England’s first match in World Cup Soccer 2010
The football World Cup has got off to an exciting start as the sporting world welcomes the first ever tournament of this magnitude to be staged in Africa. At the same time, some of the leading teams are gearing up quietly and waiting for their chance of bursting onto the field as the competition starts to generate interest around the globe.
The mega-event started on a sad note after the death of Nelson Mandela’s granddaughter. But most of the teams are looking forward to grab the trophy for which every star dreams when he enters the pitch.
The winners of the 1966 World Cup, England have often been installed as one of the favourites for the trophy yet has failed to achieve a win in more than four decades. Every year the fanfare begins with tabloids blowing small incidents out of proportions and creating a frenzy of events before the world cup.
It also happens in England that every year one or two major players get injuries right before the tournament starts. Once again, they are regarded as a team of tremendous potential, and have set their eyes on the glittering gold trophy. But the dream of getting the trophy gets pitfalls even though the coach is defiant that he will bring the trophy back home with him.
The Coach of the English team Fabio Capello believed that his squad has the potential to go all the way to the final. The coach made the observation as his team prepared for their opener against the United States at the Royal Bafokeng stadium.
Capello spoke to the media at the training venue and observed that it was important to start with a good game and his hope was to win. "The first game is hard because the expectation is really big, the pressure is big. We have stayed here for eight days, we trained very well I thought the last training this evening we trained very well," said Capello. He added "I have decided which players that will play but they will know tomorrow two hours before the game, always the same, and nothing new”.
The English team has the ammunition to go all the way and Capello said that his side is good enough to reach the final. "The confidence of the fans is really big because the results during qualification and also all the games that we played we played good enough, but the expectation after a long time is really big and I'm sure this time the team is okay to get to the final," he said. England’s plans for the tournament have been awry since the injury to one of the world’s most celebrated footballer David Beckham.
They received another jolt when they lost their captain on the opening day of training last week, as Rio Ferdinand injured his knee and Steven Gerrard took over the captain's armband, eventually Tottenham Hotspur's Michael Dawson was called up to replace Ferdinand. Capello did give a hint of his plans for the match against USA, as midfielder Gareth Barry trained on Friday, and Capello did not rule him out of the match, saying he could be on the bench.
The Manchester City player is also suffering due to an ankle injury yet his contribution on the left flank is a key element of the England game, which allows Gerrard and midfielder Frank Lampard to work together.
Meanwhile Manchester United’s super star Wayne Rooney has already attracted attention by being booked for dissent during a warm-up match before the start of the tournament, the charismatic striker was also sent off for a foul during his last World Cup tournament. Despite his problems, Capello has huge respect for Rooney, yet he stated that world class players like the Manchester United star need to respect the officials at all times.
"I spoke with him but Rooney is a fantastic player because he wants to win, the agonies of him are really strong, but you have to be careful every time and also in this World Cup you have to be careful and respect the referees," he said
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