World Cup Kit Parade: None of the above...

And so to the only four teams not signed up to the big three kit manufacturers (Adidas, Nike and Puma).

England's kit has never been supplied by any of those three (and we shudder to think what that might look like if it ever were). For the bulk of the last fifty-odd years it's been Umbro's privilege to do that and after numerous shirt designs they arrived at the 2010 vintage which was entirely white, save for the England badge and Umbro's red diamond logo.

Call it what you like – minimalist, plain, featureless, whatever – there's no getting away from the brilliant sense of simplicity it embodies. It's almost as if Umbro are saying only to things matter here – the national team's colour and the badge. If you think about it, that's quite an admirable stance to take as it brings everything back to the origins of kit design when fancy embellishments and weird colour-schemes were totally beyond comprehension.

There is, of course, the small matter of Umbro's 'tailored' styling which makes the shirt actually look like a shirt rather than a silky piece of fabric that's been rattled off a production line without any thought in southern Asia. It's got a proper collar, tapered sides and, well, it looks like it's just had a good ironing, frankly. 'Smart' barely does it justice…

But that's not all: the red away shirt was only recently launched and it too gives a generous nod in the direction of days gone by, notably the victorious era of the 1960's. With a round-necked shirt that was all red with only white cuffs to distract the view, the accompanying white shorts and red socks won’t have failed to bring back happy memories to all England fans of a certain age.

Ironically in this World Cup, we got to see this away kit in slightly modified form with the introduction of red shorts too. Very rarely have England worn an all-red change kit but when Fabio Capello's men strode out to play Slovenia a week ago or so, one wondered whether this wouldn't be the last we'd see of it. As it turned out, the Second Round match against Germany allowed for one more viewing, but we reckon it should be adopted permanently. It's bold, bright and a classic look for the England team to wear when the all-white isn't an option.

As for the other minor kit manufacturers, there's not a lot we can say really. Chile's kit is made by Brooks – probably better known for making sports shoes - and it too has been designed to be stylish in an understated way. Sadly we never got to see the change strip of white-red-blue, but at least the home strip looked smart without the garish use of formerly used devices like a huge Reebok logo.

North Korea seem to change kit manufacturer quite regularly, even switching to latest supplier Legea on the eve of the World Cup this summer. The Italian kit-maker promptly knocked off an uninspiring red outfit for the Dear Leader's boys and they duly repaid their gratitude by losing all three of their games, one of which saw them concede seven against Portugal. Perhaps a big Reebok logo might have done the trick…

Finally, there's Honduras and their kit was made by Joma, a Spanish company who are making inroads across many parts of the footballing world. Fans of Leicester City and Charlton will be all too familiar with the name, but whether they'll have been as satisfied as the Honduran fans with their kit remains to be seen.

The team from CONCACAF were seen all too briefly wearing an all-white strip featuring a shirt that had a blue band across the upper chest. The band faded from blue to white the nearer it got to the middle – a nice touch – and there were also some odd blue slashes either side of the bottom part of the shirt which, while serving no purpose, at least provided another point of interest. The away kit saw a reversal of the same, being all blue with white bits of business here and there. Quite nice, all in all.

And that's that. A very brief overview of the kits on show at this World Cup, and perhaps more importantly the sanity employed by each of the manufacturers when it came to designing them.

Once again, our great thanks go to John Devlin from True Colours Football Kits (www.truecoloursfootballkits.com) for the use of his excellent football kit graphics. To see all of John's World Cup kit designs in greater detail, click here.)

World Cup TV Preview: 2 - 3 July

Friday 2 July

15.00 Netherlands v Brazil, Quarter Final, ITV1/ITVHD
I have an uneasy feeling about this one; I reckon this could turn really ugly. What on paper should be an amazing game will be broken up in moments of handbags and simulation. Annoying and frustrating but if it's only slightly peppered with moments of absolute genius, we might just forgive it. We don't need to tell you to try and sneak out of work early for this, do we.

19.30 Uruguay v Ghana, Quarter Final, ITV1/ITVHD
Plain fact: one of these teams will be in a World Cup semi-final - and this isn't down to luck of the draw, it's down to them going out and performing well against strong teams and getting the result. I had serious misgivings about Ghana before the tournament: their best players either unfit or out of form and despite getting to the final of the African Cup of Nations not really convincing along the way. For Uruguay, the Diego Forlan fairytale goes on. Should provide good entertainment; we have thrown around ideas of doing a Sound of Football podcast about this live from Socrates 5 - but don't be surprised if it doesn't surface.

Saturday 3 July

15.00 Argentina v Germany, Quarter Final, BBC1/BBCHD
This is going to be superb. Trust me. If both teams are on their game this could be one of those all-time World Cup classics. No goals, penalties and three sending offs it is then.

19.30 Paraguay v Spain, Quarter Final, BBC1/BBCHD
Earlier this week, I was tempted by a 73/4 bet on it being all-South American semi-finals - the only thing that stopped me was this one. That said, Paraguay have been extremly well organised defensively and haven't conceded since Daniele De Rossi's goal in the opening game. Like Portugal though they could find any cracks will be exposed by a Spanish team growing in confidence. A good footballing game but maybe not the most entertaining.

