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As we go into the final stretch of the 2014 World Cup qualifying campaign, the international break has thrown up some crunch matches and interesting dilemmas for teams around the globe.
With several teams virtually certain of a place at Brazil 2014, others scrapping for top spot and a final desperate few consulting the tables to see if they can still make it through in the playoffs, it’s set to be a tense finale to a long and arduous campaign.
Looking across the fixtures list, Squawka brings you the five players who will be key to their team’s hopes of securing that all-important place at Brazil 2014.
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Luis Suarez (Uruguay)
Uruguay are facing a real prospect of missing out on a place at the 2014 World Cup, with two crunch games between them and qualification for Brazil.
Standing in their way are fourth-placed Ecuador, who are level on points with Uruguay and have ambitions of their own to secure automatic qualification.
The key man for La Celeste will be Liverpool striker Luis Suarez, and the fans will be hoping that the Uruguayan delivers at a crucial stage as he so often has for club and country.
With a supporting cast consisting of PSG’s Edinson Cavani, Internacional’s Diego Forlan and Botafogo’s Nicolas Lodeiro, Suarez will have ample opportunities to rescue Uruguay’s stuttering World Cup campaign.
Ten goals from twelve games for his country suggests that if anyone were to come up with the goods, it will be this man.
Edin Dzeko (Bosnia and Herzegovina)
Bosnia and Herzegovina are emerging as a real power these days thanks to a golden generation of stars from the former Yugoslav state and they are poised to finish top of their group ahead of rivals Greece.
Blowing away opponents with their superior fire-power, Bosnia have struck an incredible 25 times in just eight games with Manchester City’s Edin Dzeko topping the overall goalscoring charts with eight strikes to his name.
The Eastern Europeans will be depending on Dzeko to fire them past Liechtenstein and Lithuania in the final stretch of their campaign and finish top of Group G.
The reverse fixtures saw Bosnia beat Lithuania 3-0 and crush Liechtenstein 8-1, so it’s safe to say that there’s plenty of potential for goals with Dzeko’s fellow striker Vedad Ibisevic also a potent threat.
But the key player will be Dzeko as he looks to cement a place for his country at Brazil 2014.
Dejan Damjanovic (Montenegro)
The circus is already beginning ahead of England’s vital matches against Montenegro and Poland which will decide their Group H fate, with just a slim single point lead ahead of the Montenegrins and Ukraine.
Three Lions boss Roy Hodgson will be thanking his lucky stars that Montenegro strikers Stevan Jovetic and Mirko Vucinic could be ruled out with injuries.
But they will be facing the 32-year-old Dejan Damjanovic in their place, a lethal striker plying his trade in South Korea’s K League who has notched 113 goals in 183 appearances for FC Seoul.
Damjanovic represents the biggest threat Montenegro have to offer and it will be the veteran striker they look to to score the goals they need to overtake England at the top.
Alberto Moreno (Spain)
Spain are already hard at work producing another generation of extraordinarily talented footballers to usher out the current stars, and Alberto Moreno is no different.
The Sevilla left-back is mooted as Jordi Alba’s backup and eventual successor, and looks set to make his debut for La Roja in the Barcelona star’s absence.
Potentially slotting in alongside the likes of Sergio Ramos and Gerard Pique in the Spanish defence, Moreno will get the opportunity to show the qualities that compelled Vicente del Bosque to call him up.
It’s a meteoric rise considering he was playing for Sevilla B at the turn of the year, and experts are already predicting a bright future for the 21-year-old.
A promising career for the senior team could start with a debut showing against Belarus.
They may be without their star strikers, but England will need to take care not to be complacent with Damjanovic lurking.
Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
And we finish with one of the most obvious picks, but Cristiano Ronaldo’s recent stellar form for Real Madrid and Portugal demands that you keep at least one eye on the forward.
Portugal go into their final two games with Israel and Luxembourg one point behind Group F leaders Russia, and two wins would give them the best possible chance of qualifying for Brazil 2014.
But traditionally, the Portuguese have struggled for goals as a lack of a top class striker has hamstrung their international ambitions over the past decade.
Ronaldo though, is in such a confident mood that he is a threat from just about anywhere. The team will be looking to the Real Madrid star for inspiration over the next two games and it is hard to see Israel and Luxembourg successfully keeping him out.
