Are Australia the weakest in this group?

Verbeek is at the World Cup, Hiddink isn't.

 

Ghana is probably the most out of form team at this world cup. first round flops!

 

lol :d

 

Going by the results and gameplay of these friendlies almost every team save one or two are badly out of form.

 

I actually agree with this one. Like Rajevac said... he is going to play the World Cup with the "waling wounded".

 

In a 4-2-3-1 Amoah is a substitute and way behind Gyan in terms of quality of play. Amoah WOULD NEVER START in this system!

Appiah hasn't played for the National team for about a year and although it would be great if he was fit he doesn't seem to be. At the moment Kwadwo Asamoah is first choice in that position.

Annan is first team, as is Muntari. Muntari however does seem out of form and he did miss the ACoN. I wouldn't be surprised if he gets subbed by Ayew or i.e. Tagoe.

First choice defence is probable Vorsah-Mensah, which didn't play together.

Not only is Ghana missing Essien, but also his two backups.

Derek Boateng has NEVER performed for his national team (unlike for Getafe were he has been brilliant). And were it not for 3 injured midfielders I doubt he would have a chance in hell to start.

Key issue is that Rajevac's system requires two strong DMs and he only has one. Boateng failed, so he will need to try i.e. Rahim Ayew, Andre Ayew or Isaac Vorsah in that position. Vorsah would be the best solution were it not for the defensive dearth.

I would go for Paintsil in CB as he has lost a lot of his pace due to injury and Inkoom would be better at RB.

Yes. He was EXPERIMENTING WITH PLAYERS.
And in the second half he was experimenting with 4-3-3 in a 4-2-31 formation. My biggest issue with Rajevac seems to be a total lack of Plan B.

 

I agree with every word you said in that second post.

 

The most accurate assessment I have heard of Australia at this WC compared to last time is that we will be much harder to beat - but also far less likely to win.

Basically we seem to be set out for 3 draws and hoping we can sneak a win to get us through.

 

Aussie with who? Serbia or Germany. Germany will have to recover from first match defeat

 

Slight difference in difficulty of qualifying.

 

Slovenia aren't that good.

 

Maybe not but anything can happen in a short two-game series (and you can't really blame him for finishing 2nd behind Germany). Australia meanwhile had 8 games and only had to be better than Qatar and Uzbekistan. HUGE difference there! Australia will play in EVERY world cup from now until eternity now that they've left Oceania. Manager won't matter at all.

 

No way, Australia goes from streangth to streangth they are going to win this group and at least, at least come in 2nd.


Weakest in the group? Never Australia have twice the heart and passion to represent their country, moresore than any other team in the tournament. But sure go on thinking that Australia is the weakest in the group, it will be all the sweeter when we grab all 9 points!!!!

 

No way, Australia goes from streangth to streangth they are going to win this group and at least, at least come in 2nd.


Weakest in the group? Never Australia have twice the heart and passion to represent their country, moresore than any other team in the tournament. But sure go on thinking that Australia is the weakest in the group, it will be all the sweeter when we grab all 9 points!!!!

 

What a ridiculous comment.

 

It takes alot of heart to play for the green and gold, to make the sacrifice to travel back and fourth between Europe and Australia, often upsetting the club gaffer. I have to say this we are not England, when it comes to putting on the shirt of Socceroos wheather it is for a friendly, Asian, or World Cup qualifier, our boys never duck out because they have an important game for club coming up, they get on that plane and mind you it is a long flight, sometimes a 20 hour flight. There are times when they will take that flight train for a couple of days, play two games and take the flight back to Europe right after the game. Can you imagine taking that flight twice in the span of a week? Well they do it....ALOT.

That is what it means to play for the Socceroos

 

It is interesting looking at the friendlies as to where the other sides see the opposition:
Germany - Hungary, Bosnia (do they only see Serbia as a threat?),
Serbia - Poland, & New Zealand and Cameroon (covering all bases there),
Ghana - Nederlands & Lativa (Germany & Serbia)
Australia - New Zealand ( marketing), Denmark and USA - are they looking at R16 v USA?

Germany have stated that they only see Serbia as a threat.

 

Australia had to play Iraq (AFC champions), China and Qatar in the first round of qualifiers. Then Japan, Bahrain, Qatar, Uzbekistan in the second round.

They are all decent teams with incredibly difficult away trips. Underestimate asia and AFC wcq campaign if you want, but if you tried to qualify through it with that attitude you'd get your ass handed to you.

 

Germany did play the Ivory Coast last November. But that was before the WC groups were announced, me thinks.

Come on, playing Latvia is not practice for the game against Serbia. There is a massive gulf in the playing styles and the strengths of the two teams.

And when you say " Germany have stated that they only see Serbia as a threat" , who exactly do you mean? I am quite sure Loew wouldn't make such comments. His immediate reaction after the draw was that the group was 'tricky'. Your comment strikes me as odd.

 

I know what you trying to get at. And I partially agree. However, you can't cite traveling for 20 hours as a show of heart. The European teams who participated in the inaugural world cup had 2-3 weeks of traveling in a ship. At USA 94, Denis Bergkamp traveled by rail because he was scared of flying. These things are circumstantial and have nothing to do with ' heart'.

Also, having heart alone will not win a team matches. That is the unfortunate truth.

 

Not entirely true. I mean the US did pull out some shockingly stunning results at the Confederations Cup.

 

I think it'll be Germ and Aus to advance. Although individual players from Serbia and Ghana have impressed me, their teams don't at all.