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Post by Markw on Jun 14, 2014 18:07:16 GMT -5
Am I the only one who cant get into football/soccer? I don't think anyone's going to dignify that with an answer. Good start from England so far I think, would be very happy if we can hold on to a point but feeling cautiously optimistic. Edit: Feeling less optimistic.
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Deleted
Joined on: Apr 19, 2024 6:23:29 GMT -5
Posts: 0
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Post by Deleted on Jun 14, 2014 19:14:56 GMT -5
Good game by both sides
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Post by Mike Giggs' Munchies on Jun 14, 2014 19:29:16 GMT -5
We played well; unlucky to lose but Italy did very well. More of the same on Thursday please. After today I expect us to get to the QFs - we should beat Uruguay and Costa Rica, as well as any team from Group C (likely Colombia). Would be fine with losing to Brazil in the QFs. Now Spain look less likely to win (although shouldn't rule them out yet) its just Argentina from the favourites I would hate to win.
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Post by Mike Giggs' Munchies on Jun 14, 2014 19:36:16 GMT -5
Am I the only one who cant get into football/soccer? Yes you are. The World Cup Final will be viewed by well over a billion people.
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Post by Ben - #6 Munchie on Jun 14, 2014 20:20:37 GMT -5
What a goal by Honda
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Post by Red Dragon on Jun 14, 2014 21:41:44 GMT -5
I love you World Cup. Don't ever leave me again.
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K Dot
Main Eventer
Joined on: Aug 5, 2005 10:06:08 GMT -5
Posts: 1,771
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Post by K Dot on Jun 15, 2014 2:16:33 GMT -5
Oh, boy, is it nice to see Japan lose.
If Korea can beat Russia, we have a strong chance of earning the 2 seed.
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Post by Mike Giggs' Munchies on Jun 15, 2014 6:28:28 GMT -5
Today will be the worst day of the WC imo. Groups E and F are by far the most boring and probably the most predictable. If it weren't for G then the whole second half of the draw would be quite meh. Groups A-D much better - A is strong, B very strong, C well-balanced and D probably the strongest in the tournament.
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Post by 0,Y on Jun 15, 2014 11:27:23 GMT -5
So glad the Ivory Coast managed to win after being down 0-1. I think they might have a shot at winning their group.
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Post by The Champ is Here! on Jun 15, 2014 13:55:51 GMT -5
Today will be the worst day of the WC imo. Groups E and F are by far the most boring and probably the most predictable. If it weren't for G then the whole second half of the draw would be quite meh. Groups A-D much better - A is strong, B very strong, C well-balanced and D probably the strongest in the tournament. The Ecuador vs Switzerland game says hi Nice to see a ref get a big call correct on that play on, as a follow ref that was nice to see I think group g is the strongest, but I get that I have a bit of a bias as that's where USA is
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Post by GBGav on Jun 15, 2014 14:43:26 GMT -5
In theory group D is the strongest on paper due to three teams being ranked in the top ten. But England being in the top ten is proof that the rankings shouldn't really be trusted. They beat who they're expected to mostly but can't hang with the best. Group G is the hardest though because of two legit great teams and strong threats of an upset in Ghana and the US. They won't win the WC but they can certainly throw spanners into the works. Spain/Holland/Chile are also a better trio than the three in group D also.
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Post by Brunt's Left Foot on Jun 15, 2014 15:00:38 GMT -5
In theory group D is the strongest on paper due to three teams being ranked in the top ten. But England being in the top ten is proof that the rankings shouldn't really be trusted. They beat who they're expected to mostly but can't hang with the best. Group G is the hardest though because of two legit great teams and strong threats of an upset in Ghana and the US. They won't win the WC but they can certainly throw spanners into the works. Spain/Holland/Chile are also a better trio than the three in group D also. Name me ten teams that are better than England?
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Post by GBGav on Jun 15, 2014 15:30:50 GMT -5
Name me ten teams that are better than England? Spain, Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, Uruguay, Italy, Belgium, Holland, France.
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Post by Brunt's Left Foot on Jun 15, 2014 15:43:36 GMT -5
Name me ten teams that are better than England? Spain, Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, Uruguay, Italy, Belgium, Holland, France. In what way are Belgium or France better than England? You're basing it off of name value and hype, not actual facts.
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Post by GBGav on Jun 15, 2014 16:10:35 GMT -5
It's not fact anyway. Merely my opinion, which you asked for. And if you want to look at facts, what have England even done in the last 48 years? They do have potential and I actually don't even hate them anymore so I wouldn't mind them becoming a top team. They have some good young players. But looking at the last decade or so I just can't put them in the top ten yet. They're just behind teams like Belgium, Uruguay, Portugal and Argentina. The others are much further ahead.
