MATCH Z ZONE
SEEYOUINBRAZIL! ARGENTINA
AUSTRALIA
BELGIUM
Argentina were the first qualifiers from the CONMEBOL Round Robin, going on to top the nine-team qualification table. This will be the 16th appearance at the World Cup for the two-time winners in 1978 and 1986.
Qualifying from AFC Fourth Round Group B are Australia, who finished four points behind Japan in second place in the group. Their top scorer in qualification was Joshua Kennedy, who plays his club football for Nagoya Grampus in Japan.
Ranked fifth in the world currently, Belgium will be a strongly-fancied team for next year’s tournament. They made it to their first World Cup Finals since 2002 by topping UEFA Group A unbeaten on 11 October.
10 England v Chile 15 November 2013
BOSNIA AND HERZEGOVINA Qualification for the 2014 World Cup is an immense achievement for Bosnia and Herzegovina, who will make their debut at the Finals next summer. Having finished level on points with Greece in UEFA Group G, they secured qualification by virtue of a far better goal difference.
BRAZIL
CHILE
As host nation, the five-time World Cup winners were guaranteed a place at the 20th edition of the tournament having won the bid to host the competition on 30 October 2007. Brazil will kick off the tournament on 12 June.
On the same night Bosnia and Herzegovina, England, Russia and Spain confirmed their places at the World Cup, Chile were one of two teams from South America to also make it through. Tonight’s opponents have previously appeared at eight World Cups and were third in 1962.
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WORLD CUP 2014
21 teams, including England and Chile, have already confirmed their places amongst the 32 nations that will compete in the 2014 FIFA World Cup. Now take a look at the countries that England could face in Brazil and those still hoping to join them…
COLOMBIA
COSTA RICA
ECUADOR
GERMANY
HONDURAS
IRAN
Buoyed by nine goals from Radamel Falcao in qualification, Colombia’s passage to their first World Cup since 1998 was confirmed on 11 October, when a 3-3 draw with Chile saw them secure the point needed to make them CONMEBOL Round Robin runners-up.
On 10 September, Costa Rica confirmed their qualification for the tournament on the same day as USA, eventually finishing as runners-up in CONCACAF Fourth Round. Former Bristol City loanee Álvaro Saborío got eight goals for his country en-route to the Finals.
With Chile third in the CONMEBOL Round Robin table, Ecuador finished a place and three points behind them to become the final automatic qualifiers for the World Cup from South America. The three-time Finalists last played in a World Cup in 2006 where they were eliminated in the Round of 16 by England.
Part of a trio of European teams to win their qualification group with a game to spare, Germany eased into the World Cup with nine victories and one draw in UEFA Group C. Arsenal’s Mesut Özil top-scored for the Germans en-route to the Fnals, with eight goals. Germany have won the World Cup on three occasions, in 1954, 1974 and 1990.
Elsewhere in October, Honduras secured automatic qualification for the World Cup by finishing third in the CONCACAF Fourth Round group table. They are yet to make it beyond the group stages of the competition, which they have previously qualified for in 1982 and 2010.
Iran have made it to their fourth World Cup and will be looking to improve on their performances in the tournaments of 1978, 1988 and 2006 when they failed to make it out of their group. They were the winners of AFC Fourth Round Group A ahead of South Korea.
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15 November 2013 England v Chile 11
WORLD CUP 2014
THE FINAL COUNTDOWN ITALY
JAPAN
NETHERLANDS
RUSSIA
Italy joined Netherlands as the earliest European qualifiers for the World Cup, winning UEFA Group B on the same day as the Dutch were confirmed winners of Group D. They were also unbeaten in qualification, winning six and drawing four matches.
Japan were the first nation to secure their place at the World Cup, having guaranteed top spot in Group B in the Fourth Round of AFC Qualification on 4 June this year. They will be appearing at their fifth World Cup, in Brazil. Their striker Shinji Okazaki was top goalscorer in AFC qualifying, having netted eight times.
Netherlands had a near flawless route to qualification for the World Cup, topping UEFA Group D by 10 September 2013, having won nine of their ten matches and drawing the other. Robin van Persie was the top goal scorer in the European qualification groups with eleven strikes.
Russia edged Portugal to top-spot in UEFA Group F on the final night of qualifying, securing 22 points to the Portuguese’s 21. Next summer’s tournament will mark Russia’s tenth World Cup appearance and their first since 2002.
SOUTH KOREA
SPAIN
SWITZERLAND
UNITED STATES
Along with Australia and Iran, South Korea were the third nation to confirm their qualification for the 2014 FIFA World Cup on 18 June this year, finishing second to Iran in AFC Fourth Round Group A.
Despite the fact they are the reigning World Cup holders, Spain had to qualify for the 2014 tournament. They topped a tough looking UEFA Group I, which also included past World Cup winners France, to make it through to Brazil.
