Ivory Coast vs. Portugal – Preview

June 14th, 2010 | by: Elliott | View Comments

The time is at hand. The clock strikes midnight. All hands on board. Up until this moment, the African teams have been a mixed bag. South Africa tied and Ghana won, but Camaroon and Algeria lost. Thus, the Ivory Coast must carry the continent on its broad shoulders. And an opening game against 2006 semi-finalist Portugal is a tall order.

The first key to the game will be Didier Drogba. Will he be fit? Will he bit 90 minutes fit? Will he be able to use his strength to fend off the Portuguese defenders? And if not, can Aruna Dindane come in and continue his blistering form for Portsmouth? Don’t forget – Aruna scored both goals in the ‘Coast’s sole win last World Cup against Serbia.

The second key will be Yaya Toure vs. Deco. Both players had below par club seasons, eventually relegated to the bench. Still, Deco’s incisive passing and Yaya’s tackling will be at odds as the two central midfielders square off. I believe that Deco can probably get the better of Yaya for a half, but over 90 minutes give the advantage to Toure who at least started the season at Barcelona as a starter.

The third key will be the right side of the Ivory Coast’s midfield and defense. How will they cope with Cristiano Ronaldo? Emmanuel Eboue is quick, strong, and infinitely familiar with the Portuguese from their Arsenal-United confrontations of yesteryear. Eboue would thus be a strong option at the right hand side to deal with CR9.

Overall, both managers have taken talented attacking sides and turned them into plodding teams that starve for goals. The Ivory Coast could only muster goals off setpieces in the warm up games, and Portugal was held to a draw at home by the Cape Verde. Expect a nervous and tense game, where the difference will probably a single moment of craft by a winger such as Simao or Kalou.

Go Coast!