Just how big is that Golden Boot?!

What have Gerd Muller, Gary Linekar, Ronaldo and Eusebio got in common? well, other than being World Cup icons and synonymous with the art of goalscoring, they are all proud recipients of the Golden Boot, the FIFA award for the World Cup's top scorer.

With the amount of awards dished out at the end of the World Cup (seemingly growing with every tournament, currently with 6!!! such as awards for Goalkeepers, young players, most entertaining team (why?)) and the prestige of these awards being diminished (the first World Cup All Star team featured 11 players, one for each position, the 2006 World Cup all star team had 23 players! featuring 9 midfielders!!!) so the Golden Boot remains the purest form of recognition for the world's most potent striker and the one any attacking player wishes to win. But it is just an award, does it really matter? 'As long as the team wins' is the typical response given by any striker but seeing Didier Drogba's reaction to being denied a penalty at the end of the season to claim the Premier League Golden Boot award shows just how important these accolades are to players.

So who will win the coveted prize this time around? well, previous Golden boot winners have fallen into one of 4 categories:-

The Genuinely Great Golden Boot Gods

players that won the boot and were expected to before the tournament;-

Sandor Kocsis of Hungary who scored 11 goals in 1954

Just Fontaine of France with 13 goals (a record not likely to be broken) in 1958

Euesebio with 9 goals in 1966

Germany's Gerd Muller with 10 in 1970

Gary Linekar with 6 for England in 1986

Hristo Stoichkov got 6 for Bulgaria in 1994

Ronaldo with 8 for Brazil in 2002

Those Fulfilling Their Potential

Players that won the boot expectedly but not a favourite;-

Grzegorz Lato of Poland with 7 goals in 1974

Mario Kempes with 6 for Argentina on home soil in 1978 (Kempes had failed to register in the 1974 World Cup or even in the 1978 group stages!)

Paolo Rossi with 6 for Italy in 1986 (Rossi had to serve a 2 year suspension for being involved in a betting scandal in the lead up to the World Cup finals and again, he didn't score in the group stages!)

Davor Suker with 6 for 3rd placed Croatia in 1998

Miroslav Klose with 5 for Germany in 2006 (Klose also scored 5 in 2002, all with his head!)

The Unknown

Players that no-one had heard of before the finals, came, set the world alight, then did nothing again after;-

Salvatore Schillachi scored 6 goals for Italy at Italia 90 (Schillachi only made his debut in the group stages and played 16 times in total for Italy, scoring only one more goal following the World Cup)

The Lucky One But Who No-one Knows

Oleg Salenko, scored 6 goals for Russia in the 1994 World Cup, finishing joint top scorer with Hristo Stoichkov (Salenko scored 5 goals against Cameroon and an additional penalty against Sweden. Salenko didn't score in any other game other than these two in the entire international career)

Based on the above, it would seem that more often than not, the cream tends to rise to the top. The Golden boot winner comes from the usual list of favourites nearly every time, the likes of Spain's Fernando Torres and David Villa, Fabiano of Brazil, Cristiano Ronaldo of Portugal, current holder of the award, Klose of Germany, Argentina's Lionel Messi and Wayne Rooney of England. Of that list, Ronaldo and Messi have been in blistering form for their club sides this season, though they both can struggle to replicate on the international stage. Torres and Rooney are heading back to full fitness from injuries and Klose has even been struggling to make the first team for his club side, Bayern Munich. This leaves Fabiano and Villa, both with high scoring records this season. Other mentions are Argentina's Carlos Tevez, Ivory Coast's Didier Drogba, in fact the list can go on.

As for a downright lucky winner, well, let's hope this accolade can go to an Englishman at least who's barrage of goals propels us into the final, Peter Crouch anyone.........?!

The Crisp World Cup taste off, the finals

Following on from the last blog, this is the finals of The Crisp World Cup Taste Off, with Scott Ryan choosing to support the winner and Femi and Jason as the guinea pigs in tasting, if they can't pick a winner, it's down to me, let's get down to business,

The quarter finals

First off was AUSTRALIA's BBQ kangaroo going against SOUTH KOREA's roast chicken (dog), both the boys tried this one and Femi said it was very close to call, tasting one, then the other, then the first again, then deciding his vote would go to Australia, Jason went for Australia on the basis he 'hates chicken', it's Australia that go through, South Korea have put up a dogged defence but kangaroo beats chicken to the semifinals!

Up next is the FRANCE garlic baguette against SOUTH AFRICA's sweet chutney, with both boys choosing not to taste the sweet chutney again, it was an easy victory for the French against the hosts, France go on to face Australia in the semi finals!

The third bag to bag match up was ENGLAND's roast beef and Yorkshire pudding against the might of ITALY's spaghetti bolognese, the Italian flavour was a huge favourite in the earlier round against Japan, can it match up to England's flavour....well, Femi wouldn't even try the England one again, it tastes like gone off meaty cardboard. Jason tried both flavours again, silently eating the England crisp then loud sounds of pleasure (can't be hard for his wife to please him) for the Italian flavour, a comfortable win for the Italian crisps to go through to the next round.

The final quarterfinal was immense, it was 'the steak-off', ARGENTINA's flame grilled steak going bag to bag against NEW ZEALAND's chargrilled steak, more meat than a bodybuilder's championship, but which was the better, both the boys were eager to get tucked in and some tasting of both, trying a few times led to a final decision, first Femi went for Argentina, saying simply 'they just taste better', then Jason agreed adding 'they are tasteless when both put together' referring to New Zealand, that means a clean sweep for Argentina to face Italy in the semi final.

The semi-finals

First off in the semi's, it's AUSTRALIA's BBQ Kangaroo flavour against FRANCE's garlic baguette, the Australians's having seen off Spain and South Korea, it's nice, unique flavour giving it a good advantage, who'd of thought a random taste of kangaroo flavoured crisp would of made it this far, it's not had a mark against it, both boys giving it the thumbs up each time.

