TODAY’S GAMES
GROUP F: ITALY VS. SLOVAKIA
Where: Ellis Park, Johannesburg. Time: 7 a.m. PDT.
TV: ESPN, ESPN Deportes and TeleFutura. Radio: Sirius/XM, KLYY-FM 97.5 and KDLD-FM 103.1.
The buzz: Defending world champion Italy’s offense has yet to get on track and their defense has proved to be vulnerable to free kicks. For Slovakia to advance, it must defeat Italy and has to have Paraguay not lose to New Zealand in the other group game in Polokwane. “Let’s hope for a miracle,” said Slovakia defender Martin Petras.
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GROUP F: PARAGUAY VS. NEW ZEALAND
Where: Peter Mokaba Stadium, Polokwane. Time: 7 a.m. PDT.
TV: ESPN2 and Univision. Radio: Sirius/XM, KLYY-FM 97.5 and KDLD-FM 103.1.
The buzz: With a victory, Paraguay could envision a clear route all the way to the quarterfinals, a previously unattained goal. New Zealand did tie Italy, which Coach Ricki Herbert called “way above anything we’ve achieved in the history of the game.”
-- Grahame L. Jones
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GROUP E: JAPAN VS. DENMARK
Where: Rustenburg. Time: 11:30 a.m. PDT.
TV: ESPN, Telefutura. Radio: Sirius/XM, KLYY-FM 97.5, KDLD-FM/KDLE-FM 103.1.
The buzz: Thanks to a better goal differential, Japan only needs to avoid a loss here to advance while Denmark needs a win to move on. Japanese Coach Takeshi Okada expects “a very close, fierce match.” The Danes will be without defender Simon Kjaer, who had a splendid game against Cameroon but will miss this with two yellow cards in as many games.
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GROUP E: NETHERLANDS VS. CAMEROON
Where: Cape Town. Time: 11:30 a.m. PDT.
TV: ESPN 2, ESPN Deportes, Univision. Radio: Sirius/XM, KLYY-FM 97.5, KDLD-FM/KDLE-FM 103.1.
The buzz: The Netherlands has already qualified for the second round. Winless Cameroon, meanwhile, is playing for little more than pride with Coach Paul Le Guen promising his team “will play for the honor of the country.”
-- Kevin Baxter