Uruguay hosted and won the first ever World Cup in 1930 and added a second triumph 20 years later, silencing the Maracana by defeating hosts Brazil 2-1. Semi-final appearances followed in 1954 and 1970, but they have since failed to make it past the second round.

La Celeste qualified for South Africa via a closely contested two-legged playoff with CONCACAF fourth place finishers Costa Rica, having finished fifth in the South American qualifying group. They will line up alongside France, Mexico and hosts South Africa in Group A.

The Coach

Oscar Tabarez (URU)
63 years old

The well travelled Tabarez returned to the Uruguay bench in 2006 having previously coached them to the second round of the 1990 World Cup. A penalty shootout defeat to Brazil in the semi-final of the 2007 Copa America showed early promise, but it was an up and down qualifying campaign for the experienced coach, his side winning six, drawing six and losing six on route to a fifth place finish.

Tabarez switched between three and four at the back throughout qualifying, but now appears to have settled on a 3-4-1-2 formation made possible by the emergence of Nicolas Lodeiro to provide a subtle link between midfield and attack that had previously been lacking.

“The World Cup begins at the quarter-finals,” he said recently. “We are not the favourites but we have to make sure that we reach the second round.”

Players to watch


Diego Lugano
28 years old
Centre Back
Fenerbache (TUR)

The captain of the side, lumbering centre-half Lugano has a vital role to play in effectively marshalling a back-three that is short on pace, but big on power and determination. Commanding in the air and strong in the tackle, it will be a brave striker that takes on the Fenerbache defender in a physical tussle this summer.

 

 

Sebastian Eguren
29 years old
Midfielder
AIK (SWE)

While most of Uruguay’s midfield is made up of physically imposing athletes, Eguren is the calm head among the chaos, more subtle with his passing and more considered in the tackle. That is not to say that he lacks bite – he is certainly very tenacious – but in comparison to the ever charging wing-backs and his boisterous central midfield partner he is a picture of efficiency, certain in his movements, intelligent in his positioning. Without him, the Uruguay midfield would look a lot less organised.

Diego Forlan
30 years old
Striker
Atletico Madrid (SPA)

Fresh from scoring the goals that won Atletico Madrid the Europa League, Forlan will form the senior half of an in-form strike partnership whose goal will be to fire Uruguay into the knockout stages. Equally comfortable working the flanks, dropping deep to shoot from distance or sniffing out chances in the penalty area, Forlan’s performances will be key to Uruguay’s hopes in South Africa.

Nicolas Lodeiro
21 years old
Attacking Midfielder
Ajax (HOL)

Lodeiro burst onto the scene with Nacional in the early part of 2009 with a string of impressive performances in their run to the semi-finals of the Copa Libertadores. A small left-footed playmaker of pace and precision, he has taken to international football like a duck to water, and despite his small cap count is already an integral part of Tabarez’s side.


The view from Uruguay

Despite crawling in through the back door in qualifying for the tournament, there is a generally positive mood in the air ahead of the finals. While Uruguay are in a fairly tough group, the locals are hopeful that Forlan and Suarez can bring their club form to the national team and fire them into the knockout stages, maybe even beyond the second round for the first time since 1970.

Prediction

Uruguay’s chances of progressing from the group stage depend heavily on their result against France on the opening night. If they can sneak a victory over the French then they will be in a strong position to qualify and could even win the group with victory over South Africa in their second game. Winning the group is vital if they are to avoid a repeat of 1986 and a second round showdown against their eternal rivals Argentina. If they can do so then a quarter-final place beckons, but anything more seems unlikely.

Did you know?

Uruguay boycotted the 1934 World Cup in Italy to protest against the European teams that had declined their invitations to the 1930 tournament, held in the Uruguayan capital of Montevideo.

Group games

11/06/10: Uruguay  0 – 0  France    –  Cape Town
16/06/10: Uruguay  3 – 0  South Africa     –  Tshwane/Pretoria
22/06/10: Uruguay  1 – 0  Mexico     –   Rustenburg