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2018 FIFA World Cup Thread
8trackdisco Offline
#1 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
I'm buckling under to the immense weight of the number of emails I've received, BEGGING for me to start a World Cup thread. You've got 8 years to get your chit together before it is played in these United States of America..... πŸ‡¨πŸ‡¦ and πŸ‡²πŸ‡½.

It all starts in the morning with πŸ‡ΈπŸ‡¦ vs πŸ‡·πŸ‡Ί.

Let this thread be your one stop, soccer shop over the next 30 days.

And no... the πŸ‡ΊπŸ‡Έ is not in the tourney because they lost to πŸ‡ΉπŸ‡Ή.
delta1 Offline
#2 Posted:
Joined: 11-23-2011
Posts: 28,753
Saw the US junior team playing a friendly against France last week, with the French playing mostly first teamers...US scored a lucky goal and defended well most of the game, for a 1-1 draw against a team favored to get to the semis...maybe the future isn't so bleak for US soccer...

Gonna root for Colombia...still feel bad about beating them in the 94 WC and getting their defender killed for an own goal...seems they've gotten the drug cartels out of the sport since then...
8trackdisco Offline
#3 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
delta1 wrote:
Saw the US junior team playing a friendly against France last week, with the French playing mostly first teamers...US scored a lucky goal and defended well most of the game, for a 1-1 draw against a team favored to get to the semis...maybe the future isn't so bleak for US soccer...

Gonna root for Colombia...still feel bad about beating them in the 94 WC and getting their defender killed for an own goal...seems they've gotten the drug cartels out of the sport since then...


And of all ironies, that defenders last name was Escobar (iirc).
8trackdisco Offline
#4 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Although not surprised Russia won, it was eye opening seeing they won with composure and didn't need Putins Police to steal the win on the pitch.

Uraguay Egypt next.
8trackdisco Offline
#5 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Good job. You knew Uruguay would beat Egypt, but you didn't think it was to be that close, didja?

Morocco v Iran in 55 mins. Thoughts?

Edge to Morocco? I see it the same way, although a 1-1 draw could certainly be in the cards.
delta1 Offline
#6 Posted:
Joined: 11-23-2011
Posts: 28,753
I thought Uruguay Egypt was gonna be like Russia Saudi Arabia...they may still get to the semis...but...
delta1 Offline
#7 Posted:
Joined: 11-23-2011
Posts: 28,753
Lot less turmoil surrounding the World Cup around the venues than during the Sochi Winter Olympics a few years ago...I remember lots of protesters vs police encounters then...

maybe because the US media isn't there in huge numbers?
8trackdisco Offline
#8 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
delta1 wrote:
Lot less turmoil surrounding the World Cup around the venues than during the Sochi Winter Olympics a few years ago...I remember lots of protesters vs police encounters then...

maybe because the US media isn't there in huge numbers?


Maybe.

Americans don't like sports they perform poorly in. No team, little media.

Portugal Pain lived up to the hype.
delta1 Offline
#9 Posted:
Joined: 11-23-2011
Posts: 28,753
Ronaldo is amazing...prolly the best player in history...

Iceland is no joke.
shaun341 Offline
#10 Posted:
Joined: 08-02-2012
Posts: 8,826
Maybe best player outside of World Cup but not even close in World Cup play. He has something like 3 goals in 12 games or something like that. While I think he is one of the greatest talents in this era in the World Cup, which everything, he comes up small every time. When we grade today's players we tend to forget about the greats of generations before us. I think that happens with every sport like Lebron vs Jordan but what about Russell and Chamberlain and Elgin Baylor. Tom Brady may have the best argument for being the greatest and playing in this generation but right now I feel we over value how great today's athletes are when comparing to athletes in history.
Abrignac Offline
#11 Posted:
Joined: 02-24-2012
Posts: 17,216
delta1 wrote:
Ronaldo is amazing...prolly the best player in history...


What about Pelé
8trackdisco Offline
#12 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
That was a day. Diego Costa scores twice and few will remember due to Ronaldo. Messi comes up short(er). Iceland and Croatia show the importance of team play, and France gets a scare from the Aussies.

Not expecting much from Coasta Rica v. Serbia. Mexico Germany is an interesting prospect.

