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Tim Vickery - BBC Sport

Listed below are comments made by Tim Vickery - BBC Sport between Tuesday, 24th November 2009 and Wednesday, 2nd December 2009.

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Can history be made in South Africa? 4:27pm on 02 Dec 2009 there's a huge - and to my mind insurmountable, in the short term at least - problem to the idea of a final on a neutral ground.

south america isn't europe - distances are vast, mass salaries are low and air travel is expensive (as i know very well - it all comes out of my own pocket). a neutral ground final makes it impossible for the ordinary fan to go.
Can history be made in South Africa? 3:23pm on 01 Dec 2009 58 - it was hulk's form in portugal that got him a call up - i don't see japan as being particularly relevant.

and he is very much an outsider for a squad place - the only reason he got a chance last month was that with no break in the brazilian championship the local based players (adriano and diego tardelli) were not called up.

it's difficult to see him in the world cup 23 - but a lot could happen between now and then - injuries, adriano could go off the rails, so never say never!
Can history be made in South Africa? 1:53pm on 01 Dec 2009 54 -I don't think anyone in their right mind would argue that winter puts the south american teams at a disadvantage. Buenos Aires in July, for example, is like walking inside a fridge.

The point is that winter conditions are not a disadvantage for the europeans - so they can argue that this world cup will take place on a level playing field.
Can history be made in South Africa? 1:02pm on 01 Dec 2009 47 -the saying exists but it's nonsense - betrays the essence offootball, which is that how you do it is as important as what you do.

Brazil in 82, Holland in 74, Hungary in 54 - none of them won the cup, all of them fondly remembered.

40 - England overdue a tough group? Got the group of death in 2002 - which pre-tournament favourites Argentina failed to qualify from.
Can history be made in South Africa? 02:44am on 01 Dec 2009 i think the altitude scare mongering is getting out of hand!

firstly, altitude is not merely a condition that penalises northern europeans - brazil, argentina, uruguay and paraguay are lowlanders uncomfortable at altitude - the chileans have a bit more exposure to it.

secondly, 1753 meters is fairly mild - you have to get above 2,000 for much of an effect to be registered.

thirdly, anyone can adjust given time - and there's enough time between the end of the season and the start of the world cup to ensure that it's not a problem.
Will South Africa 2010 produce a new Pele? 03:29am on 26 Nov 2009 121 - no doubt about it, altitude is an advantage against unacclimatised opponents. but how much advantage is too much?

costa rica played their world cup play off on an articial pitch. russia can stage games on an artifical pitch in sub zero temperatures. this is all allowed - so why should altitude be banned? In health terms, it's less dangerous than extreme heat.

i thought fluminense were tired (no surprise after 10 games in 30 days) and didn't adapt their gae well - i'm not a fan of 3-5-2 in these conditions for the away side - try to keep it compact with 4-4-1-1, and circulate the ball as much as possible in midfield - flu didn't do it.
Will South Africa 2010 produce a new Pele? 03:24am on 26 Nov 2009 119 - the last piece i did on paraguay here was september of last year, so it's been a while - though i have written plenty aboutthem elsewhere.

and for the record, the international careers of the 2 under discussion.

cardozo - 29 caps, 4 goals
santa cruz - 66 caps, 20 goals.
Will South Africa 2010 produce a new Pele? 03:15am on 26 Nov 2009
108 wrote: "I get so fed up when people make excuses for the surprises in WC 2002 by putting it down to "burn-out" from the European players, yet Brazil won it with the majority of their first XI (bar Gilberto Silva and Kleberson) being European-based. This argument doesn't stand up."

Oh but it does - as long time readers might recall - the differential brazil add, in addition to that front 3 of course, was that their physical prpearation was so much better than everyone elses - it's one of the great hidden strengths of the brazilian game. Inter Milan couldn't get ronaldo fit - brazil did. barcelona said that rivaldo was too injured to play - brazil proved otherwise.

I did an interview with paulo paixao, brazil's physical prep man, just after that world cup - he couldn't get over how bad the europeans were at this - france lost zidane in a high profile friendly a few days before the kick off - when brazil were easing off with their players. I honestly think that the single bigest factor in brazil winning in 2002 was the lead they had in physical preparation.
Will South Africa 2010 produce a new Pele? 3:37pm on 24 Nov 2009 78 - a fit santa cruz is way ahead of cardozo in paraguay standings.
Will South Africa 2010 produce a new Pele? 3:11pm on 24 Nov 2009
the praise for paraguay's cardozo from european based players is interesting.
when he plays for paraguay he's a target for booing - his record for the national team is not good, and he would seem to have little chance of making the starting line up - nelson haedo and salavador cabanas are first choices on merit, miles ahead of him - there's santa cruz as well - cardozo in an option off the bench along with 'pajaro' benitez.

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Tim Vickery - BBC Sport