England could spring a surprise in the 2014 World Cup – Arsenal Soccer Schools coach Peter Douthit

Peter Douthit (standing far right)

27-year-old American coach Peter Douthit has been working in India since 2010. His journey started with Ryder’s Sports Academy in Gurgaon before having a stint with newly-formed Excelsior Academy. Peter has also had spells with Delhi clubs Hindustan FC and Simla Youngs and has also worked with MLS outfit Dallas FC.

A holder of the C coaching license of the Australian federation, Peter has now joined Arsenal Soccer Schools in New Delhi, where he’s tasked with identifying and training the best young talent in the NCR area. He will be officially taking charge from July 1.

Peter will be rooting for USA in the 2014 FIFA World Cup but he also has a second favourite in England and believes the Three Lions will spring a surprise. Sportskeeda caught up with Peter for an exclusive chat where he discusses his previous World Cup memories and looks ahead to the 2014 edition in Brazil.

Sportskeeda: From which edition did you start watching the World Cup?

Peter: I first watched the World Cup in 2002, the Japan/South Korea edition. It was an amazing experience that really implanted in me the desire to become a coach and to one day maybe take a national team to the World Cup. I was living in Thailand at the time and Thais are crazy about football so the whole country was caught up in World Cup fever and generated a fantastic atmosphere to be a part of.

Sportskeeda: What is your earliest World Cup memory?

Peter: My earliest World Cup memory is watching Senegal beat defending champions France 1-0 in the opening match of 2002. It was a complete shock and a great boost for the underdogs of the World, especially the African teams.

Sportskeeda: And what is your favourite World Cup memory?

Peter: Watching David Beckham score the penalty against Argentina in 2002, in a game which England won 1-0, has to be the best memory for me. Not only was it a great win for England but for Beckham on a personal front it was a real triumph. Four years earlier in France ’98 he had been sent off against Argentina and been completely vilified by the English press to the point where he was even receiving death threats. It was great to see him lay those demons to rest in that game and the way he celebrated you could tell a huge weight was lifted off his shoulders. Its moments like that which makes the World Cup special.

Sportskeeda: Which country do you generally support in the World Cup and why?

Peter: I’m usually torn between two countries. As an American obviously I support the USA and want to see them do well, but I’ve always had a soft spot for England. Ever since I was little I watched the Premier League and was always enchanted by English players like Owen, Shearer, Beckham, Scholes and Fowler.

It’s pretty tough supporting England though because they always disappoint. English players simply aren’t technical enough to compete with the rest of the world at the highest level and although that is starting to change at the grassroots level, it will be some time before England can hope to lift the World Cup again.

Sportskeeda: Will you be supporting the same countries this time?

Peter: Of course I will be supporting both England and the US. Both of them have extremely tough assignments but if they can get out of their groups anything can happen.

In terms of England they’ve actually got a better squad than they have had in the past. It’s full of young technical players and they could really spring a surprise. They won’t win it of course but young players like Sterling, Lallana, Barkley, Sturridge and Oxlaide-Chamberlain could light up the tournament with their dynamic style.

As a coach working in Asia, I’ll always be supporting the AFC nations as well. Asia is the future of world football and I’m really looking forward to seeing how they perform. On a related note, I’d love to see India in the World Cup one day and the only way that’s going to happen is if FIFA allots more qualifying spots to AFC. At the moment we get 4.5, and Japan, South Korea and Australia take up 3 of those usually. That leaves the rest of Asia fighting for the other 1.5 slots, so there isn’t a lot of opportunity there. As Asian countries perform better in the WC, then Asia will receive more slots in future tournaments, which hopefully will be good for India.

Sportskeeda: Which nation is Asia's best hope in the World Cup?