The (World Cup) Friday List of Little or No Consequence #171

Seeing red
The 14 Players That Have So Far Been Sent Off During the 2010 World Cup

1. Nicolás Lodeiro (for Uruguay v France)
2. Abdelkader Ghezzal (for Algeria v Slovenia)
3. Aleksandar Luković (for Serbia v Ghana)
4. Tim Cahill (for Australia v Germany)
5. Itumeleng Khune (for South Africa v Uruguay)
6. Sani Kaita (for Nigeria v Greece)
7. Miroslav Klose (for Germany v Serbia)
8. Harry Kewell (for Australia v Ghana)
9. Kaká (for Brazil v Ivory Coast)
10. Valon Behrami (for Switzerland v Chile)
11. Yoann Gourcuff (for France v South Africa)
12. Antar Yahia (for Algeria v USA)
13. Marco Estrada (for Chile v Spain)
14. Ricardo Costa (for Portugal v Spain)

World Cup TV Preview: 28 - 29 June 2010

Monday 28th June

15:00 Netherlands v Slovakia, FIFA World Cup Last 16, BBC1/BBCHD
Slovakia were mighty impressive in dumping Italy out of the competition so conclusively last Thursday, but that aside, one has to wonder whether they're really that good *all* the time. A 1-1 draw against New Zealand and a 2-0 defeat against the Paraguayans suggests they were a little lucky to finish top, but this Second Round match against a decent Dutch side will be a true test of the Slovakians real quality. And the winner of this match will play...

19:30 Brazil v Chile, FIFA World Cup Last 16, ITV1/ITVHD
...the winner of this one in the quarter finals next Friday. A thumb through the history books suggests Chile might run out of luck against the Brazilians but they've been playing exciting, attacking football which might just catch Dunga's men out if they're not 100% focused. For the sake of the Seleção, one can only hope they're more motivated than in the tediumfest against Portugal the other day. The less of that kind of thing we see, the better.

Tuesday 29th June

15:00 Paraguay v Japan, FIFA World Cup Last 16, ITV1/ITVHD
On paper, not the most appealing of the Last 16 games but both teams have won the crowd over by playing a brand of football that's rather pleasing on the eye. Japan are transformed from the team that shot itself in the foot against England in a friendly just before the World Cup started while Paraguay are showing why they only finished one point behind Brazil in qualifying.  Should your boss be in a benevolent enough mood to let you go home early on Tuesday afternoon, you'll do much worse than to spend the time watching this.

19:30 Spain v Portugal, FIFA World Cup Last 16, BBC1/BBCHD
There's also the added incentive that whoever wins between Japan and Paraguay will play the winners of this match in the last eight. Portugal have it all to prove and won't have convinced anyone with their 7-0 demolition of the North Koreans. This clash of the Iberian heavyweights will, if nothing else, confirm Spain's credentials as potential tournament winners and Portugal's credentials as talented individuals that are ultimately destined to exit at a relatively early stage of the procedings. Unless Ronaldo can contrive to add to his one goal haul so far, that is...

denotes a match you may wish to leave work early to see.

denotes match to be covered by The Sound of Football Podcast.

World Cup TV Preview: 26 - 27 June

Saturday 26th June

15:00 Uruguay v South Korea, World Cup Last 16, ITV1/HD
Graham and I were having a conversation in the pub the other night about Diego Forlan. We reckoned that he has timed his career peak perfectly. A fantasic season for Atletico was topped off with a Europa League win. Now he is the focal point of an excellent Uruguay team. To an extent, by making it to the Second Round, the Korean's job is done. They can go home with their heads held high. This will make them dangerous opponents. Reeally looking forward to this one.

19:30 USA v Ghana, World Cup Last 16, ITV1/HD
If Ghana had some decent finishers they'd be playing England tomorrow. As it is, they have to find their way through Watford's Jay Demerit. Now you'd think that would be easy but England couldn't do it. The US is a football nation on the rise and are bound to win a World Cup one day. As for today, I fancy them to overcome the Ghanians but it will be veeery close.

Sunday 27th June

15:00 Germany v England, World Cup Last 16, BBC1/HD
Assuming England build upon their performance they should be able to exploit the spaces left by Germany's perpetual motion attack led by the irrepressible Mesut Özil. I defy any neutral to predict the winner of this game. However, as somone who has watched a lot of Bundesliga and Premier League, I believe that England will win... or possibly Germany.

19:30 Argentina v Mexico, World Cup Last 16, BBC1/HD
The Big One. A replay of that magnificent game in 2006. To be frank, I've only seen Mexico once so am not in a position to judge their prospects, but in Cuauhtémoc Blanco they have a History Man in the making. Mind you, Argentina have Martin Palermo who very much fills that role of unlikely veteran hero. Plus all those other players that are pretty tasty.

denotes match to be covered by The Sound of Football Podcast.

World Cup TV Preview: 24 - 25 June

Thursday 24 June

15.00 Paraguay v New Zealand, Group F, ITV4
Do the All Whites have anything left in the tank for this final group game? Irrespective of the result, New Zealand can leave this tournament with their heads high after battling performances against Slovakia and the holders Italy. A point is enough for Paraguay; three points for underdogs would provide one of the greatest World Cup fairy tales ever. Pop quiz: One of only two all-southern hemisphere ties in the group stage. Can you name the other?

