PORTUGAL vs GERMANY : Preview

Group G: Germany v Portugal

Venue: Arena Fonte Nova, Salvador

Kick-off: 9 30pm(Indian Standard Time) (1pm, Brazil time)

TV coverage:Sony Six

 Odds: Germany 6/5, Draw 11/5, Portugal 13/5

 Referee: Milorad Mazic (Serbia)

As the FIFA World Cup kicks of further, the favorites, Portugal and Germany will get to play their First Official World Cup Match.

Germany and Portugal are both ranked among the top five in the FIFA rankings, and both have the potential to make runs in the World Cup -- similar to the way both teams reached the semifinals in the 2012 European Championships.

Germany is a well ranked team whereas Portugal is hard to predict. With German stars like Marco Reus and Gomez out of the World Cup, Germany will have a tough year ahead. Also, Emanuel Neuer is suffering from a slight shoulder injury and Schweinsteiger was airlifted to the hospital on Saturday for a knee injury scan.

Portuguese talisman Cristiano Ronaldo has confirmed that he will be playing in today's match which is definitely a huge boost for Portugal.

Opta stats

• Germany’s opening game at the 2014 World Cup against Portugal will be their 100th in the competition, they are the first team to reach that tally in the competition.
• Germany have only lost one of their last 18 games in the group stages of the World Cup, it was against Serbia on 18 June 2010 (0-1), winning 13 and drawing four.
• Portugal have lost their two games in the World Cup against their opponents in Group G: USA in 2002 and Germany in 2006.
• Die Mannschaft have opened their last six World Cups with a victory; the last time they failed to win their opening game was back in 1986, when they drew 1-1 with Uruguay.
• Germany scored more goals than any other team in the 2014 European World Cup qualifiers (36).
• Joao Moutinho delivered more assists than any other player in the 2014 European World Cup qualifiers (10).
• Portugal have only won one of their last seven games at the World Cup (7-0 v North Korea in 2010), drawing three and losing three.
• Cristiano Ronaldo has scored two goals from a total of 48 shots at the World Cup.
• Portugal have only won three of their 17 previous internationals against Germany (D5 L9), losing their last three at major tournaments (World Cup 2006, Euro 2012 and Euro 2008).
• Miroslav Klose currently has 14 World Cup goals – only Brazilian star Ronaldo has more (15).  (SOURCE:DailyMail)

POSSIBLE TEAM LINE-UPS

GERMANY-Jaochim Low

  

GK: Manuel Neuer
Arguably the best goalkeeper in the world right now, the Bayern Munich goalkeeper will have a large task of keeping Cristiano Ronaldo at bay. He could very well come through, though.

LB: Jerome Boateng
Another Bayern Munich player, Boateng is a very talented and versatile defender. Later in the tournament, he will be faced with the burden of facing his brother Kevin-Prince Boateng.

CB: Mats Hummels
The talented Borussia Dormund defender will most likely put in a very strong performance for Germany. He must keep striker Helder Postiga at bay.

CB: Per Mertesacker
The Arsenal centre-back will be able to make up for his lack of pace with his tackling against this Portugal side.

RB: Phillip Lahm
Arguably the best defender in the world, as well as one of the most versatile players in the world. The Bayern Munich captain will be all over the pitch tomorrow contributing at both ends.

MC: Toni Kroos
One of the best young midfielders in the game, the Bayern Munich man should be a very creative playmaker tomorrow against Portugal.

MC: Bastian Schweinsteiger
The Bayern Munich vice-captain will be the defensive rock in midfield for Germany tomorrow.

AML: Lukas Podolski
The Arsenal winger will be very good at putting in crosses for Germany tomorrow. His crosses will trouble the Portugal defense.

AMC: Mesut Ozil
Ozil must bounce back for Germany after a relatively tough first season for Arsenal. Expect him to do just that.

AMR: Mario Gotze
One of the best young footballers right now, the Bayern Munich forward will play very well tomorrow against Portugal.

FC: Thomas Muller
Another of the best players in the game right now, the Bayern Munich man will set havoc upon the Portugal defense tomorrow with his pace and skill.

PORTUGAL- Paulo Bento



GK: Rui Patricio
The goalkeeper for Sporting in Portugal was a pivotal part of the Lisbon team’s side run to second place in this season’s Primeira Liga. Expect him to be challenged to stop the powerful Germany attack tomorrow, though.

LB: Fabio Coentrao
The Real Madrid man is a decent footballer. He will struggle, though, to keep Mario Gotze at bay tomorrow.

CB: Bruno Alves
The Fenerbache man is always a decent option in the central defensive role. However, he will most likely struggle to stop the strong German attack.

CB: Pepe
After enjoying a successful season with Real Madrid, the centre-back will be looking to emulate that success with Portugal in the World Cup.

