World Cup Group G preview: Ivory Coast v Portugal
If you were, on paper, to see a team that had the two Touré brothers, Didier Drogba, Emmanuel Eboue and Salomon Kalou you would be forgiven for thinking this team is going to be a real force in the World Cup.
In reality however the Ivory Coast have failed to deliver on all the promise and being drawn in the group of death doesn’t increase their chances of avoiding another early exit in a tournament.
Since 2004, when they didn’t qualify for the Africa Cup of Nations, their results have been runners-up, fourth place and this year they only made the quarter-finals – not great considering they were supposed to be the favourites in the last two tournaments.
So maybe the World Cup 2010 in South Africa will be different?
That looks doubtful given that Drogba suffered a fractured elbow in a warm up match against Japan. He was operated on a day later and could still be fit enough to take some part in the group stages. The question for Sven-Göran Eriksson, Ivory Coast’s manager, is whether Drogba will be fit enough to be a positive influence on the team. It seems unlikely for the first game, at least. Even though Fifa have given permission for Drogba to wear a special protective cast on his elbow his effectiveness might not be the same.
Even facing a Portuguese side that isn’t the best, the Ivory Coast are the underdogs and they would still be with Drogba at full fitness.
Led by the superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, Portugal will fancy their chances but they do have some problems in their team, namely up front. The 32-year-old Liedson will lead the line in the first game and although he’s been Sporting Lisbon’s top goal scorer every year since 2003, against a strong and pacey defender like Kolo Toure he might just struggle.
And if Portugal manager Carlos Queiroz is relying on Ronaldo to score the bulk of the goals he might want to remember the fact that Ronaldo didn’t score a single goal in qualifying for his country.
Simao Sabrosa will likely take start on the wing despite worries over his fitness. Queiroz could also go with Danny but Simao looks to have the edge given his experience. But Simao could be on a tight leash so look for him to be taken off early if things don’t go quite right.
This is a massive game for the Ivory Coast, especially when their second game is against Brazil and if they fail to claim at least a point from Portugal it might be another underachieving year for Les Éléphants.
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