Group H Preview

Group H	FIFA	ELO	Best Finish	WC 2010
Belgium	12	18	4th	DNQ
Algeria	25	56	1st Round (3 times)	28th
Russia	18	15	4th	DNQ
Korea	55	36	4th	15th

For Algeria, this is their fourth World Cup tournament. They have never made it out of the first round. Just four years ago they finished 4th in their group, but they did successfully hold England to a scoreless draw. This year, FIFA has Algeria ranked higher than South Korea, but the ELO has the two teams swapped, and my gut says the latter has it right. Holding Belgium or Russia to a scoreless draw would be big, but their celebrations will continue around just scoring goals, not results. Their opposition has much better history, with each team finishing as high as fourth in a previous tournament.

Korea took home 4th when they cohosted in 2002. They've been looking for that kind of success since. Last World Cup they made it into the second round despite being in a difficult group on paper. Their 2-0 win over Greece would send them to the knockout round. Here, they fought hard against a talented Uruguay team but lost 1-2. They'll be looking to pick up where they left off with good showings against Algeria, Russia, and Belgium, but finishing in third in this group wouldn't surprise me.

Russia finished 4th back in 1966 as the USSR. Since the fall of the Soviet Union, they've not found that kind of success. They failed to qualify for World Cup 2010 and are unreliable when it comes to figuring out how well they'll play. This team could be going to the knockout round, or they could find themselves leaving after three games. One thing for certain, they'll have a tough time not getting involved in opinions about the politics of their government. At least they won't be running into Ukraine on the field.

Belgium are the young guns who look to find success after overhauling their youth system years ago. They finished 4th in 1986, but haven't made any waves since. Their motto says to "(e)xpect the impossible". This is true. With a veteran captain like Vincent Kompany and a burgeoning star in young Eden Hazard I expect this team to win the group. It won't be easy, but this team should find success against the group. They failed to make it to South Africa, but they should make this a statement tournament. They have the ability here to make themselves early Euro favorites with a deep run. The only thing standing in their way, is themselves.

Key Match:

The second group match of Belgium and Russia will be key. Belgium should take the three points from Algeria without effort. Russia may struggle against Korea. Even with a loss under their belt, a victory for Belgium against Russia would give them 6 points out of two games. This should lock them through to the second round, and set them up for a perfect first round.