World Cup 2014 Thread

[Kizyr]

Soccer World Cup is about to start today! Just two hours away!

Link to everything here:
http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/index.html
but... if anyone has a better site then I'm willing to replace it.

Anyway, who else is following? Favorite teams or players?

Maybe we can even get G1 to come back around and post a bit. Here, let me try something:
ARGENTINA IS GOING TO BEAT BRAZIL IN THE FINALS 2-1.

There, that should do it. KF

[Sonic#]

There has been a lot of talk about whether Brazil will even make it to the finals. I don't know enough to know whether it's bluster or not - aside from a foible today, they did well.

Also, I rather blindly cheer first for the US, and then for England. National loyalty, followed by personal feelings - when I was in England in 2012, I ended up cheering for them during the Euro Cup (England v. Italy), and made a few pub friends in the process. England lost, but still had a great time. I figure there are worse reasons to cheer for a team than happy memories.

[Imperial Knight]

The best way to watch the World Cup is on Univision or at least to switch to Univision whenever a goal is scored. Those announcers get excited! It's worth it even if you don't speak Spanish.

[Kizyr]

Ok folks, first, if you're not watching the England vs. Italy match right now, you really should be. It's halftime and it's been a great and exciting game so far.

Second, my preference is that I'll root for the USA and Argentina mostly. USA for obvious reasons, and Argentina due to personal bias (it's where I spent one summer, and where I learned Spanish). Anything else is usually based on miscellaneous (and usually arbitrary) factors -- some teams I generally like (like France), others I generally dislike (like Italy).

Third, I... sometimes like watching the game on Univision. The problem is that while the announcers are renowned for getting excited (and that's a plus -- lets you know when to take more notice), they're sometimes a little bad at reporting what's actually going on on the field.

huh... no G1 yet... KF

[GhaleonOne]

Haha, I'm here!

I'm sticking with my Brazil. That said, if this Brazil team didn't have home field advantage, I would give them very little chance of winning it all. I can say my bracket is shot to all crap with the Dutch's crushing of Spain. I had Spain taking first of that group, with Chile second. Now it looks like Brazil will probably play Chile or Spain in the first knockout round. Not what I wanted.

Dark Horse teams: Bosnia, Belguim, all the lesser South American teams. I'm tipping Belguim in particular to make it to the quarters at least.

Disappointments: Not sure. Spain so far. Portugal IMO, though we'll see if I still feel that way in a few hours after they play Germany.

Best picks: Brazil, Germany, Argentina, France. Italy could go far too. I had Uruguay doing well before the tournament, but I doubt they get out of the group now.

Oh, my final prediction:

Brazil over Argentina 3-1.

[Sonic#]

There goes Spain. And as for Portugal, Mickey called that one. I'm hoping the US can edge Portugal out on Sunday.

[WD RPG WD]

I'm a huge follower. Rooting for the US of course, but also rooting for Nigeria and Belgium because they have 2 of my favorite players (Mikel and Fellaini). Fellaini has been bad for a while but after scoring against Algeria I'm back on the band wagon.

I wouldn't mind seeing Costa Rica or Switzerland go far as well.

[GhaleonOne]

The US actually has a good shot at getting out of this group at this point. Portugal in any state is no pushover, but I can't imagine a better time to be playing them. Their best player, Pepe, is out because of a monumentally stupid decision in head-butting Mueller in the Germany-Portugal game. Fabio Coentrao and Hugo Almeida both went down. Coentrao is probably out of the tournament. So that's two of their first choice back four, out for the game against the USA. If Almeida is out, their first choice center forward is gone. And the biggest news of all, there's rumors Ronaldo is even out, and could be done for the tournament.

What I can't wait for is Ghana vs Portugal. Pepe is back. The Ghanians were super physical. And it's slightly possible both teams could be out already. It's 2006 Netherlands v Portugal card-fest waiting to happen all over again.

England still has a better chance to slip by than people give them credit for. They only have a -2 goal difference. Uruguay was beaten by Costa Rica pretty heavily. Italy should be Costa Rica. If England can put a few goals in against Costa Rica in the final round, and Italy can beat Uruguay, England should go through over Uruguay in that group.

[GhaleonOne]

Well, nevermind about England. Costa Rica are having the defining moments of their soccer history.

[Kizyr]

Good to see you back, G1!
(and I'm keeping an eye on the Argentina-Iran game while typing, by the way...)

