The battle for Group G!

The battle for Group G rages on with the US facing Germany and Ghana facing Portugal.  Any team can go forward depending on the outcomes of today’s matches. 

Here is how each team stands:

-Germany (4 points, goal differential +4) -- Advances and wins group with either a victory or draw against the United States.

-United States (4 points, goal differential +1) -- Advances and wins the group with a victory against Germany. A draw also qualifies them.

-Ghana (1 point, goal differential -1) -- Advances with a win against Portugal and a United States or Germany loss while overcoming goal differential.

-Portugal (1 point, goal differential -4) -- Advances with a win and a United States or Germany loss while overcoming goal differential.

Today we zero in on the machinery which is the German team and the massive battle of the coaches.  Germany’s coach Joachim Low  used to be an assistant for Jurgen Klinsmann, currently the US coach. Together they are credited for revamping the German brand of football to much success.  After the 2006 World Cup (where Germany reached the semi-finals), Klinsmann recommend that Low take over.  Low was seen as a tactical genius, helping the team reacht eh final of the Euro 2008 and semi-finals of the World Cup.  The two coaches remain friends, but there is also intense rivalry and competition at stake in today’s match.

It’s a good thing the Americans and their coach are hungry for a win.  Sadly Forbes reported today that Germany’s top 3 players earned more in the last year than the ENTIRE US football team. (nevermind the fact that the highest earning athlete  in the world is Cristiano Ronaldo who has been lacklustre thus far…).

Best of luck Team USA!!

Here are our hotties picks from Germany:

28 year old goalkeeper Manuel Neuer (1) plays for Bayern Munich.

25 year old Defender Kevin Grosskreutz (2)

25 year old Mats Hummels (5)

27 year old midfielder Sami Khedira (6) plays for Real Madrid

29 year old midfielder Bastian Schweinsteiger

29 year old midfielder Lukas Pudolski (10)

Forward Mario Goetze (19) is only 22 but a force to be reckoned with

22 year old defender Erik Durm (15)

30 year old midfielder Philipp Lahm (16)

We probably won’t see him on the field tonight, but 25 year old substitute goalkeeper Ron-Robert Zieler (12) looks a lot like Kenneth from 30 Rock!

Cheerio England

Today we say goodbye to team England who formally exited the World Cup on Tuesday.  Like the English weather, there was little hope for the team this year. But even the most pessimistic English folk still hoped the team would do better than this: two losses and a draw and elimination from the Group stage.  It was England’s worst performance at the cup since 1958! 

Steven Gerrard (4)

Like his game, 34 year old team captain Steven Gerrard’s looks have faded since the last Cup.  He is expected retire after the Cup.

27 year old Goalkeeper (1) Jo Hart plays for Manchester City.

36 year old midfielder Frank Lampard – this may be his last run on the international stage

24 year old forward Daniel Sturridge (9) plays for Liverpool and score one of the two goals England made at the Cup.

29 year old defender Glen Johnson (2) plays for Liverpool

31 year old defender Phil Jagielka (6) plays for Everton

22 year old Jack Wilshere (7) plays for Arsenal

24 year old midfielder Jordan Henderson (14) plays for Liverpool

32 year old Rickie Lambert (18) plays for Southampton

And of course I have to mention another one of England’s players that has disappointed many: 28 year old star forward Wayne Rooney (10). At least he scored once at the Cup!

GROUP G: aka "GROUP OF DEATH" ANALYSIS

In perhaps the most challenging group of the cup, which has been called the "Group of Death" since undeniably all four teams: Germany, USA, Portugal, and Ghana are strong and at least one major team is going home at the group stage. With Germany currently favored to win the cup, Portugal 4th ranked and the USA as the 13th best International team, everyone is watching this Group to see what happens next. 

The match between Ghana and Germany certainly shook things up since if the USA wins today's match against Portugal…they will secure a spot in the next round!! Huge news…even a tie with Portugal keeps the USA in the 2nd ranked position. 

Group G




#


Country


GP



W



D



L



GF



GA



GD



PTS







1





 Germany




2



1



1



0



6



2



4



4







2





 United States




1



1



0



0



2



1



1



3







3





 Ghana




2



0



1



1



3



4



-1



1







4





 Portugal




1



0



0



1



0



4



-4



0

















SOOO….JUST HOW GOOD IS THE USA TEAM?

The secret to World Cup is not just having great players, but having a great coach. German coach Juergen Klinsmann is at the helm of the US team and is no stranger to the cup. He managed the Germany national between 2004 and 2006and played a sizeable role in the country’s World Cup in 2006. He is bringing the US team to a different level:

“We are moving away from a reactive style of play to a 
proactive style. We want to play with the big teams; we want to take on the 
bigger nations and play like they play. This requires a different way of working 

from the top to the bottom." 

During his tenure leading the American team, he managed to get the US team in first-place in CONCACAF qualifiers (ahead of Costa Rica, Honduras and Mexico who are all playing a strong game).  

BUT...he's made some interesting and controversial decisions--such as excluding all time leading scorer Landon Donovan from the 2014 WC team rooster. Today's game will prove if he made the right decision. 

Okay off the the hotties…

1  Tim HOWARD 

USA


GOALKEEPER
100International Caps
0International Goals
35years old
187cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALUSA - Ecuador 10 Mar 2002
DATE OF BIRTH06 Mar 1979
CURRENT CLUBEverton FC (ENG)

Howard is the glue behind the US team. He's an international class soccer player and one of the best goaltenders in the UK leagues currently playing for Evertaon though in 2003 he was the #1 ranked goalkeeper playing for Manchester United. 

