After much anticipation and excitement, English fans watched eagerly as their national team was drawn into, what some labeled as the 'The Group of Death'
Arguably, it has a case to be proved 'The Group of Death'. On the other hand, Group B and Group G, both look very interesting and competitive. Especially, in Group G, all four teams look to be very strong indeed. Group G consists of: Germany, Portugal, Ghana, USA. Closely followed by Group B which consists of: Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia.
So, Group B includes, both of The World Cup 2010 Finalists. And of course, the current holders of the World Cup, in Spain.
England will play Italy, Uruguay and Costa Rica in a tough Group D at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Not quite the nightmare draw, but nevertheless. England will face a stern test to proceed, pass the Group stages, to the next round, of the World Cup.
England will have to travel 1,777 miles from their chosen base in Rio for their first match in the tropical heat of Manaus, which is in the Amazon jungle.
Earlier this week Hodgson described Manaus as "the place to avoid" because of the climate - temperatures reach 30C and humidity is about 80%.
Following Hodgson's initial comments, the mayor of Manaus, Arthur Virgilio, in response, said that, England would not be welcome in the city. I'm still very optimistic about the whole affair," Hodgson said shortly after the draw had been made.
Arguably, it has a case to be proved 'The Group of Death'. On the other hand, Group B and Group G, both look very interesting and competitive. Especially, in Group G, all four teams look to be very strong indeed. Group G consists of: Germany, Portugal, Ghana, USA. Closely followed by Group B which consists of: Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia.
So, Group B includes, both of The World Cup 2010 Finalists. And of course, the current holders of the World Cup, in Spain.
England will play Italy, Uruguay and Costa Rica in a tough Group D at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil. Not quite the nightmare draw, but nevertheless. England will face a stern test to proceed, pass the Group stages, to the next round, of the World Cup.
England will have to travel 1,777 miles from their chosen base in Rio for their first match in the tropical heat of Manaus, which is in the Amazon jungle.
Earlier this week Hodgson described Manaus as "the place to avoid" because of the climate - temperatures reach 30C and humidity is about 80%.
Following Hodgson's initial comments, the mayor of Manaus, Arthur Virgilio, in response, said that, England would not be welcome in the city. I'm still very optimistic about the whole affair," Hodgson said shortly after the draw had been made.
Two of the big opponents that England will compete with are: Uruguay and Italy.
England have recent experience of Italy's Strengths and Weaknesses, due to the fact they both faced each other in the Quarter Finals of the Euros 2012, where Italy emerged victorious, and went onto the Finals, where they were beaten by the dominant force of International Football, Spain. And Italy, have fabulous players such as: Pirlo and Balotelli, and much more, who can combine to give England a really hard time. Their team morale and style of play is tremendous as well.
Now onto Uruguay. Firstly, they have a slight advantage automatically, not quite in football terms, but the fact is: that Uruguay are from the same continent as Brazil. Therefore, they have experience dealing with the the heated climate. This is one aspect, that England will have to tackle, head on. Furthermore, I don't need to elaborate much, when i say: Uruguay have Luis Suarez. The Uruguayan Liverpool star is, arguably up there, in terms of talent and execution, as the illustrious stars of today: None other than the immense duo Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and others. Anyone who denies this fact is either, not very knowledgeable in terms of football or they just refuse to accept such incredible passion and pure talent that Suarez has to offer. Yes, it is a shame that, his off-the-field issues, sometimes tend to overshadow his amazing talent and goal-scoring ability. His will-power and self-confidence is simply out of this world. His sheer class and instant effectiveness, he shows, on the pitch, is clearly visible.
England have recent experience of Italy's Strengths and Weaknesses, due to the fact they both faced each other in the Quarter Finals of the Euros 2012, where Italy emerged victorious, and went onto the Finals, where they were beaten by the dominant force of International Football, Spain. And Italy, have fabulous players such as: Pirlo and Balotelli, and much more, who can combine to give England a really hard time. Their team morale and style of play is tremendous as well.
Now onto Uruguay. Firstly, they have a slight advantage automatically, not quite in football terms, but the fact is: that Uruguay are from the same continent as Brazil. Therefore, they have experience dealing with the the heated climate. This is one aspect, that England will have to tackle, head on. Furthermore, I don't need to elaborate much, when i say: Uruguay have Luis Suarez. The Uruguayan Liverpool star is, arguably up there, in terms of talent and execution, as the illustrious stars of today: None other than the immense duo Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo and others. Anyone who denies this fact is either, not very knowledgeable in terms of football or they just refuse to accept such incredible passion and pure talent that Suarez has to offer. Yes, it is a shame that, his off-the-field issues, sometimes tend to overshadow his amazing talent and goal-scoring ability. His will-power and self-confidence is simply out of this world. His sheer class and instant effectiveness, he shows, on the pitch, is clearly visible.
