The key match in this group will take place on the first day with a Spain – Ukraine game that will be crucial for qualification points, while on the same day, the Tunisians and Saudis will face off in a match that may already determine one of the teams to be eliminated from this potentially surprising pool.
Even though Spain and Ukraine appear to be the favorites to advance to the round of 16, they will face tough resistance from Tunisia, under the management of Roger Lemerre, and Saudi Arabia, coached by Brazilian Marcos Paqueta.
Will Spain get past the infamous quarterfinals stage? Like a curse, the elimination of the Iberians seems to be an inevitability in recent World Cups. This year, coach Luis Aragones has promised to do everything possible to achieve his goals, but first, they must advance from Group H which, though easy on paper, will certainly be less so on the field.
Having qualified behind Serbia in their group, the Spaniards can rely on a solid backbone with players like Casillas (Real Madrid), Puyol (Barcelona), and Raul (Real Madrid), who are all determined to return home with at least a spot in the semifinals—a stage they have not reached since 1950 when they finished fourth behind Uruguay, Brazil, and Sweden.
What will Luis Aragones’s protégés do in the German arenas?
Two men represent the new surge of the Ukrainian national team: Oleg Blokhin and Andriy Shevchenko. Two exceptional scorers set to make Ukraine one of the favorites in Group H after having eliminated Turkey and Denmark in the qualifying phase.
With a majority of players from the Ukrainian league, Blokhin’s selection could well be one of the revelations of this World Cup, especially if his gem Shevchenko performs the feats he is known for. No doubt, reaching the round of 16 is in the sights of the Ukrainians who will face the Spaniards in the group’s first game before taking on the Saudis and then the Tunisians.
The Eagles of Carthage, as the Tunisians are called on the African continent, are coming to Germany with the firm intention of taking their chances to the limit. Roger Lemerre, the former unfortunate coach of the French team, has built a solid group that achieved its best FIFA ranking last September by reaching an impressive 23rd place.
Tunisia, which secured its qualification by defeating Morocco in the last match of its group, was defeated in the African Nations Cup by Nigeria (1-1, 5-6 on penalties) but will rely on its expatriates to try to secure a historic qualification to the round of 16. Many players from French clubs such as Santos (Toulouse), Jemaa (Lens), Jaziri (Troyes), Yahia (St Etienne), and Haggui (Strasbourg) are included.
The Saudis have called on veterans to try to come out with their heads held high from a global competition that has never smiled on them so far with early eliminations in the first round of the last two editions. With the return of their striker Sami Al Jaber, participating in his fourth World Cup final phase, and the comeback of star goalkeeper Mohamed Al Deayea (180 caps), Paqueta’s men want to make amends for the resounding 8-0 defeat against the Germans, hosts of the competition.
The majority of the players compete in the local league with clubs like Al Hilal Ryad, Al Ittihad Jeddah, and Al Ahli Jeddah being the main suppliers with 21 players out of the 23 selected.
Prediction by the editors of Nice Première:
1-Ukraine 2-Spain 3-Tunisia 4-Saudi Arabia
Group D Schedule:
June 14th in Leipzig: Spain – Ukraine (15h)
June 14th in Munich: Tunisia – Saudi Arabia (18h)
June 19th in Hamburg: Saudi Arabia – Ukraine (18h)
June 19th in Stuttgart: Spain – Tunisia (21h)
June 23rd in Berlin: Ukraine – Tunisia (16h)
June 23rd in Kaiserslautern: Saudi Arabia – Spain (16h)
