RSSInternational Friendly Related Content
New Zealand vs Serbia - International Friendly Match Preview
Serbian followers may ask themselves why on earth are the White Eagles playing a low-profiled team like New Zealand when there is so little time left to prepare for the 2010 World Cup. Moreover, Serbia's group is tough and analytically difficult to decide as Germany, Ghana, and Australia all stand a good chance of making it into the Round of 16.
An emphatic win; that's the only thing that Serbian fans will wish for. Serbia are known for their strong defense led by Manchester United's Nemanja Vidic and Inter Milan's Dejan Stankovic. But in truth, Saturday's game against New Zealand should offer the chance for the European side to explore its attacking abilities.
Slovakia vs Cameroon - International Friendly Match Preview
Slovakia haven't any match in the year 2010 apart from their 0-1 defeat to Norway back in March. Out of their last five games in all competitions, they lost three times. This statistic has raised doubts over the team's form ahead of the World Cup. Slovakia have been grouped with Italy, Paraguay, and New Zealand for the first round of the tournament. Yes, they shocked the public by reaching the finals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa as winners of their section which included Poland and the Czech Republic.
However, the story has just commenced and as things currently look like, it arguably seems like Slovakia don't have what it takes to compete at the highest level. On paper, they cannot compare themselves with Saturday's counterparts Cameroon. But in terms of performance, the Indomitable Lions are opponents that Slovakia should be a able to beat - only to prove their potential.
Republic of Ireland vs Algeria - International Friendly Match Preview
With their minds firmly set on kicking off their World Cup campaign in style through a great start against Slovenia on June 13, the Algerians may not be at full strength on Friday evening. Their intentions, like any other World Cup participant at the moment, is to warm-up and test their strengths and weaknesses as the team’s coaching staff are yet to make any final decision concerning tactics, and squad choices.
Playing against the Republic of Ireland should benefit the Desert Foxes, then. Giovanni Trapattoni’s men are seriously looking to overcome the huge disappointment they suffered late last year when France controversially disqualified them from the finals of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The Irish will have to battle it out against top emerging sides Russia and Slovakia during the 2012 European Championship qualification campaign which will commence later this summer.
South Africa vs Colombia - International Friendly Match Preview
.jpg)
Bafana Bafana have played a considerable number of friendly matches since the start of this year. They kicked off with a 3-0 win against Zimbabwe on January 27 before playing a disappointing 1-1 draw against Namibia. On March 30, they held South American side Paraguay to a draw and drew again against Korea DPR.
Following the fans' criticism of the team's performance, a string of good results followed. South Africa won a couple of friendly matches. One of those included a 4-0 thrashing of Thailand on May 16. Earlier this week, Bafana Bafana also drew 1-1 against Bulgaria. Knowing that time is running out for the country to be ready for the 2010 World Cup, the players are expected to put up a good show against Colombia and eventually win the game.
Denmark vs Senegal - International Friendly Match Preview
Denmark don't want to repeat Portugal's total failure against Cape Verde earlier in the week. They Danes are looking forward to getting the right result against the Senegalese who stunned 'slow' Greece 2-0 on March 3 this year. Talking about team news, Thomas Sorensen's inclusion in tonight's clash is largely in doubt whereas Arsenal's Nicklas Bendtner has definitely been ruled out.
The impressive striker is yet to recover fully from a groin injury. As his replacement, Morten Rasmussen may have the chance to prove his value for the Danish national football team. Rasmussen was included in the team's 30-man squad with the certainty of not making it into the final 23.
Belarus vs Honduras – International Friendly Match Preview
Honduras have lost two of their only three friendly match encounters in 2010. Their amazing 3-1 defeat of the United States on January 24 was in fact their last victory of the year so far. On March 3, Los Catrachos got humbled 2-0 by Euro 2008 semi-finalists Turkey. They failed to bounce back from their worrying form as they went down 1-0 against 2007 Copa America hosts Venezuela last month.
Against tiny side Belarus on Thursday, Honduras will be obliged to pull out a good result. The CONCACAF side will have mountains to climb during the 2010 World Cup as they have been drawn with top seeds Spain, FIFA’s home land Switzerland, and South America’s Chile. Preparations haven’t gone well as things currently look like based on results. However, popular manager Reinaldo Rueda is expected to turn things around. Wilson Palacios, Amado Guevara, and Julio Cesar de Leon are players that can inspire the team through their talent. Besides, forwards David Suazo and Carlos Costly are also deadly in front of goal.
