#4-Spain

#4-Spain
Nickname-La Furia Roja (The Red Fury)
UEFA
FIFA Ranking-#1
Group B (Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia)
Projected Results...
Win to Netherlands
Win to Chile
Win to Australia
Manager-Vicente Del Bosque
Qualified through first place finish in UEFA WC Qualification Group I
14th World Cup Appearance (1934, 1950, 1962, 1966, 1978- 2010)

The defending champions. Winners of the last two Euros. They can definitely win this tournament. It's kind of funny. A lot of guys who have been mainstays with the Spanish national team are starting to grow old, like Xavi and Xabi Alonso, but there's so much depth at every position. Spain is going to be so stacked for a very long time. Part of the reason is that there's been so much growth and success in the La Liga, and Barcelona, Real Madrid and now Atletico Madrid are just infusing so much talent into the national team. There are going to be a lot of great players who will miss out on this squad. It starts with Iker Casillas in goal, and defensively Sergio Ramos will lead the troops. Gerard Pique will likely join him at center back, with Cesar Azpilacueta and Jordi Alba as the left and right backs. The midfield is anyone's guess, but I can tell you it's going to be amazing. Iniesta, Xavi, Xabi Alonso, David Silva, Jesus Navas, Cesc Fabregas, etc. And at forward, I expect Diego Costa to get a chance given his recent form for Atletico Madrid. Here are three key players for Spain:

Andres Iniesta-Barcelona midfielder, who is just fantastic. He does it all. He's 29, 94 appearances with 11 goals. He's a playmaker, but he can score big goals. Like this one:

Sergio Ramos-Extremely experienced defender for Spain, plays for Real Madrid. Just really reliable. And chips in offensively sometimes. 115 appearances, 9 goals, aged 28.

Cesc Fabregas-Barcelona midfielder, and I expect him to link up well with Iniesta. He's played for Spain 87 times, with 13 goals. He's 26 years old.

Fantastic team, and will be for years. They've won the last three major tournaments they've been in, so winning a fourth in a row will be really hard. But they have the talent without a doubt.