Beginning Saturday, eight nations in Europe will compete for the last four remaining UEFA spots in the 2010 World Cup. Winners of the two leg playoffs will secure a spot in the World Cup draw on December 4, and the losers endure the pain of watching next summer's tournament from home.
Perennial powers France and Portugal find themselves in danger of missing out on the World Cup. France, which has struggled since their 2006 run to the World Cup final, finished second in group play to a clinical Serbia. Portugal, which finished second to Denmark in its group, must beat Bosnia-Herzegovina to avoid missing out. It's a task that must be accomplished without Cristiano Ronaldo, who has been ruled out of both legs by the Portuguese medical staff.
The other two match-ups feature Greece against Ukraine and Russia going up against Slovenia. Greece, the shock European Champions from 2004, will be hoping to qualify for the World Cup after missing out last time around. Ukraine stands in the way, with Andriy Shevchenko leading the attack. A talented Russian side, boasting the likes of Andrey Arshavin, Alan Dzagoev, Roman Pavlyuchenko and Igor Akinfeev, is favored to get past Slovenia.
Here's a question for SBI Readers: Who will win these four playoff matches? Have your vote after the jump.
What do you think of these match-ups? Which ones are you looking forward to?
Share your thoughts below.
as an irish american ireland is my second favorite team behind the usmnt. gonna be a really intruiging tie and i expect france to silence the naysayers and come out swinging. im rootin for m boys in green and i hope keano can lead us to the promise land!!!!
thanks nostrafuckindamus.. keano will lead my 2nd fav team to the finals
Did people even watch European qualifying up to this point? Yes, France have a lot more talent than Ireland, but they’re not even CLOSE to the squad they had in ’06, regardless of coaching. Henry is on the downward slope of his career and Benzema has been in lousy form for Madrid. And Portugal? Please. Portugal have a bunch of talented players who all want to play the same position. Outside of the midfield they’re middling at best.
Love all the Portugal haters, which means they’re good and will at least make the semis next year. Believe it.
Seriously guys… Ireland over France??? I can understand France are currently under-performing with Ray at the helm but wait a minute… what were people saying prior to WC 2006??? Well, ya known, they should have won the final
The same idiot who took his team to the World Cup final and lost on pens?
And… that’s why you picked France?
Hope you do an analysis of CR-Uruguay match, as it involves Concacaf.
It is a shame FRA/IRE will only be shown on Setanta Premium. Other UEFA matches should be live on Setanta Sports.
Domenech is an idiot, but France has way too many weapons for Ireland even without Ribery.
The big naions step it up here. France, Portugal, Russia win. Greece and Ukraine should be interesting.
Domenech is such an awful coach that I think even the many people who are sure France will win it are making the selection DESPITE his influence. The theory there being that the circumstances alone will inspire France’s overwhelming talent advantage to come to the forefront.
Personally, I think it’s all going to come down to who catches the first break. If Ireland manage to grab a goal or two relatively early in the first match it’s VERY possible that France could crumble. Their players are almost waiting to fail, and the French crowd will turn on them in a heartbeat if they return home facing a deficit.
Russia is over-rated, Portugal will find a way to summon a bit of magic, Greece just seems boring, and France will find a way to coach itself out. 🙂
Which team is more likely to completely fall apart, Ireland or France?
(this is a rhetorical question)
I would love to cheer for Costa Rica/CONCACAF in the playoff with Uruguay, but after watching their antics in DC, theres no way i can support their B.S.
If anybody but Domenech were France’s coach, we’d probably vote for France. (Of course, if somebody other than Crazy Ray were coaching France, they woulda topped the group.)
As for Portugal, they’re not that hot even when Ronaldo is playing. Without him? I’ll take Bosnia, too.
I picked Russia, Bosnia, Ukraine and Ireland. I think the Irish-French tie is the most intriguing. It will be fun watching the Frenchies implode.
Wish i could watch the Costa Rica game vs Uraguay for free on my tv….oh wells i guess ill find a stream. Go CONCACAF! We will not be underestimated!
Hey Guys,
Do we have any of the TV listings for the matches. I know in Canada the Greece-Ukraine game will be shown on CBC Bold, but I am not sure about the US. Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Anyways it is going to be Russia, Bosnia, Greece and France . . . book it!
-P
seriously. Ireland is not winning. sorry, guys.
Not sure if this is the place for it, but what do you guys think of the SPI ratings that Soccernet introduced today? I like the idea, and the ratings seem to be as cohesive as possible. With other sports placing more emphasis on statistical analysis, it will be interesting to see how soccer does.
It’s the top story here:
http://espn.go.com/soccer/worldcup/
Thank you Jose and Ken for your viewing info. Never too early to start making plans!
I dunno what to make of this matchup. I think once the draw was made everyone has been making noise about how underrated b&h are that now I think they’re a tad overrated. That said, Pjanic, Misimovic, Dzeko and Ibisevic are just as talented as any attacking quartet Portugal will run out there on Saturday. Should be fun.
The only “favorite” that I think will make it through is Russia. Portugal and France haven’t impressed and I believe Ukraine is talented enough to get by Greece.
I would love to report that everyone here in Greece is confident… but we are not. We feel like it is a tough match up for us and the fact that our away game is second makes it more difficult. Me and my friends have spent the last few months questioning our coach and his selections. The team is always made up of Athens based players…most deserving….some ..not so much. I just hope we do not come out so defensive in either game that we neglect the fact that you probably need at least 2 goals in a home and away for a realistic chance to advance.
I think Bosnia will surprise Portugal who is not only without CR but Bosingwa as well.
most likely haha
ESPN Deportes has the ARG/ESP match.
Costa Rica/Uruguay is on PPV
$30 first leg
$25 second leg
Realize the TV listings are usually published Fridays, but does anyone out there know if the following will be available to watch LIVE on TV:
Argentina v Spain
Uruguay v Costa Rica
France v Ireland
FSC has US/Slovakia and England/Brasil. GolTV has Italy/Holland.
I think people are underestimating portugal and france. sure portugals missing Ronaldo, but they’re extremely talented still. and yes France has underperformed thus far, but i tihnk in crunch time in a two leg playoff they will show up.
arshavin will shush your boos
I am only going for the underdog countries cuz it increases what little hope we have of being seeded. So…..Boo France, Boo Russia, Boo Portugal!
I picked France because I think their horrible coaching will finally catch up to them when they play a team with a great coach. Domenech should have been fired 5 times by now. Maybe this will be the event that finally triggers it (or forces him to resign).
Russia appears to be the only one who is a clear cut favorite. I think Russia, Bosnia, Ireland and Ukraine will be the winners but you never know. I hope for some good games that can maybe creat some great world cup excitement.
Well, I have to admit after seeing the polling results that I’m wondering about the demographics. While it seems there are lots more Irishmen than Frenchmen in the US, I was expecting most people to predict France. I think Trappatoni has Ireland playing better as a team and believe they will defeat France. It all hinges on who puts together the best 180 (or more) minutes.
Okay, the sample size is small at the moment (50-some votes), but I’m a little surprised that my two “upset” picks–Bosnia over Portugal and Ireland over France–are actually being supported by the majority of voters.