gwnn Posted May 27, 2014 Report Share Posted May 27, 2014 In unrelated news, Uruguay has ridiculously high odds of 28.0 (27/1 or +2700). Too bad they don't play the world cup 100 times in parallel, I could make a lot of money even if Suarez stays injured. Cavani is also a formidable striker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aberlour10 Posted May 30, 2014 Report Share Posted May 30, 2014 jurgennnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn Jürgen is not a Merlin ;-) But seriously , already the first match for team USA is all-or-nothing-one. If they will not win vs Ghana...>>>its over.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike777 Posted May 31, 2014 Report Share Posted May 31, 2014 1) who do you currently rate as the top 20 players in the world? 2) based on your ranking, which world cup teams have the most top 20 players? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwnn Posted May 31, 2014 Report Share Posted May 31, 2014 1) a bunch of players from Barcelona, Real Madrid, and Bayern Munich, and a few stars here and there2) Spain, Germany, Argentina, and Brazil, in that order imo. Howevof, the stars in Barcelona are out of shape and they were the ones who had the biggest contribution to the successes in 2008-2012. Germany should be the favourites but they are playing in South America which is historically tough for European players (the impact is not so big on South American players who typically play in Europe anyway for a club but often play in South America for their NT). Argentina has Messi Higuain etc but Messi is again out of shape although he will be extra motivated so who knows? I would rate Brazil's squad the relatively weakest of the four but they are playing in home, won the Confederation's Cup, and they are Brazil, the most successful team in history. I like Uruguay's chances as a surprise team, maybe repeating the heartbreak of 1950 (beating Brazil in the de facto final when a draw would have sufficed for the home side in front of 200000 crazy fans), although I think the squads have changed a bit since then :P 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zelandakh Posted May 31, 2014 Report Share Posted May 31, 2014 What gwnn said basically except my surprise team is Belgium. I think this competition is coming too early for them but if they catch fire early and the confidence rises they have one of the most talented squads in Brazil. Aside from playing in South America, Germany is also suffering from injuries to key players. They have serious issues at centre forward, defensive midfield and left back. They could solve the problem in DM by playing Lahm there in a 4141 but then the issue moves to right back. That is arguably the best idea but I expect Löw to stick with his 4231. Germany are obviously still amongst the favourites but I would not say they have the best team any more and in Brazilian conditions are probably only fourth favourites. As an Englishman I am interested in Uruguay's performance. On paper the quality of the squad is better than England's in South American conditions. However they have not played as a team for some time now so there is still hope. If they do manage to sort that out then they should reach the quarters and deeper is quite possible. But that is a big if and we just have to hope they remain 11 talented individual players. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrAce Posted May 31, 2014 Report Share Posted May 31, 2014 Football is a simple game. Twenty-two men chase a ball for 90 minutes and at the end, the Germans always win.Gary Lineker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike777 Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 I see a lot of yapping :) But where is your money on who will win, place and show? Will the Usa finish in the top ten? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjbrr Posted June 6, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Will the Usa finish in the top ten? http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/2013/08/Gary-Coleman-wtf.gif 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike777 Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 http://www.reactiongifs.com/r/2013/08/Gary-Coleman-wtf.gif yapping seems to be most common. AT this point perhaps that is all the world cup is....yapping. 60 minutes of boring and yapping or can you show me something else? can you show me world cup excitement?can you show me world cup passion? true when you as a poster you show passion? In baseball in America I think of passion, true passion When I think of soccer I think of passion, in 2014 what passion teams do you see? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwnn Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 So answering your questions constitutes yapping now? WTF is wrong with you? 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zelandakh Posted June 6, 2014 Report Share Posted June 6, 2014 Mike, if you want World Cup passion and excitement I suggest you go on holiday outside of the US for the next month or so. If you think of baseball in America as true passion then you really need to see how other countries are towards football. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjbrr Posted June 7, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2014 mike, when you're this wrong about a topic, it's time to consider not posting. