Group A: French will be hard to stop
France (1*)
Coach: Roger Lemerre.
Players to watch: M-Zinedine Zidane, M-Patrick Vieira, F-Djibril Cisse.
Quick look: The ’98 world champions added the 2000 European Championship and the 2001 FIFA Confederations Cup. The question mark is erratic goalkeeper Fabien Barthez.
Senegal (43)
Coach: Bruno Metsu.
Players to watch: F-El Hadji Diouf, D-Ferdinand Coly, M-Khalilou Fadiga.
Quick look: The “Lions of Teranga” are composed primarily of Senegalese players living and playing in France, chief among them Africa’s 2001 player of the year, striker El Hadji Diouf.
Uruguay (20T)
Coach: Victor Pua.
Players to watch: D-Paolo Montero, F-Alvaro Recoba, F-Sebastian Abreu.
Quick look: Making its first appearance at the World Cup in 12 years, Uruguay brings a team sprinkled with quality players but at times lacking cohesion and focus. It barely managed to qualify.
Denmark (20T)
Coach: Morten Olsen.
Players to watch: F-Ebbe Sand, F-Jon Dahl Tomasson, D-Thomas Helveg.
Quick look: Denmark isn’t what it was four years ago, when it reached the quarterfinals. Still, the Danes have plenty of heart and top-notch strikers in Sand and Tomasson.
Group B: Spain out to make amends
Spain (7)
Coach: Jose Antonio Camacho.
Players to watch: G-Iker Casillas, D-Fernando Hierro, F-Raul Gonzalez.
Quick look: A huge disappointment in ’98 when they crashed out in the first round, the Spanish have had four years to ponder that embarrassment.
Slovenia (28)
Coach: Srecko Katanec.
Players to watch: M-Zlatko Zahovic, M-Milenko Acimovic, M-Djoni Novak.
Quick look: When Slovenia gained independence from Yugoslavia in 1991, few expected that within a decade it would qualify for not only Euro 2000 but the 2002 World Cup.
Paraguay (14)
Coach: Cesare Maldini.
Players to watch: G-Jose Luis Chilavert, D-Carlos Gamarra, F-Jose Cardozo.
Quick look: Much depends on the play of backup goalkeeper Ricardo Tavarelli, subbing in the first game for Chilavert, who’s suspended for spitting on Brazil’s Roberto Carlos.
South Africa (36)
Coach: Jomo Sono.
Players to watch: M-Sibusiso Zuma, D-Lucas Radebe, F-Benedict McCarthy.
Quick look: With top goal scorer Shaun Bartlett sidelined by an ankle injury, the Bafana Bafana’s chances are slim in a tough group.
Group C: Brazil ready to strike early, often
Brazil (2)
Coach: Luiz Felipe Scolari.
Players to watch: D-Roberto Carlos, F-Rivaldo, F-Ronaldo.
Quick look: The “jogo bonito,” the “beautiful game,” may be disappearing, but Brazil’s plan is to “strike first and fast,” trying to score in the first 15 minutes or each game.
Turkey (24)
Coach: Senol Gunes.
Players to watch: F-Hakan Sukur, M-Yildiray Basturk, D-Alpay Ozalan.
Quick look: It was in 1954 that the Turks last played in the World Cup, but the success of their club teams in Europe in recent seasons has improved the lot of the national team.
China (51)
Coach: Bora Milutinovic.
Players to watch: M-Fan Zhiyi, M-Li Tie, F-Hao Haidong.
Quick look: “Insufficient skills and experience means we are destined not to go far,” the team said in an open letter. The intensity of the World Cup will overwhelm the Chinese.
Costa Rica (27)
Coach: Alexandre Guimaraes.
Players to watch: M-Walter Centeno, F-Rolando Fonseca, F-Paulo Wanchope.
Quick look: The team has been on a downward spiral since it qualified for Korea/Japan ’02.