If you are really into contracting styles, watch Brazil Switzerland. Can't imagine the Swiss will be able to keep up.
shaun341 Offline
#13 Posted:
Joined: 08-02-2012
Posts: 8,826
I wonder how costly that PK miss will be.
8trackdisco Offline
#14 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
What is with Germany today?

I've never seen them this flat.
delta1 Offline
#15 Posted:
Joined: 11-23-2011
Posts: 28,753
Germany missed too many opportunities...never thought Mexico could pack the defense for more than half a game and prevent Germany from scoring.

^ #10 and #11. I didn't see Pele play and can only go by video clips of him in his prime. He was a very creative offensive player, and a top goal scorer of his day. But watching Ronaldo over the years, playing with and against top clubs...he has stood out as the best of his era, against other top all-time players...
8trackdisco Offline
#16 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Interested in how Belgium and England fare tomorrow.

The English sports media is more ruthless than ours.
8trackdisco Offline
#17 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Sweden v South Korea.in ten minutes.
teedubbya Offline
#18 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
Watched Mexico/Germany, loved it. I like Germany but still loved the result for entertainment value.

As for Pele, great ambassador for the sport, great player. Had a flair.

I love Ronaldo but then again I love Portugal. In the unlikely event I ever retire I plan to live in Portugal for a few years in a town very near one of his mansions.

Personally I’d take Ronaldo or Messi over Pele in his prime but that becomes a Jordan, LeBron, Kobe argument and forgets a bunch of folks like Bird, West, Jabar, Magic etc.
ypetryna Offline
#19 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
8trackdisco wrote:
Sweden v South Korea.in ten minutes.


since when has everything become a pk? he needs to give the player a chance to still make a play on the ball? I don't see the guy trying to hurdle the defender to stay up. it's becoming idiotic
teedubbya Offline
#20 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
You don’t have to hurdle the defender to stay up nor give them a chance to make a play on the ball.
KingoftheCove Online
#21 Posted:
Joined: 10-08-2011
Posts: 7,600
ypetryna wrote:
since when has everything become a pk? he needs to give the player a chance to still make a play on the ball? I don't see the guy trying to hurdle the defender to stay up. it's becoming idiotic

It's one of the problems with the sport. They need to make a few tweaks in the rules to keep up with the ever faster, quicker, stronger players.

I'd like to see two kinds of PKs.
One that is how it is now, and should be what I'd call a "flagrant" foul.
Then a second level foul, maybe call it "hindrance", or something like that. It's where it's not flagrant/intentional, but nonetheless a foul. In that situation, the PK is taken from further away.......I don't know.....maybe 3 meters deeper.

The officials are allowed to review the foul to determine Flagrant or Hindrance.
8trackdisco Offline
#22 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Some of it is annoying.

There isn't supposed to be any contact in the box, but there is- on every play. Then again, no different from Holding penalties in the NFL. When commentary is 'there was contact in the box, but not enough' it gets confusing.

What bugs me is when a defender wraps both arms around an attacking player on a corner kick and Nothing is called.

That and the uneven calls of fouls, and whether it is a foul or not depending on whether they got the ball first.
teedubbya Offline
#23 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
Yea the hitting the ball first thing annoys me. It doesn’t matter if you hit the ball first. I was a defender. It’s all about the angle and contact. Wrong angle... listen for the whistle regardless of touching the ball.

I don’t want any rule changes. We seem to keep wanting to change every sports rules.

I do want yellow cards for flops. That can be done under current rules.
ypetryna Offline
#24 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
a foul is a foul. its that simple. body to body contact without a play on the ball is a foul. if the ball is lose, like not at your feet, it is a 50/50 ball open to either team. there will be contact there and as long as you are intentionally just playing a ball, you can have contact. if there is a foul in the box, then its a pk. doesnt matter if its a hindrance or not. i liked the two possible pk calls. the commentary is the problem. they dont know what they are talking about.

1) played the ball, cleanly and initially. afterwards the korean goes down. thats called defending. i dont know where this notion of you have to allow the player a chance to play on the ball came from. then he mentioned that since it was a light clear that stayed in bounds, the defender cant bring the offensive player down? dumbest thing i heard. great no call.