Uruguay vs Israel - International Friendly Match Preview
This encounter should teach Group A contenders Uruguay a lot as they aim to compete well against the likes of France, Mexico, and hosts South Africa in the first round of the 2010 World Cup this summer. Uruguay are yet to impress in terms of performance. They were fortunate to reach the promise land after suffering a serie of poor results in the South American zone which sent them to a play-off against CONCACAF's Costa Rica.
Now, more job has to be done if Uruguay are to defy doubters and stun the world in South Africa. The country last played against Israel in 1995 and then lost 3-1. To gain confidence from their home fans ahead of the World Cup, the team will have to overturn this result. Ironically, this 3-1 score line is exactly what the Uruguayans achieved in their last and only friendly match fixture since qualifying for the finals of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. That was when they trampled Switzerland on March 3.
Chile vs Zambia - International Friendly Match Preview
Chile haven't played any top team like Holland, Argentina, Spain or Germany in the year 2010 as part of their preparations for the 2010 World Cup. However, they've tried to make the most of their friendly matches so far. They defeated Panama and Trinidad and Tobago whereas they avoided defeat against South American rivals Venezuela with a goalless draw back in April.
But their recent loss to Mexico seems to reveal that all is not so well with the Chilean squad that is mainly made of young and physically fit players. On Wednesday night, the home side will need to win big to prove that the country will not just be pretenders during the World Cup in South Africa but rather contenders. People who have an obsession for goals would love to think that Zambia will be no match for Chile. Actually, such people may be totally wrong to think this way.
France vs Costa Rica - International Friendly Match Preview
French fans are furious and desperate about the state of the country's national team. Nothing seems to go better and the omission of play makers Samir Nasri, Hatim Ben Arfa, and striker Karim Benzema has let them lose even more confidence in France's 2010 World Cup chances to succeed. In their last friendly match, Les Bleus went down 2-0 to a Spanish side that fully deserved to win at the end of the 90 minutes.
Time is running out as the 1998 World Cup champions prepare for South Africa 2010, but for Coach Raymond Domenech, the players he has chosen are making a lot of positive efforts which is good for the team. He said ahead of Wednesday's game against Costa Rica:
Netherlands vs Mexico - International Friendly Match Preview
Both the Netherlands and Mexico will feature at the upcoming 2010 World Cup tournament which will be held in South Africa between June 11 and July 11. In terms of head-to-head, the Dutch have the upper hand. Ahead of the 1998 World Cup in France, the two countries met in a friendly encounter and the Europeans ran away 3-2 winners on the day. They repeated this achievement in 2006 when they defeated El Tri 2-1 and they'll be keen to do that one more time as they warm up for the big event in South Africa.
Mexico, meanwhile, have some job to do before the start of the 2010 FIFA World Cup. The 2009 Gold Cup winners just lost a friendly match to England on a 3-1 score line. If their defense proved to be shaky at times, their shooting ability was also to blame. Mexico showed positivity against the Three Lions at the Wembley stadium with excellent moves upfront but they were either denied by luck or by unconvincing shots.
USA vs Czech Republic - International Friendly Match Preview
The last time the USA met the Czech Republic, it ended in a real nightmare for the Americans. That was during the 2006 World Cup when the US national soccer team lost its first match of the campaign 3-0. Midfielder Landon Donovan recalled that miserable encounter ahead of their friendly against the Czech Republic.
“It wasn’t the fondest memory of my career – that game. I remember after five minutes we were down a goal and then we were chasing the game so it was difficult."
Republic of Ireland vs Paraguay – International Friendly Match Preview
Now although it is said to be a friendly encounter, the host will be playing with the avid desire of winning at the end of the 90 minutes. The Republic of Ireland controversially lost their place to France in the finals of the 2010 World Cup in South Africa.
Now, the team is firmly looking ahead to the 2012 European Championship. As legendary coach Giovanni Trappatoni explained, the Irish will use tonight’s encounter as a great occasion to prepare for the future. The Italian manager said:
"I’ve been saying since the past two years, when you wear this shirt, there is no such thing as a friendly game because it's our pride and the mentality of our country that are important. We have to build our mentality. I’m not arrogant, but we are sure we have a strong team."
Greece vs Korea DPR - International Friendly Match Preview
Their decision of playing the North Koreans was reportedly based on the fact that the Greeks are aiming to prepare against an opposition similar to South Korea against whom they'll be playing in Group B. Greece had an awful campaign in the 1994 World Cup where they were drawn with Argentina and Nigeria but then crashed out with no point at all.
