Argentina, What you gonna do?

Argentina is a very interesting team to analyze prior to this World Cup. This is a team coached by arguably the best and most controversial player of all time. When they announced Maradona as their manager a few years back, it seemed like they were putting all their amazing eggs in the basket of a man who was last recognized as the overweight Argentine that did so much coke that they banned him from all competition. But now, this is the man to lead the team with the best player in the world into the 2010 World Cup. After barely even making it into the World Cup Finals, many are questioning Maradona's managing capabilities and if he has what it takes to take this team to the next level.

I feel like these guys are true contenders. They have, in my opinion, the best frontline in the game. Obviously led by the brilliance of Messi, they also have the extreme heart and passion on Man City's Tevez, the sheer goal scoring abilities of Milito and Higuain, and the magical touch of Aguero. It's almost too many options for Maradona to deal with--how is one to use such a complete arsenal of firepower?

My ONLY request is that you do not do what your predecessor did: bench Messi, even for a second. I think it's obvious to everyone in the world that that was an incorrect decision against the German's in the quarterfinal of 2006 that will forever plague José Pekerman. I do have a bias here and feel that Tevez along with Messi could be a completely shocking combination. These two guys, when on the same page, have exactly what it takes to produce some of the most magical football we've ever seen.

Until this point, Messi has not come close to showing his true talent on the world stage. Yes he's won everything possible on the club level, but critics claim that the international scene is hard to break in to and many are pessimistic about his international ability. I think that this 22 year old phenom has a chance now to prove that he should be considered one of the greats and will show brilliance in the cup. That being said, a sincere part of me thinks that 2014 Brazil will be an epic showdown between the Argentines and the Brasileiros.

I'm excited to see what Maradona can do with his insanely skilled attackers, but am truly excited to see these guys in the next world cup when they have a new coach, a new tradition of winning, and can secure a World Cup Championship for these soulful players. In my opinion Messi will win a World Cup and Tevez can be the one to have the heart and desire to lead them to victory. While their midfield may not be extremely powerful, back line a little porous, and goalkeeper not necessarily world class, I like their chances in this world of parity and really like their chances in the future.

The Excitement of South Africa

I'm an adventurous person. I go with my heart and leap to adventure whenever I can. When I heard that the World Cup was going to be played in South Africa, a nation with beautiful landscapes, endless coastline, a vibrant people, and the highest crime rate in the world, I figured, Why not?

I haven't thought about the negatives of this trip too much with all of the positives that the Cup brings. As I have seen in my travels around the world, most generalizations and worries people have are usually blown out of proportion. It reminds me of my first week in Spain. With my good buddy Troy, we stayed in a quaint hostel next to a little park with an intricate Columbus statue and some interesting spanish architecture. In our first night, Troy and I decided to check out the Madrid locals and see what they were all about. We wandered around, got some food, went to the park where many teenagers and early twenty-somethings were hanging out. Troy and I played guitar, drank cervezas, shared purros, and just tried to assimilate with the locals. Yeah, there were some cultural differences--our styles were different, but as I played my favorite Bob Marley song, we all sang along and had a great time. Months later, Troy and I found our heads in the clouds after attending the Atletico Madrid game capped off by a splendid free kick by El Nino. While getting ourselves lost, as we usually did, we asked for directions back to the park where we spent so much of our free time. I'll never forget what the man said "El Parque de heroina?? No quieres a ir a esta parque!" Turns out, we were hanging out in a "very dangerous" park that we should have never gone too (a.k.a. Heroin Park). Granted, I guess there could have been problems, but we found ourselves hanging with the locals without an issue and had a considerably good time. If we would have followed the advice of this man before going there, we would have had a completely different opinion of the park and probably never would have ended up in one of the most memorable spots of our whole trip.

I digress, what made me think of this is that I have been coming across news article after news article as of late, listing reasons why not to travel to South Africa. Whether it is the white supremacist leader that just got killed and the expectation of race riots or the feeding frenzies that the great whites will have with all that foreign meat around to chomp on, its actually starting to make me think about some of my free-wheeling travel plans and recognize that there are some dangers out there. This all being said, I'm really not that worried, just find it interesting that i can read article after article of "things to scare you" about South Africa, like they are popping up just to frighten people away from the greatest sporting event on the planet.

Regardless of all this, I am just completely stoked to be able to witness this event firsthand--the South African bars teeming with rabid fans, the newly built stadiums with flares emblazoning the national teams' colors, and the chance of a wildebeest sneaking up to our apartments side door--I know the adventure is not far off