France beat the disliked USA cheeseburger and sailed past South Africa's sweet chutney. But compared to each other, who is the better, let the boys decide...

Both agreed the Australian one was 'nice', then tasted the French, 'mmmmm', then Jason nodded to give signal he'd decided, then Femi tried both again, the results were in.

Femi said of the losing crisp, 'it's nice, just not as good as the other' and Jason agreed, the winner, and through to the final by virtue of both agreeing......AUSTRALIA!!!

The second semi final, ITALY's spaghetti bolognese, a bohemian flavour, an amazingly individual flavour which as soon as i tasted, i knew it would do well but can it beat ARGENTINA's chargilled steak flavour.

Italy won each round easily, knocking out Japan and England with ease, Argentina beating possibly the worst flavour in Brazil's salsa then winning the 'steak-off' against New Zealand, an easy passage so far but can it beat Italy

We had a decider, Femi went for Argentina as it had a 'stronger flavour', Jason for Italy as it had a 'stronger flavour' (steady on boys, is there an echo in here?) which led me to choose, Argentina, went to war with us over the Falklands in 82, Maradona 'single handedly' cheating to knock us out the World Cup in 86.....Italy did have a better crisp in my opinion, it's the Italians into the final.

THE FINAL

So here we stand, 14 packets of opened crisps and tossed to one side (making a nice mes on the pub floor) and 2 stand tall over all the others. ITALY vs AUSTRALIA (wouldn't of predicted that before the start!). Spaghetti bolognese vs BBQ Kangaroo, let's get down to it, the tasting session, the boys happily pick up each pack, tasting both for a third time. Both liked both flavours and took a few tries of drinks. well, the results are in, Femi went for Australia, saying it 'excites his taste buds', but Jason went for Italy saying the 'flavour lasts longer' it is a draw and with hardly anything to choose between them!

Which means it comes down to me to pick a winner, slowly tasting the Italian crisp, then the Australian, then the Italian again, then realising this isn't a good combination and it's making me feel sick. So i went with this one rule, if i had to eat a whole packet, which could i enjoy more.......on that basis as it was so hard to choose, and your winner of the Crisp World Cup......Australia!

So Scott Ryan will be supporting Australia in the World Cup......and a few people went home wondering why the hell they just ate so many crisps and feel ill now

The Crisp World Cup taste off, the first round

THE CRISP FLAVOURED WORLD CUP

On the evening of 29th May, me and three friends went through the Walkers World Cup range of crisps, with the 12 available in England plus 4 added to make a total of 16 from countries in the World Cup finals, we had a straight up elimination to determine the best flavour, the winning flavour and country had the (somewhat dubious) honour of being supporting by Irishman Scott Ryan at this years World Cup (something he agreed to do on the provision it wouldn't be Ireland).

Introducing the tasters, this is Jason, he's an English thoroughbred man, with 30 years of crisp eating experience behind him and having already tried a few flavours already, he was keen to get tasting and see who he thought tasted the best.Also helping out was Nigerian Femi Olaiya, would i'd like to say he flew over especially for this.....but he's recently moved to the UK and more than willing to help give this 'monumental' event a truly global feel.

Many thanks to the boys for their particiaption and to Scott for agreeing (as long as it's not France) for supporting the winner.

So the rules were that Jason and Femi would try both flavours with only one advancing to the next round. If they couldn't agree, i had to decide out of the two which was the better.

First up, the flavours:-

1.United States, cheeseburger, what you'd expect, but how would it do as a crisp flavour? A flavour as big as Texas? Grab your pom-poms and join the cheerleading section

2.Brazil, Brazilian salsa, the greatest World Cup nation of all time, reduced to one flavour, will it put a party on their tongues, this flavour combination sounds as exuberant as the Rio Carnival, SAMBA!

3.Argentina, Argentine flame grilled steak, would the boys like the taste and flare of a passionate couple dancing the tango, encompassed in a meaty crisp?

4.Japan, Japanese teriyaki chicken, is this flavour as delicate as an origami swan?

5.South Africa, not antelope as Femi suggested, but South African sweet chutney (no, me neither), a flavour of warm, tangy spices and fruity chutney, has it got the taste to put the other flavours in a pickle?

6.Australia, Australian BBQ kangaroo, rightly guessed as the flavour by Femi and Jason, forget bush tucker, say g'day to a flavour that hopes to leave taste buds jumping for joy?

7. Holland, not daffodils of clogs as Scott suggested but Dutch Edam cheese, cheese, cheese and more cheese, if mice could vote, this would be a sure fire winner, but will the boys get behind the big ball of Edam so it rolls over the opposition?

8.France, again Scott suggested frogs or chicken, but Walkers have produced French garlic baguette, a flavour with a certain 'je ne sais qoui?', it's an attempt at a chic combination of butter, roasted garlic and parsley, ooh la laa

9.England, with Walkers doing the awful fish and chips flavour last year (don't remember them? for a reason!), Roast beef and Yorkshire pudding, like a Sunday lunch in a bag, this flavour is as traditional as morris dancing, but without the hanky waving foolishness?

10.Germany, Bratwurst sausage, will this leave the boys fearing the Wurst?

11. Italy, spaghetti bolognese, mamma mia! what a choice of flavour, will this Italian job be leaving the boys saying 'siao' to the other flavours?

12. Spain, chicken paella, Viva Espana! will this flavour have the others on the run like a Spanish bull?

as only 12 flavours are available in England, i bought four more from other ranges to make a total of 16, these are:-

13. Denmark, smokey bacon, will this flavour bring the bacon home for it's country?

14. Mexico, cheese Doritos, big crunch....but big flavour?

15. New Zealand, chargrilled steak, meaty in flavour, but will it progress far?

16. South Korea, apparently dog tastes like chicken (Femi says) so roast chicken, will this flavour come home to roost? or are their chances already gone to the dogs?

