FIFA World Cup 2014 – Three Groups of Death?

Come June 2014 and the attention of the entire world will shift to Brazil which is hosting what could be called the world’s biggest sporting extravaganza- The FIFA World Cup. Favorites to win the Cup are hosts Brazil, an in-form Germany, defending champions Spain and the attacking powerhouse, Argentina. Of course, upsets are part of any tournament and teams that could potentially spoil the party for our favorites include England, Portugal, Uruguay, France and Italy.

If you are a member of the National Squad of your country, you would (naturally) pray to all your gods that you earn a favorable draw and find yourself in a relatively easy group so that chances of your team advancing increase. Well, this time round you would have to pray much harder because as it turns out we have not one, but three Groups of Death.

Group of Death #1

Group B offers a sense of déjà vu. This group contains both finalists from the last World Cup, Holland and Spain along with Chile and Australia. Enough has been written and said about both Holland and Spain but that should not mean that Australia and Chile are disregarded. The latter has an in-form Alexis Sanchez along with Arturo Vidal, so this team is more than capable of springing a surprise. They showcased their attacking prowess at their victory against England in a friendly, proving once again that Chile is not to be taken lightly. This group has an average FIFA rank of 21.

Group of Death #2

Let’s take a look at Group D. When three of the four teams in a group are heavyweights, you feel sorry for the fourth team who find themselves in that rather unenviable spot. My heart goes out to Costa Rica who face the prospect of trying to qualify over Uruguay, England and Italy. Uruguay have a formidable strike pair in Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani, England have a (literally) star-studded cast and Italy have football’s old man Andre Pirlo, along with highly temperamental but effective Marion Balotelli who will go all guns blazing into the group stage. It’s tough to call in this one but odds are in favor of Italy and Uruguay forging forth. The group has an average FIFA rank of 14.25.

Group of Death #3

Well, Group G is touted to be the real Group of Death this time round. Germany and Portugal face off and to keep things interesting, Ghana and USA have been thrown into the mix as well. Germany (along with Brazil) have the bookies the world over betting on them to win this time round. A cursory glance at their squad will tell you exactly why: Germany has a juggernaut of talented players like Thomas Mueller, Toni Kroos and Mario Gotze to name a few. If star power is a unit of measure, then Portugal are not too far behind. Cristiano Ronaldo in himself has more star power than half of the German side combined. The man is an incredible powerhouse, scoring at will and carrying his team all on his own. Ronaldo has the ability to swing games by his mere presence and any team that this fellow plays for should not be underestimated. Of course it is worthwhile to mention that Portugal also have Nani and Joao Moutinho among others to lend some extra firepower. Ghana and USA have their task cut out for them but neither team is a lightweight. It’s easy to pick the two teams that will qualify in this group but miracles do happen. Group G has an average FIFA ranking of 11.25.

So there you have it, the three Groups of Death. This coming World Cup is going to be extremely interesting, to say the least. I can hardly wait!