Ligue 1 Perspective: The 2010 FIFA World Cup (Part 2)

By: Thomas | July 7th, 2010

Cameroon:
Put in a poor showing in a group they could and should have advanced from. At least part of the blame must fall upon former PSG manager Paul Le Guen. Marseille DM Stephane Mbia started at right back in all three games, a position new to him, and preformed fairly well (although he picked up two yellow cards) at least in comparison to his counterpart on the left, Benoit Assou-Ekotto. Monaco CB Nicolas Nkoulou had a solid Cup, starting every game and only 20 years old at that, while Lyon midfielder Jean Makoun had a decent showing, playing 209 minutes across all three matches. Lille center back Aurelien Chedjou and ASNL center mid Landry Nguemo were given the full 90 in the final game against the Netherlands while Gaetan Bong of Valenciennes made a 56 minute cameo appearance. Others, such as Nantes keeper Guy N’dy Assembe and Georges Mandjeck of Rennes failed to make it onto the pitch.

Côte d’Ivoire:
Were handed a very tough group and were unlucky not to make it out. In the first game against Portugal Siaka Tiene of VAFC played an excellent game at left back, helping to shut down none other than Cristiano Ronaldo as well as sending in some dangerous free kicks and shots. At the other end of the pitch, Gervinho was giving a man of the match performance, beating defenders and making runs and doing everything but scoring. For some unexplainable reason the Lille forward started on the bench against Brazil, not coming on until the 54th minute after which he continued to dazzle. Tiene did less well in this game, getting repeatedly beaten and collecting a yellow card, culminating in his benching in favor of Arthur Boka. Gervinho was a starter again against Korea DPR but had a less than memorable performance. Other Ligue 1 players such as Brou Angoua of VAFC and Jean-Jacques Gosso of Monaco failed to make an appearance.

France:
You all should know what happened, but if your preferred abode is beneath a rock, read the excellent France World Cup Blog.

Ghana:
Had an absolutely excellent showing at this World Cup and were lead by a group of Ligue 1 players: Andre Ayew of Marseille, Asamoah Gyan of Rennes, and John Mensah of Lyon. The three would have started each game if Ayew had not been wrongly suspended for the quarterfinal, and Mensah in fact played every minute of the Ghanaian World Cup. Anyway, Gyan scored three goals and could have made it four if not for the Uruguayan crossbar. View an Ayew to Gyan to GOOL play below…

(Sorry about video quality, FIFA is pretty tight about policing youtube)

The stocks of all these players have risen to new and lofty heights with newly generated interest from Premier League clubs for Ayew and Mensah, while Rennes seem keen to hang on to their star front man. A successful tournament for these three.