2) played the player (initial contact) to get to the ball. its a foul there, cant play the man ever first. and to help, 0 contact with the ball. loved that they looked back at it and got it right. nothing against the ref there, just a tough angle to see. love seeing VAR on that.

some of this commentary is really off like 8track said. counting fouls for accumulation is not a rule. neymar being unable to run shoulder to shoulder with a person is not a foul (yes, he does get clipped a lot, but no more then CR7 or messi or hazard, they just dont go to ground as easy).

rant over. cant wait to see kane "on his quest for the golden boot" - heard that today and damn near died. had salah been healthy, could be scary to see how many goals he would rack up in that group...
ypetryna Offline
#25 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
teedubbya wrote:
You don’t have to hurdle the defender to stay up nor give them a chance to make a play on the ball.



that was the dumbest thing i heard this morning. i am happy Gus is also around to balance Alexi out. no idea how he used to be a defender.
teedubbya Offline
#26 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
I see what you are saying and agree for the most part. As a defender I always held my breath in the box. You never knew what the ref would do. You are best off staying on your feet hands to yourself, but sometimes you have to take a chance.

I gave away pks when I shouldn’t have and got away with quite a few.

Fun game. I don’t want to eliminate the human element. It’s too fun to bitch lol.
ZRX1200 Offline
#27 Posted:
Joined: 07-08-2007
Posts: 60,473
I watched about a half hour late last night of Germany vs Mexico. Sloppy play, some good defense, and Mexico flops like the Houston Rockets.
teedubbya Offline
#28 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
The problem with being a defender in the box is a great play often looks like a penalty in real time until you get to see it in slow mo or several times in real time. Refs don’t have that luxury or angle
ypetryna Offline
#29 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
na. thats why i i am enjoying the way they are implementing the VAR without questioning judgement.
8trackdisco Offline
#30 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Mertens... wow.
ypetryna Offline
#31 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
8trackdisco wrote:
Mertens... wow.


sickness. 2 great 1 touches result in goals. i guess 3 but i still think headers are a separate category
8trackdisco Offline
#32 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Englands dominance outweighed by a moronic play from a Hotspur.

So many missed opportunities England has missed. Could easily be 4-1 at the half.
ypetryna Offline
#33 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
8trackdisco wrote:
Englands dominance outweighed by a moronic play from a Hotspur.

So many missed opportunities England has missed. Could easily be 4-1 at the half.


he needs coach lasso to remind him that is an offense
8trackdisco Offline
#34 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Will have to rely on the dvr the next three plus days.

Colombia Japan Poland and Senagal will have to play tomorrow without me.
Mr. Jones Offline
#35 Posted:
Joined: 06-12-2005
Posts: 19,357
Soccer blows...

Amazing athletes and stamina...

But it still blows.
teedubbya Offline
#36 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
Well mr jones does seem to know a lot about blowing
ypetryna Offline
#37 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
without ruining it for anyone, i have never seen that happen in my entire soccer life of 20+ years. rough for my Polish friends man. that hurts
teedubbya Offline
#38 Posted:
Joined: 08-14-2003
Posts: 95,637
Yea that was bogus
delta1 Offline
#39 Posted:
Joined: 11-23-2011
Posts: 28,753
not intentionally bogus...ball was in Senegal's third of the field when the ref waved the injured player back onto the field...who could've foreseen that Poland would play a back-pass across the half line just after the Senagal player ran onto the field ... which would lead to that? Other Senegal goal was a Polish sausage ... own goal.


Senegal looked stronger and well-organized on defense...is everybody on their team 6'6" or taller?
8trackdisco Offline
#40 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Rough day for the bracket.

Had Columbia and Poland advancing and Russia not.

8trackdisco Offline
#41 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Slow hamp up today, starting with Denmark v Australia.

Peru France could be fun. French so talented, but can they play as a team?

Argentina v Croatia is the most interesting of the mix. Light on his feet Messi against the physicality of the Croats. Should be good tv.

delta1 Offline
#42 Posted:
Joined: 11-23-2011
Posts: 28,753
What a difference four years make....Messi is coming up short, compared to his dominant performance in the last World Cup....

is it my imagination, but does it seem that defenders all over the world are better than ever...
8trackdisco Offline
#43 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Messi quit after they got knocked out last time. I expect the same again. Lacks the mental toughness Ronaldo has.

The Croats made Argentina play the Croat game. Physical, punch for punch, kick for kick. Took them out of their game.

