World Cup Day 7 Thread
Matches of the day are:
Portugal v Morocco 8am ET
Uruguay v Saudi Arabia 11am ET
Iran v Spain 2pm ET
On the surface, each game is 1/2 way interesting. Morocco, Saudi Arabia, and Iran all have very tough opponents. I'd be shocked, SHOCKED, if this wasn't 3 wins for the 3 favorites, but of course that's why they play the games. Tally Ho!!
Today I'll root for Portugal, Uruguay, and Spain. Very boring picks!
Those are my picks too, though I'm hoping for a draw in the Uruguay v Saudi Arabia game so Egypt still has a chance.
Just realized Egypt wouldnt have a chance either way, but I still feel for Salah. Either way, Uruguay should smash Saudi Arabia
I also feel bad for Salah, but the way Russia is playing they will be very tough to beat.Although if Russia wins group A they will face the runner up of Group B, either Portugal or Spain. If it is Portugal I could see Russia winning easy if Portugal keeps playing D like this.
Yea Russia v Portugal would be a good match. Pepe vs Dzyuba could be a really interesting matchup...considering Pepes penchant for stupid fouls and Dzyuba's physicallity. Russia v Spain, gotta favor the quality of Spain I'd think.
The only way Egypt has a chance is if Saudi Arabia wins today.
So...Saudi Arabia beats Uruguay today and Egypt beats Saudi Arabia in the next game and Uruguay loses to Russia. Is that how Eqypt can advance? That's crazy, I thought they were already mathematically eliminated.
they need all of that plus to have the top goal differential of the tied teams
The Supreme Peacock makes it 1-0 portugal in the 4th minute. Good start for Portugal.
First I've heard that nickname, but I really like it. Supreme Peacock!
WOW!!!
Time to start watching soccer.
Nice.
I was in Buenos Aires for an extended period and the women there are spectacular.....a mix of latina and european and overall smart and cool.
I went to a Boca vs. River Plate game there and that was a sports experience that rivaled (perhaps surpassed in some respects) an M/OSU game.
Morocco has had some good chances in the first half. I think they're good for a goal in the second half...too bad Ronaldo probably is, too.
I feel for Morroco, both games were played well by them, the first one lost in large part to the own goal. That's how the ball bounces on the pitch sometimes...
Can't believe its only been 7 days! Love it!!
Tough break for Morocco...first team out of the World Cup. They desperately need a striker.
Yeah man, they were snake-bit. An own-goal in the 90th+ minute gave them the L against Iran and now they couldn't score vs. Portugal despite countless chances. they really controlled the game. I definitely feel for them.
But, I also think they got a little too cute and sometimes passed up shots or riskier plays to make the fancy, controlled pass. At the same time,they also missed the open man a handful of times and they also missed opportunities to push it and run. Interesting but frustrating team to watch.
Damn, Morocco controlled possession pretty well. You can make the case that they've outplayed both of their first two opponents, but are 0-2. C'est la vie.
That's soccer in a nutshell.
Gotta take your chances....possession doesn't mean anything if you cant finish it.
Morrocans drive on the right.
Says all you need to know right there.
Not game related, but anyone else annoyed by Alexi Lalas? The guy is kind of a turd burger on TV. My opinion, maybe others don't find him so annoying?
Yea, at this point he always comes off as smug, and like he is making these great points, even though most of it is rehashed hot takes that are better summed up by others. Ive heard hes good on his podcast of actually having good, valid, researched points, but as a live presenter, Ive always found him to be too smug/arrogant for my taste.
I remember when he emerged on the scene in the 90s as this kind of rebellious, big personality type dude. I liked him instantly. But now to listen to him, he just comes off as contrarian and a smug know it all.
Yea, in the time where there was a lot less interest and knowledge of the game in America, he was pretty good, but now its like, dude we get it, you don't need to talk to us like we're 5.
I'm a huge Lalas fan and he's probably my all-time favorite US player but yes, on TV he comes off as a smarmy jerk.
