2010 World Cup Preview: Group H

Welcome to our final group preview of the 2010 World Cup here on FA Daily, as take we take a look at Group H, which will be led by an extremely talented group in Spain. Can Switzerland, Honduras, or Chile challenge them for the top spot in the group? Let’s take a look at this group.

GROUP SCHEDULE

June 16, 2010

Honduras vs. Chile – 7:30 AM ET, ESPN
Spain vs. Switzerland – 10 AM ET, ESPN

June 21, 2010

Chile vs. Switzerland – 10 AM ET, ESPN
Spain vs. Honduras – 2:30 AM ET, ESPN

June 25, 2010

Chile vs. Spain – 2:30 PM ET, ESPN
Switzerland vs. Honduras – 2:30 PM ET, ESPN2

*Times indicate actual game start times. 30 minute preview show before most games, so the actual coverage will begin a half hour earlier.

THE TEAMS

Spain

Spain is one of the heavy favorites to win the entire thing, which makes them the favorite to win this particular group. The talent is certainly there for them to get to the finals and win the cup, as they have huge stars like David Villa, Xavi, and Cesc Fabregas. Quite honestly, there may not be a more talented team overall from top to bottom than this group, so it’s hard to imagine any way that they mess this up. Of course, once we get to this stage, no game is a given. Spain can’t afford to overlook any of these other teams early on, and risking a chance at losing momentum by the time the knockout stage arrives. Chile has the attack to go at it with Spain from a tactical standpoint, but doesn’t have anywhere near the amount of depth. Both Honduras and Switzerland could possibly force a draw on their best day, but I just can’t see that happening. I think Spain is a team on a mission here, and they should glide right through the group stage, and pick up nine points in the process. This will be key if they want to build up an enormous amount of confidence before the Round of 16, and then from there, they may just be on their way to hoisting the trophy on July 11.

Switzerland

It’s really pretty simple for Switzerland, if they are to advance to the knockout stage. Beat Chile, and you’re probably in the Round of 16. However, that also means that they come out victorious against Honduras, which will be no easy task in and of itself. The problem for the Swiss is that they aren’t overly talented, and aren’t filled with huge stars. But they do play a team game, and if they play smart, they will give themselves a chance at victory against Chile and Honduras. Alexander Frei will be the man leading the attack, and will have to carry the burden scoring-wise if this team is to have a chance at advancing. It’s tough to see this team being able to stop the attacks from both Spain and Chile though, and that could be where the trouble lies for them. This probably wasn’t the greatest draw the Swiss could have had, because of the style of play that they’ll be trying to stop defensively. While this team doesn’t have the household names, if they are able to play a smart and consistent game, they should give themselves a chance to knock off Chile on June 21, and propel themselves to an appearance in the knockout stage.

Honduras

There’s always an odd-team out in each of these World Cup groups, and it seems like Honduras will likely be playing that role in Group H. Not having Carlos Costly will hurt them quite a bit, as their attack won’t be as strong as it was when he was in the lineup. The biggest concern I have for this team is on defense, as I just don’t see any way that they are able to slow down Spain or Chile, and give themselves any type of chance to pick up points. They are capable of knocking off Switzerland, so I don’t think any of us should be all that surprised if they do. But going up against the other two squads will probably prove to be too much for this team, which won’t give them a chance to fight for that second spot in the group. If this team gets rolling, they may be able to give Chile a scare in the opener, since it will be the first game and neither team will be playing all that consistently just yet. They should probably be happy that they have them for the opener and not Spain, since that would have probably taken all the wind out of their sails early. If Honduras can somehow force a draw with Chile on June 16, then they could be in the hunt. But I’d probably lean more towards them having to settle for a last-place finish in this group.

Chile

With the attacking style that this team plays, I think you have to give them some consideration in terms of having an outside chance at making some noise in this tournament. Their defense will be what wins or loses them games though, as even if they are able to score a few goals, a strong attack does tend to leave open some key spots for the other team. Spain has the firepower to put up goals in a hurry, so that’ll probably be a losing battle for them there. The key game though is of course against Switzerland, which will almost certainly decide who walks away with a second-place finish in this group. I think that Chile has too much offense for the Swiss, and the difference in style favors the Chileans without a doubt. But I also think that the Swiss will give them all they can handle, and may be able to score a few goals off of some openings left by the constant attack. It may be smartest to go against an attack-heavy team in this kind of event, and while I don’t think this particularly favors Chile once they get past the group stage, I think the matchups gives them a nice advantage in this particular group. We’ll probably see them score quite a few goals against Honduras and Switzerland, but again, there’s also that chance that they could give up a few goals as well. This will undoubtedly come down to their offensive efficiency, and in this case, I think it’ll be pretty high for these first three games.

PREDICTIONS

*Winner in bold

Honduras vs. Chile
Spain vs. Switzerland
Chile vs. Switzerland – DRAW
Spain vs. Honduras
Chile vs. Spain
Switzerland vs. Honduras – DRAW

1. Spain (9 points)
2. Chile (4 points)
3. Switzerland (2 points)
4. Honduras (1 point)

Well that’s all for the Group H Preview here on FA Daily! What are your predictions for the group? Be sure to vote on our poll to the right, and let us know who you think will win Group H!

And on Monday, we’ll dive into the Round of 16, and get all the way to a winner as we predict the rest of the 2010 World Cup!

Previous Group Previews – Group A, Group B, Group C, Group D, Group E, Group F, Group G