Author Topic: FIFA World Cup 2014  (Read 191443 times)

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Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #15 on: June 05, 2014, 11:51:33 AM »

Offline Yoki_IsTheName

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No you won`t !!

If we follow this kind of logic France needs to not qualify first and then will win the next WC

It's the Le Pattern, man (or girl, dont know actually). It's what it is. I did not make that up.  History suggests that France will do well this World Cup and be poopy the next.

 ;D
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Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #16 on: June 05, 2014, 12:51:35 PM »

Offline Adelaide Celt

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Anything to take my mind off the Kevin Love saga!

Looking forward to Australia's game against Chile on June 14th. Our best chance for a point.

The following games against the Netherlands then Spain could get ugly. Possibly the weakest team we've sent to a World Cup.

On a different note, if Qatar have the 2022 World Cup taken off them I sure hope we don't waste more millions in taxpayer money to bid again.

I thought Brazil's protests against the World Cup and the Olympics were pretty fantastic.

Other than seeing a graffiti piece showing a starving crying child being served a soccer ball on a plate, I haven't seen much too much of these protests myself.

Could you explain a little more about them and why you thought they were fantastic?

Sure -- there are lots of people in Brazil who think that their country would be better served by focusing on their infrastructure and the problems within the country, rather than spending a ton of money and time (a large chunk of it lost to corruption, in the case of some arenas) on the World Cup.

Personally, I think it's great that these people are using the platform that the World Cup provides, in terms of scrutiny and attention paid, to try and get their point across, even though I'm very much a soccer fan, and enjoy the International tournaments immensely.

Lots more reading to do here:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/22/us-brazil-worldcup-protests-idUSBREA4L1AA20140522

http://www.thenation.com/article/174936/why-are-brazilians-protesting-world-cup

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/05/16/world/americas/brazil-world-cup-protests/

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/danhodges/100222371/even-brazil-doesnt-want-fifas-tainted-world-cup-now-footballs-capacity-for-magic-is-waning/

http://www.businessinsider.com/brazils-world-cup-problems-with-corruption-2014-5

http://www.ibtimes.com/brazilian-world-cup-protesters-decry-perceived-corruption-their-beloved-game-1586666

It's a shame that what should be a great moment for so many has been tainted like this. They are indeed very effective efforts. As I said I could recall seeing one article but it was a very powerful image.

How someone like Sepp Blatter has lasted this long is beyond me. Get rid of the criminal.
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Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #17 on: June 05, 2014, 01:54:13 PM »

Offline TheBigTicket23

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I guess every country except of the USA itself is really hyped about the World cup? How is this in the States where soccer is not important!?

I'm from the Netherlands and I guess Fifa World Cup is the biggest event there is in sports for us. With the olympics but I think the youngsters love the FIFA WC way more.

I don't have high hopes for my country, The Netherlands. I'm happy if we get through the group but then we face Brazil I guess and it's most likely over. After the final in 2010 our team went through a disaster at the EC 2012 and our good generation is gone now. Gonna be a tough one with Chili to fight for the second spot in our group.
@Adelaide Celt, unfortunately I have to agree that Australia is sending their weakest team in years but you have an amazing record against NL, somehow we never win against the aussies who are always physical in an advantage.

My top 3 countries are the usual ones, Brazil, Spain and Germany. Look for Uruguay to impress and for Japan to play great football in their relatively easy group.
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Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #18 on: June 05, 2014, 02:04:27 PM »

Offline D.o.s.

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I guess every country except of the USA itself is really hyped about the World cup? How is this in the States where soccer is not important!?

I think the response is relatively muted because of some combination of these factors: people in the USA who're into soccer tend to want to avoid being overly jingoistic by rooting for team USA/they use the World Cup to celebrate their family's heritage/they still root for their favorite players (who are typically playing in the EPL or somewhere else broad), and, most importantly, Team USA is usually not very good.

Our good soccer teams, like the '94 Men's squad and the '99 women's squad, are pretty widely appreciated.
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Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #19 on: June 05, 2014, 02:04:58 PM »

Offline D.o.s.

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How someone like Sepp Blatter has lasted this long is beyond me. Get rid of the criminal.

Agreed
At least a goldfish with a Lincoln Log on its back goin' across your floor to your sock drawer has a miraculous connotation to it.

Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #20 on: June 05, 2014, 02:28:50 PM »

Offline Sixth Man

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France will win the World Cup. That squad is sneaky good.

Yep, you heard it here first.

Yeah, I have been pretty disappointed with Deschamps' continued refusal to consider his team as even a dark horse candidate in the World Cup.

There is loads of talent in that team. Very good keeper in Lloris. Strong CBs in Mangala, Varane, Sakho and Koscielny. Evra is still a good player. Not wild about the RB Debuchy though. The talent in midfield with Pogba, Cabaye and Matuidi is fantastic. Ribery and Valbuena down the flanks. Excellent. Benzema up front. A bit inconsistent but a fabulous talent. Players like Grenier, Sissoko and Griezmann off the bench who can come in and change the flow of games off the bench.