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jjbrr Posted June 8, 2014 Author Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 JOZY will probably be competing with Dempsey for the golden boot given today's performance against nigeria. I predict they'll bury about 7 goals against germany alone between the two of them. meanwhile our defense is just embarrassing. I AM SO EXCITED. LETS GOOOOOOOOO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike777 Posted June 8, 2014 Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 I do find the passion, great passion in this sport to be of the finest from its many fans. yapping is ok and good I just challenge you experts for more informed comments. I find this topic very interesting. I notice that unfortunately cheating is becoming more common in this sport and at the very least suggestions of payoffs for the honor of holding world cups in the future, fixed games, etc. As an outsider and I am, the most popular sport in the world seems to be archaic at the very top. For example I point to the leader of the sport for roughly 18 years and its (questionable) non tax status in Switzerland. You who follow the sport more closely may agree or disagree. At the very least in all aspects this sport seems to be resistant to change and innovation for many reasons.( instant replay of refs calls: modern attacks and defense based on quants) Again I say this as an outsider so look forward to your comments from those of you who follow the sport in more passion. From what little I understand it seems that Europe is more open, much more open to innovation and change than the rest of the soccer world. ( agree or disagree?) I do find the passion, great passion in this sport to be of the finest from its many fans. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mike777 Posted June 8, 2014 Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 I find it interesting in reading those that feel Brazil will win based on home field adv and that Germany will win based on being the best team. Can the best team, the team with the most talent overcome the great heat and passion of Brazil? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zelandakh Posted June 8, 2014 Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 I notice that unfortunately cheating is becoming more common in this sport and at the very least suggestions of payoffs for the honor of holding world cups in the future, fixed games, etc.What makes you think cheating is new? Look up Francis Lee's games from the 1971-72 season for one of the best known cases from the past. At the very least in all aspects this sport seems to be resistant to change and innovation for many reasons.( instant replay of refs calls: modern attacks and defense based on quants)Instant replay in football is not so easy as most American sports because play is continuous and TV replays are often not conclusive for many calls. Where technology is coming in is for goal line decisions. I happen to agree with you that there could be more use made of technology but I also understand the resistance to this from some quarters. An example of resistance came from Germany this year, where the league clubs voted against using the goal line technology because of the costs involved. Incidentally, I understand from previous comments that you are a baseball fan. When I was watching baseball many years ago the TV showed instant replays of the pitches using K-Zone. It struck me as an obvious use of technology in order to avoid the common "expanding the strike zone" trick used by "name" pitchers and just for a generally more accurately called game. In addition, a related sport, cricket, has embraced technology and upon review the umpires also have access to things such as Hot Spot, which can help determine whether the ball touched the bat. Has baseball implemented this technology yet for MLB games? Can the best team, the team with the most talent overcome the great heat and passion of Brazil?Arguably the best team 1 to 11 is Belgium but they are young and most feel the tournament is coming too soon for them. The big four for the WC are Argentina, Brazil, Germany and Spain. However all of these teams have some issues and the competition is comparativley open this year. Overcoming the heat is going to be key - you just cannot play a game with fast attacks and a pressing defence for 90 minutes over there. On the other hand players and coaches understand this better than for previous World Cups in South America and the historical record that no Northern hemisphere team has ever won down there is probably less important than in any tournament to date. So yes, Germany (or Spain) could overcome the heat down there. Whether they will or not is another matter. In reality there are probably about 7 or 8 teams that could realistically win. I would not include the USA within this group, indeed they will do well to qualify for the knockout stages, especially in Ronaldo can play. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwnn Posted June 8, 2014 Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 I remember Brazil-Norway when everyone assumed the Norwegian dude dived but only a few days later did they find an angle that showed quite conclusively that it wasn't a dive. Of course replays now are quite a bit better than then... https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gl7juV0rWA8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aberlour10 Posted June 8, 2014 Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 The expectations of media and public opinion are in Germany enormous this time, simply >>> "win the title" I have serious doubts, this thinking can be realistic. Well, injuried players are in all teams, the pre-WC-time counts not much too, but to fly to Brazil with only one 36y old classic forward (Klose) who played less than a half of last season and win the title? OK football changed in last couple of years, flexible midfield is deciding. But I cant imagine a team would be able to win the WC without a very strong man on number "9" position...we will see... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MrAce Posted June 8, 2014 Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 yapping seems to be most common. AT this point perhaps that is all the world cup is....yapping. 