Group D: Few challenges for Portugal
Poland (38)
World Cup record: Played 25, won 13, lost 7, tied 5, goals for 39, goals against 29.
Best finish: Third place, 1974 and 1982.
1998 showing: Did not qualify.
Coach: Jerzy Engel.
Players to watch: G-Jerzy Dudek, D-Tomasz Klos, F-Emmanuel Olisadebe.
Quick look: The Poles were regarded as a stronger threat before they lost warmup games to Japan and Romania. Much depends on naturalized Nigerian striker Olisadebe at one end and Liverpool goalkeeper Dudek at the other.
Forecast: The Poles are physically imposing enough to bulldoze their way to second place in the group, but internal strife and unfamiliar conditions could see them lose their way.
South Korea (41)
World Cup record: Played 14, won 0, lost 10, tied 4, goals for 11, goals against 43.
Best finish: Never beyond the first round.
1998 showing: Eliminated in the first round.
Coach: Guus Hiddink.
Players to watch: M-Hong Myung-Byo, M-Yoo Sang-Chul, F-Seol Ki-Hyeon.
Quick look: No host nation has ever failed to advance to the second round. A recent run of six games without a loss, including a tie with England, has encouraged Koreans to believe that their team might not be the first to fail.
Forecast: Korean fans should realize that their team has as good a chance as the Americans or Poles of reaching the last 16.
United States (13)
World Cup record: Played 17, won 4, lost 12, tied 1, goals for 18, goals against 38.
Best finish: Semifinalist, 1930.
1998 showing: Eliminated in the first round.
Coach: Bruce Arena.
Players to watch: M-Claudio Reyna, M-DaMarcus Beasley, F-Clint Mathis.
Quick look: Much has been made of the three-losses-and-out shambles of 1998. The fact is, the same thing could happen this time because the U.S. defense cracks under sustained pressure.
Forecast: The battle plan is to hold the fort against Portugal, defeat South Korea and go for broke against Poland. It might work, but don’t bet the house.
Portugal (5)
World Cup record: Played 9, won 6, lost 3, tied 0, goals for 19, goals against 12.
Best finish: Third place, 1966.
1998 showing: Did not qualify.
Coach: Antonio Oliveira.
Players to watch: F-Luis Figo, M-Rui Costa, F-Pedro Pauleta.
Quick look: The twin spurs prodding the Portuguese are their controversial loss to eventual champion France in the semifinals of the European Championship in 2000 and the fact that they will host that same tournament in 2004. It is also the last chance for this generation of players to make an impact at a World Cup.
Forecast: Portugal will win the group, then beat Croatia or Mexico to reach the quarterfinals. After that, it’s up to Figo.
Group E: Cameroon a solid long shot
Germany (12)
Coach: Rudi Voller.
Players to watch: M-Dietmar Hamann, D-Christian Ziege, M-Michael Ballack, G-Oliver Kahn.
Quick look: Already in a down cycle, Germany has been hit by key injuries. Chances of advancing would be better if Voller had a striker of Voller’s caliber.
Saudi Arabia (34)
Coach: Nasser Al-Johar.
Players to watch: F-Obedi Al-Dossary, M-Nawaf Al-Temyat, M-Talal Al-Meshal.
Quick look: The Saudis went three-and-out in 1998. Temyat was voted 2001 Asian midfielder of the year, but the talent around him is too lean to advance in this group.
Ireland (18)
Coach: Mick McCarthy.
Players to watch: G-Shay Given, M-Jason McAteer, F-Niall Quinn.
Quick look: Roy Keane and McCarthy couldn’t shelve their personal differences and the team’s best player is off the squad. Quinn, 35, is a veteran of the 1990 quarterfinalists.
Cameroon (18)
Coach: Winfried Schafer.
Players to watch: F-Patrick Mboma, F-Samuel Eto’o, M-Marc-Vivien Foe, D-Geremi Njitap.
Quick look: Many believe Schafer is the right man to harness the team’s immense potential. At 40-1, the best long-shot bet in the tournament.
