlatko Kranjcar and came of age in the qualifying stages. Croatia can be inconsistent as far as reaching the the round of 16 regularly, but it is a top side nonetheless. I would love to see them advance for my friends at the Croatian Soccer Club on Ryan and 76th. Pull `em through Franjo!

Japan won Asian qualifying and was the first in the Cup. In fact only Germany (automatic spot as host) qualified before Japan. Japan has a lot of similarities as States. The J League started in 1993 (the MLS formed in 1996) and they have seen a steady rise in their play since then. For this World Cup, look for their midfield to produce for them. Players of note are Hidetoshi Nakata, Shunsuke Nakamura and Shinji Ono. They are looking to rely on their Brazilian mentor Zico to guide them where they have not gone, to the round of eight.

Players to Watch in Group F
Brazil -- Ronaldinho (F) and Emerson (MF) and the rest of the bunch!
Australia -- Mark Schwarzer (K) and Marco Bresciani (F)
Croatia -- Niko Kranjcar jr. (F) and Dado Prso (F)
Japan -- Hidetoshi Nakata (MF) and Shunsuke Nakamura (MF)

Match to watch in group F
Brazil v Croatia on June 13 at 2 p.m. CDT

Who will advance?
The two above...Brazil and Croatia

Group F Schedule
Mon., June 12 -- AUS vs JPN -- Kaiserslautern
Tue., June 13 -- BRA vs CRO -- Berlin
Sun., June 18 -- JPN vs CRO -- Nuremburg
Sun., June 18 -- BRA vs AUS -- Munich
Thu., June 22 -- JPN vs BRA -- Dortmund
Thu., June 22 -- CRO vs AUS -- Stuttgart

Personal World Cup memories
Who can forget 1994 on July 4th when the States lines up their first 11 v Brazil out on the west coast? The other part to remember is Tab Ramos getting elbowed in the orbit of his eye and being knocked out of the game. How about the slow rolling goal that Tony Meola allowed to back post? A 1-0 loss to Brazil was a tough one to swallow but a good sign of things to come for the States. Remember they still had no domestic league at the time to help Bora Milutinovic!