Hey everyone!
This is my first post on this beautiful site I have been reading on for about a year now, and guess what - the post will have nothing to do with football. Go figure. I have just read quite some comments on here lately about the FIFA World Cup 2010, and thought it would be best if we would have one single thread, with all the results updated (I will be responsible for that as often as I can), up for discussion! Steelers OTAs are almost over, Camp is still far away, and don't get me started on the season. I figured it'll be nice to have some topics going around aside from Redman's inevitable HOF Induction, Big Ben's newest adventures, or Bruce Arians' mad love for the running game.
Being from and in Germany right now, I am an absolute soccer nut. Yes, I have grown to love football and basketball from being in the United States for so long, but my love for soccer doesn't go away. Besides in Germany at the moment there is absolutely no way around the hype, so I thought I might as well put all the stuff into writing. What I plan to do is an overview about the groups, a short sentence to each group about teams advancing, and a detailed game plan (I'll try to do US Eastern times, though German time might slip in as that is what I am used to). For the playoffs, I can do a new thread! Of course, if you don't like the thread, just let it sink into the depths of the archives. If that happens, I won't bother with a new playoff thread, and guess what: I also won't be mad! Ain't that a treat! But enough bullshit, here is the Inofficial BTSC World Cup 2010 Thread
Group A
|
|
|
| Team |
Goals |
Points |
| Uruguay |
4:0 |
7 |
Mexico
|
3:2 |
4 |
| South Africa |
3:5 |
4 |
| France |
1:4 |
1 |
|
Group B
|
|
|
| Team |
Goals |
Points |
| Argentina |
7:1 |
9 |
| South Korea |
5:6 |
4 |
| Greece |
2:5 |
3 |
| Nigeria |
3:5 |
1 |
|
The first group is an interesting one. France should be the clear favorite, but has struggled mightily in the recent past. South Africa might not have the greatest team but has the home crowd behind it - a considerable advantage, as South Korea showed in 2002. Mexico can never be underestimated at big tournaments, but Uruguay can only hope for being overlooked. I am gonna go on a limb and say Mexico and South Africa advance, leaving France with the same fate as 2002 - out in the group stage and a ton of controversy.
|
| Gameplan |
| Fri 6/11 10:00 AM, South Africa v. Mexico 1:1 |
| Fri 6/11 14:30 AM, Uruguay v. France, 0:0 |
| Wed 6/16 14:30 PM, South Africa v. Uruguay, 0:3 |
| Thu 6/16 14:30 PM, France v. Mexico, 0:2 |
| Tue 6/22 10:00 AM, Mexico v. Uruguay, 0:1 |
| Tue 6/22 10:00 AM, France v. South Africa, 1:2 |
|
There should be no doubt that Argentina marches through this group. It gets interesting behind that - Greece should not be taken lightly, the same goes for Nigeria and South Korea. I think the Asians go on to the round of sixteen, because of Greece's inability to score goals and Nigeria's Kanu is left wondering where his teammates were. This is one of those times where I could be completely off though - after Argentina, the second place really is anybody's game.
|
| |
| Gameplan |
| Sat 6/12 10:00 AM, Argentina v. Nigeria, 1:0 |
| Sat 6/12 7:30 AM, South Korea v. Greece, 2:0 |
| Thu 6/17 10:00 AM, Greece v. Nigeria, 2:1 |
| Thu 6/17 7:30 AM, Argentina v. South Korea, 4:1 |
| Tue 6/22 14:30 PM, Nigeria v. South Korea, 2:2 |
| Tue 6/22 14:30 PM, Greece v. Argentina, 0:2 |
|
Group C
|
|
|
| Team |
Goals |
Points |
| United States |
4:3 |
5 |
| England |
2:1 |
5 |
| Slovenia |
3:3 |
4 |
| Algeria |
0:2 |
1 |
|
Group D
|
|
|
| Team |
Goals |
Points |
| Germany |
5:1 |
6 |
| Ghana |
2:2 |
4 |
Australia
|
3:6 |
4 |
| Serbia |
2:3 |
3 |
|
Everybody's favorite group on here (except for me, only my second favorite), so this will be fun. To make matters short, I think England is overrated. But only when it comes to winning it all, not for the group stage. They should advance rather easily in first place. Once again, the battle for second gets interesting. All three can be very good, but also erratic; it all depends on what day you are playing them. None of them has shown enough consistency to be a clear cut favorite for second. But I'll do you guys the favor and make my case for the US in second, because of strong goalie play that nets them close wins against the other two.
