Read my articles on the other groups as well

No disrespect to the other teams, but you can be forgiven for thinking that Italy rigged this draw. The easiest group in the draw by far: Italy and Paraguay to go through, and Slovakia and especially New Zealand to get absolutely thrashed.(Read my articles on the other groups as well).How comprehensively Italy dispose of their opponents in this group will go a long way to defining their tournament credentials and whether they have what it takes to do a repeat.. New Zealand is making it's first appearance in footballs showpiece in nearly 30 years, and their aim should be more of damage control rather than entertaining hopes of upsetting one of the big guns, becuase really, just being competitive will be a challenge for them. Their players, except for captain Ryan Nelson, are mostly semi-professional, and play either in the lower tiers of England or in non-league football, except for a couple who ply their trades in the A-League or the MLS, which are not the best leagues in the world.Australias exit from the Oceanian Confederation has meant that the Kiwis will make it to the play-offs with the Asian team almost every time for the next 2 decades or more, unless Fiji can't start mounting a serious challenge, but for the sake of competitiveness, they need a more professional structure. They just dont have the talent pool, or enough people playing soccer in the first place, to get any sort of competition going in the first place They will depend on Shane Smeltz to get the goals How many chances he gets in a game is another matter.

He is a good striker, but truth be told, he will hardly get any service at all. They are very much an unknown quantity, and I am looking forward to seeing how they cope up against their opponents, but they are most likely to finish 32nd in this Cup, I am afraid.Goalkeeper Mark Paston will be on extra duty in their games, and will have a hard time keeping his confidence with the alarming alacrity of his defenders.NZ had the shortest route in the world in the qualifiersplaying just eight games against utterly hopeless opponents, bar their last two games, where Bahrain went through the ignominy of going outrunning on the very final hurdle for the second World Cup campaign. In midfield and on offense, the Kiwis have very little to offer. Shane Smeltz led the team in scoring in the qualifying campaign, but didn't have an impact at the Confederations Cup. His strike partner, Chris Killen, is another journeyman who has seen some playing time with the likes of Manchester City and Celtic, but has not been able to hold down a starting spot for a variety of teams, including Wrexham, Port Vale, Oldham, Hibs, and Norwich City. West Brom's young striker, Chris Woods, has plenty of potential, but this World Cup will likely be a learning experience for him. The coach, Ricki Herbert, will have a tough time of it.Prediction: Their rugby counterparts might be world beaters, but their football team is hardly more than semi-pros.

If ever a team came into the World Cup finals from out of the cold it is, quite literally, Slovakia. Needing just one point from its two remaining games, the Slovaks seemed set for a national celebration when they hosted Slovenia on Oct 10. But the party was put on hold when Slovenia won 2-0, leaving Slovakia with the daunting task of clinching Group Three on the road in Poland four days later. In snowbound conditions reminiscent of the 1984 Denver Broncos-Green Bay Packers "Monday Night Football" classic, the Cinderella Slovaks were helped by an unlikely fairy godmother: Polish defender Seweryn Gancarczyk. His third-minute own goal gave Slovakia the 1-0 win that sent it dashing through the snow to South Africa.Slovakia surprisingly topped their qualifying group ahead of Slovenia, the Czech Republic, and Poland, demonstrating potential and a well organized attack.

They can score goalsthey scored 22 during their qualifying campaign, but they also conceded 10, which tells me that they are a "we will score at least one more than you" kind of team. They are bereft of big names, but they do have one exceptionally gifted player, Napolis brilliant young playmaker Marek Hamsik. Look for him to make a mark in South Africa, with the speed and ability to glide past players, very much in the Sergio Aguero mold. Martin Skrtel may have fallen out of favour with the Liverpool faithful, but he is still a vital cog in the Slovak defense The coachs son, Vladamir Weiss Jr., is a precocious talent. When he first burst onto the team, there were whispers of nepotism, but he has won his critics over with some great performances, and although not getting much playing time at Man City, a loan deal during this transfer window might be the solution. Look out for Stanislav Sestak, who led them in goals scored in qualifying, with six in the back of the net, as well.Prediction: Coach Vladamir Weiss will be careful not to let his team think that reaching the World Cup finals is enough, that they can actually make an impact in South Africa.