A whole slew of World Cup rosters announced

These World Cup coaches are screwing with us. They have months to announce their World Cup squads but most have waited to deadline day making it nearly impossible for our fingers to keep up with all the roster names they have made public. The latest batch of roster releases includes some big name teams: Germany, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Serbia and Montenegro, and Japan.

Japan coach Zico went with an experienced team that included one dramatic surprise, the inclusion of striker Seiichiro Maki instead of Tatsuhiko Kubo. Japan has had problems scoring goals so you can hardly blame Zico for shaking thing up a bit. One area where Japan does not have problems is in the midfield. They have one of the better midfields in the tournament.

Germany coach Jurgen Klinsmann tapped his 23 men and decided to include uncapped forward David Odonkor instead of the off form Kevin Kuranyi. He has also called upon veteran defender Jens Nowotny despite his two-year absence from international football.

Switzerland’s team is young, but does not lack for talent. In a bit of a surprise, coach Koebi Kuhn did not call up playmaker Hakan Yakin. The Swiss coach opted to go with uncapped Basel midfielder David Degen who just happens to have a twin brother Phillip on the team. I bet their parents are pretty proud today.

Czech Republic coach Karel Brueckner’s biggest concern at the moment might be the health of the players he has chosen to play in Germany. Vladimir Smicer, Vratislav Lokvenc, Zdenek Grygera and Jan Koller are all racing against time to regain their fitness for the World Cup.

The surprises were few forits 23 for the World Cup. Liverpool striker Fernando Morientes was left off the team as coach Luis Aragones opted to go with a defensive orientated unit. Spain will be one of the youngest teams in the tournament with an average age of 24.

More announcements to come. Check out the team blogs for analysis, opinions and chatter.

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