Players to Watch in the World Cup 2010...Raul Meireles

Portugal had to work hard to grind out results in order to qualify for the World Cup Finals. Their marquee player, Cristiano Ronaldo came off brilliant back to back seasons for clubs Man Utd and Real Madrid but failed miserably to score when it came to representing his nation. He just recently scored against Portugal to end an international goal drought that lasted two years. Portugal's strikers failed to be consistent in the final third, and Portugal had to wait until a play-off competition to book their ticket to S. Africa. One player that has been consistent is Raul Miereles. The Porto multi tattooed midfielder has played an integral role in the Portugal's qualifiers and warm up matches leading to the World Cup finals. He scored the only goal in the play-offs against Bosnia and Herzegovinia and scored two brilliant goals in the warm up game against Cameroon. He then went on to score the opening goal in Portugal's thrashing of N. Korea and setting up another.

Miereles is a special player, he plays in central midfield but has keen football intelligence and the attacking prowess of a striker. He is able to time the runs of Ronaldo, Tiago and Simau. He finds himself in the perfect position to shoot on goal. He also plays a dual role in attack and defense in the midfield creating openings and executing passes to the forwards. His contribution in the Portugal thrashing of N. Korea describes his importance to Portugal's success in the round of 16 and beyond. He is not only dangerous inside the box, but is also a reputed long range shooter, especially when he plays domestically for his club F.C Porto.

Portugal came into the game looking for a win after failure to break down the Ivory Coast. They knew that it was important to record a win in order to have a chance to escape the proclaimed group of death. Play maker Deco was replaced with Tiago who partnered Raul in midfield. The Koreans surprised the Portuguese by taking a more attacking approach and there were nervous moments when the Koreans breached their opponents box. In the 25th minute it was Miereles who came up with the goal that started the dismantling of the Asians. Miereles timed his run fthe through the middle to meet a brilliant through ball from Tiago who was coming from the right. He then slotted the ball pass the Koreans keeper. In the second goal, Merieles played the role of provider. After a little one touch passing with Almeida, Raul slotted a through ball of his own through two Korean defenders to meet the path of Simau who came running in from the right to score a lovely low shot. Now that Portugal has advanced it will be important for Raul to continue to be at his best both as finisher and supporter for their continued success in the tournament.

Raul 27, was born in Porto, Portugal and joined F.C Porto in 2004. He has made 156 appearances and has scored 15 goals for his club. He is known for his incredible work rate and passing ability that has lead Porto to 4 consecutive league titles. Internationally he was represented his country in both the under 21 and senior teams. He has made 37 appearances for the senior team and has scored 7 goals. These seven goals have all been integral to the team during the last European Championships, World Cup Qualifiers and the World Cup finals. There has been expressed interest by top clubs in Europe to join their team. He is definitely a top player and should be watched in Portugal's remaining matches in the tournament.