Belgium - Algeria - Russia - South Korea
Belgium
The Manager: Marc Wilmots
- Star Player: Eden Hazard
- Position: Winger
- Age: 23
- Team: Chelsea
- Why? Mourinho’s negative comments about Hazard towards the end of the season can’t overshadow how good he has been for the past two seasons. Capable of being Belgium's catalyst and single handedly carrying his team over the finishing line. If he can bring his club form in to the World Cup, then he has the quality around him to make a big impact.
- One to Watch: Romelu Lukaku
- Position: Striker
- Age: 21
- Team: Chelsea
- Why? Lukaku had an immensely successful loan spell with Everton . Scoring 15 goals whilst linking up with Kevin Mirallas is a good sign for Belgium going into Brazil. Lukaku’s future is still up in the air and he’ll want to prove himself to any potential bidders. His physical prowess and finishing are qualities befitting a much older and experienced striker. So a care free attitude could be just the right for goals galore.
- Wildcard: Marouane Fellaini
- Position: Midfielder
- Age: 26
- Team: Manchester United
- Why? Fellaini has come under a lot of criticism in his first season with United under Moyes. Everton’s best player for a couple of years, Fellaini has it in his locker to command the field when deployed correctly. This tournament is a big opportunity to show the United fans and van Gaal why he deserves to be in their starting eleven. Still the potential to go missing, so keep an eye on him.
Goalkeepers: Thibaut Courtois (Atletico Madrid, on loan from Chelsea), Simon Mignolet (Liverpool), Sammy Bossut (Zulte Waregem).
Defenders: Toby Alderweireld (Atletico Madrid), Laurent Ciman (Standard Liege), Nicolas Lombaerts (Zenit St Petersburg), Vincent Kompany (Manchester City), Daniel Van Buyten (Bayern Munich), Anthony Vanden Borre (Anderlecht), Thomas Vermaelen (Arsenal), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham).
Midfielders: Nacer Chadli, Mousa Dembele (both Tottenham), Steven Defour (Porto), Kevin De Bruyne (Wolfsburg), Marouane Fellaini, Adnan Januzaj (both Manchester United), Eden Hazard (Chelsea), Kevin Mirallas (Everton), Divock Origi (Lille), Axel Witsel (Zenit St Petersburg).
Forwards: Romelu Lukaku (Everton, on loan from Chelsea), Dries Mertens (Napoli).
Fun Fact: Vincent Kompany owns a bar in Belgium called 'Good Kompany'.
Algeria
The Manager: Vahid Halilhodžić- Star Player: Madjid Bougherra
- Position: Centre Back
- Age: 31
- Team: Free Agent
- Why? He is the heart and soul of this relatively young Algeria team. Bougherra is the father figure and leader of the North African's, who'll be their biggest goal threat from set-pieces. Even without a club, 'Magic' will be hoping to inspire his under-dog nation to an upset or two.
- One to Watch: Nabil Bentaleb
- Position: Midfielder
- Age: 19
- Team: Tottenham Hotspur
- Why? The rangey teenager has a great touch and an eye for a pass. Confident and assured when in possesion, he'll be integral to any attacks coming from the centre of the pitch for Algeria. Could be a big ask for him to make a major impact, but he has shown bags of ability this season at Spurs.
- Wildcard: Sofiane Feghouli
- Position: Winger
- Age: 24
- Team: Valencia
- Why? Labelled 'The New Zidane' at the age of 17 (due to his split French/Algerian nationality). Feghouli initially struggled to live up to the hype of such a comparison. However, he is deceptively quick and can be a real handful to full backs when running in behind. Expect the unexpected with him, a real hot and cold type of wide man.
Goalkeepers: Rais Mbolhi (CSKA Sofia), Cedric Si Mohamed (CS Constantine), Mohamed Lamine Zemmamouche (USM Alger).
Defenders: Essaid Belkalem (Watford, on loan from Granada), Madjid Bougherra (Lekhwya Club), Liassine Cadamuro (Mallorca), Faouzi Ghoualm (Napoli), Rafik Halliche (Academica Coimbra), Aissa Mandi (Stade Reims), Carl Medjani (Valenciennes), Djamel Mesbah (Livorno), Mehdi Mostefa (AC Ajaccio).
Midfielders: Nabil Bentaleb (Tottenham), Yasine Brahimi (Granada), Medhi Lacen (Getafe), Saphir Taider (Inter Milan), Hassan Yebda (Udinese).
Forwards: Abdelmoumene Djabou (Club Africain), Sofiane Feghouli (Valencia), Nabil Ghilas (Porto), Riyad Mahrez (Leicester City), Islam Slimani (Sporting Lisbon, Portugal), Hilal Soudani (Dinamo Zagreb).
Fun Fact: Algeria is the only Arabic speaking country represented at this year's World Cup in Brazil.
