By Trevor Stynes
June 10 (Reuters) - International managers often complain about limited preparation time, so spare a thought for the recently appointed coaches arriving at this World Cup, some mere weeks into the job and often without a single competitive game in charge of their side.
In a footballing world short on sentiment, leading a nation through qualification is no guarantee of being on the bench at the tournament itself, a reality that reshaped several teams' World Cup preparations.
Carlos Queiroz
comes in with the least amount of games with his team, but brings a wealth of experience to the Ghana role.
Queiroz, who replaced Otto Addo on April 13, heads into his fifth consecutive World Cup. The 73-year-old missed Ghana's friendly defeat to Mexico in May due to personal reasons, and his sole game in charge was last week's 1-1 draw with Wales.
Saudi Arabia manager Georgios Donis was appointed 10 days after Queiroz, replacing Herve Renard who took Saudi Arabia to the last World Cup where they beat eventual winners Argentina.
Donis has had three friendlies to gain familiarity with his side, the most recent a 0-0 draw with Senegal.
Unlike Queiroz, 74-year-old Miroslav Koubek had zero international experience when his country came calling. Koubek was appointed Czech Republic manager in December following Ivan Hasek's dismissal after defeat to the Faroe Islands.
Koubek faced a baptism of fire. His first games in charge came in the qualification playoffs, where the Czechs came through penalty shootouts against both Ireland and Denmark.
He is unbeaten as Czech boss, winning two recent friendlies against Kosovo and Guatemala ahead of their first World Cup since 2006.
POTTER'S PLAYOFF LIFELINE
Another man who steered his side through the playoffs is Sweden boss Graham Potter.
Potter took over in October and, despite failing to win either of their final qualifying games and finishing bottom of their group, Sweden made the playoffs thanks to the Nations League.
Sweden beat Ukraine and Poland, Potter's only two wins in charge having lost to Norway and drawn with Greece in recent games.
Sweden open against Tunisia who appointed Sabri Lamouchi in January. His four games have all been friendlies, winning the first with Haiti, but losing his most recent two against Austria and Belgium.
Morocco's Mohamed Ouahbi, appointed in March, has enjoyed a smoother start, going unbeaten in five friendly matches as he prepares a squad with high expectations after reaching the semifinals four years ago.
Ouahbi led Morocco's Under-20s to World Cup success in Chile last year.
Fabio Cannavaro also knows what it takes to win a World Cup. As a player he captained Italy's triumphant 2006 squad, and now enters the tournament as a manager for the first time.
Cannavaro, Uzbekistan coach since October, has eight games under his belt, losing two recent friendlies to Canada and the Netherlands.
Thrown in at the deep end, these managers will have to find their rhythm quickly at a competition that offers little time to settle in.
(Reporting by Trevor Stynes; Editing by Toby Chopra)
