The first of UEFA’s five-team groups features two of the home nations. England is the group’s seeded team and will have two matches against a Welsh team with high hopes. Switzerland is the group’s other threat, one that could take the group. We’ll get a good indication of how dangerous they are next Tuesday when they host the Three Lions.
| Pot | Team | MP | W | D | L | F | A | D | P |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | England | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
| 2 | Switzerland | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
| 3 | Bulgaria | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
| 4 | Wales | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
| 5 | Montenegro | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | +0 | 0 |
Fixtures
September 3, 2010 - Montenegro versus Wales
September 3, 2010 - England versus Bulgaria
September 7, 2010 - Bulgaria versus Montenegro
September 7, 2010 - Switzerland versus England
October 8, 2010 - Montenegro versus Switzerland
October 8, 2010 - Wales versus Bulgaria
October 12, 2010 - Switzerland versus Wales
October 12, 2010 - England versus Montenegro
March 26, 2011 - Bulgaria versus Switzerland
March 26, 2011 - Wales versus England
June 4, 2011 - England versus Switzerland
June 4, 2011 - Montenegro versus Bulgaria
September 2, 2011 - Bulgaria versus England
September 2, 2011 - Wales versus Montenegro
September 6, 2011 - Switzerland versus Bulgaria
September 6, 2011 - England versus Wales
October 7, 2011 - Montenegro versus England
October 7, 2011 - Wales versus Switzerland
October 11, 2011 - Switzerland versus Montenegro
October 11. 2011 - Bulgaria versus Wales
FIFA Rank: 7
Elo Rank: 6
Recent Performances: Second round exit in the World Cup. Failed to qualify for Euro 2008
Coach: Fabio Capello
Captain: Rio Ferdinand, with Steven Gerrard filling-in
Prominent players: Ashley Cole (Chelsea), Glen Johnson (Liverpool), Theo Walcott (Arsenal), Gareth Barry (Manchester City), James Milner (Manchester City), Wayne Rooney (Manchester United), Jermain Defoe (Tottenham Hotspur)
Outlook: It feels strange having to clarify this: the World Cup is not the only competition in the world. I mention this because the Three Lions’ poor showing in South Africa has crafted this view that England’s a weak team, the country’s in soccer crisis and it can’t produce a good player or hire a decent coach. Not true, at all. They’re neither as good as they thought nor as bad as they now think. They win this group.
Predicted Finish: 1st
FIFA Rank: 17
Elo Rank: 27
Recent Performances: Eliminated in group play at both the World Cup and Euro 2008.
Coach: Ottmar Hitzfeld
Captain: Alexander Frei
Prominent players: Diego Benaglio (Wolfsburg), Stephan Lichsteiner (Lazio), Stephane Grichting (Auxerre), Reto Ziegler (Sampdoria), Gökhan Inler (Udinese), Tranquillo Barnetta (Bayer LEverkusen), Eren Derdiyok (Bayer Leverkusen), Marco Streller (Basel)
Outlook: Switzerland has the talent to win this group, and while they should not be considered favorites to do so, they are a strong bet for second place. Ottmar Hitzfeld has said this will be his last tournament before retirement.
Predicted Finish: 2nd
FIFA Rank: 43
Elo Rank: 35
Recent Performances: Third in their UEFA World Cup qualifying group. Failed to qualify for Euro 2008.
Coach: Stanimir Stoilov
Captain: Stiliyan Petrov
Prominent players: Nikolay Mihaylov (Twente), Stanislav Manolev (PSV), Martin Petrov (Bolton Wanderers), Valeri Bojinov (Parma)
Outlook: Dimitar Berbatov has retired from international football, leaving the Bulgarians without the team’s all-time leading goal scorer. They also have a void on karaoke night, not knowing how will sing the 30 Seconds to Mars songs. If the team skips them entirely, they could improve on World Cup qualifying’s third place finish.
Predicted Finish: 3rd
FIFA Rank: 84
Elo Rank: 59
Recent Performances: Fourth in UEFA World Cup qualifying group. Failed to qualify for Euro 2008.
Coach: John Toshack
Captain: Craig Bellamy
Prominent players: Gareth Bale (Tottenham Hotspur), James Collins (Aston Villa), Joe Ledley (Celtic), Robert Earnshaw (Nothingham Forest)
Outlook: All eyes will be on Gareth Bale to see if the young left-sider can transfer scintilating club form to the international game. Between him and Bellamy, John Toshack has two world class players, which may have been enough to do some damage in other groups. In this one, Wales will merely be a major inconvenience.
Predicted Finish: 4th
FIFA Rank: 72
Elo Rank: 57
Recent Performances: Fourth in UEFA World Cup qualifying group. Failed to qualify for Euro 2008.
Coach: Zlatko Kranjcar
Captain: Mirko Vucinic
Prominent players: Vucinic is by far the best player on this team.
Outlook: Montenegro was thought to be a potential pest in World Cup qualifying but proved to be no trouble in Group 9. There, they finished fourth but should take a step back with this draw.
Predicted Finish: 5th
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I think Wales could be the wild card of this group. Bellamy’s confidence should be high from scoring goals in the championship, which could help him find the back of the net in a few qualifiers and steal a few points.
I think the view that England is weak has to come with the fact of the WC performance plus their failure to qualify for the last Euros. They should qualify out of this group but the concerns will mount if they struggle in qualifying or in 2012
The Mikan Drill
by JoshuaR on Sep 3, 2010 11:00 AM EDT reply actions
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