15.00 Slovakia v Italy, Group F, ITV1/ITVHD
Both sides need the win. A draw favours Italy but sees them vulnerable if New Zealand get anything out of their game with Paraguay. Abacuses at the ready folks - this group could come down to drawing lots.

19.30 Cameroon v Netherlands, Group E, BBC1/BBCHD
"I know, let's put the dead rubber on HD, and consign the important game to BBC3." Thank you, Public Service Broadcaster. Gah!

19.30 Denmark v Japan, Group E, BBC3
World player of the Year 2013 Nicklas Bendter is a doubt in this winner takes all encounter with a groin strain. Probably been watching too many repeats of his goal against Cameroon. A draw and it's Japan that goes through. I'm still waiting for Keisuke Honda to live up to his family name and give someone a hundred hand slap (press any punch repeatedly).

Friday 25 June

15.00 North Korea v Ivory Coast, Group G, BBC Interactive
With every goal Portugal scored against North Korea on Monday, Ivory Coast's chances of staying in the tournament diminished. The only scenario that sees them through is a win here and a win for Brazil against Portugal with a combined goal margin of 10 (DIX). That's not going to happen but could see some incredible attacking play if the Portugese go a couple of goals down in Durban.

15.00 Portugal v Brazil, Group G, BBC1/BBCHD
This plum tie (on paper at least) sadly looks like seeing this group out with a whimper rather than a bang as all Portugal really need to do is avoid a big defeat. With Brazil already through though, it's unlikely that Dunga's pragmatic side will bust a gut for the win.

19.30 Chile v Spain, Group H, ITV1/ITVHD
Simple equation for Spain: win and they're through which will be harsh on the Chileans who have provided some great entertainment in this tournament and could fail to qualify despite winning both their openers. Tournament football can be a cruel mistress.

19.30 Switzerland v Honduras, Group H, ITV4
Any win will do (mostly speaking) for the Swiss. There's still a tiny hope for Honduras, but it requires Spain to lose to Chile. Try not to worry who's going through and who isn't during the game - it'll only confuse you.

denotes a match you may wish to leave work early to see.

World Cup TV Preview: 21 - 23 June

Monday 21st June

12:30 Portugal v North Korea, FIFA World Cup Group G, BBC1/BBC HD
44 years on and the acheivements of Pak Doo-Ik rightly remain undiminished. The question is, can they do it again? A repeat of their performance against the Brazilians suggests they can, even if it means they have to park the battleship again. Sorry - 'bus'.

15:00 Chile v Switzerland, FIFA World Cup Group H, BBC1/BBC HD
Well who'd have thought this would be a key fixture in the group? Both teams won their opening matches, the Swiss doing so by getting their first ever win over Spain last week while Chile played some good football in beating Honduras. Should be a fascinating contrast in football styles.

19:30 Spain v Honduras, FIFA World Cup Group H, ITV1/ITV HD
Meanwhile at the bottom of the group (WTF?) Del Bosque's men will be looking to bounce back by handing out a sound thrashing to the minnows from CONCACAF. Then again, the way this World Cup's panning out for the big European nations, we wouldn't bet on it.

Tuesday 22nd June

15:00 France v South Africa, FIFA World Cup Group A, ITV1/ITV HD
We know the French are always going on strike, but this is ridiculous... A lack of admiration for the coach is one thing, but surely Ribery & Co. have to do their best for the sake of their country and fans? What do the hosts care - this could be a great chance for them to grab three points and potentially go through...

15:00 Mexico v Uruguay, FIFA World Cup Group A, ITV4
...although a draw here will stop any such ambitions on the part of the South Africans. It'll be a shame for the competition if it is, but sadly these two have just shaded it in terms of quality football where Group A's concerned.

19:30 Greece v Argentina, FIFA World Cup Group B, BBC1/BBC HD
Full credit to Greece. Everyone thought they were reverting to type after going 1-0 down to Nigeria in their second match, but with the aid of Sani Kaita's sending off they managed to come out of it with all three points in the bag. The best they can hope for in this match, however, is a repeat performance of Maradona's eyeball-popping goal celebration against the Greeks in World Cup '94. Come on Diego - do it one more time for us, just for old time's sake...

19:30 Nigeria v South Korea, FIFA World Cup Group B, BBC3
A draw might be just about good enough for the South Koreans, but they'll be taking nothing for granted. They'll be playing for the win, as will Nigeria who could (technically) make the knockout stages as long as they can win this one by a big margin. Unlikely in all probability given the Korean's impressive organisation and tenaciousness.

Wednesday 23rd June

15:00 Slovenia v England, FIFA World Cup Group C, BBC1/BBC HD
Once again an England World Cup campaign dissolves into farce and abject disappointment. There are so many issues hanging over Capello and his squad, it's ridiculous. We may never know how a once settled and increasingly impressive team have been reduced to the shambling mess we're now seeing, and as such we reserve the right to expect the worst against a team that, frighteningly, are better than the Algerians. You may wish to think twice about booking the day off work, if you haven't already.