8 Clint DEMPSEY

USA


FORWARD
105International Caps
37International Goals
31years old
185cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALUSA - Jamaica 17 Nov 2004
DATE OF BIRTH09 Mar 1983
CURRENT CLUBSeattle Sounders FC (USA)











18 Chris WONDOLOWSKI








USA


FORWARD
20International Caps
9International Goals
31years old
182cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALUSA - Chile 22 Jan 2011
DATE OF BIRTH28 Jan 1983
CURRENT CLUBSan Jose Earthquakes (USA)

10 Mix DISKERUD

USA


MIDFIELDER
20International Caps
3International Goals
23years old
182cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALSouth Africa - USA 17 Nov 2010
DATE OF BIRTH02 Oct 1990
CURRENT CLUBRosenborg BK (NOR)

What a smile!!! International class hottie playing for US team. 

11  Alejandro BEDOYA

USA


MIDFIELDER
28International Caps
1International Goals
27years old
178cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALUSA - Honduras 23 Jan 2010
DATE OF BIRTH29 Apr 1987
CURRENT CLUBFC Nantes (FRA)



Okay maaaaaybe not the hottest of the bunch but he plays a great game and is poised to become the next USA midfield star. AND well he should…both his father played for Colombian club Millonarios and grandfather was the goaltender for Deportes Quindío in Colombia.  

13  Jermaine JONES

USA


MIDFIELDER
45International Caps
2International Goals
32years old
184cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALUSA - Poland 09 Oct 2010
DATE OF BIRTH03 Nov 1981
CURRENT CLUBBesiktas JK (TUR)

15  Kyle BECKERMAN

USA


MIDFIELDER
38International Caps
1International Goals
32years old
181cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALUSA - Denmark 20 Jan 2007
DATE OF BIRTH23 Apr 1982
CURRENT CLUBReal Salt Lake (USA)

19  Graham ZUSI  …. the Boy next door cutie...

USA


MIDFIELDER
24International Caps
3International Goals
27years old
177cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALUSA - Venezuela 21 Jan 2012
DATE OF BIRTH18 Aug 1986
CURRENT CLUBSporting Kansas City (USA)

20  Geoff CAMERON

USA


DEFENDER
28International Caps
1International Goals
28years old
190cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALUSA - El Salvador 24 Feb 2010
DATE OF BIRTH11 Jul 1985
CURRENT CLUBStoke City FC (ENG)

23  Fabian JOHNSON

USA


DEFENDER
23International Caps
1International Goals
26years old
182cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALFrance - USA 11 Nov 2011
DATE OF BIRTH11 Dec 1987
CURRENT CLUBTSG 1899 Hoffenheim (GER)

PORTUGAL
What can I say about the Portuguese team other than it's the real like "300."  Sadly, they always seem to get the world stage and choke…which we hope won't happen since this would be a visually devastating loss. 



7

CRISTIANO RONALDO













PORTUGAL


FORWARD
112International Caps
49International Goals
29years old
185cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALPortugal - Kazakhstan 20 Aug 2003
DATE OF BIRTH05 Feb 1985
CURRENT CLUBReal Madrid CF (ESP)







World player of the year, Real Madrid all star and undisputedly one of the top 5 "hotties" in the 2006 and 2010 World Cups, Ronaldo needs to bring his game on if he's going to ever get a World Cup title.  Losing in a shameless, 4-0 massacre to Germany in their opening World Cup game, the team is licking their wounds and no one feels it more than Ronaldo. Despite an injured knee, he played against Germany and set to be in the starting line against the US. All eyes will be on him…not just from the ladies watching the game but from the US defense. 


A loss today…means it's all over for these hotties, so get a good loooong look at this incredibly talented team. 










1  EDUARDO CARAVALHO 










PORTUGAL


GOALKEEPER
34International Caps
0International Goals
31years old
187cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALPortugal - Finland 11 Feb 2009
DATE OF BIRTH19 Sep 1982
CURRENT CLUBSporting Braga (POR)









4 MIGUEL VELOSO









PORTUGAL


MIDFIELDER
50International Caps
2International Goals
28years old
181cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALAzerbaijan - Portugal 13 Oct 2007
DATE OF BIRTH11 May 1986
CURRENT CLUBFC Dynamo Kyiv (UKR)





















5 FABIO COENTRAO












PORTUGAL


DEFENDER
46International Caps
4International Goals
26years old
181cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALPortugal - Bosnia and Herzegovina 14 Nov 2009
DATE OF BIRTH11 Mar 1988
CURRENT CLUBReal Madrid CF (ESP)




x


8 Joao MOUTINHO










PORTUGAL


MIDFIELDER
69International Caps
2International Goals
27years old
170cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALPortugal - Egypt 17 Aug 2005
DATE OF BIRTH08 Sep 1986
CURRENT CLUBAS Monaco (FRA)











9  Hugo ALMEIDA












PORTUGAL


FORWARD
56International Caps
19International Goals
30years old
193cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALPortugal - England 18 Feb 2004
DATE OF BIRTH23 May 1984
CURRENT CLUBBesiktas JK (TUR)



























10 VIERINHA 














PORTUGAL


FORWARD
9International Caps
1International Goals
28years old
170cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALIsrael - Portugal 22 Mar 2013
DATE OF BIRTH24 Jan 1986
CURRENT CLUBVfL Wolfsburg (GER)









12 Rui PATRICIO  Goalkeeper












PORTUGAL


GOALKEEPER
31International Caps
0International Goals
26years old
189cm
FIRST INTERNATIONALPortugal - Spain 17 Nov 2010
DATE OF BIRTH15 Feb 1988
CURRENT CLUBSporting CP (POR)











17 NANI