World Cup day five preview

Germany open up their World Cup campaign on Monday (16.06.2014) with a clash against Group G rivals Portugal. It's a case of deja-vu for fans from the two nations, with the two sides having played each other frequently at past tournaments. Meetings took place at the 2006 World Cup and at the 2008 and 2012 European Championships.

The Germans have prevailed in all three encounters, but they are approaching their opening match at the 2014 World Cup with a degree of caution. "They're the world champions of the counter-attack," warned Joachim Löw.

It has been a familiar build-up for the Germans. The topic of injuries and fitness have dominated discussions around the match, especially following Bastian Schweinsteiger's "routine" helicopter trip to hospital, as he recovers from a knee injury.

In the Portuguese camp, Cristiano Ronaldo limped out of training with an ice pack around his left-knee but quickly reassured the panic-merchants, claiming he'll be "100-percent" fit to face Germany.

While the Real Madrid star is not allowing his own condition to get in the way of Portugal's overall team game, his team have struggled without him. It will be music to the ears of the Germans if he is not in the starting lineup in Salvador.

A step into the unknown

Nigeria coach Stephen Keshi knows very little about his team's opponents on Monday, Iran. The Asian side have banned the media from viewing training sessions and information out of the camp was scarce until this week.

Nigeria have been regulars at the World Cup, qualifying for five of the last six tournaments and reaching the last 16 in both 1994 and 1998 with a golden generation of talent, including Daniel Amokachi.

The announcement of the final 23-man squad at the beginning of June surprised many followers of the Nigerian national team. The likes of Sone Aluko from Hull City and Taye Taiwo were overlooked, in favor of a group Keshi believes will work better together.

It's a contrast to the outstanding individualism of the 1994 side that competed in the United States. Jay-Jay Okocha, Sunday Oliseh and Amokachi were responsible for wave after wave of exciting attacking moves. The spirit of 1994 is still alive, but the mood now in 2014 is different.

"This team is growing, it's like a baby," said the Super Eagles coach at a pre-game press conference when asked to draw a comparison with the famous 1994 World Cup side. "This team is just a year and a half-old. The team of 1994 was almost five or six years old."

Meanwhile, the Iranians, coached by former Manchester United assistant coach Carlos Queiroz, are a comparatively unknown quantity. After progressing comfortably from the first group stage of qualifying, Iran beat South Korea with wins home and away, progressing through the second section of AFC qualifying.

Key for "Team Melli", as they are known, has been the introduction of many second generation Iranian immigrants from Europe's top divisions. That brings, of course, extra quality, but a degree of professionalism still uncommon in the domestic leagues of Iran.

Former Eintracht Braunschweig keeper Daniel Davari has made the number one spot his own, Stephen Beitashour of Vancouver Whitecaps has arrived, while Iranian born Alireza Jahanbakhsh and Masoud Shojaei now feature in Holland and Spain, respectively. Ashkan Dejagah has played a lot of his career in Germany and will also play an important leadership role for the team.

Klinsmann ambitious about US chances

After months of intense preparation, Jürgen Klinsmann will lead his American side to the World Cup, facing 2010 quarter-finalists Ghana in Monday's late game. The Africans are just as ambitious, with their 23-man squad built around the experienced faces of the last competition.

The USA, unsurprisingly, breezed through CONCACAF qualification and have played well in World Cup warm-ups, losing only once from six matches. Klinsmann's side defeated South Korea, Turkey and Nigeria as part of their preparations.

"No matter what the circumstances are, no matter how our game goes, this group is ready to go the extra mile to make it happen tomorrow," the former Germany coach said.

While US internationals like Jermaine Jones have become prominent in Germany, two of the team's most important players, Michael Bradley and Clint Dempsey, have recently moved back to Major League Soccer (MLS).

In contrast, Ghana boasts only one domestic-based player, with the majority featuring in Europe's top divisions. Others play outside Europe, like record-breaker Asamoah Gyan, in the UAE Pro League with Al-Ain.

One more goal for Gyan would make him the outright top scorer in the national team's history, and he can rely on a host of European-based stars - Kwadwo Asamoah (Juventus), Kevin-Prince Boateng (Schalke) and Michael Essien (Milan) - to back him up in attack against the US.

Ghana's coach Kwesi Appiah is looking forward to the challenge of the coming weeks.

"If you're going to the World Cup and you're afraid of meeting the big teams like Brazil, then there's no point in going," Appiah said.