15:00 USA v Algeria, FIFA World Cup Group C, BBC Interactive
By pressing the red button, however, you can escape the tension/misery/frustration* (*delete as appropriate) and watch two other countries going through the emotional wringer in an equally important Group C decider.

19:30 Australia v Serbia, FIFA World Cup Group D, ITV4
The Aussies have had a man sent off in both their previous matches so far and will be hoping at the very least to finish this one with all eleven on the pitch. Serbia, meanwhile, are a bit of a mystery having beaten Germany 1-0 and lost by the same score to Ghana. Should be an open game and one that neither side will want to draw. If they do, they could both be on the plane home pronto.

19:30 Ghana v Germany, FIFA World Cup Group D, ITV1/ITV HD
Germany's defeat to Serbia was their first in a World Cup group stage since 1986, and if this turns out to be their second it could unthinkably mean Germany are out of the competition before the knockout phase. They'll be without Miroslav Klose which won't help, so expect a nervy 90 minutes in which the Africans will undoubtedly be giving it their best shot.

denotes a match you may wish to leave work early to see.

World Cup Kit Parade 2010: Puma

Without doubt the cornerstone of Puma's World Cup kit range for 2010 are those outfits created for its African teams. Of the six teams competing from that continent, Puma has supplied the kit for four of them (hosts South Africa and Nigeria being the exception) and they've already been seen my millions around the world having been launched just before the Cup of African Nations in January.

Where Algeria, Cameroon, Ghana and Ivory Coast are concerned, the home strips are smart, sleek, rather minimalist in their design and all the better off for it. Each of the shirts in question also have a unique feature of a panel on the right shoulder which have a shadowy logo – typically something associated with the relevant country. For Ghana it's the star which features on the country's flag, Ivory Coast have an elephant's head, Cameroon have a lion's head and Algeria have the head of a desert fox. A nice distinctive touch and one which Puma should be very pleased with.

Sadly the shoulder panel motif isn't carried through to the away shirts, but they've been given a theme of their own, namely 'stripes and hoops'. And what an impact they have. Algeria's green change shirt has a series of thin double-stripes in red and white which, when inspected at closer quarters, have a hand-painted look which is quite cleverly done. Cameroon's yellow away shirt takes a similar approach with single 'hand-painted' red lines.

When you get to Ghana's away shirt, however, things start to get a little crazy. In the past, Ghana have worn plain yellow to complement their white for home matches, but this year Puma have given them a shirt that’s red with thick yellow stripes, each one flanked with thin 'hand-painted' green lines. It is, to say the least, bold and ever so slightly garish.

Finally to the Ivory Coast and their away shirt looks more akin to a rugby outfit than anything else. It is predominantly green with thick white 'hand-painted' hoops, each of which is flanked with thin orange lines. The whole 'hand-painted' thing is very well executed indeed, although in all honesty it's very difficult to pick up on the work that's gone into the design if you're seeing the shirt from any more than 10 metres away. No matter – it shows someone's actually used a bit of originality at the drawing board stage.

It's not all about Africa though. Puma also have Italy, Switzerland and Uruguay on their books for this World Cup, and for each one they've taken a very modest design and added some flashes here and there in a contrasting colour to break things up a bit but not too much. Quite nice, but nothing as distinctive as was seen with the African countries mentioned previously.

Oh, but there was one other thing – the Italian home shirt has a huge shadow design on it which looks rather incongruous and, well, to be honest, we're not sure what it's supposed to be. Needless to say it's been likened to a robot's rib cage and that's probably good enough for us. It also forms part of an all-blue Italy strip which we don't often see but looks very imposing nonetheless.

Overall then, some particularly good work by Puma on those African kits while the others are just 'alright'. Nothing quite as wacky as Puma's former controversies like the sleeveless Cameroon shirt, but that's just as well. Us fans like originality, smartness and style in our kits, and that's pretty much what we've got here.

Coming soon: Part 4 - Umbro's kit's all-white, plus any other business

Our great thanks go to John Devlin from True Colours Football Kits (www.truecoloursfootballkits.com) for the use of his excellent football kit graphics. To see all of John's World Cup kit designs in greater detail, click here.)

What a load of rubbish...

"Nice to see your own fans booing you, that's what loyal support is."

These were the words of Wayne Rooney as he left the field in Cape Town, staring straight down the lens of a camera after playing in possibly the worst England football performance for many a long year.

The 0-0 draw against Algeria was, from an England perspective weak, uninspiring, amateurish and utterly bewildering for its lack of cohesion. For those reasons alone, every England fan from Table Mountain to Wembley had all the justification in the world to boo their team's performance. Wayne Rooney, however, doesn't share our disappointment. Well Wayne, let us try and explain where we're coming from on this one.

For a start, us England supporters were under the strange misconception that you and your white-shirted colleagues were capable of undertaking the bare basics for any footballer worth his salt - namely to kick a ball in such a fashion that it reaches its intended destination. In case you're still not sure, Wayne, you have two options where this is concerned:

1. A fellow team-mate of yours, or
2. (and this is by far the ideal option) the back of the opposing team's goal net.

In both cases, you all failed to do this for the vast majority of the match last night. Not very impressive.

