The United States returns to the field for their most important match of group stage. Prior to that, Germany has a chance to cripple Serbia's chances to advance while England closes the day against the Desert Foxes.
Jun 18, 2010 - Until yesterday's performance from Argentina, Germany had posted the most impressive result of the World Cup: Sunday's 4-0 win over Australia. On Friday, the Nationalmannschaft will be the opening act for two Group C matches - hardly fair, considering the sub-par weekend offerings of the United States, England, Slovenia and Algeria. Still, their match against Serbia - a match which could all-but-eliminate one of the pre-tournament dark horses - is today's undercard for the 10 a.m. Eastern main event.
The United States has known since Group C was drawn that the Slovenia match would be the most important of group play, and Saturday's point from England does not change that. If the United States defeats the Slovenes, they will have one foot in the second round ahead of their easiest group stage match. A loss to Slovenia and the United States loses control of their knockout stage destiny.
But given the conservatie styles of the two teams, Friday's match may be destined for a third result. A draw would be disappointing to the United States team calling the Slovenia match must-win, but even sitting on two points through two matches, the U.S. would be alive heading into Wednesday's match with Algeria, regardless of what happens in Friday's third match between the Desert Foxes and England.
Here is today's match schedule for World Cup 2010:
Where They Stand: Germany is at the top of Group D, even on points with Ghana, but after their 4-0 win over Australia, they have a large lead in goal difference. Serbia's 1-0 loss to Ghana means they have to win out; or, at least, keep winning until Ghana loses. With Ghana playing Australia on Saturday, Serbia's chances of advancing could be gone with a loss today and a Black Stars win over the Socceroos.
Player To Watch, Germany: Germany's central defense is one of the relative weak points of the team, and with Pim Verbeek starting a reverential team on Sunday, the central pairing was never tested. Having to deal with Nikola Zigic today, Per Mertesacker will get his first test of the tournament. Mertesacker is capable of handling the 6'8" striker, but with the Werder Bremen defender there are always questions as to whether the inconsistency we see in his club side's defense is a reflection of his performance.
Player To Watch, Serbia: Captain and central midfielder Dejan Stankovic will need a great game transitioning Serbia into attack as well as breaking-up play to prevent the kind of free-flowing attack Germany exhibited on Sunday. He will have to give Mesut Özil more trouble than the attacking midfielder saw against Australia, and Stankovic's dead ball service could be Serbia's best route to goals.
Prediction: Germany will come out sharp, and if Serbia can withstand that coming-up period - the first minutes of the match that will be spent adjusting to the precision of the Germans - this will be an even match. Picking a Germany 2, Serbia 1 result is almost a cop-out - a default position of sorts. It's just difficult to tell how good Germany is when the only data we have was accumulated against a self-weakened Australia.
Where They Stand: Slovenia is at the top of Group C, the United States is two points behind, but neither should be happy with their first match. Slovenia needed a late gift against a 10-man Algeria to get three points. The United States' only goal against a bad England side was an even bigger gift.
The States, though, sit in a better place, having gotten a point on which they hadn't planned. Slovenia, however, needed to get three versus Algeria, and although the three points could be a confidence booster for a team without much World Cup experience, it was a performance that should engender questions about whether the Slovenes can handle the United States and England.
Player To Watch, United States: These teams are incredibly evenly matched, and their conservative play will produce a match with few scoring chances. With neither side capable of creating many opportunities at the team-level, players may have to take matters into their own hands. Clint Dempsey is capable of that for that United States, but the way the teams set-up, Jozy Altidore is the more likely hero. The 20-year-old striker had an unrewarded moment of brilliance against England, a similarly draw-dropping piece of athleticism against Turkey, and showed last year against Spain that he is capable of finding a decisive goal. Slovenia can be tactically stout but can still lose this match if Bostjan Cesar and Marko Suler can't match-up with Altidore.
Player To Watch, Slovenia: The United States does not lack for talent in midfield, but their conservative approach with players like Michael Bradley and Ricardo Clark meaning teams with similar or lesser talent can control the middle of the pitch. For Slovenia, this means a player like Aleksander Radoslavjlevic, coming off a disappointing performance against Algeria, could be set for an influential game. Radoslavjlevic could, as was the case against Russia, be the player to identify and exploit the few openings Milivoje Novakovic and Zlatko Dedic are able to create.
Prediction: Saturday's matches hint that Slovenia may not realize the occasion, something that was a worry before the tournament. The United States seems to have a firm grasp of what is required, with a core of players who remember the near-miss of 2006 making sure the team to gives Slovenia their proper respect. We could easily see a scoreless draw, but coming off this weekend's performances, a United States 1, Slovenia 0 result could come from the inexperienced Slovenes not realizing the stakes.
Where They Stand: England not only drew to the United States on Saturday, they lost one of the center halves, incurred a goalkeeping controversy, saw their star player disappear, and had to be reminded yet another time that two of their current generation's iconic midfielders can not be deployed in tandem.
Algeria got no points in what was anticipated to be their easiest match, and while they can point to a freak goalkeeping mistake as that result's cause, the Desert Foxes know Faouzi Chaouchi better than to expect reliable play.
Player To Watch, England: We always watch Wayne Rooney, though there was little to like on Saturday. If Rooney is the player he's advertised to be by the English-language media, he should be having an effect just short of Lionel Messi, but while Messi has had a huge impact despite being kept off the scoresheet, Rooney was poor against the United States. His first touch was terrible, he lacked any kind of subtlety or imagination in his movement, and in mistiming his jump on a second-half, Steven Gerrard cross, he missed an opportunity he habitually converted this season for Manchester United.
Against an Algeria team that has no means of dealing with him, Rooney has another chance to live-up to his reputation. Is he going to be Messi or more like his former teammate, Cristiano Ronaldo?
Player To Watch, Algeria: In a Group C consisting of disappointingly few players capable of playing creatively, midfielder Karim Ziani is somebody who can make magic with the ball on his laces. Frank Lampard and the returning Gareth Barry will find the stocky attacker's speed annoying, while the plodding John Terry and Jamie Carragher could be completely lost. While it would be nice if Rabah Saadane had forward Abdelkader Ghezzal at his disposal - somebody who could sit in the spaces opened while the English try to move Ziani off-the-ball - Algeria may not need him. England may be surprised how many times goalkeeper Robert Green becomes acquainted with the former Marseille man.
Prediction: Aside from that one advantage and some potential success using Nadir Belhadj down the left flank, Algeria's relatively benign, and if England comes into this match intent on recovering from Saturday's disappointment, they could post an England 3, Algeria 1 result.
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