So with the boys all set with a drink in their hands, we drew the teams for the first round out of the hat, then the winner of the first played the winner of the second, 3rd against 4th etc.

Let's see what happened in the first round with all competing, first taste off was SPAIN vs AUSTRALIA with Spain being tasted first. With a distinctive red looking crisp and a smell like 'sick', Jason described the taste as 'strong' but with a full flavour, it has to be a nice flavour and neither seemed too impressed and admitted they''d struggle to get through a whole pack. As i tried, it tastes like 'Spicy Curry Pot Noodle' and smells like it too, interesting though slightly sickening. Australia's kangaroo was met with nods of approval, Jason describing it as 'beefy' and Femi saying he could taste the meat. As i tried, it's a nice gentle flavour, not overpowering like the Spanish paella, could casually eat a large bag quite easily. Both Jason and Femi went for Australia over Spain! The World Cup tournament favourites are out....though this is in crisp form.

Nest was SOUTH KOREA's roast chicken drawn against DENMARK's smokey bacon. both traditional flavours available all year round, Jason preferring the bacon, Femi the chicken, we let Scott decide this one as to who goes through, he went the the chicken so South Korea go through to face Australia in the next round.

GERMANY''s bratwurst sausage was to take on SOUTH AFRICA's sweet chutney. Jason admitting he had previously tried the German sausage crisps and not being too impressed, opening the pack and they did smell nice, had a strong meaty sausage smell though the flavour wasn't strong, tasted light though enough to suggest the flavour is a fried sausage, a tough flavour to beat. South Africa's sweet chutney was an interesting crisp, looking covered in flavour but without much smell, they tasted like a 'slightly watered down Worcestershire sauce' flavour, light, tangy and brought lot's of 'mmmmm's' from the boys, somehow, Germany's strong effort is out and South Africa go through to the next round.


With a place against South Africa in the quarter finals up for grabs, who would face them, it was FRANCE's garlic baguette against UNITED STATES cheeseburger, the French effort tastes like 'soft cheese' according to Femi, which it does, not much of a hint of garlic and the boys not overly impressed with the effort. the United States cheeseburger wasn't with a strong smell and does taste like a cheeseburger (like a McDonald's quarterpounder, i should be ashamed to know that to compare so easily), personally i would of voted United States but the boys preferred the French garlic baguette (in fact, Jason's response to trying the cheeseburger flavour was a loud 'EEEUUURRRGGGHHH), saying the cheeseburger had a too strong tomato ketchup aftertaste! the French beat the United States

JAPAN's teriyaki chicken was up next against ITALY's spaghetti bolognese, the Japanese flavour is light but spicy, 'sweet' as Jason described it, not too tangy and quite a nice crisp with a small kick. I don't think anyone was looking forward to the Italian contribution, surely trying to define spaghetti bolognese as a crisp is a recipe for disaster. Opening the packet with a slight look of fear on Jason's eyes, i tasted first, and absolutely loved it, immediately thinking this flavour is the best so far, it tastes perfect, not strong, just the right balance and tastes perfectly like spaghetti bolognese, Jason licking his lips and describing as 'nice', Femi going one better and saying it's 'very nice', a very impressive Italy goes through.

Next up was ENGLAND's roast beef and Yorkshire pudding against HOLLAND's Edam cheese, with many people already having tried the England flavour already, it was tasted and Jason did point out 'it should be just beef and mustard' and i think Femi didn't really know what a Yorkshire pudding was. The Dutch crisps, a soft cheese flavoured crisp, was met with shrugs, 'it's plain' pointed out Jason, it does taste like Edam, it's one of the best like for like recreation of a flavour but obviously not a flavour the boys enjoyed, both voting England to go through.

Next up was the NEW ZEALAND's chargrilled steak against the MEXICO cheese Doritos, with Jason saying 'i don't like Doritos and not even trying, Femi said he preferred the steak flavoured crisps so it's New Zealand that go through.

The final taste off in this round is BRAZIL's salsa in a South American heavyweight clash against ARGENTINA's flame grilled steak, the Brazilian crisps tasting 'tangy, spicy, but not doing for me' by Jason and a bemused shrug from Femi, both tucked into the steak crisps with relish, 'not too strong a flavour' said Femi (meant in a good way), both agreed the Argentines should go through, clearly not impressed with the Brazilian effort (to be fair, they are awful!)

The quarter final line up is:-

AUSTRALIA vs SOUTH KOREA

SOUTH AFRICA vs FRANCE

ITALY vs ENGLAND

'the steak off'

NEW ZEALAND vs ARGENTINA

the results of these and the winner will be published in a near future blog with the tense final rounds included

Exclusive interview with Patrick o'Reilly

Today, I'm lucky enough to bring an interview with Ireland's own, Mr. Patrick O'Reilly

With the tournament mere days away now, who do you think will win the World Cup?

Hmmm, don't know really....though i have a strange feeling Italy will do good so I will say them

Who would you like to see win the World Cup?

I think it would be great for a developing country (in a pure footballing sense) to win it, so it could kick start football in that country, somebody like USA or an African team

How do you think England will do in the tournament?

I defiantly think they will get out of the group stage, they have such a great draw for that they can't really fail really, I can't see them winning it though and i can't put my finger on why. They have great individual players but just don't seem to have the team spirit and confidence. Maybe it's the weight of expectation on them.

Are there any players your looking forward to seeing in the World Cup?

Can't wait to see Javier Hernandez for Mexico, see what Manchester United will get to see next season hopefully (Patrick is a Manchester United fan and they have recently signed 21 year old Hernandez) . I am looking forward to seeing all United players actually, Evra especially as i think he is a joy to watch, like a winger who plays at left back. Also looking forward to watching Brazil, they are always entertaining.

What is your earliest memory of the World Cup finals?