Russia
The Manager: Fabio Capello
- Star Player: Igor Akinfeev
- Position: Goalkeeper
- Age: 28
- Team: CSKA Moscow
- Why? Akinfeev went more than 12 hours before conceding a goal for Russia which is impressive in itself. More impressive though is that you have to go back to a 2-1 defeat to Germany in 2008 before you find a game where Russia conceded more than 1 goal in a competitive game. With a sure defence in front of him, Akinfeev has a big job of keeping clean sheets as Russia try to win every game 1-0.
- One to Watch: Aleksandr Kokorin
- Position: Striker/Winger
- Age: 23
- Team: Dynamo Moscow
- Why? Kokorin had a bizarre start to the season after Anzi Makhachkala triggered his 19 Million Euro release clause, only to return a month later for an undisclosed fee after Anzi hit financial trouble. Enjoying his most prolific season to date, Kokorin scored 10 goals in 23 appearances. In a defence heavy team, he will need to take any chance that comes his way, as they may be few and far between.
- Wildcard: Alan Dzagoev
- Position: Central Attacking Midfielder
- Age: 23
- Team: CSKA Moscow
- Why? With the omission of Arshavin, Dzagoev represents the only creative flair in this Russian team and will be central to any attacks the team makes. The CSKA Moscow man has fallen in and out of favour with Capello over the past couple of years and only started 3 out of the 10 qualifying games. He does have the ability to sneak a couple of goals, so watch out for this tricky attacker.
Goalkeepers: Igor Akinfeev (CSKA Moscow), Yury Lodygin (Zenit St Petersburg), Sergey Ryzhikov (Rubin Kazan).
Defenders: Vasili Berezutskiy (CSKA Moscow), Vladimir Granat (Dynamo Moscow), Andrey Eshchenko (Anzhi Makhachkala), Sergey Ignashevich (CSKA Moscow), Alexey Kozlov (Dynamo Moscow), Dmitry Kombarov (Spartak Moscow), Andrey Semenov (Terek Grozny), Georgi Schennikov (CSKA Moscow).
Midfielders: Denis Glushakov (Spartak Moscow), Igor Denisov (Dynamo Moscow), Alan Dzagoev (CSKA Moscow), Yury Zhirkov (Dynamo Moscow), Alexey Ionov (Dynamo Moscow), Pavel Mogilevets (Rubin Kazan), Alexander Samedov (Lokomotiv Moscow), Victor Faizulin (Zenit St Petersburg), Oleg Shatov (Zenit St Petersburg).
Forwards : Maxim Kanunnikov (Amkar Perm), Alexander Kerzhakov (Zenit St Petersburg), Alexander Kokorin (Dynamo Moscow).
Fun Fact: Russia has a larger surface are than Pluto.
South Korea
- Star Player: Ki Sung-yueng
- Position: Attacking/Central Midfielder
- Age: 25
- Team: Sunderland- (on loan at Swansea)
- Why? Ki is the middle man for South Korea in terms of distribution. Acting as the fulcrum between attack and defence, he will try and dictate the tempo for this optimistic side. With plenty of Premier League experience and a decent eye for goal, expect to to see Ki Sung-yueng be involved with most of his side's chances.
- One to Watch: Son Heung-min
- Position: Second Striker
- Age: 21
- Team: Bayer Leverkusen
- Why? He can play comfortably with both feet, has decent pace and is a good finisher in front of goal. Still a young striker, however he has been earning glowing reviews from the Bundesliga. Expect to see some assured technical performances from this highly rated youngster.
- Wildcard: Park Chu-young
- Position: Forward
- Age: 28
- Team: Arsenal
- Why? Since his move to London, Park has been used in the League cup sparingly and shipped out on loan a few times. Never really showing the initial promise of a youth award winner, this could be his last chance to show the many doubters that he can actually perform at the top level. He's a bit of an enigma.
Goalkeepers: Jung Sung-ryeong (Suwon Bluewings), Kim Seung-gyu (Ulsan Horang-i), Lee Bum-young (Busan I'Park)
Defenders: Yun Suk-young (QPR), Kim Young-kwon (Guangzhou Evergrande), Hwang Seok-ho (Sanfrecce Hiroshima), Hong Jeong-ho (Augsburg), Kwak Tae-hwi (Al Hilal), Lee Yong (Ulsan Horang-i), Kim Chang-soo (Kashiwa Reysol), Park Joo-ho (Mainz)
Midfielders: Ki Seung-yueng (Sunderland, on loan from Swansea), Ha Dae-sung (Beijing Guoan), Han Kook-young (Kashiwa Reysol), Park Jung-woo (Guangzhou R&F), Son Heung-min (Bayer Leverkusen), Kim Bo-kyung (Cardiff City), Lee Chung-yong (Bolton Wanderers), Ji Dong-won (Augsburg).
Forwards: Koo Ja-cheol (Mainz), Lee Keun-ho (Sangju Sangmu), Park Chu-young (Arsenal), Kim Shin-wook (Ulsan Horang-i).
Fun Fact: Ki Seung-yueng learned his football as a youth player in Australia, where they affectionately named him Dave.
Right, well that's it.
Thank you for reading parts of my World Cup Group Guide blog. Hopefully it has been a little bit insightful and a wee bit enjoyable to read.
Bloody Brazil 2014!
