a little review on the World Cup matches i've managed to catch thus far:

Germany 4 Costa Rica 2
A good opening tie for the Cup, with plenty of goals all round to make it a lot more exciting and entertaining. That said, by way of 'good football' there was not an awful lot on display. The excellent goal from Lahm just inside the area and an even better one from Frings about 30 yards out were about the highlights of the match. Germany defended woefully, with both Costa Rican goals coming from Wanchope springing a poor German offside trap. Lehmann was very unimpressive too. This 'new Germany' are like a downgraded 'new Arsenal': much improved in attack but much work needed at the back. Perhaps the introduction of Ballack might add some steel into the midfield but no further than the quarter-finals for Germany. As for Costa Rica, nice play but out in the first round.

England 1 Paraguay 0
Dear England, are you Italy in disguise? Eriksson's careful approach was a total match spoiler because the only good thing that came out of this game was the three points for England. Beckham was in form, yes, but was largely anonymous in the second half. Both teams were applaudably industrious but highly uninventive and woeful in attack. England looked lke they missed Rooney badly. The decision to haul Owen off for Stuart Downing stank of Azzuri negativity. England to make it to the quarter-finals on ability but, unless Rooney conjures some magic, they'll get beaten by the more creative teams. Sorry Paraguay, you looked far too nervous to make it past the group stages this time around.

Sweden 0 Trinidad & Tobago 0
This, in comparison to the England match, was a lot more entertaining. There wasn't a lot of quality on either side, which was surprising considering the star-studded Swedish side, but the attacking passion of both sides made for some good viewing. The game really came to life after Avery John was sent off a minute after the break. T&T seemed to tighten up their game and hold out improbably against relentless Swedish attacks. At the end of the match, T&T supporters and players celebrated as if they'd won the Cup! Haha... Sadly, they're not going to make it past the group stages because they lack quality. Sweden will make it through, but only because Paraguay and T&T just aren't good enough.

Holland 1 Serbia & Montenegro 0
I've been eyeing this match since the fixtures came out. Holland with their dangerous attacking play coming up against the meanest defence in Europe. Undoubtedly, Robben aced the Serbian defence with terrorising runs and all-round good play. The rest of the Dutch team looked pretty alright, with the exception of van Nistelrooy who looked pedestrian, but altogether certainly not world class [yet?]. The Serbs threatened with preciously little and their defence failed to live up to their billing as the tightest, perhaps attributed to the absence of the impressive Vidic. Should the Dutch manage to navigate through this 'Group of Death', they look good to make it to at least the semi-finals. Serbia, if they manage to somehow qualify, might just touch the quarter-finals but no further. It appears that the matches against the classy Argentina for both these sides look doubly crucial.

Mexico 3 Iran 1
This match took a while to come to life. I'm not awfully familiar with either of the teams save a few key players like Mexico's Marquez [of Barcelona]. It was 1-1 at the interval with some good periods of football, but nothing comparable to the magic of the Hollan-Serbia matchup. I guess the quality of football was always going to be deficient considering the respective skill of both these teams. Mexico eventually ran out winners, but only because the Iranian defence, having stood up for so long, finally seemed to wilt and lose concentration in the heat. Mexico to go through because the other teams are weak; first or second depends on their result against Portugal. Iran look too poor to qualify, even though they are industrious.

Australia 3 Japan 1
An absolutely riveting match. I was rooting for an Aussie win but that looked unlikely when Nakamura chipped in a lucky goal over Aussie keeper Schwarzer's flailing arms. In fact, Schwarzer looked so ill at ease throughout that i thought Japan would extend their lead. For the whole match, Australia huffed and puffed, with some good attempts on goal by Viduka from open play and free kicks, but to no avail. Kawaguchi seemed up for every shot and the Aussies looked weak under the hot sun, especially the ailing Kewell. Unsurprisingly, it took an Aussie set piece to crack the tight Japanese defence, Kawaguchi making an uncharacteristic mistake that led to Cahill scoring from the ensuing chaos in the box after the corner. An inspired goal outside the area from Cahill and a third from Aloisi, who profitted from the Japanese trying to surge forward, sealed a late comeback for the Aussies. A good win for them, but neither side looked capable of matching the quality of Croatia, let alone mighty Brazil. Unless Australia manage an unlikely win over the Croats, it's a long flight east for both these teams.

Czech Republic 3 USA 0
I tuned into this match 15min in but it got me salivating throughout. The Czechs played with some fantastic, eye-catching football, the best that the tournament has seen thus far i'm sure. The sight of renowned veterans like Poborsky, Koller and Nedved weave beautiful passes between the struggling Americans was beautiful to watch. The play of Rosicky was magnificient at the very least, capped with two outstanding goals. He's already looking a bargain for Arsenal. The USA wasn't too bad, with some decent shots and moves. They were simply outclassed by a world-class Czech side who snuffed out any telling final pass that might have led to an American goal. The Czechs reaffirmed their status as one of my two favourites to win the Cup, alongside the Samba Kings of Brazil. The free-flowing passing style of the Czech Republic offers a different take on 'Beautiful Football' in contrast to the Brazilians. The Czechs must win the group to avoid Brazil and, should they play with such domination in their other 2 matches, they should top this group comfortably, even over Italy.

some matches i missed, particularly the Argentina-Ivory Coast match which i heard was splendid. The Poland-Ecuador upset i missed too, as well as Portugal-Angola. from what i've read and heard so far though, this looks like an exciting World Cup :)

My favourites to win the Cup are definitely the Czech Republic and Brazil. Unfortunately, they'll meet before the final [as early as the round of 16 if either fail to top their group] if they qualify so that means the winner of the contest should go on to win the whole thing.

My second-faves would be the Netherlands and Argentina. I haven't had a chance to trace their route but i sure hope they meet in the semis at the earliest. it'd be a pity for either to drop out before that. both teams are quite complete, perhaps even more so than Brazil though maybe not the Czechs, but they lack the experience to be firm favourites. They just might surprise though, especially the Dutch. The group match between the two should prove to be a tantalising forerunner of what could come.

I'll put my head on the block and say that the Czechs will win it :)