World Cup Preview: Day 1

It’s almost here. The greatest show on earth is heading to a nation so passionate about football it is described as a religion to the people there and, despite the problems with violence in the area, you can be sure that the first game between Brazil and Croatia will be a great occasion.

Former Arsenal player Eduardo will be playing against his home nation of Brazil in the opener, something that has surely never happened before. Eduardo has never looked back since claiming Croatian citizenship back in 2002 but he said that facing Brazil in the opening match of a Brazilian World Cup.

“Without a doubt this is a little odd, but I see it as a great opportunity too,” Eduardo told FIFA.com. “I could never have imagined this situation: to be Brazilian and have the chance to play in a World Cup in your own country, but in the shirt of another national team,” he added.

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“And on top of that, just to complicate things, there’s the opening match between the two countries. I could never have imagined such a huge coincidence. It’ll be a difficult moment for me, I’m sure you understand. If only I had the chance to sing both anthems. I think I am going to feel torn.”

The match will take place in the Arena Corinthians in Sao Paulo, a stadium with a capacity of around 61,606 specially extended for this opener. There are bigger stadiums in the country but the atmosphere generated by the crowd will be nothing short of electric, and you can be sure the fans will put the pressure on Brazil to succeed.

I think Brazil will finish the opening day as winners and sit safe in the knowledge they have got their campaign off to a solid start, but Croatia will give them a tougher game than most are anticipating.

Brazil 2 – 1 Croatia

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