Anyway, I've been catching what matches I can over the past week or so (between business trips and the like it's a little hard), but there have been a lot of interesting things so far. The teams I'm most impressed by (outside of, you know, my natural bias towards USA and Argentina) are definitely the Netherlands and Germany -- both have been really fantastic so far. The biggest disappointment has been Cameroon -- I mean they're an underdog, sure, but that last match against Croatia was just so embarrassing that I'm having trouble believing they ever qualified. As for other surprises, there's England (mixed feelings about seeing them knocked out, mostly because I really dislike Italy), Spain (still can't believe they're out), and Mexico (Ochoa was pretty incredible in their draw against Brazil).

And... this game is still 0-0. *grumble* KF

(EDIT: POR FIN!!! GRACIAS MESSI!)

[GhaleonOne]

Heck of a game against Portugal yesterday. A bit disappointing to allow that draw, but still in with a good chance to move on now.

I'm not that surprised about Spain bottling it, but I'm surprised they're going out in the group stage. I expected at least a semifinal run. I had Argentina and Brazil pegged in the finals, but I could see a random team like Chile go really far. Maybe even to the final. I could also see France make a deep run. Nobody gave them credit after the debacle of 4 years ago, but this is a completely revamped team under the new manager.

[WD RPG WD]

Côte d'Ivoire......................Africa continues to struggle in the World Cup.. Nigeria and Algeria still have a chance..

[GhaleonOne]

Yeah, those Ivorians just blew my bracket for that group. Ghana is still in with a chance too. Though it would be at our expense if they made it probably.

And of course, Suarez. Not sure what more to say other than wow. How many times do you have to learn the hard way. Likely his tournament is over after biting another player...

[Kizyr]

Heck of a game against Portugal yesterday. A bit disappointing to allow that draw, but still in with a good chance to move on now.

Oh man... That was such an incredible match, and I must've worn my voice raw by all the yelling and cheering. (I wish I'd been able to time that so that me and Jenner could've seen it at a local sports bar here. That would've been an experience.)

I'm really excited about today's match, though. I mean, the US is still not out, and there're still several situations by which we can still advance (win or draw, or even a narrow loss as long as Ghana doesn't decimate Portugal).

I'm not that surprised about Spain bottling it, but I'm surprised they're going out in the group stage. I expected at least a semifinal run. I had Argentina and Brazil pegged in the finals, but I could see a random team like Chile go really far. Maybe even to the final. I could also see France make a deep run. Nobody gave them credit after the debacle of 4 years ago, but this is a completely revamped team under the new manager.

For me, the team that I'm most impressed by so far is the Netherlands. I actually think they could make it up to the semis if they keep playing like this. Argentina I'm concerned about (way too reliant on Messi, so if anything happens then their chances kind of tank -- Messi is one of the best, but this is still a risky method). I haven't been able to watch any of France's matches so far so I can't tell for myself, but I never underestimate them. Oh, and contrariwise, the team I've been most disappointed by is Cameroon -- I'm wondering how did they even qualify?

Yeah, those Ivorians just blew my bracket for that group. Ghana is still in with a chance too. Though it would be at our expense if they made it probably.

And of course, Suarez. Not sure what more to say other than wow. How many times do you have to learn the hard way. Likely his tournament is over after biting another player...

WTF Suarez!? ...I can't even try to understand that... KF

[GhaleonOne]

We're into the round of 16!

Belgium is no pushover, but they haven't looked as good as I expected this tournament. Compared to Brazil, Netherlands, France, etc. I'll take Belgium for sure. That means we likely have Argentina if we were to make the quarterfinals.

The Dutch have a pretty easy road to the semi's. And it's seting up a possible France v Germany game on the 4th of July, which should be a great game!

I love upsets and all, but I'm thinking it's Brazil v France and Argentina v Netherlands in the semifinals, with Brazil winning over Argentina in the final. France will shock Germany in the quarter's. I didn't have that in my original bracket, but after watching the tournament so far, I think France pulls it off 1-0 or 2-1 or even in OT or PKs.

[Kizyr]

Yes! We escaped the group of death!

I haven't been able to catch any of Belgium or Algeria's matches, so I'm not so sure who I would've rather the US play next. I still figure it's a huge long shot and would be thrilling if we advanced to the quarters. (And then it'll be a little conflicting -- the US versus my other favorite team... but I'll still root for the US.)

I love upsets and all, but I'm thinking it's Brazil v France and Argentina v Netherlands in the semifinals, with Brazil winning over Argentina in the final. France will shock Germany in the quarter's. I didn't have that in my original bracket, but after watching the tournament so far, I think France pulls it off 1-0 or 2-1 or even in OT or PKs.

