Oman Biyik
“Lots of South American eyes will be aimed at Angola this month as the African Cup of Nations gets underway. Argentina will have a chance to study Nigeria, its opening World Cup opponent, while Brazil can look at Ivory Coast, the team it will face second in the so-called ‘Group of Death.’ The other clash between the two continents in the group phase of the World Cup is Uruguay against the hosts, but here the South Americans are out of luck — South Africa didn’t qualify for Angola. But Uruguay might meet Nigeria in the second round, just as Paraguay might be up against Cameroon and Chile could find itself taking on Ivory Coast. So from the South American point of view, some important reconnaissance work will be taking place over the next few weeks. (SI – Tim Vickery)