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Home , Alexander Frei, Emmanuel Adebayor, Louis Saha, Phillip Cocu, Raymond Domenech, Sylvain Wiltord

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H7 SPECIALSPT 06-07-06 EZ EE H7 CMYK

The Washington Post x R Wednesday, June 7, 2006 H7 World Cup 2006

GROUP FIRST-ROUND TUESDAY SUNDAY, JUNE 18 MONDAY, JUNE 19 FRIDAY, JUNE 23 SCHEDULE South Korea vs. Togo, 9 a.m. (ESPN2) in Frankfurt France vs. South Korea, Togo vs. Switzerland, 9 a.m. Togo vs. France, 3 p.m. (ESPN) in Cologne KEY G All times Eastern France vs. Switzerland, Noon (ESPN2) in Stuttgart 3 p.m. (ABC) in Leipzig (ESPN2) in Switzerland vs. S. Korea, 3 p.m. (ESPN2) in MATCHES By Christian Swezey FRANCE OUTLOOK This defense didn’t scare Premiership teams. Newcastle won five straight in midseason after it dropped D Jean-Alain Boumsong. TEAMS Manchester United benched D Mikael Silvestre. Patrick Vieria was AT-A-GLANCE outplayed by Cesc Fabregas in the Champions League. It may not matter. Not with (32 goals for France), (28 goals for France), (31), (26) and (15 goals for Manchester United). » Best-Case Scenario: Strikers take Les Bleus to the final. » Worst-Case Scenario: France has failed to advance past the first FRANCE round in all but three World Cups since 1962; with this defense, Coach: another early exit is possible. . Appearance: 12th. How Qualified: SOUTH KOREA OUTLOOK Won Europe’s Group 4. An adventurous 4-3-3 formation didn’t lead to many goals in qualify- ing: The Taeguk Warriors scored 18 in 12 matches. The roster features several European-based players, including MFs Park Ji Sung (Manchester United) 1998 and Lee Eul Yong (Trabzonspor, Turkey), D Lee Young Pyo (Tottenham Hotspur) and F Seol Ki Hyeon (Wolves). Team enters 0-11-3 in World Cup matches it did not host. SWITZERLAND » Best-Case Scenario: Coach: Kobi Kuhn. With goals from F Park Chu Appearance: Eighth. Young, 20, team makes How Qualified: the second round. Second in Europe’s » Worst-Case Scenario: Group 4, beat Turkey A loss to Togo in the in playoff. opener would mean an early trip home.

BY JAMIE MCDONALD — GETTY IMAGES SWITZERLAND OUTLOOK Striker Thierry Henry of France, right, is on top of the world after signing a four-year extension with his club team, Arsenal, in May. MF Johann Vogel of AC Milan is the fulcrum. The 29-year-old made his professional debut at 15 and national team debut at 18. STAR PLAYER » THIERRY HENRY| F | FRANCE led the French League in scoring two years ago and SOUTH KOREA GROUP G has 23 goals in 42 games for the Swiss. Team showed some back- Coach: . bone in nasty fracas with Turkey after qualifying. Note » Best-Case Scenario: Appearance: Seventh. Henry Makes Opponents Pay the Price Get physical with France and South Korea, How Qualified: For Nuts win group and make quarterfinals. » Worst-Case Scenario: After tying France twice in qualifying, Finished second ow good is Thierry Henry? and power, the vision to create goals for others, free- in Asia’s Group A. Johann Vogel of things don’t go as well in the real thing and the Swiss let South Switzerland was Real Madrid reportedly offered £50 mil- kick expertise, stamina, a scoring record that Korea slip into second in the group. rated PSV lion to Arsenal for the striker this past sea- matches any other top striker and an ability to ’s best son, a figure that would have made for the lead.” mostH expensive transfer in history. It says even Raymond Domenech’s decision to start Fabien during its TOGO OUTLOOK run to the more about Henry, 29, that Arsenal turned down Barthez in goal could mean that France will need to Champions League both requests. score a few times to advance very far. Henry is the The first squad to arrive for the World Cup — Togo has been in semifinals in 2005 Henry signed a four-year contract extension with man to do it. Especially now that his future is set- Germany since the middle of May. That was the only way to ensure — ahead of Dutch Arsenal on May 19. He scored 33 goals for the Gun- tled, he appears ready for a big-time performance in a lengthy stay. took over after was fired ners this year, 30 last year, 39 in 2003-04, 32 in the World Cup. following a winless African Nations Cup. F TOGO stars Phillip Cocu and Mark van 2002-03, etc. He scored three goals as France won the 1998 (11 goals in qualifying) skipped several practices at Monaco and Coach: Otto Pfister. “He has evolved into a central striker with every World Cup and had the same number in the victori- left for Arsenal in January. Keshi called him a “crybaby.” Appearance: First. Bommel and Park Ji Sung of South Korea. attribute,” reads the assessment of Henry in “When ous Euro 2000 campaign. He also, however, was » Best-Case Scenario: Already happened — the team qualified. How Qualified: Saturday Comes: The Half Decent Football Book.” part of the French team that did not score a goal in » Worst-Case Scenario: Adebayor’s petulance means Togo pulls a Won Africa’s Group 1. “Trickery on the ball, precise finishing, shooting the 2002 World Cup. France of 2002 and exits without scoring.