The first World Cup i really got into was Mexico '86, I remember getting the sticker album and rushing home each night from school to see what was happening and watching some of the matches. I remember Lineker vs Paraguay with the cast on his arm as a mate of mine at school broke his arm at the same time and had a cast and kept saying in the playground football matches he was Linekar! I remember quite well the 'hand of God' match, it was insane!! There was uproar around the country from what i recall, it was more the dribbled goal by Maradona that i remember though, simply amazing.

I have really great memories of Italia '90 though, it was even better for me than Mexico, i was at just the right age to really enjoy it, I would of been 14 at the time then. I remember being so excited for Ireland and Jack Charlton, they had done so well and had a great World Cup. The penalty shoot out versus Romania was mental at our house and so tense, i remember after David O'Leary scored the winning penalty, my brother just burst into tears with sheer relief! Was gutted when Ireland went out though. As for the England side of things. by this time I had been indoctrinated by my Dad, a very pro Irish man, into hating England and so wanted them to fail. Was gutted when Cameroon came so close to beating them, even with the alleged witch doctor putting a curse on England before the match!, i love all that 'mumbo jumbo' leading up to the game and then by the time England got to play in THAT semi final (versus Germany) i had got so cheesed off with the England love-fest that my brother, me and a couple of mates didn't even watch the first 90 minutes as we went up the field at the top of our street to play football ourselves! Anyway, mid way through my mates Mum comes out to tell us someone is crying! So we all looked at each other and just said 'GAZZA' then went back to our game, then she called us again to say it was full time and extra time so we went round to his house watching extra time then the penalties in a big pro-Irish household who all cheered when England went out!

As for subsequent World Cups i haven't really got into them as much as the others, USA '94 was fun for most of it as i was at a mates and it was a really relaxed tournament but that's about it.

I am really excited for this World Cup though, thanks in no small part to your blog which has really got me fired up (thanks Patrick)

Is there a song or something that always makes you think of the World Cup or a specific World Cup moment?

Bit of a cliche but has to be World In Motion (England's song by New Order for Italia '90)http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4uFWGALVF0Y. also the BBC Mexico '86 World Cup music http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW-rypZLHsQ which you can find on youTube, listened to it the other day and it sent shivers down my spine.

Is there one kit you seem to remember all the time? also, any player that stands out for any strange reason?

Player has got to be Maradona, i would put him in the top 3 best players of all time, it was amazing watching him for Argentina in '86 and '90, he carried the team a lot at the time.

Gazza (Paul Gascoigne, England) was good to watch too and it was exciting just wondering what stupid thing he would do next, though on the pitch he was awesome. Bryan Robson too, he was a legend.

As for kits, I just liked the simplicity of them back in those days, England's 1990 shirt was iconic. I do quite like the new England shirt though, it is very retro and simple and those are my favourite kits. Kudos to the old Cameroon vests though.

Would you like to see the tournament held in Ireland one day and what would the people of Ireland make of it?

I think it would be great if the World Cup were to be held in Ireland. The famed Irish hospitality would make everybody welcome and it would be one big celebration. I think they would need to work on building a lot of the stadia though, apart from Croke Park, I don't think there is one good stadium in the country. Maybe it could be a joint tournament held in Ireland, Wales and Scotland? Then at least Ireland wouldn't be cheated out of a place in the finals.

Who would you say is the greatest player of all time?

I'm lucky to have been able to see some of the greatest players in the world playing in the flesh, i used to watch Manchester United from the late 80's and the amazing players they have had such as Cantona, Beckham, Keane, Scholes and Jordi Cruyff, joke. I got to see players from some of the top European teams like Romario, Del Piero and Ronaldo.

I have recently come round to thinking that Ryan Giggs really is the best player of all time, i don't think anyone else has played for so long, at such a high level and won so many honours. I remember Giggsy goals, such as the simply incredible run against Arsenal in the '99 F.A. Cup semi final http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrOyedpeZnkand years and years of top level performances and I think his light burnt brightest for longer, more so than Zidane or Besty (George Best) even.

It's such a shame that he never got to play in the World Cup, but i suppose I take consolation from the fact that this maybe meant he avoided injury and was able to play for United more.

Many thanks to Patrick for doing this

Sex And The City 2 vs World Cup 2010

Sex And The City 2

vs

World Cup 2010

The reviews for Sex And The City 2 have been terrible, at this time of writing it is rated as 3.3 out of 10 on the holy bible of film websites, IMDb http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1261945/ , which is as big a disaster as it gets (expect horse like Sarah Jessica Parker to be picking up some Razzies come awards season). So the marketing needed to come up with something pretty special to sell this thing.

In the UK at least, they seem to of managed it. Thanks to the World Cup. Get an eyeful of the poster here, that's a 'presumably expensive) shoe piercing a football with the tagline: 'there are other ways to score'. The message being pretty clear, if you want to get away from the World Cup, then come see this movie. (maybe they should of combined the two and had Ruud Van Nisterlooy play the main character)

I have to give credit to the attention to detail, the ball being stepped on isn't just a generic football! OK, so there's no Adidas logo and a different design (hexagonal panels) to the actual Adidas Jublani World Cup match ball, but there's still enough of the Jublani pattern showing to suggest this is what we're looking at. Not that it will matter at all to the target audience, i just like to think someone, somewhere, has done their homework.

Last and certainly not least, the release date, June 10th, the day before the World Cup finals kick off. Hats off to whoever came up with this idea, it's just a shame that - based on the reviews - the best joke in this movie is on the poster. It will become a common 'deal' between couples, if he goes to watch the movie with her, she'll let him watch the football when it's on.