Peter: For me Japan and South Korea have got the best chances of doing well. Most of Japan’s squad now play in Europe because of the excellent job they’ve done with youth development over the last 20 years. Where Japan sometimes lacks is that they still give too much respect to the top nations like Brazil and Germany and this hampers them somewhat. We saw this is the Confederations Cup last year where they lost 4-3 to Italy but really should have won after going 2-0 up. If they can adopt more of a winning mentality and maintain a strong self-belief they have the potential to go really far.

South Korea are very skilful and technical, as well as having a relatively easy group. I’m optimistic about them qualifying from the group stage and maybe making the quarterfinals.

Iran and Australia are going to struggle in this edition. Iran’s squad is made up largely of domestic players and their federation hasn’t given Carlos Quieroz the preparation and resources he would have liked. Australia are in bit of a transitional phase at the moment with a new coach and a young squad. I don’t see them getting past Spain, Holland and Chile.

Sportskeeda: What do you make of USA's group? How far will they reach?

Peter: On paper, we’re dead men walking. We have the toughest group by far, with Ghana, Portugal and Germany. Ghana is the strongest team in Africa for me and they’ve knocked us out of the last 2 World Cups. Portugal and Germany are obviously world powers in the game so it leaves us with an uphill climb.

Having said that, the World Cup is never played on paper. If you look a little closer Portugal and Germany are actually struggling with problems of their own, Portugal with Cristiano Ronaldo’s injury and Germany with the form and fitness of quite a few key players. With the right mentality, a good game plan, and a little luck, we may still get out of our group. The key is to win our first game against Ghana because this puts us in a good position going into the other two games where we may not need to win them both. If we don’t beat Ghana in the first game, we don’t have a prayer. If we do, we have a fair chance of getting out of the group.

Sportskeeda: Who are their key players? What do you make of Landon Donovan's exclusion?

Peter: Michael Bradley is our best player in my opinion. He’s technically excellent, tactically sound and has great experience playing in the Seria A with Roma. He’s a leader and a fighter and everything I like to see in a footballer. Jurgen Klinsmann has given him a free role in the No. 10 position behind Clint Dempsey and Jozy Altidore and he will be key to our hopes in Brazil. We’ll play a 4-4-2 with a narrow midfield diamond, with Bradley at the top. How he combines with Altidore and Dempsey up top will be crucial to our hopes. Tim Howard is another key player because he’ll be a busy man. We’ll need him to be on top form because even on a bad day top teams will always create chances against you.

Donovan has been a key player for the US ever since 2002 but he’s getting up there in age and I guess Klinsmann felt that youth would be needed in the energy-sapping heat of Brazil. 18-year old Julian Green was brought in instead of Landon but he’s only played a few minutes of professional football with Bayern Munich and you wonder if Donovan’s experience might have come in handy, at least off the bench. It’s a brave decision by Klinsmann but as a coach you’re paid to make those kinds of decisions. Is it the right one? Only time will tell.

Sportskeeda: Your favourites and darkhorses for the tournament and why?

Peter: It’s hard to look past Brazil as favourites. They’re at home, they’re playing some excellent football and Luiz Felipe Scolari is top class, having won it already with them in 2002. They also won the Confederations Cup last year, beating Spain 3-0 in the final, so everything points to them clinching it. The only thing that could derail them is the pressure of having to win at home. Anything less than the World cup will be seen as a failure and sometimes that can play on the players’ minds. If Scolari can keep the pressure on himself instead of the team, they have every chance.

Everyone is talking about Belgium as darkhorses but sometimes the over-hyped teams disappoint. I would point to Japan, Chile and Ghana as darkhorses to watch. None of them will win it but they could shatter a few glass ceilings.

Sportskeeda: Your pick for the Golden Ball and Golden Boot Awards and why?

Peter: Tough call, this one. It will be interesting to see how Neymar performs under pressure on the biggest stage and Luis Suarez will be a massive threat if he recovers in time. Both Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi are struggling for fitness and form respectively but they’re still class acts.

If I had to pick one I’d say Philipp Lahm for the Golden Ball and Neymar for the Golden boot.