It's possible we've all over-estimated the capacity you and you colleagues have for playing such a high-quality brand of football week in and week out. On reflection though, this is unlikely. Why else would your respective clubs pay you more per week than many of us booing ignoramsuses earn in several years?

You live in lavish, enormous houses, own cars the likes of us will only ever see in magazines and travel to parts of the world we can only ever dream of. Your very reputation as a footballer of the highest quality can open doors that permanently keep us riff-raff out.

You can't have reached that sort of position in life by playing the kind of football seen in every Primary School playground up and down the UK, can you? Oh... perhaps you have.

There are no excuses. Having nerves when faced up against a team that was beaten by Malawi at the last African Cup of Nations makes no sense. The Jabulani ball may be deemed to have unpredictable movement by some, but not by you, Wayne. You said as much to the press this week, remember? And tiredness? Don't give us that. You're just the latest in a long line of football players stretching back over more than a hundred years, all of whom got tired but didn't use it as an excuse to play like a bunch of clueless lightweights as you did last night.

No Wayne, the reason why so many of us were booing is because each and every one of us realises how lucky it is to have a national team to support at the finals of a World Cup. It only comes around every four years, and even then our team doesn't always qualify, but this time it did. We were ready to get behind you and your fellow professionals knowing that you all realised what a rare privilege it was to play at a World Cup. We wanted to feel the glory just like you and your mates, and we provided every single ounce of support you could ever have wished for. All it needed was for you and the team to match that in effort and skill, for that is what we know you're all capable of.

You let us down Wayne. That's why we booed. Remember that as you go back to your cossetted life of luxury and happiness. Some of us have to work a damn sight harder than you to get it, but all we ask for is a little escapism to numb the pain from day to day. That's what you're there for, Wayne, but perhaps we were asking for too much.

World Cup Kit Parade 2010: Nike

I like to think of the office where the Nike World Cup kit designers work as being divided into three sections, each labelled ‘Sane’, ‘Slightly Silly’ and ‘Monster Raving Loony’. When you’ve seen the kits they’ve come up with for this summer’s tournament, it’s easy to spot which kit was designed by which part of the office.

At the neat and stylish end of their product range you’ll find the understated cool stitched into every fibre of the home shirts worn by Brazil, the Netherlands, New Zealand and the USA. A common theme on each is a single round-ended stripe in a contrasting colour running along the shoulders as it does down the sides of the shorts. A simple device which works a treat without being too showy.

If, however, you’re looking for something a little more daring, Nike won’t leave your desires unfulfilled. Both the Australia shirts (home and away) have a broad block of colour spanning the shoulders and sleeves, a thin second band of colour just below that and the rest of the shirt in the main third colour. Bold and uncomplicated, it hasn’t found favour with everybody – indeed one writer in The Guardian likened the home shirt to the sort of garb donned by an Aussie one-day cricketer.

Elsewhere, Nike’s Serbia home shirt has a white cross intersectioned over the right breast which scores points for originality, while Portugal’s home and away kit also set one foot beyond the boundaries of modest inoffensiveness.

The home strip is no longer all red for the first time in many a year and the shirt features a broad green band across the upper chest. The away shirt is all white and has a racy green and red double-stripe running down the centre from top to bottom.

But if that’s not extravagant enough for you, why not try the new Slovenia home and away shirts? Both look resplendent (if that’s the word I’m looking for) with a zig-zagging stripe spanning at mid-chest level. The white home shirt has a green zig-zag and the green away shirt has a white zig-zag. One can only guess whether the designer was an amateur mountaineer or perhaps a doctor that works with heart-rate charts. Strange...

All things considered then, Nike have provided something for everyone – normal kits, abnormal kits and something in-between, all of them well made and all likely to prove popular with fans around the world.

Coming soon: Part 3 - Puma and their off-the-shoulder numbers...

Our great thanks go to John Devlin from True Colours Football Kits (www.truecoloursfootballkits.com) for the use of his excellent football kit graphics. To see all of John's World Cup kit designs in greater detail, click here.)

32 For 2010: Netherlands

It’s been noted by many people that only seven countries have ever won the World Cup in its 80-year history. Those same people have also suggested the time is now right for a new name to be added to the roll of honour, and most of those have put forward Spain as the country most likely to become the eighth. Perhaps they do so in haste, for the Netherlands are ready to learn by their mistakes and make one big push to become champions in 2010.

There is much evidence to suggest they could. Euro 2008 saw the Dutch complete an emphatic group stage in which they beat Italy 3-0 and France 4-1. With three wins out of three, it was somewhat unfortunate that they were punished in their first bad day at the office – a 3-1 defeat after extra time to Russia – after which they were eliminated from the competition.

They did at least impress with their fast, technically excellent brand of football which garnered much admiration from home fans and neutrals alike, but sadly they couldn’t find the clinical touch when they needed it most. The same could be said of their World Cup 2006 campaign in which they finished level on points with first round group winners Argentina only to be defeated 1-0 against Portugal in the second round.