On a side note, if you've not seen it yet, http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idLG6jh23yE check out the new Nike advert directed by Alejandro Gonzalez (Babel, 21 Grams, Amores Perros) which is just a joy to watch time and again. The bit with Rooney casually beating Roger Federer at table tennis and ''Ronald'oh'' are hilarious

Group G

Today looking at what every tournament has, the so called 'Group of death', Group G

Brazil

The most successful nation in World Cup history, Brazil have won the trophy 5 times and are the only nation to of played in every World Cup finals (which started in 1930) and anyone who thinks of the World Cup, thinks of Brazil. Managed by former World Cup winning captain Dunga, the fact they left out Manchester United's Anderson, AC Milan's Alexandre Pato and Ronaldinho and new Roma signing Adriano shows the strength of this side.
In attack they have Luis Fabiano of Sevilla and Robinho of Manchester City, 2 strikers that play well together and have scored almost 50 goals between them but behind them, Villarreal's Nilmar has scored 8 in 17 appearances and will be pushing for a first team place and the golden Boot.

The midfield has plenty of experience in 88 cap Gilberto Silva of Panathinaikos and Kaka from Real Madrid with 78 goals and former Manchester United midfielder Kleberson. Expect Galatasy's Elano to ignite some Brazilian flair into the tournament as well.

A traditional Brazilian defence of two rock solid centre backs in Juan and Lucio (165 caps between them) and Maicon and Dani Alves as two attack minded full backs, this is a traditional Brazil team, built to attack from the back.

Interesting Fact, Brazil has the most transsexuals of any country in the world

National dish, feijoada, a stew of beans with pork and beef

Democratic People's Republic of Korea

Qualifying for their second finals since 1966 (good omen for England), they couldn't be in a tougher group, with 4 players playing outside their native country, the only notable one being Hong Yong-Jo, the nation's captain who plays for Russian side FC Rostov. Manager Kim Jong-Hun tried to sneak in striker Kim Myong-Won as an extra outfield player by announcing him as a goalkeeper but FIFA have already stated he HAS to play as a goalkeeper if he is to play.

For people thinking of having a bet on top goalscorer, it's worth thinking of attackers from the other 3 teams in this group as they will have a field day against this side. Expect them to think faster than a South Korean submarine that's been hit by a missile.

Interesting fact, on 28-29th April 1995, 340,000 crammed into the May Day stadium to see Japanese wrestler Antonio Inoki defeat American wrestler Ric Flair

National dish, kim chee, fermented vegetables

Ivory Coast

Former England manager Sven-Goran Eriksson has taken over a team already qualified for the World Cup (it has to be pointed out he failed in his role as Mexico manager and was sacked in fear they wouldn't qualify for the finals). This is the second time the Ivory Coast have qualified after 4 years ago being drawn in a group with Argentina, Holland and Serbia (though they failed to get out the group, they hold the distinction for being only side to score in every World Cup finals games).

Possibly their greatest ever player is their highest ever goalscorer, Didier Drogba of Chelsea, 43 goals in 66 games, this is a man to be feared and at 32, won't have a better chance to impress on the world stage with the Ivory Coast (though a recent arm injury almost forced him out of the World Cup), with fellow Chelsea striker Salomon Kalou and Lens' Aruna Dindane, the Ivory Coast will threaten and indeed, will score goals.

Interesting fact, they have the largest church in the world, the Basilica of Our Lady Of Peace according to Guiness World records

National dish, alloca, fried plaintains

Portugal

For all their history of great players (Luis Figo, Eusebio, Cristiano Ronaldo), it's amazing to think that Portugal have never won a major event, yet unbelievably, this is only the 5th time they have qualified for the World Cup Finals! Managed by Carlos Quieroz (who also managed the country from 1991-93), this is one of the strongest teams in Portuguese history and that's down to one player, Cristiano Ronaldo, coming off the back of a season where he's scored 26 goals in 29 games for Real Madrid (the only shining light in a dark season for them), now national captain, Ronaldo's 22 goals in 70 games (not bad for a winger) at the tender age of just 25 suggest he could easily become Portugal's leading goalscorer and record cap holder in the future. His talents are the perfect foil for ex-Manchester United team mate Nani and Atletico Madrid's Simao, both players always keen to get among the goalscorers but it has to be pointed, only Ronaldo and Simao are players selected in the squad that have scored double figure's for Portugal, as dangerous as they are in attack, they don't beat teams with a blitz of goals.
In midfield, this is Deco's last hurrah, his expereince with 72 caps will be essential though coing off a personally disappointing season with Chelsea, it'll be interesting to see how he copes, backed by the likes of Real Madrid's Pepe, and Atletico Madrid's Tiago, the midfield will be solid and reliable for the attackers to feed off. Should also point out ex Tottenham, Portsmouth and Rangers midfielder has made the squad, returning to his native Portugal with Sporting Lisbon seems to of caught the managers eye.

Defensively, the likes of Chelsea duo Paulo Ferreira and Ricardo Carvalho are a base added to with Valencia's Miguel and Porto's Bruno Alves, not an easy defence for any attacker to play against and it's usually with full backs marauding forward that they come unstuck.

In 2008 former goalkeeper Ricardo retired and a number of different players have tried to fill the void, currently Eduardo of Braga, it's this position that hasn't got a real dearth of quality for Portugal.

If Portugal are to qualify from the group, they will rely heavily on Ronaldo to produce, if he steps up to the plate, expect them to get to the quarter finals at least, if he doesn't, expect a first round exit

Interesting fact, the University of Coimbra, established in 1290 is one of the oldest in Europe.

National dish, bacalhau, dried salted cod

Please God, don't let Argentina win the World Cup

"If we in the World Cup, I'll get naked and run around the Obelisk" - Diego Maradona

Thankfully his coaching abilities should prevent any impromptu appearances of Little Diego at the Obelisk, this can't be said for any unsuspecting women, South African or Argentinean, so women, lock your doors and watch out when Big Diego comes tumblin' through.

Also you can make your own jokes about the phallic nature of Buenos Aires Obelisk

(a tall, four sided landmark that was constructed to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the city) but his comments shouldn't come as a surprise when you consider the belly flop he did after a win versus Peru (a rather important win, but still). What we can only hope is he doesn't combine the two celebrations, with all that flesh flying around, someones bound to lose an eye (and their lunch).

