WORLD CUP
BRAZIL | JUNE 12 - JULY 13, 2014
‘GROUP OF
With three former champions in Italy, England and Uruguay, plus unpredictable
QUICK FACTS
As European Championship runnerup, Italy is the favorite. But Uruguay
is the South American champion and
boasts a veteran squad, England is
hoping to carry over its form from an
undefeated qualifying campaign, and
Costa Rica has pulled off surprises.
GROUP OF CHAMPIONS
No other group has more than one
past champion in it, while Italy (1934,
1938, 1982, 2006), Uruguay (1930,
1950) and England (1966) have won a
combined seven titles.
Uruguay and Italy alone combined to
win the first four World Cups from 1930
to 1950.
MARIO’S MOODS
Italy’s intentions will likely depend
on the wavering ways of talented forward
Mario Balotelli, whose mood swings
often get him into trouble both on and off
the field.
But Balotelli averages about a goal
every two matches in Serie A and with
the national team, and nobody seems to
have a better handle on him than Italy
coach Cesare Prandelli. If the Azzurri
are going to match host Brazil with their
record-tying fifth title, Balotelli will have
to both behave and perform at his best.
GOAL PRODUCER
Balotelli will have to
behave to play well
CHOICE OF FORWARDS
Few teams can match
Uruguay’s strength at forward,
with Luis Suarez and Edinson
Cavani leading the way and
veteran Diego Forlan a strong
substitute. Suarez has been
one of the main reasons behind
Liverpool’s resurgence in the
English Premier League, and
Cavani has been a goal-scoring
machine with Napoli and Paris
Saint-Germain in recent seasons.
Forlan was named the best player
of the 2010 World Cup and shared
the tournament scoring lead with
DARKHORSES
Costa Rica celebrate their
victory in the qualifier
“We want
to be a
difficult
team
to play,
nothing
less.”
– Uruguay coach
Oscar Tabarez
When Balotelli gets his mind in
focus, there is often no stopping
him. Italy has never really had a
forward that combines so much
physicality and skill — a player
who can muscle by defenders
to score goals or find the target
with well-placed free kicks or
penalties.
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t h e g a m e sports magazine
five goals, although he’ll be 35
for this year’s edition and joined
Japanese club Cerezo Osaka in
February, signaling that his toplevel career may be finished.
THROAT-SLIT
When FA chairman
Greg Dyke responded to the
December draw with a throatslitting action that was caught
on camera, it summed up
England’s fears.
The worry in football’s
home country is that England
won’t even advance from such
a tough group. England hasn’t
gotten past the quarterfinals
in its last four World Cups and
star player Wayne Rooney
failed to score in the last
two tournaments. Making
matters worse, Rooney is
having a difficult season with
Manchester United.