With former Borussia Dortmund coach Bert Van Marwijk at the helm, fans of the Dutch team are at least optimistic that they can live up to their label of ‘dark horses’. Under the stewardship of the 58-year-old, the Netherlands breezed through qualifying for World Cup 2010 by winning all eight of their games. Dirk Kuyt and Klaas-Jan Huntelaar scored three each during that campaign, but they weren’t the sole source of goals by any means. Such is the strength in depth of the Dutch squad that Mark Van Bommel and Rafael van der Vaart pitched in with two each while seven others including Robin van Persie and Arjen Robben each scored one.

From 1 to 23, it’s difficult to find a Dutch player who isn’t based at one of Europe’s top clubs. Of those that still ply their trade in the Eredivisie, Maarten Stekelenburg (replacement for Edwin Van Der Sar in goal) and former Rangers  defender Giovanni Van Bronckhorst are two worth highlighting.

Juggling so much talent in all areas of the field – even in the weaker Dutch defence – requires a decent coach, and since Van Marwijk took over from Marco Van Basten in 2008 there’s been a greater emphasis on getting things right rather than playing with flair and pace. This makes for a new era of Dutch performances that are less easy on the eye, but with an illustrious history of total football behind them, you’re never far away from entertaining football.

As things stand, Dutch fans have much to be optimistic about at this World Cup, but that optimism is tempered with the hard reality that comes with a trophy cabinet that’s been empty for the last 22 years. The question therefore remains: not ‘can’ but ‘when’ will the Netherlands win the World Cup?  If the answer’s ‘2010’, they’ll have to beat Spain or Brazil along the way and that’ll call for a truly outstanding brand of Oranje indeed.

World Cup Sound of Football Podcast - Germany 4 Australia 0

Chris, Graham and Terry return for a new podcast and it's time for another 'book-ended' edition as we discuss the Germany v Australia game before kick-off, at half time and after the final whistle.

We're rather pleased with this format and hope you find it entertaining. You can listen to the podcast here or if you right-click on that link, you can download the MP3. Alternatively, you can subscribe via the your reader of choice or via our iTunes feed.

World Cup TV Preview: 14 - 16 June

Monday 14th June

12:30 Netherlands v Denmark, FIFA World Cup Group E, ITV1/ITVHD
Out of all the teams categorised as ‘favourites’, only Germany have impressed thus far, but the Dutch can add their names to the list by beating a tricky Danish side. Bert Van Marwijk will be relieved to welcome Arjen Robben back to something resembling full fitness after a hamstring injury, but he looks set to sit this one out. That means Rafael van der Vaart will get a run-out, while for the Danes, ‘Super Klas’ Bendtner has a groin injury and will also take his place on the bench. Sorry Graham – that Golden Boot award for the Arsenal striker may have to be put on ice for a while.

15:00 Japan v Cameroon, FIFA World Cup Group E, BBC1 / BBCHD
It’ll be interesting to see how the Beeb package this one given that it’s very much on the undercard of today’s fixtures. The Indomitable Lions will look to follow Ghana’s lead as the first African team to win a game on their home continent, and given Japan’s propensity for scoring own goals, they might just get it. Not only that, but Japan have a problem to overcome in the form of scoring goals at the right end of the pitch, so Cameroon should be good for at least one point if not three from this match.

19:30 Italy v Paraguay, FIFA World Cup Group F, BBC1 / BBCHD
So many injury worries litter the early part of this World Cup, and this game is no exception. For Italy, Andrea Pirlo and Daniele De Rossi have both had calf problems with only the latter looking likely to figure in this match. The Paraguayans have been sweating over key striker Oscar Cardozo’s ankle injury and it looks like he’ll be absent. Man City fans – expect to see Roque Santa Cruz taking his place alongside Borussia Dortmund’s Lucas Barrios.

Tuesday 15th June

12:30 New Zealand v Slovakia, FIFA World Cup Group F, BBC1 / BBCHD
The Slovaks' involvement in major competitions has been rather stop-start over the years, whether as part of the former Czechoslovakia or as a nation in their own right. It’s therefore good to welcome them back to the fold and here they’ll have a chance to impress against an All Whites side that might struggle to contain them.

15:00 Ivory Coast v Portugal, FIFA World Cup Group G, ITV1 / ITVHD
Portugal’s qualification for the finals was not entirely convincing and that makes Ivory Coast the ideal opponents to judge how good they really are. Cristiano Ronaldo will have a key role to play for Carlos Queiroz’ side (especially as his last competitive goal for Portugal was in Euro 2008), but so too will Didier Drogba for The Elephants – presuming he’s shaken off his elbow injury, that is. Should be a cracker of a game and one well worth leaving work early for if you get the chance.

19:30 Brazil v North Korea, FIFA World Cup Group G,  ITV1 / ITVHD
Before you all say ‘one-sided’, consider this: Brazil have struggled to beat sides that parked the ubiquitous bus, and if there’s one nation that believes defence is the best form of attack, it’s North Korea. Just ask any South Korean. That said, Brazil have skill, organisation and discipline in abundance and should, in reality, be no match for the canny East Asians.

