JOHANNESBURG — The grind of the World Cup begins in a week, but the buildup already has been damaging for many teams.
• Ivory Coast might have lost its star and captain, Didier Drogba, when he broke his right arm Friday in a 2-0 warmup victory over Japan.
• England captain Rio Ferdinand is done after injuring ligaments in his left knee during practice.
• Italy playmaker Andrea Pirlo is resting at home in Milan with a calf injury that could force him out of the world soccer championship.
• Brazil goalkeeper Julio Cesar missed practice for the second straight day as he recovers from a back injury.
• American striker Jozy Altidore has a sprained right ankle that makes him doubtful for today’s tuneup match against Australia.
Drogba, one of the world’s best strikers, told teammate Kolo Toure he will miss the World Cup after being hurt in the warmup match in Sion, Switzerland.
“For him, he said, the World Cup is finished,” Toure said.
Drogba, 32, was taken off 15 minutes into the game after a high challenge by Japan defender Marcus Tulio Tanaka. He was then rushed to a hospital.
“We can just see on his face that he was sad, and when he is like that you can’t ask more,” Toure said. “It is difficult for us because he is such a really important player.”
Team spokesman Eric Kacou said “it is a fracture in his right arm,” but coach Sven-Goran Eriksson said the team hadn’t officially ruled out its captain.
“We are not sure yet,” Eriksson said, adding that Drogba’s participation — the Ivory Coast opens June 15 vs. Portugal — was “still a possibility.”
Tulio said he had no intention of hurting Drogba.
“God and everybody in the stadium saw it was a normal challenge,” said the Brazil-born defender, who was shown a yellow card. “I do hope he gets better in time to play in the World Cup.”
Ferdinand hobbled out of a hospital on crutches after hurting his knee while defending against striker Emile Heskey during England’s first full training session in South Africa. The English open against the United States on June 12, and Michael Dawson is expected to replace Ferdinand.
Altidore should be OK for the U.S.-England match, and his teammates fully expect to see the striker at his peak. He was injured during training Wednesday.
“We all hope Jozy will get better. We think he will,” keeper Tim Howard said. “We’re not losing sleep over it.”
Dream alive for Mandela.
Nelson Mandela is determined he will attend the opening game of the World Cup in Johannesburg in a week’s time because it would realize his dream, FIFA president Sepp Blatter said after meeting the former president.
Speculation is intense whether the 91-year-old Mandela will be well enough to attend any World Cup games. He is not suffering from a specific illness but is reported to be very frail.
“All I can say is that he (Mandela) is convinced that he shall be at the opening,” Blatter said. “He wants to be there because he wants to live up to his dream.”
