The World Cup is officially under way!!! Here's the final list of the players to watch. There's a lot of eye candy in here, so dig in (trust me, you'll want to read on to the Italian team). No TV at work? The World Cup games will be streaming live on ESPN
HERE.
Saturday 6/12/10
MATCH: KOREA VS GREECE, 7 am EST on ESPN
Korea: Lee Chung-YoungSquad No: 27
Position: Midfielder
Age: 21
Birth Place: Seoul, South Korea
Height: 5' 11''
His nickname, 'Blue Dragon', is a translation of his given name 'Chung-Yong'
and he's widely regarded as one of the top young players in South Korea.
Strengths: His vision, passing ability and trickery.
Weaknesses: Can be selfish with the ball. Let's hope that's where it ends!
Greece: Alexandros Tziolis
Squad No: 22
Position: Midfielder
Age: 25
Birth Place: Katerini, Greece
Height: 6' 3"
Alexandros began his career as a teenager and from there developed into a tough opponent in the air and a defensive Midfielder who packs a powerful shot from a distance.
MATCH: ARGENTINA VS NIGERIA, 9:30 am on ESPN
Argentina: Mariano Andujar
Squad No: 21
Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 26
Birth Place: Buenos Aires, Argentina
Height: 6' 4"
Andujar, is known for his positional sense and fine reflexes. A stellar performance during the World Cup will help catapult his already growing reputation as a goalie to beat!
Nigeria: Danny Shittu
Squad No: 24
Position: Defender
Age: 29
Birth Place: Lagos, Nigeria
Height: 6' 3"
Hello sexy baldheaded man with an unfortunate last name. Don't let the name fool you, this Defender is a "powerful, uncompromising centre-back who never gives less than 100%."
Weaknesses: Lack of speed, poor anticipation reading the game
Strengths: Exceptional aerial presence due to height, his aggression
MATCH: ENGLAND VS USA, 2 pm on ABC
England: Joe Hart
Squad No: 25
Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 23
Birth Place: Shrewsbury
Height: 6' 3''
I need to get some blondes up on this guide. So, my pick for England is Joe Hart, who's nominated for a 2010 PFA Young Player of the Year award, and is described as one of the biggest goalkeeping talents in England.
Strengths: His great reflexes.
Weaknesses: As a young 'keeper, his decision making still needs developing.
USA: Carlos Bocanegra
Squad No: 3
Position: Defender
Age: 31
Birth Place: Upland, California, USA
Height: 6' 0''
As the Captain of the USA Team, and a former UCLA Bruin, Bocanegra is always willing to put his body on the line for the American cause. That's the dedication we like to see!
Strengths: His rugged ability to snuff out opposition attacks and neutralize strikers
Weaknesses: His pace is not exceptional and he struggles with stronger forwards.
Sunday 6/13/10
MATCH: ALGERIA VS SLOVENIA, 7 am on ESPN
Algeria: Karim Ziani
Squad No: 15
Position: Midfielder
Age: 27
Birth Place: Paris, France
Height: 5' 7"
This French-born midfielder has a twin sister named Karima. Guess its too good to be true that there would be two of him...especially, since Ziani is a happily married man with two children: a girl, Leena, and a boy, Qais.
Strengths: Exceptional ball control and positive in his thinking
Weaknesses: A touch greedy, taking a player on instead of playing the pass
Slovenia: Dalibor Stevanovic
Squad No: 16
Position: Midfielder
Age: 25
Birth Place: Ljubljana, Yugoslavia
Height: 6' 0"
This agile midfielder had to settle for a supporting role during the South Africa 2010 preliminaries, but with his abilities to find inroads in wide areas, chances are good he'll get his chance to come off the bench where it really counts in the World Cup itself.
MATCH: SERBIA VS GHANA, 9:30 am on ESPN
Serbia: Milos Ninkovic
Squad No: 36
Position: Midfielder
Age: 24
Birth Place: Belgrade, Yugoslavia
Height: 5' 11"
Keep an eye out for this cutie on the bench. He's been described as a "classy" player, which in the world of soccer (especially at these levels), should go out the window. Save the class for tennis or polo. This is the World Cup!
Ghana: Kevin-Prince Boateng
Squad No: 23
Position: Midfielder
Age: 23
Birth Place: Berlin, West Germany
Height: 6' 0"
Born to a German mother and a Ghanaian father, Boateng calls himself the "ghetto kid" because he was brought up in the poor "Wedding" district of Berlin. He has 13 tattoos and has said about the one on his bicep, "Here you see Africa and Ghana from my father", adding, "I have the name of my wife and my home town, Berlin. I have two jokers, one is smiling and the other crying. It means laugh now, cry later." Nothing ghetto about this Prince!
