Hello there and welcome to
Sports Mole's rolling news coverage of the 2014
World Cup.
Over the next few weeks, we will be bringing you the latest news, previews, gossip and match reports for the duration of the tournament in Brazil.
Right, let's start with a bit of news from the England camp.
Defender Phil Jones has expressed his relief at being passed fit for the tournament after suffering a shoulder injury at the end of last season.
"Once I did it I thought I might not have a chance, but thankfully it healed quickly and I'm feeling fit, ready and I'm so looking forward to it," the 22-year-old told the Football Association's official website.
Just when you thought it couldn't get any worse.
FIFA president Sepp Blatter was showing off his moves on Tuesday night when he got up on stage in Sao Paulo to have a dance with Brazilian model Fernanda Lima.
The 78-year-old was appearing at the governing body's congress opening ceremony ahead of the World Cup.
Figures from the world of European football have recently called on the Swiss to step down from his role amid corruption allegations.
Check out the video below to see Blatter getting jiggy with it:
Switzerland manager Ottmar Hitzfeld has claimed that European nations will
struggle out in Brazil during the World Cup.
The 65-year-old German recently confirmed that he would be retiring from coaching at the end of the tournament.
Hitzfeld believes that European teams will find the conditions "very, very difficult" to deal with in South America.
Former England defender Phil Neville believes that Wayne Rooney is
still the country's best player, despite doubts over his place in the team.
"I just think it is a witch hunt we don't need," Neville told BBC Sport. "Everything has been going so well with the team's preparation that people are looking for a negative now, but there isn't a negative with Wayne."
France coach Didier Deschamps has stressed the
importance of unity within his squad ahead of the World Cup.
Les Bleus failed to get beyond the group stage in South Africa four years ago as a player revolt brought chaos to their chances of progressing.
As you are probably well aware, the World Cup gets underway tomorrow night when hosts Brazil meet Croatia in Sao Paulo. With the game fast approaching, you can take a look at
Sports Mole's preview of that fixture right
here.
Former France striker Louis Saha has claimed that Samir Nasri should
not have been left out of the current squad for the World Cup.
The Manchester City midfielder was controversially omitted by coach Didier Deschamps amid claims that the 26-year-old can be a disruptive influence in the dressing room.
Huge news from Brazi! J-Lo confirms that she will
now be playing at tomorrow's opening ceremony! The singer had originally pulled out due to 'production issues', but her spokesperson has revealed that she will be there in all of her auto-tuned glory.
Lionel Messi has revealed that he is
feeling confident about Argentina's chances of making it through to the World Cup final.
Messi and his international teammates have been knocked out in the quarter-finals of their last two appearances at the tournament.
Germany legend Lothar Matthaus has claimed that Mesut Ozil does
not have a guaranteed place in the team ahead of the World Cup.
The 25-year-old's recent form has been questioned following a series of ineffective performances for Arsenal towards the end of last season.
Netherlands winger Arjen Robben has claimed that he and his teammates will
find it "very tough" to get out of their group at the World Cup in Brazil.
The Dutch take on reigning champions Spain in their opening match on Friday before potentially-tricky games against Chile and Australia.
We've been working very hard indeed here at
Sports Mole to bring you a variety of great features ahead of the World Cup. We'll be dotting previews from all eight groups throughout today's live blog, and here's the first:
Group A.
Brazil legend Pele has warned that there is
too much pressure on Neymar ahead of the World Cup. The 22-year-old playmaker, who plays his club football for Barcelona, has been tipped to guide the host nation to the latter stages of the tournament this summer.
Let's have a bit of fun, shall we? The World Cup has seen some incredible goals down the years, and we've gathered together
10 of the best to whet your appetite for this year's tournament.
Expect plenty of moments like this to make up the list:
As you pore over those goals, we'll be taking a short break before carrying on with our live news coverage this afternoon.
And we're back. As promised, here's the second of our group previews ahead of the World Cup. This time we're focusing on Group B, which features holders Spain and the Netherlands. You can check it out
here.
Former England manager Glenn Hoddle has
tipped Argentina to win this year's World Cup. The two-time champions get their Group F campaign up and running against Bosnia-Herzegovina on Sunday before fixtures with Iran and Nigeria.
The Argentines first lifted the trophy in 1878 before repeating the feat under the captaincy of Diego Maradona eight years later.
Slightly worrying news for England as Danny Welbeck
misses training ahead of Saturday's World Cup opener against Italy. The Manchester United striker is understood to be suffering with a groin problem ahead of the game in Manaus this weekend.
We saw him dancing around with a Brazilian model earlier, but FIFA president Sepp Blatter has now
called for changes to be made to the governing of world football. Blatter, who is under pressure to step down from his role amid corruption allegations, was addressing FIFA's annual congress in Sao Paulo.
Bad news for opposition defences everywhere as Spain striker Diego Costa announces that he is
"fully fit". Costa had been a doubt for the tournament due to a persistent hamstring problem, but he insists that his fitness issues are behind him as Spain look to defend their World Cup crown.
