The countdown is getting tight, the excitement is building and teams have already made it to Brazil. Group E will be a struggle to watch for a passive fan, though the French seem to promise a dramatic showdown since they are favourites to go through.
Group E: France, Switzerland, Ecuador and Honduras
FRANCE:
Strength: Coherent and Balanced
Best World Cup finish: Champions (France 1998)
Last World Cup appearance: South Africa 2010 (Group Stage)
If France have any hope of going far they will require a fully fit Ribery and all his wing wizardry to achieve their objectives but the Bayern Munich maestro was ruled out of the World Cup with a nagging back injury. Now Juventus’ Paul Pogba, just 21, will need to step up even more.
If Deschamps sticks with his favoured 4-3-3, the main concern becomes who slots in for Ribery on the left though defensively the team is sound, with a Hugo Lloris in goal and Varane keeping things tidy at the back. Mathieu Valbuena (Marseille) will likely be employed on the right and one of Loic Remy (Newcastle) or blossoming star Antoine Greizmann (Real Sociedad) could be shifted over to the left forcing a 4-4-2.
Look for a central defence pairing of Raphael Varane (Real Madrid) and Laurent Koscielny (Arsenal) with Newcastle’s Mathieu Debeuchy and Manchester United veteran Patrice Evra at full-back. Then one of Greizmann or Olivier Giroud (Arsenal) could start up front with Real Madrid hitman, Karim Benzema.
Player to watch in the French team will be Paul Pogba, a midfielder who excelled since defying Sir Alex Ferguson and leaving Manchester United for Juventus in 2012. Dynamic and powerful, Pogba mixes all these attributes. He was voted Europe’s best Under-21 player for 2013.
SWITZERLAND
Strength: Young and Experienced
Best World Cup finish: Quarter-Finals (3 – Italy 1934, France 1938, Switzerland 1954)
Last World Cup appearance: South Africa 2010 (Group Stage)
Switzerland’s defence is something to be envied featuring Wolfsburg’s Ricardo Rodriguez and Juventus’ Stephan Lichtsteiner. They represent a rock solid pair of full-backs. Switzerland will need to work much harder on finding the back of the net more often, with four young forwards who between them have 9 goals from a combined 50 caps.
The Swiss attack will be led by Bayern’s Xherden Shaqiri. Gifted with flair and pace. He’s often compared to a younger version of club teammate Arjen Robben. Their key players will be; Kosovo-born Xherdan Shaqiri, 22, who will be creative force. Gokhan Inler the starting captain, 29 year old Napoli midfielder given the armband on the retirement of Alexander Frei in 2010.
ECUADOR
Strength: Team spirit and Combative
Best World Cup finish: Round of 16 (Germany 2006)
Last World Cup appearance: Germany 2006 (Round of 16)
Ecuador will be dedicating their World Cup trip to Christian “Chucho” Benitez. The striker died suddenly last summer after suffering cardiac arrest brought on from a game played for club team El Jaish in Qatar. Ecuador’s World Cup plan is to shift the ball out quickly to the flanks, where captain Antonio Valencia offers pace, and Jefferson Montero dribbling on the left. Christian Noboa (Dynamo Moscow) and Segundo Castillo (Al-Hillal) will help comprise an effective centre midfield, and striker Felipe Caicedo, who scored seven times in qualifying.
Ecuador has to beat Honduras, then hope to scrape a result against either France or Switzerland and hope that be enough to see them through.
Players to watch: Wingers Antonio Valencia and Jefferson Montero. Valencia is a keen attacker and capable of defending better than competently. Jefferson Montero is pivotal to Ecuador’s prospects of advancing to the knockout stage.
HONDURAS
Strength: Physical and Compact
Best World Cup finish: Group Stage (2 – Spain 1982, South Africa 2010)
Last World Cup appearance: South Africa 2010 (Group Stage)
Honduras play a 4-4-2, mostly for lack of a better plan. They don’t defend very well. They don’t have much creativity in midfield. They don’t have a talented striker up front. Hull City’s Maynor Figueroa, who will be paired with San Jose Earthquakes’ Victor Bernardez for center back. Full-backs tend to offer their most potent threat. Set pieces and counter attacks provide the Central American nation’s best hope of causing an upset.
Players to watch for Honduras will be EPL-hardened players Roger Espinoza (Wigan) and Wilson Palacios (Stoke) in the midfield. Major League Soccer with New England Revolution’s Jerry Bengtson and Winger Andy Najar may be other potential threats. Najar impressed with his pace and dynamism as the Belgian club, Anderlecht won a third straight league title.
