By Slate Quicksilver
Group E is a group that is a near mirror image to Group D. There is a juggernaut coupled with two very solid teams and a wild card that could easily surprise the world scene. The Netherlands is the marquis team in this group. But European wunderkinds Denmark, soccer/track team Cameroon and Asian regulars Japan look to muddy this group prognostication up.
Cameroon:
Of all African nations, Cameroon has the most successful history. The Indomitable Lions stormed onto the World Cup scene in 1990, going all the way to the quarterfinals where a late Italian goal kept them from the semifinals. In total they have qualified five times, more than any other African nation. In qualifying, Cameroon cruised with style. In the final stage, they lost their first game to Togo and won four of their last five games. In those games, they only surrendered two goals. For their effort, FIFA has ranked them the highest of all African teams (#19 in the World). Samuel Eto’o is their best known player. He is their captain and is well known in European circles for torching every opponent, particularly La Liga opponents where he scored more than 100 goals in five seasons with Barcelona. He currently is destroying the Italian league, Serie A, with Internazionale where he has 12 goals in 32 games. But Cameroon will need more than him against defensive minded Denmark and all around awesome Netherlands. Cameroon has a few youngsters who can add some firepower, but in truth, it will be up to the defense to stop the Netherlands’s all out attack and Denmark’s counterattack. A win of over Japan is likely while a loss against the Netherlands is likely. Denmark v. Cameroon will be their tournament in a nutshell.
Denmark: (Ed note: Slate is a Denmark fan).
The Danish Dynamite exploded onto the scene in 1986 going to the quarterfinals in Mexico, then in 1992 they shocked the European continent by winning the Euro Cup with style. Then in 1998 and 2002, the Danes easily made it out of group play, in 1998 they went to the quarterfinals where they unfortunately met up with Brazil. Perhaps “dynamite” is a perfect word, because in between those successes is stretches of complete nothingness. They didn’t qualify in 1990 or 1994, and then in 2006 they did not qualify for the World Cup and they even missed out on the 2008 Euro Cup (but so did the British…). Well, the year is 2010 and Denmark is back. In qualifying, they seemed to be behind the eight ball, stuck behind Portugal and Sweden in UEFA Group 1. But the Danes would go on to beat Portugal in Lisbon and beat Sweden both times giving them the upper hand in qualifying (they only lost once). It would wind up being Portugal fighting for their qualifying life while Sweden was left to sit at home. Denmark’s Captain Jon Dahl Tomasson (my man) leads the attack, but it is younger players like Daniel Agger and Nicklas Bendtner would will decide the tournament. Sadly, the Danes do not have Peter Schmeichel , their other worldly goalie who anchored the team during its greatest successes (Ed note: Schmeichel is Slate’s favorite player of all time) with his hot temper and ultra aggressive goaltending style. Denmark will likely dispatch Japan, but if any team can give the Netherlands trouble, it would be the defensive minded Danes. A win against Japan and Cameroon is a must.
Japan:
Since 1998, Japan has been a World Cup mainstay. However, the Blue Samurai had true success only once, in 2002 in front of their home crowd where they went to the Round of 16. Japan is not a team to be underestimated, but we will do so anyway. Japan’s largest problem is firepower and weak qualifying. The lack of a true goal scorer will be a huge problem for the Japanese. With Australia as the only true power in their way, Japan easily qualified, but that was thanks to qualifying against the likes of Oman, Thailand, Uzbekistan and Bahrain (not exactly powerhouses). Dead ball specialist Shunsuke Nakamura, formerly of Rangers in Scotland, is their best option for a hero. But playing the likes of the Netherlands, Cameroon and Denmark will require more than one or two players. Japan will have to pitch a perfect game and hit a home run just to win one game. Japan likely will have trouble scoring against Denmark’s tight defense and will have trouble dealing with the athleticism of Cameroon and the Netherlands. Drawing a point will be a victory for the nation, but his team is fading.
The Netherlands:
The Netherlands are set for their typical World Cup run thanks to a multitude of talent and a great run through qualifying. How great? They didn’t lose or draw a single game in qualifying and they only surrendered 2 goals in the eight games of qualifying. It is true that their toughest competition was Scotland and Norway, but it is hard to ignore how well this team did on the road to South Africa. The Oranje have quickly reloaded with talent seeing Ruud van Nistelrooy and Edwin van der Saar hang up their cleats and but they brought in Nigel de Jong, Wesley Sneijder and several other big time young players. Despite all of their success, the Oranje haven’t won the whole thing before. They came in second twice, and fourth in 1998. With the success and talent they have, a trip to the finals is their aim. Their offense is blistering and their defense proved to be better than expected. A wild card factor here is the Dutch going to South Africa. The Dutch have a huge history in South Africa and playing in front of a second home cannot be overlooked. Denmark will be a tough first draw, but Japan can be a stabilizing game. Playing Cameroon to finish group play could be an afterthought. They should easily win the group.
Predicted Table:
Netherlands 2-0-1
Denmark 2-0-1
Cameroon 1-2-0
Japan 0-3-0
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