But currently Luis Suarez is happy at Liverpool FC, and is doing absolute wonders for Liverpool.
"My aim is just to help make the team better. My job is just to score the goals that mean we keep winning and get as high in the table as possible. I am happy to be in the Premier League, the best league there is. I am happy here and i will stay."
Coming back to my point, I am trying to emphasize the fact that an in-form Suarez, is a real challenge that England, may have to encounter. And this challenge will become difficult to overcome. And with the prospect, of Suarez partnering up with Napoli's Cavani, makes matters more worse for England fans, as they begin to wonder what a big task, they have ahead of them. The Uruguayan teams consists of many more talented and wonderful players. But these two stand out from the rest.
That leaves, the underdogs Costa Rica. Now, i don't mean to undermine Costa Rica in any way, when i say there are deemed by many as the 'Easy Opponents' of the Group for England. Maybe, this it true to an extent. But what you've got to understand is, you simply cannot write off Costa Rica, before the actual match takes place. In fact, i reckon, Costa Rica have a slight advantage over England. Firstly, England will come into the Costa Rica game with a realistic possibility of 2 or 4 points. Now, this means England will have pressure, especially from the English Media, to perform well in their last game of the group against Costa Rica, and also gain victory over them, to have a chance of qualifying to the next round of the World Cup. Furthermore, England have never played against Costa Rica, at senior level. This means that England will not have the slightest ink of what to expect from Costa Rica. Therefore, it is indeed quite wrong to deem Cost Rica as 'Easy Opponents', as they have the ability to give England a really hard time. The element of surprise could work well for them.
I know some England fans are not very optimistic about England's chances of progressing past the Group stages, after being drawn into a tough group. But, it is also incorrect to rule out England's chances of progressing, as anything can happen in football. And for the unexpected is not impossible.
So overall, England didn't get the 'Nightmare Draw' but nevertheless, the group asks a lot of questions regarding England's ability to compete with the Top National Teams. One thing is for sure, if England want to prove the doubters wrong, and show that they have the capabilities of competing with the likes of: Spain, Germany and others, this World Cup group, is the first real stepping-stone for them to reach their desired destination.
For now, all England can do, is prepare themselves mentally for the massive task ahead of them next year.
"My aim is just to help make the team better. My job is just to score the goals that mean we keep winning and get as high in the table as possible. I am happy to be in the Premier League, the best league there is. I am happy here and i will stay."
Coming back to my point, I am trying to emphasize the fact that an in-form Suarez, is a real challenge that England, may have to encounter. And this challenge will become difficult to overcome. And with the prospect, of Suarez partnering up with Napoli's Cavani, makes matters more worse for England fans, as they begin to wonder what a big task, they have ahead of them. The Uruguayan teams consists of many more talented and wonderful players. But these two stand out from the rest.
That leaves, the underdogs Costa Rica. Now, i don't mean to undermine Costa Rica in any way, when i say there are deemed by many as the 'Easy Opponents' of the Group for England. Maybe, this it true to an extent. But what you've got to understand is, you simply cannot write off Costa Rica, before the actual match takes place. In fact, i reckon, Costa Rica have a slight advantage over England. Firstly, England will come into the Costa Rica game with a realistic possibility of 2 or 4 points. Now, this means England will have pressure, especially from the English Media, to perform well in their last game of the group against Costa Rica, and also gain victory over them, to have a chance of qualifying to the next round of the World Cup. Furthermore, England have never played against Costa Rica, at senior level. This means that England will not have the slightest ink of what to expect from Costa Rica. Therefore, it is indeed quite wrong to deem Cost Rica as 'Easy Opponents', as they have the ability to give England a really hard time. The element of surprise could work well for them.
I know some England fans are not very optimistic about England's chances of progressing past the Group stages, after being drawn into a tough group. But, it is also incorrect to rule out England's chances of progressing, as anything can happen in football. And for the unexpected is not impossible.
So overall, England didn't get the 'Nightmare Draw' but nevertheless, the group asks a lot of questions regarding England's ability to compete with the Top National Teams. One thing is for sure, if England want to prove the doubters wrong, and show that they have the capabilities of competing with the likes of: Spain, Germany and others, this World Cup group, is the first real stepping-stone for them to reach their desired destination.
For now, all England can do, is prepare themselves mentally for the massive task ahead of them next year.
Written by Mubasshir Ahmed - @EplNews24