Heat’s on Brazil
My favorite moment from the World Cup draw was when Uruguayan legend Alcides Ghiggia dropped a Ping-Pong ball when handing it to presenter Fernanda Lima. If you think it was an accident, then you clearly didn’t see the outfit Lima, a Brazilian model, was wearing when she bent over to retrieve it.
You better believe this is Brazil’s World Cup to lose — assuming of course, the country completes construction of several new venues. Lima did her job and the soccer Gods (wink, wink) presented Brazil with a favorable draw.
That doesn’t mean Brazil is a lock to win it all. The last host nation to lift the trophy was France in 1998. Meanwhile, both Italy and Germany were knocked out in the semifinals on home soil in 1990 and 2006, respectively. Plus, all the pressure is on the home side to win it all. Anything less is a major disappointment.
Which brings us to Jurgen Klinsmann and the United States. USA got the short end of the stick and will play, in order, Ghana, Portugal and Germany, one of the tournament favorites. They will also log the most air miles — estimated to be approximately 9,000 — of any team in pool play. All the excuses for a quick exit are there, which plays right into Klinsmann’s scheme.
“We discussed it before the draw that there would be some problems on the traveling side, and we hit the worst of the worst,” Klinsmann said on Friday. “From a traveling point of view, we have the furthest distance to travel with our team. But we’ll deal with it with a smile on our face and we’re going to attack.”
In 2010, former U.S. manager Bob Bradley was expected to adva nce, and did, out of a pool with England, Slovenia a nd A lge - ria. K linsmann’s side enters t he tou rnament as an underdog. The goal is to be in position to advance with just a tie against Germany, a team Klinsmann played for and coached.
That means picking up a win against Ghana or Portugal, the latter of which the U.S. defeated i n 2002. Impossible? No. Probable? That’s another story. There is a good chance Germany will have already qualified for the knockout stage or may just need a tie to win the group.
T he Ger mans, while clearly superior in every way imaginable to the U.S., could be in position to rest some of its key players. Do I believe Klinsmann’s close ties to Germany will be a factor? Nah. Just like I don’t believe Ghiggia dropped that ping pong ball by accident.
is was the case in Saturday night’s MLS Cup in Kansas City. The home team, Sporting KC, needed 10 rounds of PKs before finally defeating a terrific Real Salt Lake club.
“For those fans to sit out there in those conditions was incredible,” said Sporting coach Peter Vermes.
The weather affected the quality of play but the match certainly didn’t lack intensity and drama. This year’s New York/New Jersey Super Bowl should be so lucky.