GROUP FIRST-ROUND WEDNESDAY, JUNE 14 MONDAY, JUNE 19 FRIDAY, JUNE 23 SCHEDULE Spain vs. Ukraine, 9 a.m. (ESPN2) in Leipzig Saudi Arabia vs. Ukraine, Noon (ESPN2) in Hamburg Ukraine vs. Tunisia, 10 a.m. (ESPN2) in Berlin KEY H All times Eastern Tunisia vs. Saudi Arabia, Noon (ESPN2) in Munich Spain vs. Tunisia, 3 p.m. (ESPN2) in Stuttgart Saudi Arabia vs. Spain, 10 a.m. (ESPN) in Kaiserslautern MATCHES By Jason La Canfora STAR PLAYER » RAUL | F | SPAIN SAUDI ARABIA OUTLOOK The Saudis have scored seven goals and conceded 25 in 10 World Cup matches. The entire roster comprises players from Saudi TEAMS Arabia’s modest domestic league. Its qualifying group included the AT-A-GLANCE For Spain, One likes of Uzbekistan, Indonesia and Turkmenistan. The defense may be stronger, with GK Mabrouk Zaid considered Asia’s best, and the Saudis have a nice youth-and-experience blend up front with Yasser Name Says It All Al Qahtani (23 years old) and Sami Al Jaber (33), but it’s hard to envision this team doing much. aul Gonzalez Blanco cracked the roster » Best-Case Scenario: Picking up a point or two to avoid at storied Real Madrid at age 17, began SAUDI ARABIA embarrassment. his international career at 19 and has Coach: » Worst-Case Scenario: 0-3, like 2002. Marcos Paqueta. scored at an abundant clip for club and Appearance: Fourth. Rcountry ever since. He has played for three How Qualified: Champions League winners at Madrid, and while SPAIN OUTLOOK Finished first his club’s fortunes have dipped recently and sev- in Asia’s Group A. eral young forwards are nipping at his heels on The Spanish have been cursed to watch teams filled with brilliant the national team, Raul is still a vital figure this individual talent fail to achieve collective goals for generations. summer. The Spaniards have been underachiev- A rich crop of youngsters just reaching their prime — especially ers in international play for some time, and he Jose Reyes, , Cesc Fabregas and Iniesta — could longs to reverse that pain. alter that perception. They boast superior talent in the spine, Raul, a clinical finisher, scored three times in with Barcelona center back Carlos Puyol the consummate rock Spain’s first four games of the 2002 World Cup, on defense, and were gifted a favorable draw as well. then watched in agony, injured, as his teammates » Best-Case Scenario: Reaching the semifinals for the first time SPAIN lost to co-host South Korea on penalty kicks in since 1950. Coach: the quarterfinals. No one has scored more goals » Worst-Case Scenario: Four more years of scorn after flopping Luis Aragones. for Spain, and this tournament could be the in the round of 16. Appearance: 12th. springboard to revitalize his form after strug- How Qualified: gling in 2005-06. Finished second This will be his third World Cup, and quite pos- TUNISIA OUTLOOK in Europe’s Group 7 sibly his last, with 22-year-old Fernando Torres Tunisia has emerged as a force on its continent, but has yet to trans- and beat Slovakia (Atlético de Madrid) among those seemingly late that success to the World Cup, winning one of nine matches and in playoff. ready to start for Spain. It is hard to imagine this exiting in the first round. Coach (France’s coach for talented team finally achieving true World Cup Euro 2000 and the 2002 World Cup) has a proven pedigree at this glory without Raul, who turns 29 on June 27, and level, however, and Africa always seems to provide at least one sur- the clutch goals he so often delivers. prise team in the first round. Key players: right back Hatem Trabelsi (Ajax) and Adel Chedli (Nuremberg) and Riadh Bouazizi Spain’s Raul (Erciyesspor, Turkey), the team captain. scored three » Best-Case Scenario: Finishing second behind Spain and making goals in the the round of 16. UKRAINE 2002 World » Worst-Case Scenario: A quick exit for a team that lost to Coach: Cup. Guinea in qualifying. Oleg Blokhin. Appearance: First. BY CHRISTOF KOEPSEL — GETTY IMAGES How Qualified: UKRAINE OUTLOOK Finished first in Europe’s Group 2. No discussion of the world’s best GROUP H strikers would last long without Andriy Shevchenko’s name being Note for Novices mentioned, but his lingering knee injury Oleg Blokhin is not being paid to might doom Europe’s first team to coach Ukraine’s team. He also is a qualify for Germany. The country has no member of the country’s parliament World Cup experience, but Ukrainian and, because it is illegal in Ukraine players fueled many great Soviet teams to hold two official government in the past, and club Dynamo Kiev is TUNISIA steeped in history. MF-F Sergei Rebrov Coach: roles, he was permitted to do both only after he voluntarily gave up his played alongside Shevchenko in the 1990s at Kiev, and now partners Roger Lemerre. coaching salary. with 24-year-old MF Ruslan Rotan (three goals in seven qualifiers). Appearance: Fourth. » Best-Case Scenario: Shevchenko recovers quickly, leads Ukraine How Qualified: to the quarterfinals.

Finished first » Worst-Case Scenario: A stumble vs. Tunisia or Saudi Arabia

in Africa’s Group 5. keeps team from advancing.

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