Maradona even left Messi (World Player Of The Year no less) out of the game for fear he'd get hurt, unwilling to risk an untimely injury to his talented playmaker. Reportedly Maradona told Messi on him not playing "If something had happened to you in that match, I'd of been shot - you know where".

More and more everyday, this World Cup is becoming one which though hosted in South Africa, but held in the traveling circus on the outskirts of town known as 'Maradonaland' and we won't know until it's over whether it was a decent enough performance or whether the lion bit off the head off the trainer.

The good money's on the lion (hopefully Three Lions).

Group F

Today looking a t Group F, a group the current world champions should win, but who will come second?

Italy

After stepping down as Italy manager after leading to the last World Cup title in Germany 2006, Marcello Lippi was re-appointed in 2008 after the disappointing reign of Roberto Donadoni, he is the only manager to ever win the most prestigious titles with both clubs and country and is widely regarded as one of the greatest managers of all time. Though 4 years on, Italy are a different team, they don't have an awe of invincibility about them like some teams do (Spain for example), they were beaten in the groups at Euro 2008 by Holland 3-0 and by Spain (albeit on penalties) in the next round. In last years Confederation Cup they were beaten by both Brazil and Egypt and never got out the group. In qualifying for this tournament, though unbeaten they drew 3 times, away to Bulgaria, home and away to the Republic Of Ireland.

Many names are back from the squad from 4 years ago, in goal they have Gianluigi Buffon, a great goalkeeper and one of the world's finest, with 100 caps, the Italians can't really ask for a beater man in goal. Historically, the Italians success has always been defence, the most capped player in their history (and current captain) is Fabio Cannavaro of Juventus, with 132, the first way back in 1997. Alongside him are the likes of Gianluca Zambrotta of AC Milan (Cannavaro is 36, Zambrotta is 33) and Giorgio Chiellini, also of Juventus. The Italians have the oldest squad at the tournament and it'll be interesting seeing them play against a quick paced team The midfield is led by the mercurial Andrea Pirlo, someone who has such inventive play and always a threat at free kicks, his fellow AC Milan team-mate Gennaro Gattuso will be the holding midfielder to allow Pirlo to roam with support either side of him from Juventus' Mauro Camoranesi and Roma's Daniele De Rossi.

What Italy really lack is a true world class goal scorer, Alberto Gilardino of Fiorentina has 16 goals in 39 games but if he's injured or suspended, the look to Vincenzo Lazuinta (45 in 35 games) or Antonio Di Natale (9 in 31 games), personally i hope they take a younger forward like Villareal's Guiseppe Rossi (should he make the final 23 man squad, he will be the only Italian not playing his club football in Italy) or Sampdoria's Giampaolo Pazzini.

Italy are a good if ageing side, but recently they have been conceding goals and scoring less, it's hard to see them really compete to retain their trophy but then, 4 years ago, no-one expected them to win it. I can see them dropping points in this group, though they should have enough quality to qualify from it. Then a potential clash with possibly Holland or Denmark could be very interesting. What i'm really looking forward to is half-time during Italy matches just because when a commentator says it's a 'change of sides', i can nudge the person next to me and tut and say "typical" (World War II joke there)

Interesting fact, many inventions such as the thermometer, piano, electric battery, nuclear reactor, ice cream cone, glasses (eyes), typewriter, sewage system and cutlery. National dish, most eaten worldwide, pizza (one of the few words known all over the world), lasagna, spaghetti bolognese, Italian dishes are loved globally

Paraguay

Arguably the third best South American team after Brazil and Argentina, Paraguay have never progressed past the second round of a World Cup finals (which they have got to three times) and will be looking to get past that stage this time around. former Argentina international Gerardo Martino has won various titles managing teams in the Paraguay league but this is his first time managing a nation on such a grand stage.

Their main star player is Manchester City's Roque Santa Cruz who needs 5 more goals to be the all time leading scorer in Paraguayen history and at the age of 28, it would be expected he can achieve that and maybe score a couple in this tournament. Alongside him in attack is Nelson Valdez of Borussia Dortmund.

The midfield boasts talents like Atalanta's Edgar Barreto and Sunderland's Cristian Riveros but the quality of players they have in the middle of the field reflects the team, okay but not of any huge quality, it's time and again they work hard against the smaller teams and become easy targets for the larger teams in the later rounds.

Captain Denis Caniza plays his club football in Mexico and will be appearing in his 4th World Cup finals, described as "the Paraguay Nobby Stiles", this tournament is expected to be his last at the age of 35.

Goalkeeper Justo Villar who plays in Spain for Real Valladolid took over from the legendary Jose Luis Chilavert (8 goals in 74 international appearances!!!) in 2003 and has shown himself to be reliable and commands his goal well.

I nteresting fact, duelling is still legal but can only take place between two people, there has to be medical staff on hand and participants must be registered blood donors. Paraguay also has the largest navy of any land locked country.

National dish, mandioca, seems to be a burger made of yuca root fried in peanut oil

New Zealand (basically Wales but with sunshine)

Qualifying for the finals for the second time in their history (at Espana 82, they lost all three group games and conceded 12 goals), their odds of 2000/1 mean they are the rank outsiders for the tournament. Coached by one of the players from the 1982 finals, Ricki Herbert has taken advantage of Australia's decision to join the Asian Football Confederation means New Zealand are the qualifiers from the Oceania Football Confederation consisting of them, Papua New Guinea, Tonga Fiji and other 'Pacific Islands' nations, showing not much quality is needed to get through the qualifying campaign but as Australia have left to get more competitive matches elsewhere, New Zealand could become a regular fixture for years to come. Having already announced their 23 man squad, captain Ryan Nelson of Blackburn Rovers is most likely the only name people will recognise though fellow defender Tommy smith plays for Ipswich Town and forwards Chris Killen of Middlesbrough, Rory Fallon of Plymouth Argyle and Chris Wood of West Brom are also included. This show show the lack of quality and this is a team that will struggle to score, let alone win.

