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Match Day 3


MrJibbles

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June 13 1230: Algeria v Slovenia (Polokwane) - BBCJune 13 1500: Serbia v Ghana (Pretoria) - ITVJune 13 1930: Germany v Australia (Durban) - ITV

With games against England and USA to come for these two teams in Group C, Algeria and Slovenia know that points dropped against each other on Sunday in Polokwane will be severely damaging to their chances of advancing to the second round. Yet with both teams short of recent FIFA World Cup™ experience, their match-up at the Peter Mokaba Stadium may prove a tentative affair. The North Africans have not appeared on the world stage since Mexico 1986, while Slovenia lost all three of their matches at Korea/Japan 2002. As surprise qualifiers, each will have something to prove heading into what could be a physically rugged contest.The matchAlgeria-Slovenia, Group C, Polokwane, Sunday 13 June, 13.30 (local time)Although the two teams have never met, Slovenia would seem to have an edge on paper. Algeria, who qualified at the expense of arch-rivals Egypt, have had a difficult build-up, losing friendly matches to European sides Serbia and the Republic of Ireland – 3-0 both times. Coach Rabah Saadane has also indicated that captain Yazid Mansouri is not fit enough to start against the Slovenians, which has caused a fair amount of controversy at their camp in the south of the country. Experienced Bochum defender Anther Yahia is due to wear the armband instead.On the other hand , Slovenia dealt easily with Qatar and New Zealand in pre-finals friendlies, and their mood has been buoyant since arriving in South Africa. Based in Johannesburg, the eastern Europeans qualified for the finals by finishing second behind Slovakia in a difficult group and then beating heavy favourites Russia in a two-legged play-off. That experience should make Matjaz Kek’s men confident of their chances of getting past the Desert Foxes ahead of their next match against the US.Key duelMadjid Bougherra v Zlatko DedicAlgeria are used to playing a patient game, lulling their opponents into a false sense of security while waiting for their openings. So much will depend on the solidity of their defence, which is marshalled by Bougherra. However, the Rangers player has had some fitness concerns ahead of the finals, so it remains to be seen what shape he will be in. One of the men testing Bougherra and his defensive partners will be Dedic, who brings speed and skill to Slovenia's attack. He also has a reputation for scoring big goals, including the one against Russia that sent his team to South Africa.The stat0 - The number of times these teams have faced each other. While Slovenia warmed up for the contest with an easy win against Qatar in March, they will have bad memories of facing African teams at the FIFA World Cup as they lost to South Africa 1-0 in Daegu in 2002.What they say"Our goal is clear, we need to have honour with our behaviour on and off the pitch, we need to represent Algerian football, Maghreb football, African football and also Arab football. We have nothing to lose, we can only win. We will give everything during every game and at the end of the group stage we will see what our level is and what we have learnt," Rabah Saadane, Algeria coach."We are all concentrating on the work in hand, and to be as prepared as possible for the following matches, so we play even better than we did against Russia. Because I think that we are able to play even better, and, as I said before, that there is more to come from us," Zlatko Dedic, Slovenia striker.Voice of the fans"Algeria v Slovenia will be a very important match. The game might be even more exciting than England v US, because the teams are more level," FIFA.com user ZUZUfan.The questionAlgeria have struggled to score of late, with only one goal in three warm-up games. Will they be able to breach the Slovenia defence?http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=249722/match=300061465/preview.html
In a curious twist of fate typical of the FIFA World Cup™, Australia's opening opponents in a fierce-looking Group D here on South African soil are none other than Germany, host nation for the Socceroos' previous two finals trips in 1974 and 2006. Having reached the Round of 16 four years ago, the Aussies will be keen to repeat that feat, yet a group containing the three-time world champions – taking part in their 17th finals – as well as Serbia and Ghana leaves little margin for error.The matchGermany-Australia, Group D, Durban, Sunday 13 June, 20.30 (local time)Neutrals would doubtless enjoy a match along the lines of the countries' spectacular clash at the FIFA Confederations Cup Germany 2005, a game which ended 4-3 to the hosts. Four survivors from that Germany side, in the shape of Arne Friedrich, Bastian Schweinsteiger, Per Mertesacker and Lukas Podolski, are likely to start on Sunday, as well as Australia trio Mark Schwarzer, Tim Cahill and Craig Moore. The two nations' only previous FIFA World Cup contest came 36 years ago, when eventual winners West Germany sank Australia 3-0 in the first round. The Socceroos were making their debut at the global showpiece and ended up going home clutching a solitary point and without scoring a single goal.Key duelMark Schwarzer v Manuel NeuerThe contrast between the two goalkeepers could hardly be starker, with Australia No1 Schwarzer bristling with the experience of nearly 700 professional games, 75 international caps and the aforementioned Germany 2006 campaign. The veteran shotstopper also holds the record for most appearances by a foreign player in England's Premier League, spanning spells at Middlesbrough and current club Fulham, with whom he appeared in last month's UEFA Europa League final defeat by Atletico Madrid – his second big European final. Adding extra spice is the fact that Schwarzer's parents emigrated from Germany to Australia in 1968, and the keeper also boasts Bundesliga experience from early in his career.Guarding the opposite goal is imposing custodian Manuel Neuer, who at 24 will be making his finals debut for Die Nationalelf. Expected