Algeria defender Madjid Bougherra has claimed that the team has
"nothing to lose" as they look to get beyond the group stage for the first time at the World Cup. The Algerians, who have failed to reach the second round in their previous four attempts, have been pitted against Belgium, Russia and South Korea in Group H.
Italy are given a boost before Saturday's opener with England as midfielder Marco Verratti
returns to training after recovering from a virus. The 21-year-old missed the Azzurri's friendly win over Fluminense on Sunday because of a bout of flu.
Next up in our World Cup previews we take a look at Group C, which is a very tough one to call. Ivory Coast, Japan, Colombia and Greece are all involved. You can take a look at our lowdown
here.
Ramires has admitted that the Brazil squad is
feeling anxious because of the pressure on them to win the World Cup. The Brazilians are widely considered to be one of the favourites to lift the trophy on July 13, but the midfielder concedes that the players are beginning to feel the weight of expectation.
Jay Rodriguez has claimed that there are
"no limits" to what England can do at the World Cup. The Southampton forward missed out on a place in Roy Hodgson's squad after suffering a serious knee injury back in April.
With the World Cup's opening match between Brazil and Croatia just over 24 hours away, we've taken a look at
five classic fixtures that have kicked off the tournament in the past. Contains shocks, surprises and goals. Plenty of goals.
Spain midfielder Koke has claimed that the team's winning mentality
will not change as they look to defend their World Cup crown. La Roja kick off their campaign on Friday when they meet the Netherlands in what is a repeat of the 2010 final.
Some good news now for England as it seems as if Danny Welbeck will be fit for Saturday's opener against Italy. The striker missed training earlier today with suspected groin problem. However, Wayne Rooney has just told reporters: "Danny will be fine. He will be ready for Saturday. He's not risked anything so he'll train on Friday and be available for Saturday."
Speaking of England and Italy,
here's our preview for Group D. It's sure to be a fascinating battle to reach the second round as Uruguay and Costa Rica are both also going to want a say on proceedings. It could be a right old scrap for qualification.
Greece captain Georgios Karagounis has revealed that he is eager to guide the team
past the group stage for the first time in their history at the World Cup. The former European champions play their opening game of the tournament on Sunday when they meet Colombia in Belo Horizonte.
Germany goalkeeping coach Andreas Kopke has confirmed that Manuel Neuer is
fully fit after recovering from a shoulder injury. The 28-year-old shotstopper took part in his first full training session with the national team on Wednesday following doubts over whether he would be able to participate.
Our World Cup previews continue now as we cast our eye over Group E. France are expected to top the group, while Switzerland, Ecuador and Honduras are also competing for a place in the second round of the tournament. You can read our thoughts on the teams
here.
Netherlands playmaker Wesley Sneijder has revealed that he is
still 'scarred' by his team's defeat to Spain in the 2010 World Cup final. The Dutch, who were beaten 1-0 in South Africa four years ago, have the chance for revenge on Friday when they begin their 2014 campaign against the defending champions.
Evening all! Pascal Lemesre taking over from Jack Prescott for an hour. He's been very helpfully linking you to our group previews and there's still three left, starting with
Group F and those pesky Argentinians.
© Getty Images
A reminder, it's just one day until the World Cup. As @PCarrESPN notes on Twitter, just one of England's players doesn't play in the Premier League - Celtic goalkeeper Fraser Forster.
The England boys are enjoying themselves at the moment:
With the excitement building, we will be keeping you up to date with all the latest happenings in Brazil.
Sticking with England and there are
real concerns about the state of the pitch at the Arena Amazonia ahead of their World Cup opener against Italy on Saturday. Look!
A reminder of today's top World Cup headlines on the way...
There looks to be plenty of interest in the Brazilian coach-player duo of Luiz Felipe Scolari and Neymar...
Our penultimate World Cup preview
looks at Group G, which is arguably the group of death with Germany, Portugal, Ghana and the USA.
On this day four years ago, hosts South Africa scored a wonder goal on the opening day of the 2010 tournament:
Neymar
admits that he is "anxious" ahead of Brazil's opener against Croatia tomorrow. There is so much pressure on the Barcelona youngster given his incredible international record at just 22 years old - 31 goals in 49 games.
Right, that's my quick hour over and done with. I'll now pass you over to Matt Domm for the remainder of the night. You're in safe hands, don't worry.
Thanks for the confidence, Pascal! Matt here to see you all through to 11pm. I suppose I don't need to ask, but - excited? About the World Cup, that is, not my stint on here. I'll keep you abreast of this evening's World Cup news.
Let's finish the group previews, shall we? Last up is, naturally,
Group H. The expectation is for Belgium and Russia to get through, but South Korea will surely provide a stern test for the second qualification spot.
We have another one for you preview fans. Group A opens tomorrow, as you know, but the other two teams along with Croatia vying for probably second in the group are Mexico and Cameroon. They
clash on Friday and, with a match against Brazil to follow for both, a winning start would be huge.
