Déjà vu for Jordan as Uruguay tie looms

The countdown has begun in earnest now, with just seven days to go before the first leg of the intercontinental play-off for the 2014 FIFA World Cup Brazil™. Amman will be the venue for the opening fixture next Wednesday as Asian representatives Jordan get to grips with South American rivals Uruguay. Unsurprisingly, the crunch tie has got the whole of Jordan talking. The debate has focused on whether Al-Nashama will be up to the task when the first whistle blows, while many supporters have also been paying close attention to the form of fearsome Uruguay strike duo Edinson Cavani and Luis Suarez. The only previous meeting between teams from the two nations has not gone unnoticed either, the South Americans coming out on top in a group stage game at the FIFA U-20 World Cup Canada 2007. Making their first appearance in that competition, Jordan nonetheless gave an excellent account of themselves in a historic match. Many of the players who featured that day will also be representing Jordan in the play-offs, though this time they will be carrying the hopes of seven million fellow countrymen and women on their shoulders. With time ticking down on next week's opener, FIFA.com asked several members of Jordan's senior side who faced Uruguay in 2007 to share their memories of that match and their thoughts on La Celeste. Looking back Jordan and Uruguay had their one and only meeting in the second round of group games at Canada 2007, when both sides went into the encounter after starting off with draws. The Uruguayans had begun their bid by holding Spain 2-2 while Jordan had played out a 1-1 stalemate with Zambia, an encouraging result that nonetheless required a convincing follow-up performance. Their chance came at Swangard Stadium, situated in the leafy surroundings of Central Park in Burnaby, where the Asian contenders matched their opponents for 40 minutes, keeping Suarez and Cavani quiet. It was the current Paris Saint-Germain striker who finally made the difference, though, racing onto a lofted pass into the area and driving the ball into the net. It was the only goal of the game and it proved a crucial one, booking Uruguay their place in the next round despite a loss to Zambia in their final group outing. One half of a central-defensive duo with Ibrahim Zawahreh that day, Jordan's Anas Bani Yaseen has not forgotten his meeting with Cavani. "We didn't know him very well," explained the defender, reputed for his physical presence and aerial prowess. "We'd noticed Cavani and Suarez in their first match against Spain, when each of them got a goal. "I was a centre-back so I had to take care of Cavani, who was playing up front. Zawahreh and I dealt with him a number of times, but it just took a ball over the top for him to score. We weren't very experienced at the time. "We did everything to not let him score again and we were able to contain him in the second half. Today, he's a great goalscorer in Europe. We know him well and we'll have an eye on him at all times to stop him from scoring." Source: FIFA.com