Greece vs Korea DPR should offer knowledge to both sides who will have moutains to overcome during the 2010 FIFA World Cup. Once again, Greece will meet Argentina and Nigeria whereas Korea DPR will face the great task of upseting favorites Brazil and strong sides Portugal and Cote d'Ivoire.
Nigeria vs Saudi Arabia - International Friendly Match Preview
For the Nigerians who will participate in the 19th edition of the FIFA World Cup this summer, this friendly encounter will be vital to help the players assess their techincal abilities. Saudi Arabia's style of play can be very compact and this has helped the Arabic nation to cause a few upsets against African teams.
The 2007 Asian Cup runners-up humiliated a jet-lagged Ghana Black Stars team 5-0 in friendly match three years ago. They stunned Tunisia 1-0 in another friendly encounter last year and beat Congo DR 2-0 in their latest fixture last week. Saudi Arabia usually have a good record against African teams.
Georgia vs Cameroon - International Friendly Match Preview
Georgia vs Cameroon opposes two teams with a very different standard and status in the world of football. Georgia haven't experienced anything positive in the sport since becoming an independant following the break of the Soviet Union. Their poor 2010 World Cup campaign was a picture of the country's low class as a football nation.
Georgia were actually buried at the bottom of their table which comprised the likes of Italy, Bulgaria, Cyprus, Montenegro, and the Republic of Ireland. Three draws, seven defeats, and zero win; this, adding to the fact that the Crusaders have conceded fourteen goals in their last five matches, should be enough for anyone to understand that Georgia will have nothing to lose on Tuesday when they face Cameroon in Austria.
Argentina vs Canada – International Friendly Match Preview
Diego Maradona reportedly criticized the FA’s decision to organize a 2010 World Cup warm up match for Argentina against such a low profiled team in football. But according to reports, Argentina’s president Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner let the decision stand. Now the Albicelestes will have to assure their fans that they are ready to play as a team in South Africa.
In 1971 and 1975, Argentina defeated Canada 2-0. On Monday, this is not the result that the home crowd will want to witness. The home fans and media are obsessed with football and they won’t compromise should the Albicelestes get anything less than an emphatic victory over the Canadians. Canada’s coach Stephen Hart explained why:
England vs Mexico – International Friendly Match Preview
In this smart idea, Fabio Capello has intentionally omitted the likes of Chelsea stars Frank Lampard, Ashley Cole, Joe Cole, and John Terry. Portsmouth goalkeeper David James has also been excluded from the Mexico encounter. Fabio Capello explained:
"The Chelsea players and David James will not play against Mexico. I needed them to train and stay with us. I also needed to check their physical situation so these five players won't play.''
Steven Gerrard is poised to make the most of Frank Lampard’s absence in midfield whereas Wayne Rooney will be tried as a lone striker upfront. Jamie Carragher, meanwhile, will play for the first time as a Three Lion since 2007 as the Liverpool defender finally returns from international retirement.
Portugal vs Cape Verde Islands International Friendly Match Preview
The boss explained ahead of the game:
“I want to create routines, competition and integration for those who arrived later. I’m counting on all these players until 1 June. They are all on an equal footing.”
Talking about the 4-3-3 formation which Portugal will use against the Cape Verde Islands, Queiroz continued:
“We have a balance now that allows us to run more risks and be bolder in some occasions of the game. Moreover, some players play this system (4-3-3) in their clubs and so are used to it and we can take advantage of that.
France vs Spain – International Friendly Match Preview
.jpg)
France trying to reclaim their giant status
Nobody speaks about football’s top 20 elites without mentioning France. The 1998 World Cup champions elevated themselves among the sport’s highest ranked nations such as Brazil, Italy, and Argentina.
The achievements of the French national football team in the late 1990s and the early part of the last decade are a proof of Les Bleus’ power.
In the past few years though, France have struggled to affirm their authority even against minor teams. Their disastrous run during Euro 2008 which saw them exit from the group stages publicly exposed the weaknesses of the club.
Portugal vs China – International Friendly Match Preview
.jpg)
Portugal working for a smoother future
South Africa 2010 is indeed not far away and Portugal are optimistic over their fortunes come June.
A Selecção have endured tough moments since the retirement of the legendary skipper Luis Figo after the 2006 World Cup in Germany.
Throughout the 2010 World Cup qualifiers, their fate seemed to be hanging from a thread. In dramatic fashion, Carlos Queiroz’s side pipped out Sweden to grab Group A’s play-off spot where they subsequently saw off Bosnia Herzegovina to seal their place in the finals of the World Cup.
Now, Portugal are looking forward to entering a new phase where their hard work will be compensated by convincing wins in a less difficult road to achieve success.