Group F: Argentina has loads of talent
Argentina (3)
Coach: Marcelo Bielsa.Players to watch: F-Gabriel Batistuta, F-Hernan Crespo, M-Juan Sebastian Veron, F-Claudio Lopez, M-Ariel Ortega, M-Javier Zanetti.
Quick look: There’s so much talent that Batistuta, one the world’s best strikers, might not crack the starting lineup.
Nigeria (29)
Coach: Adegboye Onigbinde.
Players to watch: F-Nwankwo Kanu, M-Jay-Jay Okocha, D-Taribo West, D-Celestine Babayaro.
Quick look: Highly skilled, as always. Won its group in 1998 and is capable of finishing anywhere in this group.
England (11)
Coach: Sven Goran Eriksson.
Players to watch: M-David Beckham, F-Michael Owen, M-Paul Scholes.
Quick look: Had high hopes until it saw its first-round draw and the midfielders started dropping. Beckham’s broken foot is apparently healed.
Sweden (17)
Coaches: Tommy Soderberg, Lars Lagerback. Players to watch: M-Fredrik Ljungberg, F-Henrik Larsson, G-Magnus Hedman.
Quick look: In Larsson, who led all European club players in scoring in 2001, and Ljungberg, Sweden has more offensive punch than the ’94 semifinalists.
Group G: Free passage for Italy
Italy (6)
Coach: Giovanni Trapattoni.
Players to watch: F-Francesco Totti, F-Christian Vieri, F-Alessandro Del Piero, D-Paolo Maldini, G-Gianluigi Buffon.
Quick look: Should win this group with ease. After that, would likely face the United States or Poland.
Ecuador (36)
Coach: Hernan Dario Gomez.
Players to watch: F-Ivan Kaviedes, F-Agustin Delgado, M-Alex Aguinaga.
Quick look: Amazing but true, Ecuador finished second behind Argentina in the South American qualification group, one point ahead of Brazil.
Croatia (23)
Coach: Mirko Jozic.
Players to watch: F-Alen Boksic, M-Robert Prosinecki, F-Davor Suker, D-Robert Jarni.
Quick look: Many of the key components of the ’98 semifinalist squad–Suker, Jarni, Prosinecki among them–are now in their 30s.
Mexico (7)
Coach: Javier Aguirre.
Players to watch: F-Cuauhtemoc Blanco, F-Francisco Palencia, M-Rafael Marquez.
Quick look: The midfield lacks a true playmaker, reducing strategy to the essentials of defending and getting the ball to Blanco and Palencia.
Group H: Belgium, Japan head weak bunch
Japan (33)
Coach: Philippe Troussier.
Players to watch: M-Hidetoshi Nakata, M-Shinji Ono, M-Junichi Inamoto, F-Atsushi Yanagisawa.
Quick look: Troussier has a capable midfield, led by Nakata, who plays for the Italian club Parma, and Ono, of the Dutch club Feyenoord.
Belgium (22)
Coach: Robert Waseige.
Players to watch: F-Marc Wilmots, M-Gert Verheyen, F-Wesley Sonck.
Quick look: Belgium is the only country to have qualified for the last six World Cups without hosting or having won it. Like goal posts and grass fields, the Belgians are always there.
Russia (24)
Coach: Oleg Romantsev.
Players to watch: F-Vladimir Beschastnykh, M-Yegor Titov, M-Alexander Mostovoi, G-Ruslan Nigmatullin.
Quick look: Beschastnykh is an exciting talent and Mostovoi is valuable and versatile, playing both sweeper and striker during qualifiers.
Tunisia (29)
Coaches: Ammar Souyah and Khemaeis Laabidi.
Players to watch: F-Zied Jaziri, M-Zoubeir Baya, D-Khaled Badra.
Quick look: Tunisia did not score in three matches and failed to reach the quarterfinals of January’s African Nations Cup.
*FIFA world ranking
