The Group of Death: A Reaction

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

Today was supposed to be the the most exciting day of the games so far with the Group of Death taking center stage, but quite honestly, I am a bit disappointed.  Let's start with Portugal and Cote d'Ivoire.  Save for Ronaldo's power-packed shot that hit the woodwork in the first half, Portugal never really looked menacing.  The Elephants on the other hand were a lot more composed on the ball and I was very impressed with their overall play, except they could not finish to save their lives.  Gervinho was very impressive and gave Portugal's defense some trouble, but not enough to earn them three points.

Drogba's introduction into the game in the 66th minute did little to change things. He had perhaps the closest chance at goal, but I'm not sure if his effort was a misguided shot on goal or a pass to a non existent teammate.  Being that this is the group of death and Brazil is almost certain to win all three games in the group stages, it seems that the second team to advance will be the one that doesn't get pummeled by Brazil and does the most damage to North Korea.

And speaking of which, North Korea came out ready to play against Brazil today and showed heart the entire game.  Maicon's goal was sublime and so was Robinho's (who was excellent the entire match) pass to set up Elano's goal, but the North Koreans played very well and kept pressing enough to get a late goal.  If the N. Koreans play the way they did against Brazil today Portugal and Cote d'Ivoire must be 100% on their game.

Verdict: The group is still up for grabs. I, and probably most people, were expecting the Brazilians to rout against North Korea, but that wasn't the case.  I don't see the North Koreans moving on, but Portugal and Cote d'Ivoire will have to work very hard against them in order to advance to the Round of 16.

Thanks for reading. Keep watching the games and check back here for more game reviews and more news and releases from LIVE BREATHE FUTBOL.

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