MATCH: GERMANY VS AUSTRALIA, 2 pm on ABC
Germany: Cacau
Full Name: Claudemir Barretto
Squad No: 18
Position: Forward
Age: 29
Birth Place: Santo Andre, Brazil
Height: 5' 10"
If you're badass enough to go by one name, then you've already got a heads up on this list. The name Cacau came about after he was unable to pronounce his given name as a child and it "just stuck." He's also been described as the icing on the cake for an already strong German attacking team.
Australia: Tim Cahill
Squad No: 17
Position: Midfielder
Age: 30
Birth Place: Sydney, Australia
Height: 5' 10"
He's the golden boy of Australian football, but it takes a backseat when it comes to family, and his ink is a constant reminder. He recalls, "I got my tattoo done in Samoa when my grandmother died and it's the most powerful thing. It's about my mum, dad, brothers, sister, cousins, my kids, my missus. Every time something controversial happens I look at my tattoo and I'm fine." A sexy and sensitive world class player with an Australian accent? You don't find much better!
Strengths: Fiercely competitive, loyal and passionate player.
Weaknesses: Lacks the creative passing game a modern attacking midfielder should.
Monday 6/14/10
MATCH: NETHERLANDS VS DENMARK, 7 am on ESPN
Netherlands: Nigel De Jong
Squad No: 34
Position: Midfielder
Age: 25
Birth Place: Amsterdam, Netherlands
Height: 5' 9"
On 19 October 2002, de Jong made his debut for the Ajax first team and quickly became a fan favorite. A versatile player, he was preferred choice in both midfield and defense.
Strengths: He can play across the back four or in midfield.
Weaknesses: Limited in terms of creativity.
Denmark: Stephan Andersen
Squad No: 16
Position: Goalkeeper
Age: 28
Birth Place: Copenhagen, Denmark
Height: 6' 2"
Anyone else seeing the Zac Effron resemblance here? Stephan is actually the back-up keeper for the Denmark team, but due to Thomas Sorensen's elbow injury we may get to see Andersen in action... We can only hope!
MATCH: JAPAN VS CAMEROON, 9:30 am on ESPN
Japan: Keiji Tamada
Squad No: 11
Position: Forward
Age: 30
Birth Place: Urayasu, Japan
Height: 5' 8"
Being something of a celebrity back home in Japan, Tamada has looked to build a business empire of sorts and owns a restaurant in the city of Chiba to the east of Tokyo. His diner will be packed for years to come if he hits top form in South Africa this summer!
Cameroon: Achille Emana
Squad No: 20
Position: Midfielder
Age: 28
Birth Place: Yaounde, Cameroon
Height: 5' 11"
Emana boasts the athleticism and muscle to operate in a midfield holding role but also has Brazilian-like skills and shoots powerfully from a distance. And he sure can wear a tight green shirt!
MATCH: ITALY VS PARAGUAY, 2 pm on ESPN
Picking one player from the Italian team is like putting me in Barney's Shoe Salon and telling me to only pick one pair of Louboutins. I mean, just look at this picture.
If I was forced to choose one player though...it would be their fearless captain, Fabio Cannavaro.
Italy: Fabio Cannavaro
Squad No: 5
Position: Defender
Age: 36
Birth Place: Napoli
Height: 5' 9''
As Captain of the Italian squad, Cannavaro has aquired a hero's status in his home country and is the most capped Italian national team player of all time. In a 2007 issue of League Magazine, he stated that he has an extreme fondness towards Asian women, especially those of Indian and Chinese descent, saying "The most beautiful of women lie in Asia, that in India and China, they are truly walking goddesses". His wife is blonde.
Strengths: A great reader of the game, he snuffs out attacks in their infancy.
Weaknesses: He's a little short for a centre back and can suffer in an aerial battle.
Paraguay: Roque Santa Cruz
Squad No: 14
Position: Forward
Age: 28
Birth Place: Asuncion, Paraguay
Height: 6 ' 2"
Roque Santa Cruz has already played in two World Cups, and is the second-most prolific scorer in Paraguay's history.
Strengths: His height means the aerial game is his main weapon.
Weaknesses: The long list of injuries he has suffered during his career.