Winners of UEFA Group E, Switzerland won seven and drew three matches to secure their place in Brazil. This will be the tenth appearance at the finals for the Swiss, who have made it to the quarter-final stage on quarter three occasions in 1934, 1938 and 1954.
Team USA will be appearing at their tenth World Cup finals in Brazil, having won the six-nation CONCACAF Fourth Round group. Former Fulham and Tottenham Hotspur player Clint Dempsey was a key component in the States’ successful qualification, qualification, scoring eight goals en-route to the finals.
Between now and 20 November, the final teams to appear at next summer’s World Cup will be decided, with Play-Off matches taking place across various continents. First-leg matches have already taken place in Africa, with Ghana notable 6-1 winners in their first meeting with Egypt. They meet again on 19 November. Tomorrow, the second legs for ties of Ivory Coast v Senegal (Ivory Coast lead 3-1) and Ethiopia v Nigeria (Nigeria lead 2-1) will take place, while Tunisia and Cameroon meet again on 17 November, with the game finely poised after a goalless draw in the first leg. Finally in the CAF Play-Offs, Burkina Faso and Algeria meet again on 19 November, with Burkina Faso leading 3-2 from the first leg. Europe’s standout tie sees mega-stars Cristiano Ronaldo and Zlatan Ibrahimović go head-to-head as Portugal play Sweden. Other UEFA Play-Offs see France play Ukraine, Greece take on Romania and Iceland tackle Croatia. The fi rst first leg of those matches takes place this evening, with the second and decisive meetings taking place on 19 November. T wo intercontinental Two Play-Offs have their second legs on 20 November: New Zealand of the OFC will play Mexico of CONCACAF in Wellington, New Zealand, while Jordan (AFC) travel to Montevideo to play Uruguay
(CONMEBOL). Both first legs took place on Wednesday. The draw for the 2014 FIFA World Cup is on 6 December, with seeded teams to include Spain, Germany, Argentina, Colombia, Belgium and Switzerland. Uruguay will be seeded if they qualify, otherwise the final place in Pot 1 will be taken by Netherlands. The tournament itself kicks-off on 12 June 2014, with Brazil in Group A action at the Arena de São Paulo in the first game. The Final will be held in Rio de Janerio on 13 July 2014.
KEY AFC – Asian Football Confederation CAF – Confédération Africaine de Football CONCACAF – Confederation of North, Central American and Caribbean Association Football CONMEBOL – Confederación Sudamericana de Fútbol OFC – Oceania Football Confederation UEFA – Union of European Football Associations
You can relive England’s Road to Rio in a new DVD out on 2 December or available to pre-order now from Amazon.co.uk
“THE TOURNAMENT ITSELF KICKS OFF ON 12 JUNE 2014” www.TheFA.com
15 November 2013 England v Chile 12
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TOURS, DOWNPOURS, AND LOW SCORES Beyond the Rous Cup encounter, fixtures fi xtures between these two nations have been few and far between. They’ve also been closely fought affairs…
Teddy Sheringham tries to evade a tackle from Clarence Acuña during Chile’s 2-0 win at Wembley in 1998 46 England v Chile 15 November 2013
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PREVIOUS MEETINGS
Stan Mortensen goes up for a header in 1950 (left) and John Barnes unlea shes a shot in Sant iago in 1984
England 2 (Mortensen 27, Mannion 51) Chile 0 World Cup Finals Maracanã, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil 25 June 1950 Attendance: 29,703 It was a game of firsts firsts for England; their first first match in a World Cup Finals, a first first visit by an England team to the Americas and, indeed, the first first game between England and a team from the Americas. Having fallen out of favour with The FA, Stanley Matthews – who had received a belated call-up to the squad – watched this Group Two game from the stands but it was his Blackpool team-mate, Stan Mortensen, who made history by netting the country’s first first ever World Cup goal when he sent a looping header beyond keeper Sergio Livingstone. Newcastle United forward Jorge Robledo was a danger to the England rearguard, twice going close in the opening half, but Walter Winterbottom’s side grabbed the all-important second goal after the re-start when Tom Finney and Mortensen combined to tee up Wilf Mannion, whose low effort crept inside Livingstone’s righthand post. Interestingly, Neil Franklin, the Stoke City defender and England regular, had made himself unavailable on the grounds that his wife was about to give birth, but in reality he was about to defect to a newly-formed Colombian league, where he would be paid four times the maximum wage in England. Chile 1 (Diaz 83) England 2 (Taylor 48, Lofthouse 68) Friendly Estadio Nacional de Chile, Santiago 24 May 1953 Attendance: 56,398 England’s end-of-season tour to South America opened on 17 May, however the game against Argentina was abandoned due to a torrential downpour. It was then on to Chile, where Tommy Taylor, who just two months earlier had joined Manchester