Interesting fact, 94% of those in jail in NZ are males, 50% are Maori's. They also drive on the left side of the road, like the British and Lindsay Lohan

National dish, lamb, with a ratio of 9 sheep to every person, there's plenty to go round. New Zealand lamb is exported all over the world, even as far as the UK (the Co-op are main buyers).

Slovakia

After the dissolution of Czechoslovakia, the Slovak Football Association was founded in 1993 so this is a team and a country only 17 years old. The 2010 World Cup is the first time in their brief history they have qualified for the finals. Coming top of a qualifying group containing Slovenia, Czech Republic, Northern Ireland and Poland, they have shown in qualifying that former player and now manager Vladimir Weiss has been right to stick with the same core of players throughout, it has been said it's harder to get out the team once your in it, than it is to get in the team in the first place.

The squad has players based all over Europe, from Scotland to Russia, from Turkey to Romania. Their most ever capped player is midfielder Miroslav Karhan of Germany's Mainz 05 (recently signed after being part of the Wolfsburg team that won the German Bundesliga in 2009), capped 96 times so far (and also his countries 4th top goalscorer of all time). The midfielder is also packed with up and coming players like Manchester City's Vladimir Weiss and Chelsea's Miroslav Stoch and national captain Marek Hamsik of Napoli will look to improve on his 8 goals in 30 games.

In attack they rely heavily on Robert Vittek who's 18 goals in 69 games isn't the greatest record going into the tournament but accompanied by Bochum's Stanislav Sestak who has 10 in 29 games, they will pose a threat.

Newly signed Everton goalkeeper Jan Mucha was previously with Legia Warsaw, becoming their no. 1 after Lukasz Fabianski left the club to join Arsenal in 2007 and has won various cups in Poland but his 14 caps show his lack of experience and i think his lack of top class football can go against him as well.

Defensively, they have a hub of consistent performers, most notable is Martin Skrtel of Liverpool who has an impressive 5 goals in 37 games. Radoslav Zabavnik of Mainz 05 is the most experienced defender.

The simple fact is, no-one expects Slovakia to win a game, but then they weren't expected to qualify (certainly not as group winners) and by keeping faith in the same players and keeping this tradition into the finals, they have nothing to lose, and it's this relaxed attitude that could spring a surprise.

Interesting fact, former tennis champion Martina Hingis was born in Slovakia, she had a Slovak father and a Czech mother, also a descendant of Slovakian parents is Andy Warhol

National dish, bryndzove halusky, which in English means potato dumplings with sheep cheese and bacon.

england vs Mexico, player by player review

For those who saw the match last night, it's hard to tell if Glen Johnson's goal or the fans doing an ironic Mexican wave was the highlight of the night, on a night were the England team were flattered by a 3-1 win, it's the players that are scrutinised, looking at who will make the final squad of 23, today, for what it's worth, I'll be looking at each players performance to see if their performance deserved a seat on the plane or they would be joining Lord Triesman watching the World Cup on TV. (with the police supposedly banning people from wearing England shirts, hwo dod Rooney & co. escape the ban?)
In a game when players that played in last weekends F.A. Cup final were given the day off, it was a real chance for players to take the game by the scruff of the neck, a chance to not only make a stake to be in the final squad but also give Fabio Capello a headache thinking if they were in the first team itself, let's see if anyone did;-

Goalkeepers

ROB GREEN

mins played - 45

saves - 4
catches - 1

clearances - 0

pass success - 58%

conceded - 1

Two impressive saves in the first half suggest that England's no. 1's reactions are firing on all cylinders but he once again showed he has a tendency to let his concentration desert him at times. His one handed save from Carlos Vela in the one-on-one was superb and to be fair, he can't be blamed for the awful defending that led to Mexico's goal, I've said before but England's real weakness is in goalkeeping, we have no-one that simply stands out and i expect a straight out fight between Rob Green and Joe Hart for the World Cup, if not during the tournament then certainly after.

JOE HART

mins played - 45

saves - 0

catches - 1

clearances - 0

pass success - 48%

conceded - 0

A goalkeeper with a rapidly growing reputation and gained some vital experience under his belt after a hugely successful season on loan at Birmingham City.

His club career may stall going back to Manchester City where Shay Given is established as the no. 1 goalkeeper and it seems certain Hart will travel as the third keeper behind Green and David James, for what it's worth, when called upon last night, he looked composed and personally, I'm a fan, he took his chance and did nothing wrong in a team that played a lot better in the second half.

The goalkeeper situation isn't about who will be dropped, the three keepers, Green, James and Hart will all be going to the finals, it's about who will start. Rob Green may get the nod and i hope so, David James (David James and John Terry sounds like 4 people) is prone to too many errors and he's from the side that finished bottom of the Premiership, to do that you would have conceded a lot of goals.....and he did. His experience is why he's there and the next game against. This Sundays game against Japan should show who Capello has in mind to be his first choice goalkeeper.

Defence

GLEN JOHNSON

mins played - 90

shots on/off - 1/0

pass success - 93%

tackles - 4

fouls - 3

clearances - 4

England's right back and also right winger last night, his 47th minute goal was spectacular and Rooney, Gerrard or Lampard would of been as equally proud as Johnson was to score it. It has to be mentioned that it would be embarrassing for Walcott to have his full back brush past him while he's layed out on the turf, the first sign of life on the right all night. The fact Johnson was picked over the returning Carragher should suggest he is first choice right back, too often caught out tracking back to defence when he's marauding forward, he does give England an extra attacking option, if he could discipline his playing style to get back into position when he's pushed forward like Ashley Cole does, Johnson would be a potential world class player.