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Post by Brunt's Left Foot on Jun 15, 2014 16:18:09 GMT -5
It's not fact anyway. Merely my opinion, which you asked for. And if you want to look at facts, what have England even done in the last 48 years? They do have potential and I actually don't even hate them anymore so I wouldn't mind them becoming a top team. They have some good young players. But looking at the last decade or so I just can't put them in the top ten yet. They're just behind teams like Belgium, Uruguay, Portugal and Argentina. The others are much further ahead. >England have done nothing >Puts Belgium in Top 10 Great logic there. Of course it's all opinion but there needs to be facts to back it up. I could say Algeria are a top 10 team, without anything to back it up it's just nonsense. Why do you even hate England? I assumed you were British, maybe English in fact.
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Post by GBGav on Jun 15, 2014 16:35:06 GMT -5
Alright, I'll concede the Belgium point. But I'm more excited about what they're doing and the players that they're bringing through over England.
I don't consider myself to be English despite having family from here. I'm a Rep of Ireland/Northern Ireland/England hybrid so I consider myself Irish/British (since the second bit covers N. Ireland and England.) I used to like England in the 90's but became disillusioned after it basically became a team of Man Utd and Liverpool players. And I'm not fond of the fans who are yobs (I get that other countries can have these too but they aren't as notorious as ours were) or feel entitled/think they should win.
I'm older and wiser now so don't really hate teams anymore and can accept talent when I see it. So I think it's good that guys like Barkley, Lallana and Sterling have been given chances 'cos they're good enough, instead of sticking to the same old Gerrard/Lampard/Terry/Rooney thing that never works.
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thespecialone
Main Eventer
Joined on: Apr 8, 2009 17:48:05 GMT -5
Posts: 2,762
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Post by thespecialone on Jun 15, 2014 17:10:56 GMT -5
Spain, Germany, Brazil, Portugal, Argentina, Uruguay, Italy, Belgium, Holland, France. In what way are Belgium or France better than England? You're basing it off of name value and hype, not actual facts. I actually agree with him. Doesnt mean England cant beat any of those teams (Costa Rica isnt better than Uruguay are they?). Belgium is not just a team full of names. Did you see their qualifying? Even England is a team full of big names. Does it get any better than a 23 players squad with all players plaiyng in the best league in the world? Does that make them more favourites than Brazil? Brazil has players playing in Ukraine, Brazil, Russia and France. All weaker leagues than BPL. And most people consider them the favourites. So its not the big names that makes a team favourite. Belgium is a good team because they play some great football. Just and only that.
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Post by Red Dragon on Jun 16, 2014 5:55:34 GMT -5
From a non-English point of view, I'd say those 10 teams would beat England. England can be very poor but in fairness they did look good against Italy.
As I've said before I'm loving the World Cup. The Brazil opener, Dutch trashing, England/Italy, Ivory Coast 3 mins turn around, late Swiss goal, there's just so much good action. Missed two matches so far, Chile and Argentina's wins. So I missed the Messi magic. Can't believe the second round of fixtures start tomorrow. Soon it will be all over for another 4 years. Get's depressing when you think where you'll be in 4 years time.
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Post by Brunt's Left Foot on Jun 16, 2014 7:19:23 GMT -5
In what way are Belgium or France better than England? You're basing it off of name value and hype, not actual facts. I actually agree with him. Doesnt mean England cant beat any of those teams (Costa Rica isnt better than Uruguay are they?). Belgium is not just a team full of names. Did you see their qualifying? Even England is a team full of big names. Does it get any better than a 23 players squad with all players plaiyng in the best league in the world? Does that make them more favourites than Brazil? Brazil has players playing in Ukraine, Brazil, Russia and France. All weaker leagues than BPL. And most people consider them the favourites. So its not the big names that makes a team favourite. Belgium is a good team because they play some great football. Just and only that. My point is that Belgium and France haven't really done nothing to justify the opinion that they're better than England. France barely qualified for the World Cup, weren't impressive at Euro 2012 and were terrible at World Cup 2010. They were struggling to break down Honduras yesterday until the red card/penalty. I honestly think right now England are as good as France, I really do. As for Belgium, I didn't see them in qualifying. Maybe they did play some good stuff. But look at who they were playing. Macedonia, Wales, Scotland. Not exactly world beaters are they? Both Belgium and England were unbeaten in qualifying and finished top of their groups. England have actually reached tournaments in the past decade though unlike Belgium who are completely untested. If they do well at this World Cup, yeah I'll admit they're better than England. Until then though, they are just potential and nothing more. It's not even the fact that Gav said that Belgium and France were better, it's the way he implied England being in the Top 10 was a complete joke when in reality they are in the Top 10 or at the very least just outside of it i.e. 11th/12th.
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