Kicking  off

International football players in Thailand share their views on how their national teams will perform at the Fifa World Cup, and their hopes for the Kingdom's international aspirations

The German national football team has prepared themselves like world champions for the 2014 Brazil World Cup, sending a signal to competitors that it is the team to beat, says Lindemann.

Having followed his national team’s performance closely, he said Germany, which is in Group G with Portugal, Ghana and US, is heading to the tournament as one of the favourites. Germany’s performance history at the World Cup has been phenomenal, reaching the finals on seven occasions and winning on three occasions.

He predicts Germany will storm through the group stages, winning all three matches if there are no injuries and lady luck is on its side. With a good balance of youth and experience to pick from, head coach Joachim Loew should be able to tame opposition from the likes of host Brazil.

“Germany currently has so many young, brilliantly-honed and gifted soccer players — perhaps more than ever before in its history,” added Lindemann.

“If you ask me who our national coach can pin his hopes on to motivate his team to achieve our target, I would say most probably Per Mertesacker. He is a tactically skilled defender who plays an excellent positional game. He competes with the world’s best strikers in the English league, which means he is equipped for Brazil, where I bet he will be meeting a number of his opponents from regular German league matches.”

Lindemann said while Germany is riding a wave of confidence, they cannot afford to be complacent.

“I do believe this World Cup will spring a few surprises, especially, with the onslaught from the likes of Japan and South Korea, not to mention African nations who have improved their game in leaps and bounds. The scoreline will be close; each team is well prepared,” he said.

As for Thailand’s chances to qualify for the World Cup, Lindemann said it can happen in the next decade only if more emphasis is put on building young talent in a systematic manner. He has found that to make up for their small stature, they were quick on their feet, which was a great asset.

It should also be made mandatory for Thai football coaches to sit the Asian Football Confederation coaching licence, he said. “There is no reason why Thailand cannot become as successful as Japan and South Korea. There has to be continuity to reach this goal, and so coaches have to be professional.”

Playing football in the Land of Smiles has so far been quite an adventure for Lindemann. He has fallen in love with the culture and its people, whom he describes as respectful and friendly. However, it is not just his talent with the ball that makes him popular with football fans it seems, but also his good looks that have earned him a fair share of female supporters.

The Japanese national football team’s realistic aim for this World Cup is to go one step better than in South Africa in 2010 and reach the quarter-finals. If their performances in warm-up matches are anything to go by, they have the capability to do even better and reach the finals, said Saruta, an avid supporter of the Samurai Blue team.

“The warm-up games against the likes of Italy, Holland, Belgium, Argentina and France in the past 12 months have proven that the Japanese team has the capability of troubling and beating the very best sides in international football. The scoreline has been close,” said Saruta.

“It is my opinion that Japan’s national coach Alberto Zaccheroni has sharpened the team’s attacking skills, which has taken its game to the next level.

“He has also instilled better discipline and managed to help players reach their potential in their positions. Their overall tactical game has been systematically planned to keep their competitors, which include Ivory Coast, Greece and Colombia, on the back foot.

“There will also be a good mix of experienced and new faces on the pitch. The average age at the last World Cup was about 29, however, in Brazil this time it is 24, so I do envisage adrenalin-pumping action.

“Most Japanese players make up for their height deficit with their speed. A good number of national players at this World Cup also have the distinction of playing in football clubs in Europe, which will further assist in matches where they are pitted against teams with taller players.”

Saruta said team confidence has soared to the point that some senior players are going on the record to say that Japan is going to be a champion.

One such individual is Japan player Keisuke Honda, who has reported to have said that he believes Blue Samurai has the capability to pull off an enormous upset in Brazil and go on to capture the World Cup.

Saruta added that the AC Milan player’s comment carries some weight, despite a couple of raised eyebrows from critics, for the simple fact that he is central to coach
Zaccheroni’s attacking tactics and also competed at the last World Cup, when they advanced to the knockout stage only for the second time.

“Honda said that he is eager to surprise the world. He said to achieve the goal they would need to believe in their style and themselves.”

On his experience of playing in Thailand, Saruta said he has enjoyed his six years here.

“The level of football here is really competitive and it’s great to see so many spectators come watch our matches. Thai football has really grown through the years. Six years ago, there were just three Japanese players in Thailand. Today this number has risen to 50,” he said.

“Prior to playing in Thailand, I was in Singapore. I like it here a lot more — both the people and food are great. It has become like my second home.”

Saruta said the chances of Thailand qualifying for the World Cup were high as long as football development was made a priority throughout the nation.

“Thai society has to also change its attitude towards football — the sport is not just a hobby, it can be developed into a profession.”