60 minutes of boring and yapping or can you show me something else? can you show me world cup excitement?can you show me world cup passion? true when you as a poster you show passion? In baseball in America I think of passion, true passion When I think of soccer I think of passion, in 2014 what passion teams do you see? Mike are you ***** kidding me? Passion? Baseball? I think it is about time to show Americans what a football passions looks like! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trinidad Posted June 8, 2014 Report Share Posted June 8, 2014 Will the Usa finish in the top ten?Sorry Mike, but this question is equivalent to: "Will the Yankees finish in the top three of the World Series?" There are 8 groups (A-H) of 4 teams each. Within each group every team plays the other three teams once. The best two of each group continue to the knockout phase which therefore starts as a group of 16. Perhaps you understand now why the question whether the USA will finish in the top 10 is a little odd. Your other questions and remarks are odd too, but on a different level. Something like: "Will Max Scherzer get the same OPS this season as he got last season (1.000!)?" and "Obviously, these MLB coaches don't understand simple math. They put their power hitters fourth in the line up. If they would be smart enough to put them first in the line-up, these power hitters will get more at bats! And the team will score more home runs!". (Don't worry. No need to answer these.) Rik Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cyberyeti Posted June 9, 2014 Report Share Posted June 9, 2014 I notice that unfortunately cheating is becoming more common in this sport and at the very least suggestions of payoffs for the honor of holding world cups in the future, fixed games, etc. As an outsider and I am, the most popular sport in the world seems to be archaic at the very top. For example I point to the leader of the sport for roughly 18 years and its (questionable) non tax status in Switzerland. You who follow the sport more closely may agree or disagree. At the very least in all aspects this sport seems to be resistant to change and innovation for many reasons.( instant replay of refs calls: modern attacks and defense based on quants) Again I say this as an outsider so look forward to your comments from those of you who follow the sport in more passion. From what little I understand it seems that Europe is more open, much more open to innovation and change than the rest of the soccer world. ( agree or disagree?) I do find the passion, great passion in this sport to be of the finest from its many fans. FIFA is like the IOC was before Salt Lake City, with many of the same issues. Blatter needs to go and they have to take their heads out of their backsides and actually investigate what's gone on, rather than appoint a lawyer to do it and then have him not look at most of the evidence. Soccer suffers from the fact that for a long time it was a game for professionals run by amateurs. An example was the cause of Roy Keane's meltdown where he found it odd to say the least that the Irish team were travelling economy while the officials were in business/first. It's very common for sporting organizations to want to base themselves in Switzerland not just for the tax status but because they can be sure of no political governmental interference. The resistance to technology is interesting, part of it is to attempt to make it the same game in the English premier league as it is in the Botswana 2nd division. I disagree with this approach and it's now beginning to cave in, goal line technology is here and working pretty well. What they need to do next is allow recourse to technology for other clear cases. Was a foul inside/outside the penalty area ? for example. Simulation can be dealt with after the event. FIFA need to drop their resistance to re-refereeing the game afterwards so that the authorities can change punishments when the ref has seen the incident. As to passion, baseball has nothing on soccer. Many fans of British teams will attend every road game, I notice in the NFL and I guess baseball is similar, there are very few fans of the visiting team in the stadium, this is a large part of why the atmosphere is different. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fluffy Posted June 9, 2014 Report Share Posted June 9, 2014 I remember Brazil-Norway when everyone assumed the Norwegian dude dived but only a few days later did they find an angle that showed quite conclusively that it wasn't a dive. Of course replays now are quite a bit better than then... https://www.youtube....h?v=Gl7juV0rWA8 Yeah like this spannish "newspaper" who digitally removed a player from a picture to make attacker offside lol (obviously in favour of your team). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
billw55 Posted June 9, 2014 Report Share Posted June 9, 2014 This weekend I had a reunion with several friends from college. At one point we got to discussing this world cup. After some debate, two others made a wager against me. I have Brazil, Spain, and Germany, and they have the rest of the field. Whoever has the champion, wins the bet. This seemed favorable for me, but they were quite happy with the terms, so maybe my understanding is not so good as I thought. Which side of this bet would you take? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwnn Posted June 9, 2014 Report Share Posted June 9, 2014 Id definitely take your side. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gwnn Posted June 9, 2014 Report Share Posted June 9, 2014 Fluffy, are you saying that the Swedish tv photoshopped the video? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.