A little bit of England interest here - well, loosely. Andrea Pirlo has
not backed out of his decision to retire after the World Cup and focus on club football. It might have boosted the Three Lions' chances had he done it a few months ago and wouldn't be playing on Saturday, but in all seriousness nobody wants the tournament to be without its best players. Pirlo can certainly be one of those.
We have now, by the way, ticked over into under 24 hours until the World Cup gets underway!
Friday sees one of the biggest clashes of the opening round, as Spain take on Netherlands in Group B. We've kindly put together a preview for you
right here. Do take a look. It's hard to look beyond Spain for the win, but there is some real threat in that Netherlands squad.
Brazil last won the World Cup in 2002, and they will not have a better chance to reclaim their trophy than a tournament in front of their own fans. Luiz Felipe Scolari, their coach, also recognises it as a golden chance -
see what he has to say about his side's chances here. He's being as confident as can be without getting carried away, if you ask me.
Our final preview for the day is up. It's not only Spain and Netherlands who play in Group B on Friday,
Chile take on Australia as well. You would have to fancy the attacking Chile side, but you just never know, and it could give one of the two sides a big advantage in their outside chance of qualifying.
A bit more from Germany this evening. We heard earlier that Podolski feels it is their time to win, and Mesut Ozil has said that
the players owe their coach Joachim Low for what he has done with them. Germany have been semi-finalists twice running and are the most fancied European team to succeed over the coming weeks.
A couple of stories of confidence and pressure next for you. There has been plenty of talk today about the pressure on Neymar's shoulders, and former Brazil coach Carlos Alberto Parreira has tried now to divert some onto his teammates, telling them
to step up. Also, Wayne Rooney has declared that England will beat Italy because, well, because they
are a better team. We shall see there, Wayne.
My time here has come to an end. I'll leave you in Alex Meyers's capable hands, who will be with you until the close of play at 2am. Over to you, Alex.
Thanks Matt! We are now under a day away from the start of this year's World Cup, with the excitement continuing to build before the big kick off. I for one can't wait for it to start, with more iconic moments just waiting to happen over the next month. Who can forget this goal from Andres Iniesta that saw Spain win their first tournament four years ago against the Netherlands?
Wayne Rooney has claimed that the current England squad is the
best that he has been part of ahead of their World Cup opener against Italy. The 28-year-old is yet to score in his eight previous tournament appearances, but is optimistic of the country's chances in Brazil.
France striker Olivier Giroud has claimed that he should be in the
starting lineup for his country's opening match against Honduras this weekend. He found the net during their
8-0 win over Jamaica, but faces tough competition from Karim Benzema, who looks to have refound his scoring touch for the national side.
Some more news coming from France, where Laurent Koscielny has said that he is confident his country can
top their group. They are seen as the favourites to go through ahead of Honduras, Switzerland and Ecuador, but four years ago in South Africa they failed to make it through to the knockout stages.
It looks like Italy are in a confident mood ahead of their World Cup opener. Azzurri legend Andrea Pirlo has claimed that his country know
how to defeat England.
There have been plenty of injuries that have ruled key players out of this year's tournament and Uruguay have been sweating on the fitness of their star man Luis Suarez. The Liverpool man underwent knee surgery last month, and his teammate Diego Godin has
admitted that he doesn't know if he will be starting their opening match against Costa Rica this weekend.
It is finally the day of the World Cup, but we are still more than 20 hours away from Brazil's opener against Croatia. With the players on show we could witness some stunning goals, but could they better this strike from Giovanni Van Bronckhorst for the Netherlands in 2010?
Diego Costa is
standing firm on his decision to play for Spain at this summer's World Cup. He has chosen to represent the current World Cup holders, despite being born in Brazil. "I have confirmed that Spain is my country and the Spanish people are behind me. The criticism of my decision does not affect me."
USA manager Jurgen Klinsmann has poured cold water on his side's chances of success in Brazil, by claiming that it is
not realistic to talk about them winning the World Cup. They have been drawn in the so-called group of death, where they will face Ghana in their opening clash, before tough games against Portugal and Germany.
Diego Godin has admitted that while it will be hard for Uruguay to get out of their group ahead of England and Italy, they are
confident of reaching the knockout stages. The South Americans will open their tournament with a clash against Costa Rica on Saturday evening.
We've had a look at goals from Iniesta and Van Bronckhorst, but what about a stunning goal in a World Cup opening match? This screamer from Philip Lahm came just six minutes into the 2006 tournament and helped Germany on their way to a 4-2 victory over Costa Rica.
One man who is no stranger to finding the back of the net on the world stage is Germany's leading marksman Miroslav Klose. He is one behind Ronaldo's record World Cup tally of 15 goals and has admitted that he is
desperate to break that record in Brazil.
Croatia manager Niko Kovac has claimed that his team
knows how to stop Brazil. The two teams will meet in the opening match later today and he is confident of their chances against the hosts.
Well, that's all we've got time for here. Don't forget that we will be covering every match from the World Cup, with live commentary from Brazil's clash against Croatia starting at 6.30pm later this evening. Thanks for joining us for today's coverage. Until next time, Goodbye!
