2010 FIFA World Cup: Group E Preview

Group E has the potential to be very interesting.

The Dutch are always fun to watch, Cameroon is looking to impress on African soil, Denmark—if healthy—will contend, and do not count out Japan, they are far from slouches.

Team Previews

Cameroon

The Indomitable Lions missed out on making the 2006 World Cup and will have extra motivation to succeed in South Africa because of the fact that the tournament is being played on the African continent.

Everyone and their mom knows about Samuel Eto'o and the skills that the Inter forward possesses, but Cameroon can not become a one man team in this group.

Players to Watch

Samuel Eto'o: The top forward for Cameroon will need to score goals, but not all of them, for Paul Le Guen's side to advance.

Geremi: The Ankaragucu defender is looking for some type of good form after leaving Newcastle United for the Turkish side to get playing time to make it back in to the squad. Geremi is one of the more experienced players on this team and will need to step up and be a leader along the back four.

Benoit Assou-Ekotto: The Tottenham defender had a good season under Harry Redknapp at White Hart Lane and topped off his season by having a good tournament. Assou-Ekotto is good at creating chances by crossing the ball into the box, and Eto'o needs someone to feed him balls in the box for scoring chances.

Schedule: June 14 vs. Japan, June 19 vs. Denmark, June 24 vs. Netherlands

Denmark

The Danes will have one word to describe how their trip to South Africa goes: injuries. First team regulars Thomas Sorensen, Nicklas Bendtner, and Simon Kjaer are hoping to be back for the important opener against the Dutch.

Morten Olsen's group will have to hold off the Dutch in the first game to give them momentum into the games following.

Players To Watch

Jon Dahl Tomasson: The 33 year-old captain struggled to get on good form with Feyenoord in the Eredivisie this season and could feeling the effects of getting older. Tomasson will need to provide leadership up front against the Dutch if Bendtner can not in the first game.

Daniel Agger: Agger, like most of the Liverpool players, is coming off a rough club season and has a chance to erase that from his memory with a strong World Cup showing. Agger will be a key in defense against a strong group of opposing attackers from all three opponents.

Thomas Sorensen: The Stoke City keeper is still recovering from an elbow injury he suffered towards the end of the Premier League season and might not recover in time. If he does, he will be thrown straight into fire without any warm-up matches so it will be interesting to see how he reacts.

Schedule: June 14 vs. Netherlands, June 19 vs. Cameroon, June 24 vs. Japan

Japan

The Blue Samurai have not won a World Cup match off of home soil. In 2002, Japan made it to the Round of 16, losing to Turkey. In 2006, Japan only managed to draw with Croatia and finish last in the group.

Hopefully, 2010 will give the Japanese better fortune but this is a very competitive group and each game will be a challenge for them to win, or even draw.

Players To Watch

Keisuke Honda: Honda has impressed in the months leading up to the World Cup with his club CSKA Moscow in the Champions League. Honda will need to be a strong midfield attacking presence and look to score goals in the clutch like did when he knocked Sevilla out of the Champions League earlier this season.

Shinsuke Nakamura: Nakamura is one of the Blue Samurai's most experienced players but he has fallen to the trend of older players entering the World Cup, by not having great success at the club level going into South Africa.

Marcus Tulio Tanaka: Tulio Tanaka is playing in his first World Cup and could one of the players gaining attention from bigger clubs if he performs well. The Brazilian-born defender is currently with domestic side Nagoya Grampus but could see a European move in his future.

Schedule: June 14 vs. Cameroon, June 19 vs. Netherlands, June 24 vs. Denmark

Netherlands

The Dutch will look to break the tradition of having a dominating group run and then crashing and burning when the games matter.

Bert van Marwijk's team got some good news; Arjen Robben should be fit to play after an injury scare. Robben will be one of the many players looking to score goals in one of most stacked attacking lineups heading to South Africa.

Players To Watch

Wesley Sneijder: Sneijder won the treble with Inter after leaving Real Madrid this season and was impressive throughout for Jose Mourinho. In South Africa he will counted to be everywhere in the midfield setting up the attack and with the talent around him. Sneijder has the freedom to move around the midfield.

Maarten Stekelenburg: The Ajax keeper is filling big shoes vacated by Edwin van der Sar and will need to keep the balls out of the net when the counterattack from other teams comes barreling towards him.

Robin van Persie: The Arsenal forward is coming off an injury during the club season and is at full strength. Van Persie will be counted on to not only score in the group stage but score when it counts in the knockout round.

Schedule: June 14 vs. Denmark, June 19 vs. Japan, June 24 vs. Cameroon

Group Prediction:

This is the Dutch team's group to lose. Cameroon needs to not be a one-man team, Japan has too many questions and Denmark is not fully healthy.

With that being said, it is hard to predict a second place team before the games are played but if I had to choose, I would take Cameroon at this time.

Prediction

Netherlands (1st), Cameroon (2nd)