[dropcap background=”yes” color=”#333333″ size=”16px”]The World Cup[/dropcap] is upon us once again and the host this time around is Brazil, a country steeped in football and home of one of the most successful teams in the competition’s history. Egypt was the first African representative at the World Cup back in 1930, but there was a break of several decades until a 1970 showpiece, when Morocco returned on behalf of the continent. There has been no African winner in the history of the World Cup although Cameroon (1990), Senegal (2002) and Ghana (2010) have come close reaching the quarter final stages. One of the key issues that has plagued African teams historically has been in-fighting and wrangling–especially over bonuses–prior to a ball even being kicked. The end result is a distracting focus on off-field activities instead of team building and strategy. Let’s hope that this World Cup will be different.
[pullquote align=”left” background=”on”]There has been no African winner in the history of the World Cup although Cameroon (1990), Senegal (2002) and Ghana (2010) have come close reaching the quarter final stages.[/pullquote]
As usual, the draw for Brazil 2014 has been good for some African teams and not so good for others. Perennial faves, The Indomitable Lions face up to Brazil, Mexico and Croatia in their group. Obviously the Brazilians will be favorites to qualify from this group as table toppers; this is their home tournament after all, and the weight of expectation will be on their shoulders. However, the other two teams in this group are not unbeatable and Cameroon has a decent chance to progress.
The key players for Cameroon will be veteran striker Samuel Eto’o, currently playing for Chelsea and Barcelona midfielder Alex Song. Given his age, this is likely to be Eto’o’s final World Cup outing (unless he emulates his fellow countryman Roger Milla!) and he will want to go out on a high. The team has a good level of experience and is used to playing on the big stage.
Les Éléphants are drawn against Colombia, Greece and Japan. At the 2006 tournament the Elephants were drawn against Argentina, Netherlands and Serbia & Montenegro, where they finished third. In the 2010 edition, they had the misfortune to be drawn with Brazil, Portugal and North Korea and finished third again. Finally Cote d’Ivoire has been given a fighting chance as they avoided the dreaded group of death. [pullquote align=”right” background=”on”]Ivory Coast boasts some world class talent in their ranks including current African footballer of the year Yaya Toure, Didier Drogba, Gervinho and Didier Zokora to name a few.[/pullquote] Although this group is not easy, it must come as a relief to not have any of the big guns in the group stages. Ivory Coast boasts some world class talent in their ranks including current African footballer of the year Yaya Toure, Didier Drogba, Gervinho and Didier Zokora to name a few. However, this golden generation has failed to make the most of their opportunities and this is seen as their last chance to achieve any success in a major tournament. Ivory Coast have a decent draw which should see them qualify from their group.
The Super Eagles are up against Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina and Iran–a favorable draw for the reigning African champions. Although Argentina will be a difficult opponent, the other two challengers should be beatable for the Nigerians. Coach Steven Keshi has not been afraid to dispense with some of the more famous overseas based players and promote domestic players instead. Chelsea midfielder Jon Obi Mikel has set aside previous differences with the national team and is a reliable and steady influence for the squad. Nigeria should realistically be able to qualify with favorites Argentina from this group.
The Black Stars tussle with Germany, USA and Portugal in their group. God giveth (to Ivory Coast) and God taketh away (from Ghana). The Black Stars are in the group of death this time round and will have their work cut out to qualify from this group. Germany are World Cup veterans and although they have been struggling with form of late, they always make it count when it matters. Cristiano Ronaldo spearheads the Portuguese team and will be trying to leave his mark on the tournament.[pullquote align=”left” background=”on”]The Black Stars are in the group of death this time around and will have their work cut out for them to qualify from this group. [/pullquote]
Previously, Ghana was cruelly denied a place in the semi finals as they went out against Uruguay in the quarter finals. The game will be remembered for Luis Suarez’s infamous goal line handball, and Ghana’s subsequent penalty miss. Many African fans still resent Suarez to this day. The Ghanaian’s will have to dig deep and muster every ounce of talent and pride to emerge from this group.
The North Africans are drawn against Russia, Belgium and Korea Republic. Algeria are arguably Africa’s weakest representatives but have found themselves with one of the easier match ups. Ghana will surely be casting envious glances in their direction. The Algerians had a forgettable 2010 tournament as they finished without even scoring a goal and they did not fare much better in the 2013 AFCON tournament either. Although they may not be favorites, Algeria has nothing to fear and could progress to the last 32 from this group.
Stay tuned for more coverage and analysis as Brasil 2014 approaches.
Africa Redux Founder Chi Kaitano.
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