The last breakdown! It’s nearly here; if you haven’t been able to tell already, I get exceptionally excited for the World Cup! Check out our breakdowns of Groups A, B, C, D, E, F and G! Group H is next; the group containing the tournament’s dark horses, Belgium.
The Teams:
Belgium, Russia, South Korea and Algeria.
The Fixtures:
Belgium vs Algeria – 17/6/2014 5PM (BST), Russia vs South Korea – 17/6/2014 11PM, Belgium vs Russia – 22/6/2014 5PM, South Korea vs Algeria – 22/6/2014 8PM, Algeria vs Russia – 26/6/2014 9PM, South Korea vs Belgium – 26/6/2014 9PM
Belgium:
Strengths:
Aside from in the full-back positions, Belgium are packed with quality across the pitch and are rightly fancied as dark horses to go very far in the tournament. If the likes of Hazard, Lukaku and Januzaj can find the kind of form they’ve found for their respective clubs at times this season, they could go to town on a few teams in this group.
Weaknesses:
As previously mentioned they’re not spoilt for choice at full-back but with Christian Benteke ruled out through injury neither are they exactly flush up front. Lukaku is a great young prospect but can, and has, become isolated at times against the cleverer oppositions.
Key Player:
Eden Hazard, by far. If he manages to reproduce his club form on the biggest stage this summer then he’ll take this side far.
Where will they finish in the group?:
If they can break down the defensively astute Russian side led by Fabio Capello they should top the group with ease. The fact that they’re not playing anyone really top class before the next round might hinder their chances though as they’re unlikely to be seriously tested before they reach the knockout rounds giving them a false sense of security perhaps?
Russia:
Strengths:
Well they’re a Fabio Capello side so they’re going to be pretty strong defensively; Igor Akinfeev plays very well between the sticks too so even if they are caught out defensively, he’s a very good last line of defence. Expect them to be very tough to score against.
Weaknesses:
In the middle of the park they’re pretty decent but as you approach the forward line their quality diminishes; Kerzhakov and Pogrebnyak aren’t getting any younger and neither are a dependable source of goals. It might not hurt them too much in such a weak group as the rest of the side is more than respectable but if they advance to the next round it might cause problems.
Key Player:
Assuming the strikers are typically inconsistent, the burden is going to fall onto the midfielders to pull the team through. You may remember in Euro 2012 Alan Dzagoev did a very good job of that; expect him to do the same here as he leads the attack from midfield.
Where will they finish in the group?:
Second seems a certainty. Despite their defensive prowess, I expect Belgium to get one over on them but the rest of the group should be a breeze for the Russians. Meeting Portugal or Germany in the next round would be a much more stringent test though and perhaps a step too far for Capello’s side at this stage of his tenure with them.
South Korea:
Strengths:
When Ji-Sung Park came to the Premier League years ago, everyone was applauding his determination and work ethic and how it made up for some of his more technical failings. Park won’t be lining up for South Korea in Brazil but to get an understanding of how they play, imagine a side full of that tireless determination and you won’t go far wrong.
Weaknesses:
Technically they’re not as astute as they should be for a tournament of this nature; their willingness to chase the ball down so much works against them at times as it can leave them exposed in some positions. Were they in a stronger group I’d expect them to be victim to a drubbing or two but it shouldn’t work against them too much in this instance.
Key Player:
If Ki Sung-Yeung turns up to this tournament in the kind of form he’s shown against some top teams in the Premier League this past season then he could be the catalyst the South Koreans need to make a run at the second placed spot in the group.
Where will they finish in the group?:
A third-placed finish seems likely although they could shock a few people and beat Russia to second.
Algeria:
Strengths:
They have a very versatile, very creative midfield with Valencia’s Sofiane Feghouli, Tottenham’s Nabil Bentaleb and Leicester City’s Riyad Mahrez capable of fulfilling a variety of roles for the team. They play very attacking football, as evidenced by their scoring record in qualification, and with Madjid Bougherra commanding the defence, they’re generally quite tough to break down too.
Weaknesses:
There isn’t much depth to this side and they did exit 2010’s tournament without scoring a goal. However, the team has come on a long way since then with a new coach and a new system so expect to see a different performance from the Algerians this time out.
Key Player:
Sofiane Feghouli has played very well for Valencia this year in a creative role behind the strikers. He probably won’t grab many goals but he regularly creates good chances for his teammates at club level; transferring that form to the national side will be crucial for Algeria’s chances in this group.
Where will they finish in the group?:
Most likely they’ll finish fourth but this group is so open that they could finish anywhere from second to fourth; at the very least they could decide which of South Korea or Russia finishes second.