Arsenal at The World Cup: Something About Robin?

Well hello again, certainly has been a while! And first off, whatever you say about him, Philippe Senderos leaves with our best wishes; with my mate Dip practically mourning the big Swiss' departure! He is to be fondly remembered for the solid shift turned in at the Millennium Stadium in last trophy to date (preferred to one Sol Campbell that afternoon), his supreme statesmanlike intellect, and for being Cesc Fabregas' first flatmate in London. But, sadly for him, his all too regular high profile gaffes (not to mention getting "Drogba'd" on many an occasion) and countless injuries have cost him what had initially looked a bright future at the Club.

Onto the ten Gunners at the World Cup, and to tell you the truth, I was initially left under whelmed by that number. Might be due to Walcott and Nasri's shock exclusions which we have spoken about before, I don't know. However, when you consider the players we have on offer in South Africa, as well as pointing out that Chelsea have only one player more, while United have only six representatives, I realised that we are doing quite well.

Cesc Fabregas is the obvious candidate for favourite to be an Arsenal World Cup winner with European champs Spain. And it does indeed look likely that he will still very much be an Arsenal player as he enters battle with his Spain pals. Pals whom include Xavi Hernandez, who is frankly beginning to irritate me to a level where I do not think I will be able to stand putting up with watching him play in the coming weeks, however controlled and classy he is with the ball at his feet.

As talented as the Spain squad is (that they are without doubt despite the more than a few questionable personalities), I do not see them lasting the distance as they did so handsomely at Euro 2008. Their brand of football should see them blast through the group stage comfortably. However, teams like Brazil, Germany (whose younger players have improved since that final defeat in Vienna), and heck, even England, will have more power and tactical nous when it comes to the quarters/semis. I won't lie; there also stems an inner desire for them to flunk following the hullabaloo that Barcelona's players have needlessly created in tapping up our captain. I definitely see a starting role for Cesc, though, what with doubts over Andres Iniesta and Fernando Torres' fitness, where he may even be deployed in the hole behind David Villa.

Cesc aside, we do not have many obvious candidates in teams who may be in with a chance for glory, especially with England now Theo-less, who I'll come onto shortly. Think again, I say, for I am tipping Robin van Persie's Oranje as my dark horses to go all the way. Don't ask me why, I just fancy the Netherlands, who have threatened to blossom on the last couple of occasions, before wilting badly. Again, they boast style and flair and the attacking options available at their disposal are second possibly only to Argentina, with the likes of Arjen Robben and Wesley Sneijder pulling the strings. And of course, we can expect to see our man spearhead that attack, hopefully grabbing a few headlines on the back of his recent goalscoring form. Of course, you can argue that the mental block is something that may work against the Dutch, as I have pinpointed it as the Spaniards' nadir, as well as not being necessarily up to scratch defensively. But, there you have it, worth a punt for me, are Robin van Persie and Holland.

Elsewhere, our African contingent in Alex Song and Emmanuel Eboué will hope to do their home continent proud. Unfortunately, I see neither Cameroon nor the Ivory Coast making it past the group stages due to a combination of poor form and luck of the draw issues. Indeed, Song will come head-to-head with RVP in Group E, as they will both clash with Nicklas Bendtner and Denmark. Ironically, Song and Cameroon's chances of making the knockout round may well rest on whether Denmark can get their young talisman into shape in time, with Bendtner struggling with a cacophony of leftover niggles from the back end of the season bygone.

As for France and Messrs Clichy, Diaby, Gallas and Sagna, well I'm sorry lads, but you cannot expect to win the World Cup by losing with such truly tepid performances, yesterday's contest with Uruguay already a good shout for bore of the tournament. Not to mention doubts on whether Raymond Domenech is actually in charge of this French side or whether he's just thinking of his next live-on-air marriage proposal following an anticipated exit. Stranger things have happened, and they do boast the likes of Franck Ribery and Yoann Gourcuff may come to life, but I just do not see it happening.

So, the million pound question, can England do it, I wonder? Well, as much as I can  hope, I sadly cannot see England finally ending the wait and emulating the heroics of '66. For me, this a shaky collection of world class individuals, who may struggle to act as a cohesive unit when it comes to the crunch, and the recent friendlies are testimony to that theory. Granted, there is plenty of time to rectify that, and the manager might just be the trump card, as Marcello Lippi was with Italy four years ago. But, a lack of urgency in the first halves of matches along with questionable selection issues in leaving the likes of Darren Bent and Walcott behind in the first place (all bias aside) may do the damage, and an over-reliance on Wayne Rooney may prove costly.

So, there you have it, I like the look of Holland, but I do not see any other Arsenal lad (or England) with a gold medal round their necks come 11th July, paving the way for a South American team to emerge triumphant on a foreign continent yet again. And, we do not really want to see Diego Maradona act on his threat of bouncing naked live on air should his men do it, do we? No.

Enter Brazil...