Uruguay is a small Latin American country with the population of only 3.25 million (as per 2011 census). The country is second smallest in terms of area in the continent after Surinam.
The country around the World is known for it’s outstanding soccer tradition. Before the Football World Cup, Olympics were regarded as the biggest honour in soccer world. Uruguay won Gold medals in 1924 and 1928 Olympics in a row.
When first World cup of soccer was put into concept, it was valued as the top most glory in the world of soccer. Uruguay was the host of the first edition in 1930. Only 2 finals have been played between Latin American countries and Uruguay won both. Uruguay won the first edition after defeating Argentina 4-2. Their next title came in 1950 when they beat Brazil at their home by a margin of 2-1.
In 1954, they finished 4th. Since then, their journey in the Wold Cup has been very topsy-turvy. They failed to qualify in many editions after that. At Italia 90, they were defeated by Italy in round of 16. In 94 and 98, the team could not reach to the finals. The nation went through sharp decline in soccer standards in that period. They dropped down to 76 in FIFA rankings in December 1998. It was concomitant to their economic crisis.
They returned to the main stage in 2002 after defeating Australia in playoff matches. At Japan-Korea, Charruas were condemned to bow out in the first round. But before going out, they hold defending champion France to a goalless draw and played ‘match of the tournament’ against Senegal. Uruguay conceded 3 first half goals. In the second half, they smashed 3 goals in one of the most sensational draws of the World Cup history.
The nation was denied the flight to Germany in 2006. They were again forced to play the playoff against Oceanic champion Socceroos, which they lost. In 2010, they became the last nation to qualify for the finals yet again. To earn this distinction, they won the tough playoff against Costa Rica, 2-1 on aggregate.
In 2010, the new generation of players shocked the world by their performance. They qualified from Group of death which comprised of France, Mexico and host nation, South Africa. They played the ‘toughest match of the WC 10’ at QF stage. The whole continent was supporting Ghana, but La Celeste emerged victorious. By this, they became the first South American nation to qualify for the semi final after 8 years.
For 2014 edition, they found themselves yet again in the familiar position of the playoffs. The team was cruising through in the qualifying matches at the beginning. It lost the plot somewhere in between. Team lost games to Argentina, Bolivia and Chile. They bounced back and won 4 of their last 5 games to earn parity on point terms to Ecuador. In the playoff, they crushed Jordan 5-0 at their home. After completing the formality in the second leg, they joined the carnival of neighbouring nation with ease.
Current team ignites much hope. As a Goalkeeper, Fernando Muslera is part of the team for quite some time. He shot to fame when in the QF penalty shootout against Ghana in WC 2010, he jumped to correct side on each penalty. Sadly, after that, he couldn’t repeat the same magic. The group has other outstanding rivals for him (Buffon and Hart). Buffon is surely ahead of them. He has shown it in Euro 12 QF and Confederation Cup 3rd place match, winning both the penalty shootouts against ENG and URU. Hart plays in the toughest league of the world and richer in experience and talent. Muslera need more skill and luck to outpower them.
The team comprises of both talented and matured players. 4 most capped players for the nation are members of the current squad. Top 3 spots are reserved for Diegos. Diego Forlan is the most capped player with 107 caps followed by Diego Lugano (91), Diego Perez (87) and Maxi Periera (87).
Defence line of Uruguay is tall and experienced. Diego Lugano is the captain of the team. Maxi Periera (Benefica), Diego Godin (Athletico Madrid) and Martin Careres (Juventus) have experience of more than 50 international matches. All are more than 6 feet 2 inches tall. Aerial game of England can be arrested by these tall guys. They are the wall for their respective clubs. Surely, they will provide great resistance to the friends of Rooney and Ballotelli.
Midfield is the weakest of Uruguay’s department. Diego Perez (Bologna) is the most senior player with 87 caps. Along with him, Chritian Rodriguez (Athletico Madrid), Walter Gargano (Parma), Sebastian Eguren (Palmeriras) and Alvaro Gonzalez (Lazio) might be preferred by Coach Oscar Tabarez. All are above 29 years of age but no name is big enough to cause a tremor in the opposition camp.
Their attacking line is perhaps one of the deadliest in the World. Luis Suarez is in form of his life. In the qualifying rounds, he scored 26 goals and emerged as the top scorer (surpassed Messi-Higuain-Cavani-Neyamr etc). With 39 goals, he is the all time top scorer for his country. Currently, he is shattering all the EPL records for Liverpool. Edinson Cavani was the top Serie A scorer in the previous season. Together with Ibrahimovic, he is playing soccer of his life at PSG. Diego Forlan is 34 years old and he is the only member from the 2002 World Cup squad. Though he has his best days behind him yet he is sensational. His rocket volley against Nigeria had silenced his critics, who were questioning his abilities. In this line up, young Abel Hernandez will find it hard to make a room for him.
Coach Oscar Tabarez is the main force behind inspired La Celeste. In his second stint as the national coach, he is associated with the team since 2006. El Maestro has coaching experience of more than 30 years. He won the honours of Best South American coach in 2010 and 2011. Under his guidance, team reached first World Cup Semi final in 40 years. He has a deadly combination of excellent-cool defenders and predator attackers. Surely, team can go longer than one has expected.
Together with 15 Copa America titles (most Copa Americas), the nation holds 20 official titles. It is a World record of titles for a single nation team. Their 2 Olympic Golds carries extra significance. By the virtue of it, Uruguay holds the World record of being the least populous nation to win Olympic Gold in any team game. Official emblem of the team has 4 stars, 2 from the WC trophies and 2 from the Olympic Golds. With current form, like their neighbour, they can be a ‘5 star team’.