GouGou.com tells you the story of the 32 teams' fierce competition in the World Cup - the host country hopes to stage a miracle.
The draw results of the 2010 South Africa World Cup have caused complaints from South African fans, also breaking the pre-match rumor of "helping the host country qualify." As the host country, South Africa was placed in Group A, which is not an ideal draw for them. They are facing Mexico, Uruguay, and France. The situation for qualification is not optimistic. If they cannot secure three points in the opening match on June 11, it will undoubtedly be like walking on thin ice for South Africa to avoid becoming the first host country team to be eliminated in the group stage.
For the players, the draw results are not important; what matters is enjoying the fun of the game. The main forward, Park, optimistically stated: "The result doesn't matter; what's important is sparring with world-class players and enjoying the joy brought by the game."
Coach Pereira also expressed his views on the draw results: Although the group situation is not optimistic, he believes that his players will definitely stage a dark horse miracle. At the same time, Pereira optimistically indicated that in every World Cup, the host country tends to go further, such as Korea and Japan in the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, and Germany in the 2006 Germany World Cup. GouGou.com believes that there will be a miracle.
In the history of the World Cup, African teams often stage miracles. In the 1990 Italy World Cup and the 2002 Korea-Japan World Cup, Cameroon and Senegal respectively advanced to the quarterfinals of the World Cup. Although the host country South Africa does not have big names like Henry or Eto'o within their team, they are more adapted to the venues and hot climate in South Africa, giving them an advantage in Group A. Moreover, African teams are known for their good endurance and speed. Most of their players are born in the 80s and are at their peak performance years. The main attacking midfielder, Pienaar, is the starting attacking midfielder for Everton in the Premier League. His form this season has been extraordinarily good, and his performance will largely determine how far the team can go.
In the first match of the opening game against Mexico, South Africa hopes to use speed to impact Mexico and stage a dark horse miracle as the host country.
South Africa National Team:
Coach: Carlos Alberto Parreira Brazil
Formation: 4-4-2
Goalkeepers: Fernandez, Kune, Dikgakoi
Defenders: Gashek, Masharaela, Mokhena, Van der Heever, Morris, Buts, Mudledele
Midfielders: Mulango, Shibaya, Davis, Shabalala, Pienaar
Forwards: Mufuera, McCarthy, Park
Strength Index: ***
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Special report on the 2010 South Africa World Cup from ugg-GouGou.com