Just a day to go to the greatest soccer spectacle on the planet! Those who know me will know that I will be rooting (as always) for the Netherlands.

Ha, will those Dutch ever win a World Cup?

Yes. But not in 2014.

I say this looking at the Netherlands’ young, talented but inexperienced team this year. Among these talents are Memphis ​“the new CR7″ Depay, Jordy ​“the Dutch Xavi” Clasie, 2014 Dutch Footballer of the Year Daley Blind, Daryl Janmaat and others.

Spain in 2002 carried the same title of perennial underachievers until 2008 when their group of star players hit the same frequency together. Today they are called the Golden generation of Spanish football. Like the Spanish a decade before them, I believe the Netherlands will stand a much stronger chance to win in 2018.

So what are my expectations for the Netherlands in Brazil 2014?

Pragmatically speaking, I’m still optimistic. Being placed in a group along with Spain and Chile is one thing, and losing both Kevin Strootman and Rafael van der Vaart to injury is another. But that could be negated by the tactics of Loius van Gaal and the younger players’ desire to announce themselves on the world stage.

Spain are the hands-down the best team in the world, but they are starting to show signs of an ageing side. Chile don’t have recognisable names apart from Vidal, Sanchez and maybe Vargas; and have conceded the most goals per match during qualification among all the finalists.

We have been criticized by ​“pundits” for an inexperienced midfield and defence. But Spencer Steevensz asks us to remember one thing:

In June 2010, Luis Suarez was a little known Uruguayan striker for Ajax, and by July he was a household name throughout the world. The same could be said of Daryl Janmaat, who looks to be headed to Napoli; or Bruno Martins Indi, who may follow coach Louis Van Gaal to Manchester United; or Georginio Wijnaldum, Memphis Depay, Terence Kongolo, Joel Veltman or Stefan De Vrij. The talent is young, and many have not featured prominently on the international stage, and they’ll be relishing their first chance.

Tactics are everything. And on the biggest stage of all, unheralded teams sometimes shine while the big guns fail to fire. Who can forget how Guus Hiddink led an unfancied South Korea to fourth place in 2002? Louis van Gaal’s 5−3−2 against Spain will be seen as either disaster or master-stroke. I’m sincerely praying for the latter.

Not to mention, any team with the attacking prowess of Arjen Robben, Robin van Persie, and Wesley Sneijder (who has re-proven his place in the Oranje), should not be taken lightly.

My predictions for the Group Stage

NED 1 : 1 ESP
NED 2 : 0 AUS
NED 1 : 0 CHI

Everyone knows what the Dutch are capable of. On their day, Robben and company can spring quite the surprise. Let the games begin! Hup Holland Hup!

With a few hours left to the end of the year, I thought it’d be interesting to look back at 2013 — undoubtedly the best year for me in recent memory.

The first few days of 2013 were spent in anxious anticipation for W‑Day. Invites had been sent, the caterers were ready, the church was decorated and family and friends had already descended. We had great fun designing our wedding invite. Each one was carefully printed by the folks at Alpha Creative, and placed into custom paper boxes by us.

Then came the big day! After seeing each other through high school and college for nearly 8 years, Vinnie and I got married on 06 January. Everyone says their wedding day is the happiest day of their lives, and ours was no different.

Unforgettable! That same month, we moved into our own apartment in Caranzalem, where we currently live.

By the end of March, I quit my job at DotAhead. It had been two years of intense learning and immense hard work. I was ready to take on the world as a capable digital designer.

In April, I began a new chapter at Kainos, a startup in Santa Cruz owned by a friend. I currently lead visual design here on websites and web apps of all sizes. I also push production-ready frontend code because I enjoy designing in the browser.

Kainos is not your typical startup. We recruit only home-grown talent, we strictly endorse work-life balance, and work for us goes beyond pushing pixels and writing code. We are currently a team of 12.

In May, I uploaded the second iteration of Hidden Logic; my other blog focused on design and the Web. It remains one of the few horizontal-scrolling websites that focuses on the reading experience. It reaffirms my commitment to produce quality long-form content.

I turned 25 on 6 June: my first birthday after getting married. By then, we were already three months pregnant. Our families were so ecstatic!

Towards August, things were heating up at work. Riding on proposals designed by yours truly, we bagged two landmark projects — the first for one of India’s largest private bus operators, and the second for Goa’s most iconic nightclub. I know now that we are destined for great things.

Toward the last quarter, we were eagerly anticipating our baby’s arrival.

She arrived on 14 November. I was in the labour room with Vinnie for nearly 10 hours. It is the most beautiful experience — to see life come into this world. Both of us love kids, and this one is ​“flesh of our flesh, and bone of our bones”. She’s perfect.

The first month was stressful, but our daughter’s arrival has taught us patience, selflessness and above all — unconditional love. Our greatest joy so far has been seeing her occasional smiles and her frequent yawns.

We baptised her Sasha Laura Fernandes into the Catholic Church on 22 December in the presence of family and friends.

That marked the end of an eventful and amazing year. I praise God for His goodness to us, inspite of our unfaithfulness. For the gift of health, love, peace and joy. To Vinnie, for being my rock as always. To friends and family, without whom all of this would be meaningless — you know who you are.

Here’s wishing you a great year ahead. Bring on 2014!