Wednesday 16th June

12:30 Honduras v Chile, FIFA World Cup Group H, ITV1 / ITVHD
And so to the battle for second place behind Spain in Group H. These two stalwarts of the 1982 World Cup will be looking to get three points in the bag to gain an early advantage over Switzerland (who play later). Chile would appear to be favourites given their impressive qualification under the stewardship of former Argentinean head coach Marcelo Bielsa. Their team is built on the foundations of the successful Under-20 World Cup squad that finished third in 2007, and their style is quick and wing-based. A dangerous prospect for a Honduran team who, if they can’t get their noses in front early, could find themselves quickly overwhelmed.

15:00 Spain v Switzerland FIFA World Cup Group H, BBC1 / BBCHD
Despite winning Euro 2008, some people still doubt Spain’s ability to win the World Cup. More fool them, we say. To begin with, Spain face Switzerland having played them 18 times before and won won 15 of them (they drew the other three). Add onto that the fact that Spain have won all their First Round group games in the last two World Cups and it seems this slightly humdrum Swiss side will have got their work cut out.

19:30 South Africa v Uruguay, FIFA World Cup Group A,  BBC1 / BBCHD
And back we come full circle with this Group A tie between two sides that will be relatively satisfied with their respective first games. The hosts gave a good account of themselves against Mexico and are undoubtedly buoyed by that vuvuzela-enhanced home support. Uruguay can best be described as ‘no frills’ although Diego Forlan might have swung their game against the French on a better day. If he can find the target today, Bafana Bafana might be in for a slight setback.

denotes match to be covered by The Sound of Football Podcast.

denotes match we recommend you leave work early to see. 


(All times - UK.)

World Cup Kit Parade 2010: Adidas

In the first of a four-part series, Some People Are On The Pitch assesses the wide range of football kits you’ll be seeing during the 2010 World Cup, looking at the output of each manufacturer in sequence. 

Adidas

With twelve World Cup countries in its portfolio, Adidas is once again assured of maximum visibility when the competition gets underway tomorrow.

As is not uncommon, the German company has ensured a modest degree of individuality to creep into the designs for its top teams while others have had to settle for an off-the-shelf template outfit. France’s blue home shirt, for example, features red and white flashes in a nod to some of its former designs including those for Euro ’84 and World Cup ’98.

Germany’s white shirt for home games has an understated yet smart trio of pinstripes in the colours of the national flag running from top to bottom, dissecting the club crest as it does so. A nice touch and a world away from the bold, some would say ‘garish’ shirt of World Cup ’94.

Japan’s home and away shirts both feature a short red block appearing from the underside of the collar – something you won’t find on any other country’s shirt, but given its slightly mystifying nature, perhaps that won’t be regarded as any kind of tragedy.

Denmark, on the other hand, have a curious white band going across the chest of their shirt, made up of eleven rows of dotted lines forming an illusion of visual perspective. The lines are supposed to be a tribute to the efforts of the eleven men making up the Danish team – a distinctive design and one which does Adidas great credit.

Sadly not every team wearing Adidas at this year’s World Cup are quite so lucky. The home shirts for many teams such as Greece, Slovakia, Spain and Nigeria (as well as the away versions for others including Denmark, Argentina and Paraguay) look like the kind of thing your ambitious Sunday League team would be happy to wear given half a chance. Sitting somewhere in the middle of the Adidas World Cup range, however, are the hybrids – those shirts which look like they were taken one step on from the base-level design but no further than that.

For examples of this, see the home shirts for South Africa and Mexico, replete as they are with two strange under-arm blobs. We’re sure they would’ve been something more distinct, but perhaps the designer took an early lunch and never came back. Oh well, you can’t win ‘em all...

Taken as a whole then, Adidas have produced a smart range of shirts and kits which are understated in their style, but style there most definitely is. You won’t find anything wacky or beyond the realms of good taste – moreover, you’ll get style in abundance even if, at times, there occasionally seems to be a lack of imagination.

Coming soon: Part 2 - Nike go for the sublime and the ridiculous...

Our great thanks go to John Devlin from True Colours Football Kits (www.truecoloursfootballkits.com) for the use of his excellent football kit graphics. To see all of John's World Cup kit designs in greater detail, click here.)

World Cup Sound of Football Podcast - Who will be World Champions?

(WARNING - CONTAINS SPOILERS)

The World Cup is upon us and the Sound of Football podcast is back with a bumper preview edition.

Graham, Terry and Chris go through each group and predict who will finish first and second. Then we predict the winners of each game in every knock out stage all the way to the Final itself which will be won by...

You can listen to the podcast here or if you right-click on that link, you can download the MP3. Alternatively, you can subscribe via the your reader of choice or via our iTunes feed.

If the US team get lost on the way to the World Cup...

...you'll know why...

32 for 2010: Ghana

Despite a rich history in African football, including a long period of dominance in the Cup of Nations, this is only Ghana's second World Cup Finals having also qualified for Germany four years ago.

Ghana's qualification campaign almost foundered at the first hurdle when they scraped through their first group stage on goal difference. This proved a wake up call for the Black Stars and they breezed through the final stage of qualification - only conceding any goals after their finals place was secure. This strong, defensive quality helped them reach the final of this year's African Cup of Nations, though they hardly enlivened a tragic and over-shadowed tournament with three consecutive 1-0 wins before being beaten by holders Egypt.

