World Cup 2010 Day 1- 11/06/10

So, South Africa 2010 has officially begun. After a wonderful opening ceremony, the Bafana Bafana kicked off Africa's first ever world cup with their game against Mexico at the incredibly Soccer City Stadium in Johannesburg. Day 1 of the tournament is over and already we've had some great entertainment, some shocking defending, a fantastic goal, passionate fans, a red card and an appalling refereeing performance.
Opening ceremonies are not something I generally take a huge interest in. Be it world cup or olympics, I usually lose interest after about 15 minutes. In fact, my only lasting memory of an opening ceremony was of a huge novelty goal falling apart after Diana Ross sliced a 'penalty' from about 4 yards in a miss which Chris Waddle would have been ashamed of. This time, however, I was quite captivated with the array of culture on display as well as the South African people's incredible passion for football. Anyone who can watch that opening ceremony and still claim that football is 'just a game' and 'doesn't matter' needs their head examined.

Even before the kick off, the opening fixture between South Africa and Mexico lived up to its billing. The sight of the SA players singing and dancing in the tunnel before coming out reminded me of stories of the mighty Celtic team having a sing song in the tunnel before the 1967 European cup final when they became the first team in Europe to win the European cup.
The entertainment on the pitch was even better. Within just 3 minutes the Bafana Bafana defence had a scare when goalkeeper Khune spilled a cross which landed at the feet of Mexico's Giovani Dos Santos, only for Aaron Mokena to make the block. It was the start of a period of first half dominance from Mexico, who had the ball in the back of the net later on, only for Arsenal striker Carlos Vela to be flagged offside.
However, the hopes of, not just a country, not just a continent, but quite possibly every non-Mexican in the world were with South Africa, and they started the second half brightly, before the stadium really came to life after 55 minutes. Siphiwe Tshabalala latched onto a fine pass in behind the Mexico defence and fired home a blistering left footed shot into the top corner. The Bafana Bafana then came to life, and could have gone 2 ahead 15 minutes later when Siboniso Gaxa ran in on goal, but he couldn't get the ball out of his feet and Perez was able to make the block.
With 12 minutes remaining, the South Africa defence (as I predicted, I might add) let them down again. Andres Guardado picked up a short corner, and his cross found Rafael Marquez, one of 3 Mexicans in and around the 6 yard box, all being marked by Aaron Mokena. The Mexican skipper was allowed to set himself before firing the ball in the back of the net. South Africa might have won it in the last minute of regulation time, but Katlego Mphela could only hit the post from a tight angle.

So some great entertainment in the opening game, although the hosts will have to sort out their defence if they are to progress in the competition. No player in the opposition penalty area should be allowed to take a touch & set himself before finishing when the ball's come in from a short corner. Goalkeeper Khune looks a bit suspect as well, he got lucky in the first half when Vela's goal was ruled out, completely flapping at a cross, it was only because there was only 1 South Africa player on the line that Vela was offside. Still, the host nation have reached the semi-finals of the last two world cups, and with the backing the Rainbow nation have, it seems possible that they could go far.

Unfortunately, there was no such entertainment in the second match, between Uruguay and France. As with their group stage game at the 2002 world cup, it was pretty much your standard, boring 0-0 draw. The game was only really noteworthy for the tournaments first red card, and for some poor refereeing and managerial decisions. Japanese ref Nishimura had a nightmare, stopping the game for every little push, every player going to ground, almost any time there was contact between two players. He also produced a string of soft yellow cards, one of which proved costly for Uruguay's Nicolas Lodeiro. There was no doubt that his second booking was very much deserved, but his first was extremely soft. There were also some bizare decisions from France coach Raymond Dominech waiting until the 71st minute to make a much needed substitution. Thierry Henry was brought on, but for the lively Nicolas Anelka rather than his ineffective strike partner Sydney Govou. Another odd substitution 5 minutes later saw Florent Malouda replace Yoann Gourcuff, despite the fact that he had been France's biggest creative threat from set pieces, and Jeremy Toulalan had done nothing in France's midfield.
Uruguay didn't put up a great show, with France having most of the possesion and chances. Diego Forlan looked lively, but Luis Suarez didn't look up to the job. Overall, if Suarez can perform in the next game, Forlan will not have to do all the work and the duo could provide a formidable attack. If not, then the first ever world cup winners could find themselves going home after the first round, again.

My Predictions for World Cup Day 2, 12/06/10:

South Korea 1-2 Greece
Ok, I'll admit at this point that I don't know a huge amount about either South Korea of Greece (or, to give them their full name, Euro 2004 winners Greece.) However, it seems to me that South Korea will rely far too much on Ji-Sung Park as their source of creativity, and may find themselves exposed at the back. Greece are hardly the most solid side defensively either, but with Liverpool's Soti Kyrgiakos providing a tough barrier in central defence and the great Georgios Samaras leading the line, Greece might just prove too strong for the 2002 co-hosts.

Argentina 2-0 Nigeria
A much easier game to predict here. Nigeria traditionally don't perform well at world cups, and although Argentina hardly displayed world-beating form during the qualifiers, they do have a certain little gem known as Lionel Messi. Messi is the best player on the planet by a long way, and in my opinion better than Argentina coach & legend Diego Maradona ever was. If Messi plays well, he could destroy any side on his own. Even if he doesn't, a poor performance by his standard is a decent one by pretty much anyone else's, and Argentina still have the likes of Teves and Higuain to rely on. Should be a fairly comfortable win for the South Americans.

England 2-1 USA
This is the one which everyone here in England has been talking about. As a proud Scotsman, I will of course be cheering on America, who are a good side and may just be underestimated. However, the England team will know Landon Donovan from his loan spell at Everton, and David Beckham may have given them tips on how to deal with him after they played together at LA Galaxy (though Becks is more likely to have begged the players to break Donovans legs at all costs). America's attack is a force to be reconed with, and the England defense could look vulnerable, with Terry and King not used to playing alongside each other, and the choice of goalkeepers being the inexperienced Joe Hart, Rob Green, who has been criticised for his lack of communication with defenders, and David 'Calamity' James ('Nuff said). Overall though, the likes of Rooney, Gerrard, Lampard, Defoe, Lennon, Milner, (not Heskey), should prove too much for a weak American defence, and the three lions should just edge it.