I don't mind his spicy takes on the US team though.
I tolerate him mainly because he's from the Detroit area and I'm tribal that way. Otherwise the guy's pretty useless as a commentator.
Lets see if Suarez can actually finish off a chance this time around, cuz he definately didnt have his shooting boots on in Uruguay's first game vs Egypt
Suarez and Cavani were both found wanting. I suspect they will have a little more success against a much less talented Saudi team.
Good to hear that 7 Nation Army is still getting airplay for player entry to the field of play. It's like a national anthem in and of itself, is it not?
Keeper blunder leaves him flapping at air on that corner, Suarez there to bury it. 1-0 Uruguay, slightly against the run of play?
Keeper blunder leaves him flapping at air on that corner, Suarez there to bury it. 1-0 Uruguay, slightly against the run of play?
To be fair the Saudi defender tried to mug Suarez, he just shook loose.
How did Saudi Arabia get in? They are not good at football. Meanwhile the Dutch and Italians are home.
Who knows, i mean they havent looked that bad in this one, but their goalkeeper was awful against russia and hes certainly not covering himself in glory after that whiffed cross.
It comes down to the group you qualify through. If your qualifying group of countries are weak, then being the strongest of the weak gets you in to the tournament.
I think you will see less of this when they expand to more teams, which I believe is supposed to happen in the next WC if I'm not mistaken.
Nope I was wrong. Doesn't happen until 2026 when the US, Canada and Mexico host it together.
When the field goes to 48, the number of African and Asian teams will increase significantly but the number of spots for European teams will increase only slightly (from 13 to 16). So there may still be some solid European teams left out.
They're coming from the AFC (Asian Football Confederation) which gets 5 teams in despite never really being competitive as a region. FIFA gives them more spots than they'd merit to expand the popularity of the game.
It's good for the game overall, good for interest in the tournament but makes it such that the best 32 don't make it. It's like letting a 15 seed automatic qualifier into the NCAA tournament over a team that just missed an large berth. They got in because their qualification standards were easier.
UEFA (the European teams) also has a qualification process that leaves a lot up for chance. They split the 54 teams into 9 groups of 6 based 1) on the FIFA world standings which are very flawed, and then by pure random chance (rather than a more equitable snake method).
And then they only have two rounds of qualifying so you have to win your group to automatically qualify or you have to get second and then beat out one other team in a two leg playoff. Other federations like CONCACAF do another full round robin amongst the top 6 teams so the luck ends up leveling out more.
The Netherlands were pretty unlucky to get put in a group with France which was ranked 22nd somehow. So they had to beat out France or Sweden which they were unable to do.
Italy drew Spain into their group, whereas somehow Romania (?!), and Wales were in Pot 1 so the groups that drew them were super easy. Not surprisingly, both teams failed to even finish in the top 2 of their groups.
It's a pretty bad way to do qualifications but the real flaw is the ranking system they use and I'm sure that'll change the same way the WC is changing the ranking methodology they use.
France's low ranking was due to them automatically qualifying for the 2016 Euro as the host nation (so they didn't play official matches for two years before then). This is also why Russia's current ranking is so low. The FIFA rankings are a mess.
Bowing up on Suarez is not the smartest thing to do, unless you’re trying to get yourself bitten...
The only way to watch the world cup is Telemundo.
Agree 100%. Always watched games on Telemundo, much more fun. Although I did like the British guys they brought over a few years ago for the English broadcasts on ABC/ESPN.
Is it JP Dellacamera the American announcer who pronounces every foreign name with some phony accent/ flourish? I can't stand that for some reason. I always feel like he actually ends up mispronouncing them anyway.
Dellacamera is awful. I don't mind Derrick Rae but 80% of the matches I watch on Telemundo.
How did you get the star? Are you a former world champion at posting?
Huh I thought everyone had a star on their own user name when logged in. I didn't realize you could see it.
I think it's because I have elevated rights (I think?) because I occasionally cover Soccer for the site and need to post #content
Actually I won the 1926 World Cup.