That is the wrong team to get into a straight up street fight with. Can't for the life of me why Otemendi didn't get a red card.

Still, think Lovren will do something immensely stupid to ruin it for them.
8trackdisco Offline
#44 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Ha Ha, Neymar.

The ref had huge balls to make the right call, admitting he was wrong.

(1 minute later, Neymar yellow card for being a crybaby).
8trackdisco Offline
#45 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
Brazil earned it. What can you say?
ypetryna Offline
#46 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
delta1 wrote:
What a difference four years make....Messi is coming up short, compared to his dominant performance in the last World Cup....

is it my imagination, but does it seem that defenders all over the world are better than ever...



its amazing what they have done when they can play and not worried about people going to ground soft. plus they crowd them and gang defend and strip balls. art
ypetryna Offline
#47 Posted:
Joined: 07-19-2012
Posts: 1,323
8trackdisco wrote:
Ha Ha, Neymar.

The ref had huge balls to make the right call, admitting he was wrong.

(1 minute later, Neymar yellow card for being a crybaby).



this is the second time i saw VAR on a PK question were it was basically diving. why are the offenders not being carded for that. he should have had his yellow earlier.
8trackdisco Offline
#48 Posted:
Joined: 11-06-2004
Posts: 59,987
ypetryna wrote:
this is the second time i saw VAR on a PK question were it was basically diving. why are the offenders not being carded for that. he should have had his yellow earlier.


Crossed my mind. Upon further thought, he took so many nicks and hits, the non-dive call was probably a makeup, no call.
KingoftheCove Online
#49 Posted:
Joined: 10-08-2011
Posts: 7,600
Wow....Germany pulling one out from deep in the fire.
Had that game remained a tie, I think Mexico and Sweden would simply have played one of those pretend matches that end up in a tie, thus allowing them to both advance.

But now, it's a whole new scenario. Assuming Germany beats South Korea, a fairly safe bet, the Mexico Sweden match is now win and your in, lose and go home.
Germany is in with a win over South Korea obviously.
KingoftheCove Online
#50 Posted:
Joined: 10-08-2011
Posts: 7,600
KingoftheCove wrote:
Wow....Germany pulling one out from deep in the fire.
Had that game remained a tie, I think Mexico and Sweden would simply have played one of those pretend matches that end up in a tie, thus allowing them to both advance.

But now, it's a whole new scenario. Assuming Germany beats South Korea, a fairly safe bet, the Mexico Sweden match is now win and your in, lose and go home.
Germany is in with a win over South Korea obviously.

OK.....disregard this stupid post......I'm full of chit.
Here's the official breakdown.....pretty dang complicated.

-Mexico will qualify with a win or a draw against Sweden.
-Mexico will qualify with a defeat to Sweden if Germany fail to beat South Korea.
-Mexico will even qualify if they lose to Sweden and Germany beat South Korea, providing Mexico's goal difference is still better than Germany's.
Germany will qualify with a win by two clear goals against South Korea.
Germany will qualify with a win against South Korea if Sweden do not beat Mexico.
Germany will qualify with a win against South Korea even if Sweden beat Mexico and Germany have a better goal difference than either Mexico or Sweden.
Germany will qualify with a draw against South Korea if Mexico beat Sweden.
Germany will qualify with a draw against South Korea if Sweden and Mexico also draw and Germany's goal difference is better than Sweden's (this would, in practice, mean the decision between Germany and Sweden would go to goals scored).
Germany will qualify with a defeat to South Korea if Sweden simultaneously lose to Mexico and Germany have a better goal difference than Sweden and South Korea.
Sweden will qualify with a win against Mexico, if Germany fail to beat South Korea.
Sweden will qualify with a win against Mexico if Germany beat South Korea providing Sweden's goal difference is better than either Mexico or Germany.
Sweden will qualify with a draw against Mexico if South Korea beat Germany.
Sweden will qualify with a draw against Mexico if Germany also draw with South Korea and Sweden have a better goal difference than Germany (this would, in practice, mean the decision between Germany and Sweden would go to goals scored).
Sweden will qualify with a defeat to Mexico if South Korea beat Germany and Sweden boast a better goal difference than Germany and South Korea.
South Korea will only qualify with a win against Germany combined with Sweden losing to Mexico and a better goal difference than Germany and Sweden.
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