|
| Gameplan |
| Sat 6/12 14:30 PM, England v. United States, 1:1 |
| Sun 6/13 13:30 AM, Algeria v. Slovenia, 0:1 |
| Fri 6/18 10:00 AM, Slovenia v. United States, 2:2 |
| Fri 6/18 14:30 PM, England v. Algeria, 0:0 |
| Wed 6/23 10:00 AM, Slovenia v. England, 0:1 |
| Wed 6/23 10:00 AM, United States v. Algeria, 1:0 |
|
And here is my favorite! To be quite honest, I love this group. No weak team, but also no team that is almost guaranteed to win the group. Of course Germany is the favorite to advance in first place here, as they have a strong team despite the recent rash of injuries. What can beat them is inexperience. If that is the case, look for Serbia and Ghana to make a bid for the group win. Ghana would have challenged Germany for first unquestionally, but had to cope with the loss of its absolute leader Michael Essien. Australia shouldn't have much to say, but is always good for surprises. But if anything goes as planned, it's Germany before Serbia. See you in the round of 16, US! :)
|
| Gameplan |
| Sun 6/13 14:30 PM, Germany v. Australia, 4:0 |
| Sun 6/13 10:00 AM, Ghana v. Serbia, 1:0 |
| Fri 6/18 7:30 AM, Germany v. Serbia, 0:1 |
| Sat 6/19 10:00 AM, Ghana v. Australia, 1:1 |
| Wed 6/23 14:30 PM, Germany v. Ghana, 1:0 |
| Wed 6/23 14:30 PM, Australia v. Serbia, 2:1 |
|
Group E
|
|
|
| Team |
Goals |
Points |
Netherlands
|
5:1 |
9 |
| Japan |
4:2 |
6 |
| Denmark |
3:6 |
3 |
| Cameroon |
2:5 |
0 |
|
Group F
|
|
|
| Team |
Goals |
Points |
| Paraguay |
3:1 |
5 |
| Slovakia |
4:3 |
4 |
New Zealand
|
2:2 |
3 |
| Italy |
4:5 |
2 |
|
I'm excited for the Netherlands! Even without Robben in the group stage, they should win their games rather easily. Behind that, it's three teams that are kind of dark horses - few people know what to expect from them. I have recently read a report that Japan fields a pretty good team, but so do Denmark and Cameroon. Pretty good of course does necessarily mean world cup, 2nd-place-in-group-stage level good. I'm taking Cameroon here, not at all because of soccer knowledge. I simply have known and liked their team the most, and would like for them to advance in the first World Cup in Africa. Maybe the 'semi-hometeam aspect' will play a factor too, if such a thing even exists. At least Cameroon is one of the few teams actually used to the ridiculously annoying vuvuzelas.
|
| Gameplan |
| Mon 6/14 7:30 AM, Netherlands v. Denmark 2:0 |
| Mon 6/14 10:00 AM, Japan v. Cameroon, 1:0 |
| Sat 6/19 7:30 AM, Netherlands v. Japan, 1:0 |
| Sat 6/19 10:00 AM, Denmark v. Cameroon, 2:1 |
| Thu 6/24 14:30 PM, Denmark v. Japan, 0:0 |
| Thu 6/24 14:30 PM, Cameroon v. Netherlands, 0:0 |
|
Every German fan hates Italy in soccer, with a fiery passion. All the anti-soccer they play, the constant dirty play and flops, it's just no fun to watch - especially when you get beat by it in the 2006 World Cup semi finals in your own country. Anyways, as much as I would like to see them get thrown out and as much as I think they are not a serious contender this year, they have gotten in the wrong group to be embarrassed. They will win, probably without much problem. Behind that, I really hope that Paraguay's recent tragedy gives them something to play for,so that they advance. Realistically though, it's Slovakia's spot to lose. New Zealand will mainly watch and enjoy the experience and opportunity that might not come back to them very soon.
|
| |
| Gameplan |
| Mon 6/14 14:30 PM, Italy v. Paraguay, 1:1 |
| Tue 6/15 7:30 AM, New Zealand v. Slovakia, 1:1 |
| Sun 6/20 7:30 AM, Slovakia v. Paraguay, 0:2 |
| Sun 6/20 10:00 AM, Italy v. New Zealand, 1:1 |
| Thu 6/24 10:00 AM, Slovakia v. Italy, 3:2 |
| Thu 6/24 10:00 AM, Paraguay v. New Zealand, 0:0 |
|
Group G
|
|
|
| Team |
Goals |
Points |
Brazil
|
5:2 |
7 |
| Portugal |
7:0 |
5 |
Ivory Coast
|
5:3 |
4 |
North Korea
|
1:11 |
0 |
|
Group H
|
|
|
| Team |
Goals |
Points |
| Spain |
4:2 |
6 |
| Chile |
3:2 |
6 |
| Switzerland |
1:1 |
4 |
| Honduras |
0:2 |
1 |
|
Once labeled the obligatory 'group of death' by many, group G has in my book become anything but. Brazil, one of the favorites to win it all, advances easily, Portugal despite injury troubles comes in second, perhaps battling some kind of resistance against an team from the Ivory Coast that without its star only is a shadow of itself. North Korea doesn't stand a chance.
|
| Gameplan |
| Tue 15/6 10:00 AM, Ivory Coast v. Portugal, 0:0 |
| Tue 15/6 14:30 PM, Brazil v. North Korea, 2:1 |
| Sun 20/6 14:30 PM, Brazil v. Ivory Coast, 3:1 |
| Mon 21/6 7:30 AM, Portugal v. North Korea, 7:0 |
| Fri 25/6 10:00 AM, Portugal v. Brazil, 0:0 |
| Fri 25/6 10:00 AM, North Korea v. Ivory Coast, 0:3 |
|
| Spain should easily advance in first place. The second spot is Switzerland's to take - but Hitzfeld's team has shown its inconsistency. If they are as strong as four years ago, they will advance easily. If they play like in recent tests, they face a hard battle from exotics Honduras and Chile who have everything to win and not much to lose. |
| |
| Gameplan |
| Wed 16/6 7:30 AM, Honduras v. Chile, 0:1 |
| Wed 16/6 10:00 AM, Spain v. Switzerland, 0:1 |
| Mon 21/6 10:00 AM, Chile v. Switzerland, 1:0 |
| Mon 21/6 14:30 PM, Spain v. Honduras, 2:0 |
| Fri 25/6 14:30 PM, Chile v. Spain, 1:2 |
| Fri 25/6 14:30 PM, Switzerland v. Honduras, 0:0 |
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What are your thoughts? Completely disagree with my predictions? What matches are you looking forward to the most? Who is your dark horse? Questions over questions, make sure you leave the answers in the comments! ;)
PS: Sorry that my tables are not perfectly aligned and all that fun stuff, I am not very good at HTML yet... Intend to get better though. Enjoy!
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