World Cup 2014

[Gillipig]

Hummm crap. Our best player Frank Ribery is injured and will most likely not go to the world cup...

He got injured during the friendly against Paraguay? What a waste in that case. I don't understand why they have friendlies this close to the WC, some people are going to get injured for sure. Belgien kicked our ass, I made some money betting on them though so I'm not disappointed .

No all those injured/half injured players I m talking about were already in that shape when they joined the national team. But I don t know, it was the guys presenting roland garros yesterday that were commenting about ribery who will not play the world cup and that it was almost certain.
I still didn t hear anything official yet.

Yesterday we did disapointing 1-1 vs Paraguay with Griezman scoring his first goal with France (his second or third apearance). Nietzsche likes this player so just mentioning it.

Who was belgium playing in friendly last night?

I left you a hint.

[betiko]

Hummm crap. Our best player Frank Ribery is injured and will most likely not go to the world cup...

He got injured during the friendly against Paraguay? What a waste in that case. I don't understand why they have friendlies this close to the WC, some people are going to get injured for sure. Belgien kicked our ass, I made some money betting on them though so I'm not disappointed .

No all those injured/half injured players I m talking about were already in that shape when they joined the national team. But I don t know, it was the guys presenting roland garros yesterday that were commenting about ribery who will not play the world cup and that it was almost certain.
I still didn t hear anything official yet.

Yesterday we did disapointing 1-1 vs Paraguay with Griezman scoring his first goal with France (his second or third apearance). Nietzsche likes this player so just mentioning it.

Who was belgium playing in friendly last night?

I left you a hint.

[iAmCaffeine]

So we beat Peru with a comfortable 3-0 win but the performance wasn't much to see. I only watched the second half but from what I saw Wilshere should start over Henderson, Rooney needs a more key/active role, Johnson should be dropped forever and Sterling vs Welbeck for starting 11 will be an interesting battle.

[nagerous]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

[betiko]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

This is clearly not a team as talented as the 1994 or the 2002. Nevertheless, the home advantage will be huge, in terms of wether and public.
I think they have a very strong defense, not sure I could name 3 better ones than what they have. The attack is far from what it used to be, but the midfield remains pretty solid.
They are far from being the best team but with the home advantage factored in, I think they have the best chances.

[Trevor33]

The real issue Brazil has is their travel schedule, so everyone has a chance of seeing them they're being thrown around more than another team... can't remember exactly how it would go if they win their group but it looked like way to much travel.

[Gillipig]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

Yup, they don't have a WC winning team if you ask me, and they're certainly not the favorites in my mind. I think the defending champion Spain is going to be the team to beat and I've put my money where my mouth's at.

[Trevor33]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

Yup, they don't have a WC winning team if you ask me, and they're certainly not the favorites in my mind. I think the defending champion Spain is going to be the team to beat and I've put my money where my mouth's at.

They'll be out after the group stage.

[Agent 86]

They'll be out after the group stage.

Agreed Spain won't get past group stage this time

Go Aussies, hurt some big names!!!

[Gillipig]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

Yup, they don't have a WC winning team if you ask me, and they're certainly not the favorites in my mind. I think the defending champion Spain is going to be the team to beat and I've put my money where my mouth's at.

They'll be out after the group stage.

I was talking about Spain, not England.

[Pirlo]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

This is clearly not a team as talented as the 1994 or the 2002. Nevertheless, the home advantage will be huge, in terms of wether and public.
I think they have a very strong defense, not sure I could name 3 better ones than what they have. The attack is far from what it used to be, but the midfield remains pretty solid.
They are far from being the best team but with the home advantage factored in, I think they have the best chances.

Brazil are almost always look crap before any given tournament, and end up doing great or crowned as champions. They just keep doing this, starting with no pressure and keep developing their performance. Their press is smart enough to keep them off pressure. This has happened many times in FIFA Confederations Cup and Copa America.

So, no matter how shit Brazil seemed to be, I'd never be surprised to see them winning the title; not to mention that they have 2 of the best defenders in the world, if not the best. They always have surprises; they always have in tournament born stars.

[betiko]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

This is clearly not a team as talented as the 1994 or the 2002. Nevertheless, the home advantage will be huge, in terms of wether and public.
I think they have a very strong defense, not sure I could name 3 better ones than what they have. The attack is far from what it used to be, but the midfield remains pretty solid.
They are far from being the best team but with the home advantage factored in, I think they have the best chances.

Brazil are almost always look crap before any given tournament, and end up doing great or crowned as champions. They just keep doing this, starting with no pressure and keep developing their performance. Their press is smart enough to keep them off pressure. This has happened many times in FIFA Confederations Cup and Copa America.

So, no matter how shit Brazil seemed to be, I'd never be surprised to see them winning the title; not to mention that they have 2 of the best defenders in the world, if not the best. They always have surprises; they always have in tournament born stars.

dani alves, thiago silva, david luiz, Maicon, Dante, Marcelo, Maxwell, henrique........... I think you can safely say the whole defense is awesome, at least on the paper, they can build 2 world class defenses with that. They need a new keeper though.