Tuesday 6/15/10
MATCH: NEW ZEALAND VS SLOVAKIA, 7 am on ESPN
New Zealand: Shane Smeltz
Squad No: 9
Position: Forward
Age: 28
Birth Place: Goppingen, Germany
Height: 6' 0"
Smeltz has been the leading scorer in the Australian championship for the past two seasons. In 2007, the year he was voted Oceania's Player of the Year, he scored in six consecutive internationals.
Slovakia: Stanislav Sestak
Squad No: 9
Position: Forward
Age: 27
Birth Place: Demjata, Czechoslovakia
Height: 5' 10"
A dead-eye striker who was Slovakia's leading scorer in qualification has said, "I don't mind if I score or lay on goals at the World Cup. It's our first finals as an independent nation and we are banking on showing ourselves in a good light. We are going to leave our mark on the tournament and the first games we are playing will give us a chance to do just that."
MATCH: IVORY COAST VS PORTUGAL, 9:30 am on ESPN
Ivory Coast: Didier Drogba
Squad No: 11
Position: Forward
Age: 32
Birth Place: Abidjan, Ivory Coast
Height: 6' 2''
Undoubtedly one of the best center forwards in the world today, his success in the 2006 World Cup helped lead to a cease fire of the 5-year long civil war going on in the Ivory Coast. All because he asked. His involvement in the peace process lead to Drogba being named as one of the world's 100 most influential people by Time magazine.
Strengths: Aerial prowess and power; few players in the world as strong.
Weaknesses: Temperament, confrontations, as well as a lack of pace.
Portugal: Christian Ronaldo
Squad No: 9
Position: Midfielder
Age: 25
Birth Place: Madeira, Portugal
Height: 6' 1"
The body-hairless Ronaldo is captain of the Portugal squad, though some would argue he's not their most influential player. Regardless, aside from Beckham, he's the best-known player on the planet. We already know that Kim Kardashian and Paris Hilton are fans! Wink, wink.
Strengths: Fast and tricky.
Weaknesses: Goes to ground far too easily.
MATCH: BRAZIL VS KOREA DPR, 2 pm on ESPN
Brazil: Julio Baptista
Full Name: Julio Cesar Pereira Baptista
Squad No: 9
Position: Forward
Age: 28
Birth Place: Sao Paulo, Brazil
Height: 6' 0''
Julio Baptista rose up from the lower ranks of Sao Paulo, and took his first steps as an offensive midfielder. This earned him a nice $3mil contract when he later went to Sevilla. Not bad for a soccer player.
Strengths: A multifunctional attacking player.
Weaknesses: Has often suffered crises of confidence.
Korea DPR: Ri Choi Myong
Squad No: 19
Position: Midfielder
Age: 22
Birth Place: Pyongyang, North Korea
Height: 5' 8"
Myona is one of several youthful inclusions in the World Cup and poses a major threat when taking a shot for goaaaaaalllllll!!!
Wednesday 6/16/10
MATCH: HONDURAS VS CHILE, 7 am on ESPN
Honduras: Victor Bernardez
Squad No: 5
Position: Defender
Age: 28
Birth Place: La Ceiba, Honduras
Height: 6' 2"
With a love for physical battles and spot on free-kicks, Muma, as he's called, is not only loved on the field, but off, with his engagement to Wendy Salgado, a former Miss Honduras. Too bad she makes no secret that she despises their life in Brussels, giving the local press fodder for depicting her as the one who wears the pants in the relationship.
Chile: Alexis Sanchez
Squad No: 11
Position: Forward
Age: 21
Birth Place: Tocopilla
Height: 5' 7"
Sanchez has become one of Chile's most important players with his fast and powerful play. Know as "The Wonder Boy", he was once named by World Soccer Magazine as one of the '50 most exciting teenagers in the world game'.
MATCH: SPAIN VS SWITZERLAND, 9:30 am on ESPN
Spain: Cesc Fabregas
Squad No: 15
Position: Midfielder
Age: 23
Birth Place: Vilessoc de Mar, Spain
Height: 5' 9''
Fabregas has become one of world football's most sought-after players, and he became the youngest player to represent Spain at a World Cup back in
2006.
Strengths: A superb passer with strong character and mentality to match.
Weaknesses: Given his impeccable passing skills, not as good going for the goal.
Switzerland: Eren Derdiyok
Squad No: 19
Position: Forward
Age: 21
Birth Place: Basel, Switzerland
Height: 6' 3"
His international career started in the most dramatic way possible, scoring with his first touch on his debut against England at Wembley in February 2008. Lets hope he didn't peak early and he can bring home the goals in South Africa.
**Click here for the full World Cup schedule**