RB: Joao Pereira
Expect to see the Valencia man rampaging down the right flank tomorrow and putting crosses into the box.

DM: William Carvalho
One of the most underrated young players in the game, the Sporting man will be looking to make a strong impression in the World Cup.

MC: Raul Meireles
The Fenerbache man is always a good choice for midfield. Expect him to be a defensive rock for Portugal tomorrow.

MC: Joao Moutinho
The young Monaco playmaker will me looking to supply the Portugese attackers with his brilliant passes tomorrow against Germany.

WL: Cristiano Ronaldo
Arguably the best player in the game right now, the Real Madrid man and reigning Ballon D’or winner will easily trouble the German defense tomorrow if fully fit.

WR: Nani
The Manchester United winger will be very good at putting in crosses for Ronaldo and Postiga tomorrow.

FC: Helder Postiga
Expect the Valencia man to play as a secondary attacker to Cristiano Ronaldo tomorrow. He will, however, be a useful attacking choice for Portugal.

Brazil vs Croatia - Best tweets

He's not the man!

To all those hurling abuse at me for scoring an own goal, please re-direct your anger to @12MarceloV. Thank you
— Marcello (@Marcello) June 12, 2014

Yes, you are definetely gonna need this!

Up extra early watching #WorldCup2014 #BRAvsCRO? Your going to need this champion for lunch http://t.co/v4qpOBgdjL
— Maha (@MahaRestaurant) June 12, 2014

After what was a dream start for Croatia, looks like Inception is not possible! #BrazilNuts pic.twitter.com/YOYcQhdt1W
— Paddy Power (@paddypower) June 12, 2014

Smart move and smart tweet too!

Neymar pressed "rb" + "b" on that shot. Smart move. #fifa #fineseshot #BRAvsCRO
— DeAndre Yedlin (@yedlinny) June 12, 2014

Are you sure about this?

There is more creativity in Pirlo's little toe than this entire Brazil midfield. #BRAvsCRO
— Ross Catanzariti (@bosco08) June 12, 2014

What one person had to say when the floodlights went out for a while.

Full moon out just above the horizon. Maybe we can use that if the lights keep malfunctioning? #BRAvsCRO
— Grant Wahl (@GrantWahl) June 12, 2014

Marcelo gets trolled!

He wanted to score at the World Cup...too bad it was the wrong net😂⚽️ #FifaWorldCup #BRAvsCRO pic.twitter.com/WZIyUr2KQ1
— Juan Velazquez (@JuanDirection57) June 12, 2014

100% TRUE

Watching Brazil whilst listening to Andy Townsend critique. Like being presented with the Nobel Prize in Physics by Joey Essex. #BRAvsCRO
— Al Booth (@Albooth) June 12, 2014

Haha! 

The referees with their new invisible spray be like.. pic.twitter.com/NNDdL3gILM
— Football Funnys (@FootballFunnys) June 12, 2014

NeyMarvellous!!

All time Brazil top scorers: Pele 77 Zico 66 Ronaldo 62 Romario 55 Rivaldo 34 Ronaldinho 33 NEYMAR 32 [22 years old]
— Neymar Jr. (@NeyMarvellous) June 12, 2014

Brazil vs Croatia - Goals,Highlights and Reports

The first match of 2014 FIFA World Cup was indeed an amazing game. In the Brazil and Croatia encounter, Brazil emerged as the winner after a controversial penalty. 

Take a look at all the Goals, Highlights , Reports and Controversies.

FOR THE FIRST TIME..........

Referees use the vanishing spray for the first time in FIFA WC 14.

The new substitution board is used for the first time and guess what? It reads 2014 

GOALS AND HIGHLIGHTS.......

REPORTS........

Image Source - Google

For a detailed report of the match, click here - http://www.nytimes.com/2014/06/13/sports/worldcup/world-cup-2014-brazil-wins-opening-match-against-croatia.html

10 things You Need to know about 2014 FIFA World Cup

The World Cup, possibly the most popular international sporting event, starts today in Brazil. The world is abuzz as many of soccer’s best players, representing 32 countries, seek to dethrone Spain, the reigning champion.

So, we have come up with 10 interesting facts about this year's WORLD CUP!

1. OFFICIAL MATCH BALL - BRAZUCA

Earlier when football matches were telecasted on black and white television, the ball manufacturers were forced to make the ball black and white. But now the advanced technology has gifted us with FIFA World CUp 2014's Official Match Ball - Brazuca!

Adidas has been developing the ball for over 2 years,and had worked with many teams and players to ensure the ball was acceptable. The ball has appeared in the FIFA U-20 World Cup, DFB-Pokal (German Cup) final as well as disguised as the Adidas Cafusa in international friendly matches.