I'm still not so sure... I'm just worried that at one point Argentina's strategy isn't going to hold -- I could easily see them getting knocked out by either Belgium or the Netherlands. But I agree that France vs. Germany should be a pretty tight game.

Between everyone in the brackets right now, I think I'm most looking forward to Brazil-Chile, France-Germany (assuming they both advance), Netherlands-Argentina (also assuming they both advance), and whoever among them makes it into the semis. KF

EDIT: Oh, and if anyone failed to catch this clip on Colbert Report a couple weeks ago, I recommend taking a look (go ahead and skip to 2:50):
http://thecolbertreport.cc.com/videos/0 ... -world-cup

[GhaleonOne]

This Chile v Brazil game has me biting all my nails off. Chile is always tough. And I'm still not sure on that handball call for the second Brazil goal called off. That was a tough call to make.

[WD RPG WD]

I was pulling for Chile but after seeing the emotional reaction of the Brazil players, I felt happy for them. They are under so much pressure..

I thought the reffing was great under the circumstances. It seemed to me Hulk extended the arm. It could have gone either way. It was a gutsy call to overturn it.

[GhaleonOne]

I'm a huge Brazil fan, but admittedly this is one of my least favorite Brazil teams I've ever watched. I really want to like Neymar. He's a great player. But the diving and play-acting has gotta be toned down. But I do like their spirit and you can tell how much it means to them to win in their home country. I really do think it's likely a Brazil vs Argentina showdown could happen in the final. And that will be historic.

I'm really getting into Costa Rica's cinderella run too. I almost hoped Mexico would go through over Netherlands yesterday because Costa Rica can beat the Mexicans (as they proved in qualifying). I think the Dutch might prove to be too much, but then, that's why the game is played. Any team can win on any given day.

Oh, and had Mexico upset the Dutch, and a few other upsets took place, we could have had a Mexico vs USA semifinal. Most of you know I play and watch a lot of soccer. I can tell you that the rivalry between the two countries is not friendly whatsoever between many fans. I can't imagine how nasty that kind of match up would end up.

[Kizyr]

Ok, I know I've been absent for like a week, but man what a week!

Starting off, the US match was wonderful yet so difficult to watch. And I love Tim Howard's new nickname as the Secretary of Defense. Perhaps I'm biased, and perhaps it's more a reflection of how the rest of the US team couldn't keep the action off of their side of the field, but I don't remember the last time I was that amazed with a goalkeeper. True, it sucks that we lost, but strong defense alone can't win it and we were getting outplayed near the end there...

I enjoyed seeing Colombia trounce Uruguay. I was conflicted in their next match though since I'm still wanting that Brazil-Argentina final.

Oh and speaking of that... Brazil is now down Neymar Jr, and I'm worried how that'll affect them. G1, any thoughts? I mean, I want them to lose to Argentina in the finals, but (a) I want them to actually -make- it to the finals, and (b) I don't want to hear later how they only lost 'cause they were missing a key player or two. (Though I say this with full admission that Argentina would simply not last another game if it weren't for Messi.)

What else has happened... France-Germany and Argentina-Belgium weren't as interesting matches to watch as I'd hoped. And on that note, way too many 0-0 ties advancing into overtime and/or PKs. It's... well... the first professional soccer match I ever watched on TV was the 1994 World Cup Final (which was 0-0 into overtime and PKs), and it gave me a deep loathing of scoreless draws.

I'm really getting into Costa Rica's cinderella run too. I almost hoped Mexico would go through over Netherlands yesterday because Costa Rica can beat the Mexicans (as they proved in qualifying). I think the Dutch might prove to be too much, but then, that's why the game is played. Any team can win on any given day.

Speaking of scoreless draws, I'm sad to see Costa Rica go out like that. They had a long shot against the Dutch (who've been playing a top game since the start of the tournament) but, I'm with you, G1, and really enjoyed seeing how far they went.

Oh, and had Mexico upset the Dutch, and a few other upsets took place, we could have had a Mexico vs USA semifinal. Most of you know I play and watch a lot of soccer. I can tell you that the rivalry between the two countries is not friendly whatsoever between many fans. I can't imagine how nasty that kind of match up would end up.

This would've been a great match. I rather like the US-Mexico rivalry, though. (And Ochoa is likewise an amazing goalkeeper.)

If you happen to see this post within the next hour or so, G1, any predictions on the Brazil-Germany game about to come up? You think Brazil can pull it off being down two key players? KF

EDIT: Oh G1... I'm so sorry. Really. This is just painful.