World Cup Group D preview
Group D
Australia
World Cup stalwarts Germany have been handed a tricky 1st round which they will have to overcome if they are to go deep into the tournament as they so often do. The Germans qualified with few worries but lack the depth of talent that they have had in prior tournaments. Nevertheless, the strength of their mentality almost makes up for this and quite often ensures that they are competing in the latter stages. They will be expected to qualify despite a tricky looking group.
Serbia, Ghana and Australia are likely to be in a three team battle for the second spot behind Germany. All three teams were good tips for the second round before the tournament began but it looks likely that two of them will be going home early. Australia are probably the group outsiders even though the national team has made major strides in the last decade. A lack of star players will quite possibly be their undoing. Ghana are expected to do well with tireless midfielder Michael Essien running the midfield among other Premier League players. With the tournament being staged on their home continent, they will be tipped by many to make the knock out stages. Serbia are one of the most underrated teams in the world with a large proportion of their squad playing in the top leagues around Europe. Despite not always being pretty on the eye, they have a real physical presence, team spirit and a very strong defence. Although many will tip Ghana to qualify, I fancy Serbia to be the surprise package of South Africa 2010.
TEAM - Germany
MANAGER - Joachim Low
QUALIFIED – 1st in European
STAR PLAYER – Michael Ballack
VERDICT – Qualified
TEAM – Australia
MANAGER – Pim Verbeek
QUALIFIED – 1st in Asia
STAR PLAYER – Tim Cahill
VERDICT – Group Exit
TEAM – Serbia
MANAGER – Radomir Antic
QUALIFIED – 1st in European
STAR PLAYER – Nemanja Vidic
VERDICT – Qualified
TEAM – Ghana
MANAGER – Milovan Rajevac
QUALIFIED – 1st in African
STAR PLAYER – Michael Essien
VERDICT – Group Exit
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