United from Barnsley for £29,999, scored on his official England debut (he had started the abandoned game in Argentina). Fresh from his performance in the fabled FA Cup Final between Blackpool and Bolton that year, Wanderers’ Wembley goalscorer Nat Lofthouse continued his form in an England shirt, netting the crucial second goal in the 68th minute. However, his heroics were overshadowed by an unsavoury incident when he was attacked by a number of Chilean players – incensed after the forward’s shot struck one of their team-mates flush in the face! Taylor also scored England’s only goal in the closing game of the tour, a 2-1 defeat in Uruguay, and netted an impressive 16 goals in 19 games before tragically losing his life in the Munich Air Crash. Chile 0 England 0 Friendly Estadio Nacional de Chile, Santiago 17 June 1984 Attendance: 9,876 Having failed to make the 1984 European Championship in France, Bobby Robson’s squad embarked on a summer tour of South America. The highlight was undoubtedly a 2-0 defeat of Brazil in the Maracanã and that goal by John Barnes; the lowlight an ‘after the Lord Mayor’s Show’ 2-0 defeat in Uruguay. The final game was played against Chile in a sparsely-populated national stadium where the scoreline certainly flattered the hosts. Indeed, it was one-way traffic from the start, but Chile 'keeper Juan Covarrubias was inspired as he kept out wave after wave of England attacks. Ray Wilkins had a stinging effort tipped over from the edge of the box, while Clive Allen – who was making his international bow on the tour – had a close-range header from Kenny Sansom’s cross kept out by the Cobreloa 'keeper. He was also equal to a diving header from Wilkins, while Bryan Robson’s long-range effort was beaten out. It was more of the same after the break, with a Robson drive with the outside of his boot narrowly missing the target, while
Allen came agonisingly close when he connected with a John Barnes cross, only to see his point-blank effort kept out. England 0 Chile 2 (Salas 45, 79 pen) Friendly Wembley Stadium 11 February 1998 Attendance: 65,228 Michael Owen was the England headline maker as he became the century’s youngest England debutant at 18 years and 59 days, but it was Lazio-bound Marcelo Salas who stole the show with a brace that put a dent in Glenn Hoddle’s World Cup preparations. Chile, who had also qualified for the Finals in France, looked hungrier and dominated possession for long spells. They got their reward on the stroke of halftime when Salas superbly controlled a 50-yard ball from José Luis Sierra on his thigh before unleashing a superb volley from the edge of the box. Owen showed flashes of what was to come that summer and was voted England’s man of the match, while fellow debutant Dion Dublin carved out a number of chances as the focal point of the attack. However, it was Salas who was the star, grabbing a second by giving Sol Campbell the run-around on the edge of the box. He drew a foul from the Tottenham man before nonchalantly sending Nigel Martyn the wrong way with his resulting penalty kick.
Michael Owen before his debut at Wembley Stadium in 1998 15 November 2013 England v Chile 47
MY PERFECT
XI
GORDON BANKS
You’ve got to go with Gordon Banks in goal. We still talk about that save against Brazil (1970 World Cup). That was world class.
GARY NEVILLE Gary Neville was a great servant to England for a long, long time. He was dependable, very reliable.
DAVID BECKHAM One of the best crossers of the ball and he captained England for so many years. He was world class.
BOBBY MOORE Bobby Moore needs no introduction. He has got to be in there with the captain’s armband on.
RIO FERDINAND
ASHLEY COLE
Rio Ferdinand was a top, top player for England. He still is a great player, but he was brilliant for England.
Ashley Cole is in the 100 Club and I can’t imagine there are many left-backs better than him.
PAUL GASCOIGNE STEVEN GERRARD I was fortunate to play with Gazza. He was a genius of a player and it’s a shame we couldn’t see him for longer.
I’ve played with him since I was about ten. He’s got to be one of the greatest players England has ever produced.
BOBBY CHARLTON
GARY LINEKER
The amount of goals Bobby Charlton scored, he’s the leading goal scorer for England, so he would be in.
My hero as a kid and second in the all-time scoring list, so the stats alone show he was a different class.
58 England v Chile 15 November 2013
BY… MICHAEL OWEN
JOHN BARNES John Barnes probably doesn’t get the recognition he deserves. Growing up, he was the man.
Michael Owen knows what it’s like to play Chile at Wembley. The striker, who retired at the end of last season, scored 40 goals in 89 caps for England, but it all started against the South Americans in 1998. He also had a decorated club career with Liverpool and Real Madrid among others and won the Ballon d'Or in 2001. Now, The FA 150 ambassador and television pundit picks his all-time Three Lions XI. There’s no place for his dad’s favourite player, Jimmy Greaves, or even himself! www.TheFA.com