Do or Die for Domenech, and Other World Cup Qualifier Previews

Pop quiz: Can you name the six European teams that are currently undefeated in World Cup qualifying? Answers at the bottom of the post.

On the other side of the equation, FIFA.com lists Croatia, France and Portugal as its underachievers who desperately need wins.

Here are a few of the more interesting games going on this weekend:

One of the biggest games in Europe this weekend as far as consequences go is Romania-France. These teams were in the same group at Euros, and neither made it past the group stage. Post-Euros, their qualifying starts have been decidedly iffy. France got slaughtered by little Austria 3-1 in their first gagme before coming back 2-1 against Serbia; for their part, Romania got killed by Lithuania, 0-3, and only beat Faroe Islands 1-0. But Adrian Mutu is back for Romania, and William Gallas is one of several players who will be missing for France. If France loses (and probably even if they draw), coach Raymond Domenech will almost surely be out of a job. Both sides are guaranteeing that this game won’t be a replay of their butt-numbingly boring defensive nil-nil game in Euro 2008. I’ll believe it when I see it.

Another interesting game should be Bulgaria-Italy. Bulgaria has lethal weapon Dimitar Berbatov, and World Cup-winning Italy are missing several key players, including their world-class goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon. This should be an exciting game for neutrals, and a nailbiter for partisans.

Meanwhile, in CONCACAF, the US, Mexico and Costa Rica (the teams FIFA calls CONCACAF’s “Big Three”) have a chance to book their tickets to the final qualifying round. To do that, the US will need to beat Cuba at home (they won the away leg 1-0); Mexico — with new coach Sven-Göran Eriksson — would need a win on the road against Jamaica; and Costa Rica would need to beat Suriname. That latter is probable, since their last game against the team ended in a 7-0 win.

And what about the South Americans down in CONMEBOL?

Little Paraguay sits on top of the single-group CONMEBOL standings with 17 points — four points ahead of perennial winner Brazil, who did not get off to a great start. But Brazil should be bolstered by the return of Ricky Kaka, and also by the fact that they’re playing in Venezuela, where they have a 100% record in WC qualifying.

The other perennial superstar CONMEBOL team, Argentina, has also not had its best start. They’re sitting in third, behind both Brazil and Paraguay, and are hoping that a win against Uruguay will get them back on track.

And in Africa, we’re looking at some shark vs. minnow matchups, like 29th-ranked Côte d’Ivoire vs. #136 Madagascar, or #12 Cameroon vs. # 171 Mauritius. Expect either high-scoring blowouts or big upsets.

Over in Oceania, no games this weekend.

In the bigger picture, though, New Zealand is working hard to become the only team from Oceania in the 2010 World Cup. You may remember that Oceania is the only confederation not guaranteed a WC spot. First a team has to finish top of Oceania, then they have to enter into a home-and-away playoff with the fifth-place Asian team. As we discussed earlier this week, New Zealand is on a roll, jumping an amazing 57 places in the FIFA rankings last month, to 47th place.

And Asian teams are also not playing tomorrow. Expect some good games come Wednesday, though. (Australia vs. Qatar. Can’t wait. I’m serious.)

Quiz answers:

England, Greece, Italy, Lithuania, Spain and Ukraine all have six points in two games.