Interesting parallels can be drawn between their opponents this World Cup and with last time: the experienced campaigners - Germany (it was Italy last time); a strong Eastern Europe team - Serbia (Czech Republic); and an emerging New World side - Australia (USA). Ghana finished second in their group last time but will be hard pushed to repeat that - and if they do they'll most likely face England in the second round. The match against Serbia, probably their most vital for progression, has added interest as it's where their coach Milovan Rajevac is from.

Essentially, Ghana need goals if they are to have any hope of surviving this tough group. Their midfield has been seriously depleted with lengthy injuries to (among others) Michael Essien and Stephen Appiah - seeing them miss most of the season for their clubs. Essein has not played for Chelsea since he was injured playing in the Cup of Nations in January while Appiah has played only two end-of-season games for Bologna since signing for them in November. Both are in the squad, but just what sort of impact these players can have is anyone's guess. Sulley Muntari, while a regular for Inter this season, has only managed to play 90 minutes three times out of 27 appearances, scoring just once.

This leaves the goal-scoring duties falling on the shoulders of Stade Rennes' Asamoah Gyan and NAC Breda's Matthew Amoah, neither of whom have particularly shone domestically. Ravejac has given repeated call up offers to Inter's precocious striker Mario Balotelli who has Ghanain parents. Balotelli, who earlier this season was described by his boss Jose Mourinho as "brainless", has refused each advance in favour of waiting to see if he can make it into the Italian senior squad (he already plays for the under-21s).

We won't see the best of Ghana at this World Cup, but that doesn't mean they'll go down without a fight.

32 For 2010: Slovenia

This is the third major international tournament Slovenia have qualified for - each time by manner of a play-off. They overcame Ukraine to win a place at Euro 2000 and beat Romania to qualify for the 2002 World Cup.

The key to Slovenia's qualification campaign was their excellent home form (they conceded just one goal in six games) and an away victory against the eventual group winners Slovakia, denying the Czech Republic, Poland and Northern Ireland a place in South Africa. They had a tough draw in the play-off against Russia - who had a very strong group stage. Despite falling two goals down in the first leg, a late strike from Sparta Praha's Nejc Pečnik gave them an away goal - an all important away goal as they went on to win 1-0 in the return fixture in Maribor, Bochum's Zlatko Dedič getting the goal.

Slovenia's main threat up front is FC Köln's 6'4" striker Milivoje Novakovič. However he's found goals hard to come by recently following a much publicised falling out with his club manager Zvonimir Soldo - scoring just six this season. Their only UK based player is team captain Robert Koren, a mainstay of the West Brom midfield for the past three seasons. It's likely that the squad will be entirely made up of non-domestic players.

Slovenia have been drawn with England, USA and Algeria - of these sides the only team they've played before is England - right at the start of this season. Belgian-based striker Zlatan Ljubijankič picking up a late goal in their 2-1 friendly defeat at Wembley. They may feel they have an advantage in playing England last in the group - hoping that England will have already done enough to qualify for the next stage by that time. Their key match is their opener against Algeria where anything less than a win will give them a huge mountain to climb; realistically though, the most they can hope to achieve is an improvement on their 2002 showing where they lost all three games.

32 For 2010: Paraguay

Participants in the first tournament they may be but up until recent years, Paraguay's contribution to World Cup history has been fairly inauspicious. Between 1930 and 1998, the land-locked country located in the shadow of Argentina and Brazil as their neighbours, only qualified for the final stages three times.

Since 1998 however, Paraguay have become a regular fixture in the World Cup draw. Thus far they have never progressed beyond the second round and last time, in Germany, could not manage even that. Paraguay finished third behind Sweden and England and had an uninspiring tournament in an uninspiring group (the game against England was a snore-fest).

This year there may be more grounds for optimism on the back of an exciting qualification campaign. The White and Red registered impressive victories against Brazil and Argentina plus a 5-1 thumping of Ecuador. They finished third in the CONMEBOL qualification table, only one point behind the group winners, Brazil.

In terms of the players, English football fans will know all about Roque Santa Cruz' exploits on Manchester City's bench and treatment table. The former Blackburn and Bayern Munich striker has scored 20 goals for his country. National team coach, Gerardo Martino, also has to choose from Benfica striker Oscar Cardozo and Borussia Dortmund's Nelson Valdez.

In an interesting twist, Valdez may be joined by his strike partner at Dortmund, Lucas Barrios. Now, anyone who has been following Barrios' exploits this season on the Bundesbag will know that he is an Argentine. However, Barrios' mother is Paraguayan and he has just had his citizenship confirmed. Without further ado Barrios was selected by coach Martino (himself, an Argentine) for the latest national team training camp and looks set to be named in the squad.

This will not be an uncontroversial selection as non-Paraguayan Paraguayans are not usually made welcome in the national team. However, If Barrios can replicate his Bundesliga form (19 goals in his first season) in the World Cup, then he may be crucial to their hopes of progressing to the Second Round.

If that is to be achieved, Paraguay must overcome the world champions Italy, dark horses Slovakia and happy-to-be-there New Zealand in Group F. Not impossible but not easy. Their best chance may come in the first game against the notoriously slow starting Italians on 14th June. A good result there would set up their campaign nicely.