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| Last Chance for World Cup Prep |
| Nations scramble to arrange friendlies before going to Germany in June |
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John Duerden (internews)  |
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Published 2006-03-08 16:00 (KST) |
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With under 100 days left until the 2006 World Cup kicks off, preparations are well and truly under way and all that should be left for the five Asian nations in the remaining time before heading westwards is fine-tuning. But some have been, and are planning to be, busier than others.
South Korea has, until now, been the most active. A whirlwind six-week, nine-game tour of the Middle-East, Hong Kong and the United States would have left the Rolling Stones breathless, especially as Dick Advocaat's boys faced a hard-fought game in the opening tie of the 2007 AFC Asian Cup qualifiers in northern Syria on the way home from California.
A long-awaited return to the Land of the Morning Calm didn't bring much respite, but instead a 1-0 victory over Angola on March 1 and the small matter of the first stage of the K-League, which kicks-off on March 12. After the intensive two-month, thirteen-game campaign, the players will be whisked off to Scotland to prepare for their time in Germany in earnest, including with friendlies against Norway and possibly Ghana. The program should be enough to prepare the 2002 World Cup semi-finalists for Group G and games with Togo, France, and Switzerland.
Korea could meet Saudi Arabia in the second round if Marcos Paqueta's team makes it out of Group H and meetings with Spain, Ukraine, and Tunisia. Since the unfortunate West Asian Games and the subsequent sacking of Gabriel Calderon in the same month -- December 2005 -- Saudi Arabia has been getting into gear. Alone out of the five Asian qualifiers, the Sons of the Desert have no European-based players and little experience against teams from that continent. Recent games with Finland and Greece have gone some way to rectify that, and the 3-0 defeat at the hands of Portugal was a valuable lesson. There is much more to come in encounters with fellow World Cup qualifiers Poland, Uruguay, and Portugal, as well as Iceland, in March and African champions Egypt in April.
New coach Marcos Paqueta doesn't intend to stop there and will take his squad to the German spa town of Bad Nauheim in May for training and further formidable friendlies with South Africa, Romania, the Czech Republic, and France.
Japan will want to forget their first match of 2006, a 3-2 defeat at the hands of the United States, but the Asian champions soon returned to winning ways with victories over Finland and India. Zico had a chance to field his big-name European-based stars on Feb. 28 in a 2-2 draw with Bosnia-Herzegovina in Dortmund, the same arena where he will face his compatriots Brazil, Australia, and Croatia.
In March, Germany's Group A rivals Ecuador travel to the island of Kyushu to provide some South American opposition and when the J-League, which kicks off on March 4, starts its break, two Kirin Cup games will be arranged in May. The team then travels to Germany for a game with German club team Bayer Leverkusen and Malta before the action kicks off on June 12 against Australia.
The Socceroos have an obvious geographical handicap in arranging friendlies, a problem as the country's domestic league has finished until August. The squad recently held a four-day training camp in the Netherlands, with the next game scheduled against European champions Greece in Melbourne on May 25, before heading to Europe and a friendly with the Netherlands on June 4 in Rotterdam and then Liechtenstein three days later..
Iran are experiencing problems too, but of a political nature -- troubles that are making Team Melli's preparation for a third World Cup more difficult than they could have been. Romania and Ukraine have both cancelled plans to travel to the intimidating Azadi Stadium in Tehran -- though the Ukrainian wrestling team recently had no qualms about visiting the country.
The Iranian Football Federation have their work cut out to organize some serious opposition after Costa Rica left the capital following its 3-2 defeat on March 1. The country has some advantage with Karimi, Hashemian, Medhavikia, and Zandi already active in the World Cup host country, but the team needs games.
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©2006 OhmyNews
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