http://reviews-sports.blogspot.com/2009/12/world-cup-football-match-schedule-and.html

Drogba is certainly a threat when one considers his scoring record for the Ivory Coast and I personally wouldn’t be surprised if he ends up top scorer in WC 2010, but it’s too difficult to tell given the many unknown variables. The quality of the group his country will be placed in, Drogba’s own form and of course his physical condition will all play a role in deciding if he can compete for the top scorer’s title. Then you have to factor in whether there is a surprise newcomer since the World Cup tends to have its own stars such as Toto Schillaci in 1990 or Oleg Salenko who scored five goals for Russia against Cameroon during WC 1994 (Salenko would score one more goal to finish tied with Buglaria’s famous star Stoichkov and share with him the Golden Boot). Anything is possible making the World Cup a fascinating event which transcends any other sports tournament.

I agree about your assessment of Torres; there is no doubt he is a great talent and a threat to any defense. I just feel David Villa and Brazil’s Luis Fabiano have a better chance of topping the scoring list considering their respective record with their national team. Villa has been a consistent scorer for Valencia the past couple of years too. The threat to them would probably come from Drogba, depending on how difficult the Ivory Coast’s group is, and from perhaps Lionel Messi if he can duplicate his club form and Maradona can finally create the feeling of a united group as opposed to a bunch of stars playing together.

As the summer of 2010 draws near, this president will prepare himself to take center stage at the world’s biggest gathering of sports enthusiasts. President Obama will embrace the “world’s game’” at the pinnacle of its spectacle, and will shine brightly as the biggest star at the world’s biggest game in its most unusual of settings. As the Cup ventures to Africa for the first time in the competition’s history, the first African-American President will take full advantage of the opportunity to share his message of a “changed America” with an audience of 700,000,000+ who will tune in for the Final and the more than 5 billion viewers who will watch the full slate of games. For a President committed to “restoring” America’s image in the global community, the World Cup will be his greatest moment. World-wide “apology tours” and UN speeches reach only a limited audience, but the pulpit that is the World Cup will be limitless.

So yes, he will go. He will go and the world will embrace him. He will take with him his message of hope, of change, and of a nation recast in the image of a new and refined face on the world’s stage. He will arrive in Johannesburg not as a conquering hero but as a returning son, and he will attempt to undue the atrocities envisioned in his own mind by bowing at the alter of the world’s greatest game. The only question is whether once the applause stop and the cheers go silent, will anyone truly listen to the Chosen One and his message? Africa embraced Ali because he was a smooth talker and promised big results, upon which he delivered. South Africa rallied around Nelson Mandela because he personified much needed change and his very freedom generated hope, which has helped sustain the country’s march to actualized equality. Will President Obama finally find his moment of redemption where he will for the first time connect with citizens of the world and generate tangible results, or will this simply be another love, apology, and appeasement tour that will do little more than generate hype, big crowds, and adoring audiences but only succeed in diminishing further the nation’s position in the global community? Perhaps a more fitting question to be posed regarding our prognosticating Chief Executive would be – as he fills out his tournament bracket as he did with the NCAA Basketball tournament, will he bet on the United States when he picks a winner or will he think such a choice will represent exceptionalism and lead to yet another apology tour if we should win?

http://republicanredefined.com/2009/11/25/world-cup-2010-obamas-next-global-initiative/

Torres strike record although not as numerous are all from open play – 71 caps for a 25 yr old now that’s impressive!

Raul’s understudy now Villa’s strike partner…..he’s an asset to any team!