[Trevor33]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

Yup, they don't have a WC winning team if you ask me, and they're certainly not the favorites in my mind. I think the defending champion Spain is going to be the team to beat and I've put my money where my mouth's at.

They'll be out after the group stage.

I was talking about Spain, not England.

They'll be out as well

5 South American teams in the last 8 after all winning their group... poor Ecuador will be left out of the party.

[betiko]

Anyone else find Brazil overrated? I get it is a home tournament and all, but their supposed best 11 include Fred, Oscar, Paulinho and David Luiz, none of whom particularly impress me compared to past stalwarts like Ronaldo, Rivaldo and Roberto Carlos. Their hopes seem to be pinned on Neymar, who hasn't had an especially amazing season down at Barca.

Argentina look more of a real deal and if Messi can perform like he did in 2012/13 then I'd pick between them and Spain for the title.

Yup, they don't have a WC winning team if you ask me, and they're certainly not the favorites in my mind. I think the defending champion Spain is going to be the team to beat and I've put my money where my mouth's at.

They'll be out after the group stage.

I was talking about Spain, not England.

They'll be out as well

5 South American teams in the last 8 after all winning their group... poor Ecuador will be left out of the party.

you see honduras qualifying????

[Trevor33]

That would be Central America numbnuts.

I ended up with Chile, Colombia, Argentina and Germany in the last 4 in that bracket thing. Replace Colombia with Brazil if Falcao isn't fit.

[betiko]

That would be Central America numbnuts.

I ended up with Chile, Colombia, Argentina and Germany in the last 4 in that bracket thing. Replace Colombia with Brazil if Falcao isn't fit.

before calling me numbnuts try to figure out what I m saying, you ve just made yourself sound like a fool.

And falcao isn t going to brazil, guess you missed that too.

[betiko]

Oh my!!

Just checking the results of tonight s friendlies.

Italy 1 luxembourg 1??????? That is absolutely ridiculous!

[betiko]

lol

so zlatan not qualified; cristiano ronaldo, frank ribery, luis suarez, diego costa in terrible shape and most likely not playing or playing at 50%; falcao not going to brazil....... there are so many top players that will not be there...

[Gillipig]

lol

so zlatan not qualified; cristiano ronaldo, frank ribery, luis suarez, diego costa in terrible shape and most likely not playing or playing at 50%; falcao not going to brazil....... there are so many top players that will not be there...

Is Cristiano in terrible shape? I must've missed that, unless he's injured I still think you can bet on him being fun to watch.

These are my predictions:

Click image to enlarge.

Spain over Germany in the finals, Argentina over Brazil in the bronze game.
England and Belgien doesn't make it through the groupstage.
Here's the link if anyone else wants to make their prediction.
http://www.bloomberg.com/visual-data/wo ... tr9gl3g11e

[betiko]

lol

so zlatan not qualified; cristiano ronaldo, frank ribery, luis suarez, diego costa in terrible shape and most likely not playing or playing at 50%; falcao not going to brazil....... there are so many top players that will not be there...

Is Cristiano in terrible shape? I must've missed that, unless he's injured I still think you can bet on him being fun to watch.

all the guys I've listed as being in terrible shape there are half injured; either some stuff they've been carrying around all season and that now are kind of too much to handle, either they are recovering from an injury.

messi missed the first half of the season this year and is the only superstar that will be in mild condition...

[Trevor33]

That would be Central America numbnuts.

I ended up with Chile, Colombia, Argentina and Germany in the last 4 in that bracket thing. Replace Colombia with Brazil if Falcao isn't fit.

before calling me numbnuts try to figure out what I m saying, you ve just made yourself sound like a fool.

And falcao isn t going to brazil, guess you missed that too.

I knew what your idiotic statement was saying numbnuts.

Did miss the Falcao news though

Zaltan didn't make it because Sweden weren't good enough (admittedly they did have an unlucky draw) but Colombia had a serious chance with a fit Falcao.

[betiko]

That would be Central America numbnuts.

I ended up with Chile, Colombia, Argentina and Germany in the last 4 in that bracket thing. Replace Colombia with Brazil if Falcao isn't fit.

before calling me numbnuts try to figure out what I m saying, you ve just made yourself sound like a fool.

And falcao isn t going to brazil, guess you missed that too.

I knew what your idiotic statement was saying numbnuts.

Did miss the Falcao news though

Zaltan didn't make it because Sweden weren't good enough (admittedly they did have an unlucky draw) but Colombia had a serious chance with a fit Falcao.

You sound more like a someone that just made the fool in public and with too much pride to excuse yourself.

A little tip for you: think again before you insult me as I m much smarter than you and it always bounces back in your face. Seems like you never learn..

It's funny to observe you like one observes an insect though. Go on, you entertain me!

[Trevor33]

I don't know any other way to express my frustration than to flame and be offensive.

[betiko]

I don't know any other way to express my frustration than to flame and be offensive.

so you feel so superior that you insult me calling me numbnuts and then "teach" me that honduras is in central america.... while you fail to understand completely what I was saying...

then you call me idiotic and numbnuts again because you just can't apologize when you don t take the time to think?

Oh yeah sorry, I'm the arrogant.

[Timminz]

This is the reason I don't often visit the regular football thread.