A lot of deadlines are coming together right now, and a lot of posts for the blog keep piling up. I hope I can get through it all before the Christmas holidays.
I continue with press reaction to the World Cup draw. The view from Honduras is of a group that marches to a Latin beat, and of sides that align closely with the personalities of their managers. First there are the precise and disciplined Swiss with their disciplinarian manager, then the lively and unpredictable Chileans directed by the esoteric and enigmatic Marcelo Bielsa, and the masters of Europe led by a man used to leading star-studded teams to glory. There are a lot of memories of 1982 among the last Honduran World Cup players, but this Spanish side has shaken off the famous underachievement of previous editions. Mother of all rivals, indeed. Rueda said that Spain are the one side that he feared to be paired with, but perhaps Honduras are fortunate to face them at the start of the tournament.
The view from Spain is of a draw with looming threats -- after Spain pass out of the first round. The headline in MARCA says "A comfortable group and a threat". In the lead-in to the draw, the Spanish press feared a group with the USA, and there had to have been sighs of relief to have drawn the CONCACAF side not named Mexico or the United States. The tips for Spain to either reach the final or leave South Africa with the World Cup trophy are piling up, from Ottmar Hitzfeld to Radomir Antic and Steve McManaman. Vicente del Bosque, the Spanish coach, is having nothing of it and is putting out the standard coaching statements of needing to prepare well for all three rivals. Most of the articles that I've read seem to identify Chile as Spain's chief concern in the group, and that's about right in my opinion. Spain's base camp will be in the north of the country near Johannesburg.
Chile's reaction to the draw is generally positive, Manuel Pellegrini says that the group gives opportunities for Chile to advance, while Iván Zamorano warns to be aware of Honduras' capabilities. Honduras has played Chile well in recent history, including a 2-0 defeat in a friendly last January. Actually, all of Chile's rivals in Group H have beaten Chile in previous matches. Honduras won't play Chile next month as originally planned, and instead will play matches against Argentina and the USA. Chile will base themselves in Nelspruit, as Bielsa wants to base themselves in the city where they will play their first game.
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