Posted on Thursday, 25th June 2009 by Jon Daisy
One more week of excitement remains in the Confederations Cup before the football tournament concludes. The competition has reached its semi final stage after the exciting group rounds. Apart from the hosts South Africa who qualified by the skin of their teeth, the other three teams will be the United States, Brazil and Spain.
There is nothing left for the host country now except to reach for the sky and dream the impossible. Fans will be praying for South Africa to continue doing well. That would mean getting to the final although they would be satisfied with their performances so far.
What prevents them from getting ahead of themselves is the team that stands in their way of the final. Brazil will be the biggest obstacle for the South Africans in recent memory. And what an obstacle they will be after destroying every team they faced in Group B.
No one will dare to wager that South Africa has a chance against Brazil. The latter team are on a roll and results have turned in their favour for a couple of months now. Dunga has started to see results from his work with the players and every individual appears to be committed without any hint of disharmony.
The United States are the weakest team amongst the four semi finalists. In fact, many attribute their appearance in the last four as something based on luck. There was indeed a hint of good fortune in the way they achieved the improbable against all odds.
They might need gratitious amounts of luck again when they meet Spain in their semi final. The Spanish have had similar results to their Brazilian counterparts but could not reach the heady heights of their impressive first victory against New Zealand. They do have incredible tactical awareness and style so it would be unthinkable for them to lose to the Americans.
In all probability, Spain and Brazil will meet and contest the final. Both teams are undeniably the strongest of all the eight teams that were invited to the tournament. It is hard to separate the two in trying to distinguish the better side.
If that final were to be realised, it would be the best present for any football fan this year. They can always look forward to some of the best football on display when these two meet. If they set aside their inhibitions and put on an advertisement for the sport, it could only lead to more success in the coming years.
Tags: brazil, confederations cup 2009, fitness, football, international football, leisure, recreation, soccer, south africa, spain, sports, travel, USA, world cup 2010
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