to be the second-choice keeper at South Africa 2010, the Schalke man has found himself elevated to a starting role after Rene Adler dropped out through injury. He does have five senior caps for Germany to his name, however, and was between the sticks when his country’s U-21 squad claimed the continental title last year. One thing seems for certain, with the scoring nous of Australia's Tim Cahill and Josh Kennedy and the likes of Miroslav Klose and Lukas Podolski gunning for goal for Germany, Neuer and Schwarzer should be busy.The stat76 – Coach Joachim Low has assembled Germany's youngest FIFA World Cup squad for 76 years, with his 23-man group having an average age of less than 26. You have to go back to 1934 to find a younger squad, and Germany went on to finish third on that occasion.What they say"Our aim is to win, we plan to take the initiative and put pressure on the Australian goal. But they are an extremely well-organised side and their defence is particularly solid. They'll fight for every ball and they're really hard to play against, let alone beat," Joachim Low, Germany coach."The Germans are better than us. If they offered us a draw now, we'd bite their hand off. They are probably the most consistent team in the world, they defend like a machine. It'll be really difficult to get a result," Lucas Neill, Australia captain.Voice of the fans"Germany have to be favourites, but whether we'll win or not is another matter. In a World Cup match like this Jogi's youngsters have to be careful, because the Aussies have nothing to lose and they'll give it everything they've got," Hölzenbein91 (Germany).The questionAfter losing a host of players to injury in the build-up to South Africa 2010, can Germany dig deep and kick off their campaign with a win?http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=249722/match=300111116/preview.html
Group D rivals Serbia and Ghana will take to the pitch at Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Tshwane/Pretoria knowing their qualification hopes for the 2010 FIFA World Cup™'s Round of 16 could well hinge on this encounter. The venue will be filled to the rafters and there is likely to be heavy support for Ghana in the African side's second consecutive appearance at the global showcase. As for Serbia, they will look to replicate the performances of their venerated predecessors who lit up the world stage under the flag of the former Yugoslavia.The matchSerbia-Ghana, Group D, Pretoria, Sunday 13 June, 16.00 (local time)Ghana will not need reminding of their FIFA World Cup debut four years ago, when a loss to Italy left them with an uphill struggle to advance. The Black Stars did that with two subsequent wins but they will hope for a brighter start this time. The side coached by Serbian tactician Milovan Rajevac had a brief preparation phase ahead of the main event that included just two friendlies. The first yielded a 4-1 defeat by the Netherlands, but Ghana bounced back to down Latvia 1-0 in their second dress rehearsal. They look to be blessed above all with a fine team ethic, particularly since Rajevac opted to integrate a number of players from the U-20 side that won last year's world title. That decision quickly paid off as they reached the final of the CAF Africa Cup of Nations earlier this year.Despite the notable absence of injured midfielder Michael Essien, the west Africans can count on several gifted individuals capable of filling the void. Up front, Asamoah Gyan will be eager to impress, while midfield trio Sulley Muntari, Kwadwo Asamoah and Andre Ayew can provide support in numbers going forward. Serbia will nonetheless start the game as favourites and desperate to justify that billing, given the famous names sprinkled through their line-up and their impressive showing in qualifying when they topped a group that featured France, Austria and Romania.From the sidelines, coach Radomir Antic will be expecting big things from a side populated by players who have emerged as first-team stalwarts at some major clubs. Heading that list is Manchester United centre-back Nemanja Vidic, who will line up alongside Chelsea right-back Branislav Ivanovic, while their midfield includes Inter Milan's Dejan Stankovic and Stuttgart's Zdravko Kuzmanovic. Further forward, striker Nikola Zigic will look to wreak havoc using his height, just as he will for Birmingham City next term after joining from Valencia.Key duelAsamoah Gyan v Nemanja VidicGhana will forever be grateful to Asamoah for registering their first ever goal at a FIFA World Cup finals. His star continues to shine brightly and he found the net on several occasions during this year's CAN to help his side finish runners-up. Four years on from his history-making strike against the Czech Republic, much is expected of the 24-year-old on South African soil yet he will doubtless need to be at his very best to get anything out of Vidic, the man charged with stifling any Ghanaian attacks. Vidic's extraordinary mastery of the defensive arts has really come to the fore in the last two seasons, allowing him to triumph in the UEFA Champions League with United while earning him respect and admiration throughout the game.The stat1 - As part of Yugoslavia, Serbian players met Ghana once, for a 1997 friendly that the Balkan side won 3-1.What they said"We have players in our side who took part in the 2006 World Cup. I think we'll need to prepare better this time. There won't be any easy opponents as each team has good players and everyone wants to appear in this event. The task won't be easy, but we're confident and think we can do ourselves justice," Nemanja Vidic, Serbia defender."I'm confident and full of hope. I hope the players will give the best of themselves. We want to do great things with this team. We're going to concentrate on the next game and we hope to leave the World Cup having achieved some good results," Milovan Rajevac, Ghana coach.The questionCan Ghana spring a surprise or will Serbia live up to their standing as favourites?http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/round=249722/match=300061471/preview.html
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