                                            

2. A DEBUTANT NATION

Bosnia- Herzegovina did not exist as a country until 1992 when they declared their independence from the former Yugoslavia. A month after independence, a brutal, ethnic-cleansing, civil war erupted between Serbs, Croats, and Bosnian Muslims. The war devastated the nation, and even when truce was called in late 1995, the tormented country knew things would never be the same.

This time around, Brazil 2014 will witness just a single new nation at the finals, with Bosnia-Herzegovina ready to feature at their first major tournament.

They won the UEFA zone Group G to take their place in Brazil this year.

3. NEW JERSEYS AND SHOES

Nike has come up with a new Dri-Fit Technology to make the players feel comfortable. A combination of mesh panel and laser-cut ventilation will help the players to perform at their best.

It has been reported that the Italian team's jersey has a special tape which are called the massage strips; these will maximise the muscle power of these players and help them recover from exertion.

Also, the best (and maybe also the worst for some pessimists) part of this is that all these Nike World Cup Kits are made out of recycled plastic! Great isn't it?

4. GOAL LINE TECHNOLOGY

FIFA has been learning from their ghosts of the past and has finally introduced the Goal Line Technology.
It was first introduced in the FIFA Confederations Cup in 2012 and since then it has been all praise for the technology.
The main intention is to make correct decisions and also reduce the time in making such decisions.

5.VANISHING SPRAY

In addition to the Goal Line Technology, FIFA has also adopted the vanishing spray which the referees can use to mark the exact position of the wall/freekick ensuring the player does not move the ball further and making sure the wall stays atleast 10 yards away. Also the spray is eco-friendly and vanishes in minutes.

6. INJURED STARS

With the World Cup starting there are many star players injured which is a sad news for their fans.
Here is the list of the Injured players who will be missing the World Cup this year-
1. Marco Reus - Germany
2. Franck Ribery - France
3.Radamel Falcao - Colombia
4.Victor Valdes - Spain

Also, Cristiano Ronaldo is slightly injured and couldn't play the practice match against Greece but has steadily recovered.

Reports say that Rob Van Persie - Netherlands was injured while coming back from a beach. Hilarious!
 
Neymar, Danny Welbeck, Luis Suarez, Theo Walcott and Pepe are reported to be slightly injured.

7. TIME FOR A NEW OFFICIAL WORLD CUP SONG!

Last year's official WC song was Waka Waka by Shakira. This year Pitbull has stepped up to deliver the Official WC song. 

This year Shakira has also come up with a new WC song.

8. SUCCEEDING PAUL THE OCTOPUS 

Check out the successor of Paul the Octopus here>>>> http://ironytech.blogspot.in/2014/06/brazils-answer-to-paul-octopus.html

9. OFFICIAL MASCOTS

This year's Offical Mascot is Fuleco- a Brazilian three-banded armadillo wearing a white T-shirt reading, "Brasil 2014." The Brazilian three-banded armadillo is found only in Brazil and is classified as a vulnerable species, and the selection of Fuleco brings attention to Brazil's great biodiversity. The name Fuleco is a portmanteau of the words "Futebol" ("Football") and "Ecologia" ("Ecology").

10. THE JACKPOT

The 2014 World Cup champions will receive $35 million in prize money, world football’s governing body FIFA announced in Salvador on Thursday.

The value represents a 17 per cent increase in the prize money handed to Spain for winning the 2010 tournament in South Africa, reports Xinhua.

FIFA will award the second placed side $25 million while the third will receive $22 million.

Each of the tournament’s 32 teams will receive $1.5 million before the tournament begins to help cover their preparation costs.

Another $70 million have been set aside for indemnity payments to clubs who will be without their players during the month-long tournament.

In addition, FIFA has pledged $100 million to a legacy fund for the Brazilian government.

World Cup prize money:

Winners — $35 million

Second — $25 million

Third — $22 million

Fourth — $20 million

Quarterfinals — $14 million

Round of 16 — $9 million

Group phase — $8 million                 (Source:The Hindu)

Brazil's Answer to Paul the Octopus

Since the Euro 2008, we can see that football matches especially on the big platform, like World Cup, tend to bring out the psychic in animals. In the World Cup 2010 we witnessed the magic of Paul the Octopus which successfully predicted 11 out of 13 games including the finals between Spain and Netherlands.
Paul has been predicting matches since Euro 2008.

So, this year Brazil's answer to Paul the Octopus is - Cabeção The Turtle!

Cabeção means Big Head in Portuguese. Unlike Paul, Cabeção  has no experience in predicting World Cup matches.

The 25-year-old male turtle had to choose between eating a fish hung from a Brazilian flag, a Croatian flag and a football at the Praia do Forte turtle sanctuary north of Salvado, Brazil. After earlier going for the fish hung from a football in the middle indicating a draw, he chose the one representing Brazil.

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