RIO FERDINAND

mins played -45

shots on/off - 0/0

pass success - 88%

tackles - 2

fouls - 0

clearances - 2

The new England captain trotted through a routine first-half performance in which the English defence was worryingly exposed on several occasions and as the main man, the finger has to be pointed at Rio for this, against the likes of Spain or Brazil, England would of been heavily punished. Maybe playing without regular partner John Terry triggered the stuttering display but still, they need to stay awake and throw themselves at the opposition more, he could easily of been 'merk'ed'

LEDLEY KING

mins played - 90

shots on/off - 0/0

pass success - 75%

tackles - 0

fouls - 1

clearances - 4

Scored the first goal to mark his first appearance in an England shirt in almost three years. But it didn't seem to take long for the rust to appear beneath the surface. It's sad to say but the Spurs man looked a yard slow and did not look sharp, looking like he expected to stroll through the game, he lost his marker for Mexico's first half goal and his body language suggested early fatigue, on this performance he'd be dropped from the squad, he'll be lucky to get a second chance against Japan and if he does, he REALLY needs to show more (i would love Gok Wan and Ledley King to have some sort of affair just for the headlines)

LEIGHTON BAINES
mins played - 90

shots on/off - 0/0

pass success - 79%

tackles - 2

fouls - 0

clearances - 1

Baines is almost guaranteed a place on the plane to South Africa because he is seen by Fabio Capello as the natural understudy to Ashley Cole. England has arguably the best left back in the world but in the self imposed absence of Wayne Bridge, Baines is a player who will give his all, though he lacks the quality of Ashley Cole, if called upon he won't shame himself. He did his job heading off the line - but sadly only found Guilleromo Franco who scored.

JAMIE CARRAGHER

mins played - 45
shots on/off - 0/0

pass success - 64%

tackles - 0

fouls - 0

clearances - 0

For a player that wrote in his autobiograpghy that he was 'never in love' with playing for England, it's hard to understand why he's here and not hard to understand why some fans booed him coming on in the second half. Playing for your country requires passion and if you not in love with playing for your country, you shouldn't. But though he never had much to do last night, it was clear he was thrilled to in an England jersey again, his main contribution was being vocal, bellowing at club captain Steven Gerrard and revelling in the occasion, appears to have the edge over Warnock to go to South Africa (though i have a theory as to why, Capello needs Carraghers experience, not for football but South Africa seems notorious for having ghetto's full of prostitutes and muggers, and Carragher grew up in Liverpool)

Midfield

THEO WALCOTT

mins played - 77

shots on/off - 0/0

pass success - 91%

key passes - 2

tackles - 3

fouls - 0

So much pace and energy but on this performance, Aaron Lennon must get the starting role in the World Cup in the right-wing slot. Arsenal's injury-prone wideman looks the business in fleeting glimpses but very little threat was really produced, have to start wondering if his goals against Croatia are his only reason for being in the squad. Considering Adam Johnson could of started in his place to make his debut, Walcott failed to shine. On this performance, he won't make the final 23 (Walcott is like the world's worst drug dealer, he's got speed and nothing else)

MICHAEL CARRICK

mins played - 62

shots on/off - 0/0

pass success - 87%

key passes - 0

tackles - 0

fouls - 0

Has had a patchy season with Manchester United and spent the season drifting in and out of Sir Alex Ferguson's plans. Though he is an experience campaigner with a great eye for a pass on his day and has a deceptive laid back style with can lull opposition into a false sense of security, worth his place on the plane if only to be back up to Gareth Barry if he's fit

JAMES MILNER

mins played - 85

shots on/off - 0/0

pass success - 77%

key passes - 1

tackles - 2

fouls - 1

Like Walcott, Milner did little to make the nation sit up and take notice, Chelsea's Joe Cole, a more experienced and creative talent, shouldn't have much to worry about. Have to wonder if the weeks talk of a transfer for multi millions has got to his head. Versatile player and it's this that could land him a place in the final 23

STEVEN GERRARD

mins played - 90

shots on/off - 0/2

pass success - 75%

key passes - 1

tackles - 3

fouls - 2

Took an almighty knock on the head and probably came round thinking Liverpool had won the Premier League. After some treatment he strode back out onto the pitch swathed in bandages a la Terry Butcher. Had a hand in England's first two goals, a corner for the first goal and chip into the box which led to Crouch netting no. 2. This man is key to England being successful just as much as Rooney or John Terry are, this performance once again showed that (though he was bound to be lucky after what looked like a bird poo on his head)

TOM HUDDLESTONE

mins played - 28

Tom and many other midfielders are in the mix but too many players ahead of him to really make the final squad

ARRON LENNON

mins played - 13

A bit part role but, after missing half the season through injury, he has fresh legs, looks far more effective than Walcott and hope he starts against Japan

ADAM JOHNSON

mins played -5

Simply not given a chance to shine, would be a real shock if he went to South Africa

Strikers

PETER CROUCH (the face of Pringles, but the body of Twiglets)

mins played - 90

shots on/off - 2/0

pass success - 58%

key passes - 0

tackles - 0

fouls - 0

the much travelled striker always puts in a perfomance for England. Must go to South Africa. A terrific scoring record for the national team and a talisman as England rarely lose when he scores. His first half goal was bizarre....but it counted. The 6ft 7in beanpole is an effective if gangly secret weapon in Capello's armoury

WAYNE ROONEY

mins played - 90

shots on/off - 2/0

pass success - 58%

key passes - 0

tackles - 0

fouls - 0

The bullldog compliment to lean and lanky Crouch, Rooney is a menace but had a mixed night. A clever flick baffled Ricardo Osurio then when through he was easily tackeld by full-back Rodriguez. Looks to have something at the back of his mind like some minor injury he's trying to run off. Still, England's main man is expected to do well at the tournament which could well define him

JERMAIN DEFOE

mins played - 45, quick and gives Capello a different option in attack, usually bought on for final 30 minutes as he's effective against tired defenders, still selfish and never passes the ball but gets goals and that's what counts