Despite being branded the underdogs in Group A, which includes Brazil, Croatia and Mexico, Cameroon is determined to not let its lacklustre performance in South Africa four years ago hamper its chances of reaching the quarter finals this time around. This is the opinion of Cameroonian Njie Ngenevu Divine, who has closely followed his home team’s progress.

Divine said that his assumption is based on the team’s preparation for the 2014 Brazil World Cup, which according to him has been so intense and motivational that players are psyched up to not just reach the quarter-finals, but with the right conditions, the finals.

He believes the team’s confidence stems from a number of factors, including Cameroon’s coach Volker Finke’s attention to team motivation, which has given the players a positive mindset.

During his talks to the players, Finke is reported to have put a lot of emphasis on the concept of respecting teammates and having confidence in the selection process. This has made the team more disciplined to follow instructions and work hard.

Team manager Rigobert Song Bahanag, who is a former national footballer, has also played a deciding role in focusing on the general well-being of each player, Divine said. As Bahanag can empathise with his players, he knows how to get the footballers pumped up enough to get results.

The fact that a string of World Cup players have competitive experience with clubs in Turkey, Germany, France and Spain, has also contributed to the confidence the team is experiencing, said Divine.

“Let us not forget that Cameroon’s poor performance at the 2010 World Cup, where they went out in the first round, is a bitter experience they hope not to relive,” added Divine.

“They have worked really hard to lift their game in the past four years. Their warm-up matches against countries like Germany, with which they drew 2-2, and Paraguay, to which they narrowly lost 2-1, have shown that they will not be pushed around by any of the World Cup favourites.”

According to Divine, his team’s efforts to progress into the later rounds of the World Cup will be hindered if key players are injured early on in the tournament or if there is poor refereeing.

“The team has prepared well in all departments to expect the unexpected; now all we need is the favour of God to be on our side,” he said. “Weather and food should not be an issue for the national side. Brazil will definitely be firing on all cylinders to impose their dominance early on in the tournament, so Cameroon has to focus first on getting to the next round. After we get a couple of victories under our belt, I do believe anything can happen. Personally, it would be great feeling to see my team hoist the World Cup trophy.”

Divine has played for Suphanburi FC for 17 months and resided in Thailand for six years. He has found the experience to be rewarding, but while he has found Thai players to be hard-working with a good tactical game, he said they would go much further in their professional careers if they believed in themselves more.

As for their chances to qualify for the World Cup, Divine said: “If there is greater determination to be the best, I do believe that in four to five years we can see Thailand represented on the world stage.”

‘England’s always had good quality players … but I don’t think England’s gone out as an attacking team,” says Jay Bothroyd when asked how his country can overcome the challenges from previous World Cup competitions. “In recent World Cups, there’s been so much expectation for England to do well when England hasn’t won a world since 1966. That’s terrible.”

While he says the English Premier League is probably the best league in the world, Bothroyd believes that for England to have a chance of winning the World Cup this year, the team must change their strategy from defence to offence. But he is optimistic about the current coaching and training of the team in preparation for the upcoming tournament, and especially with the work of head coach Roy Hodgson.

“From what people have told me about his training methods and the way he organises his team, he’s very tactical, a lot of shadow play, a lot of movement, a lot of teamwork.”

Bothroyd suggests the strategy should be for the younger players to attack. “They’ve got a lot of pace and that’s what I want to see in this World Cup.”

Despite the fact that Bothroyd will not be participating in this year’s World Cup, this does not overshadow the successes and achievements of his football career. Having played at Premier League clubs such as Arsenal and Cardiff City, Italian football club AC Parugia, and now Muangthong United, Bothroyd has a made a name for himself as an internationally renowned player.

“I’ve experienced good things — I’ve experienced playing football abroad, being here, and being in Italy,” says Bothroyd.

Before starting at Muangthong United and hearing of the football scene in Thailand from former Liverpool striker and Muangthong United manager Robbie Fowler, Bothroyd did not know what to expect. However, after playing some games for the team and in the Thai Premier League, Bothroyd has formed an opinion of Thai football.

“Not many people know about the football here, but technically it’s of a great standard,” he says. Yet, while Bothroyd praises the Thai football scene, he says there are areas with room for improvement that can enable the game to progress.

Bothroyd notes that the Thai Premier League has been incorporating a large number of foreign players into their clubs in recent years and speculates that this could enhance the country’s chances of qualification in future World Cups.

“I think they definitely have good talent to qualify and get better as a country and as a nation,” says Bothroyd. “We’re here to improve the league, just like foreign players come to the English Premier League to improve it. We’re all trying to improve the standard of football and obviously I think it’s going that way.”