There is just so much to like about that team. Genuine balance. Multiple creative passers. Multiple scoring threats. Quality defense. That to me is a team that has a chance (not a favourite but a darkhorse) of winning the tournament.

Evra had a disastrous season for ManU - did you not view any of his "performances" this campaign?  Digne is a fine young player, but he has very little experience at this level.

Ribery is being assessed for a back injury.  At this point, it is uncertain whether he will
be available for group stage fixtures.

Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #21 on: June 05, 2014, 02:32:41 PM »

Offline AngryAndIrritable

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I can see Belgium having a very good tournament, full of quality players like Mirallas, Hazard, Courtois in goal and Kompany.

Not too sure about the French, like the Dutch, they tend to have a bit of a reputation for in-fighting at the World Cup.

As a proud Scot I will be rooting for the three other teams in England's group  ;D

Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #22 on: June 05, 2014, 02:34:05 PM »

Offline Sixth Man

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Anything to take my mind off the Kevin Love saga!

Looking forward to Australia's game against Chile on June 14th. Our best chance for a point.

The following games against the Netherlands then Spain could get ugly. Possibly the weakest team we've sent to a World Cup.

On a different note, if Qatar have the 2022 World Cup taken off them I sure hope we don't waste more millions in taxpayer money to bid again.

The 2022 WC should have been awarded to Australia in the first place...at least it would be been held in the winter, so the blistering Aussie summer heat wouldn't be an issue.  There's going to be a shedload of lawsuits over the selection.  Good thing 2022 is still 8 years away.

I was surprised that Australia qualified this time around.  Where are the Cahills, Vidukas and Kewells of this new generation?

Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #23 on: June 05, 2014, 02:34:19 PM »

Offline BigAlTheFuture

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I can see Belgium having a very good tournament, full of quality players like Mirallas, Hazard, Courtois in goal and Kompany.

Not too sure about the French, like the Dutch, they tend to have a bit of a reputation for in-fighting at the World Cup.

As a proud Scot I will be rooting for the three other teams in England's group  ;D

Belgium is my sleeper pick.

Of course, you have Brazil, Spain, Germany, who are favorites every World Cup. But I can see Belgium taking the Cup.
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Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #24 on: June 05, 2014, 02:39:27 PM »

Offline Sixth Man

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Anything to take my mind off the Kevin Love saga!

Looking forward to Australia's game against Chile on June 14th. Our best chance for a point.

The following games against the Netherlands then Spain could get ugly. Possibly the weakest team we've sent to a World Cup.

On a different note, if Qatar have the 2022 World Cup taken off them I sure hope we don't waste more millions in taxpayer money to bid again.

I thought Brazil's protests against the World Cup and the Olympics were pretty fantastic.

Other than seeing a graffiti piece showing a starving crying child being served a soccer ball on a plate, I haven't seen much too much of these protests myself.

Could you explain a little more about them and why you thought they were fantastic?

Sure -- there are lots of people in Brazil who think that their country would be better served by focusing on their infrastructure and the problems within the country, rather than spending a ton of money and time (a large chunk of it lost to corruption, in the case of some arenas) on the World Cup.

Personally, I think it's great that these people are using the platform that the World Cup provides, in terms of scrutiny and attention paid, to try and get their point across, even though I'm very much a soccer fan, and enjoy the International tournaments immensely.

Lots more reading to do here:
http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/05/22/us-brazil-worldcup-protests-idUSBREA4L1AA20140522

http://www.thenation.com/article/174936/why-are-brazilians-protesting-world-cup

http://edition.cnn.com/2014/05/16/world/americas/brazil-world-cup-protests/

http://blogs.telegraph.co.uk/news/danhodges/100222371/even-brazil-doesnt-want-fifas-tainted-world-cup-now-footballs-capacity-for-magic-is-waning/

http://www.businessinsider.com/brazils-world-cup-problems-with-corruption-2014-5

http://www.ibtimes.com/brazilian-world-cup-protesters-decry-perceived-corruption-their-beloved-game-1586666


Strongly agreee with what you've posted here.  These are issues that have been ignored for a long time. 

Sepp Blatter & Co. may find that the selection process for 2022 was their fatal mistake, after decades of dodging bullets.  There was an EU criminal investigation of Blatter, et al. for "racketeering" a few years ago, but it never led to actual indictments.  The process of legal discovery may allow for a rare window into FIFA's internal shenanigans and finally provide some hard proof of criminality.

I hope this coming wave takes Platini and the rest of UEFA stooges down as well...

Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #25 on: June 05, 2014, 02:42:00 PM »

Offline Sixth Man

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I can see Belgium having a very good tournament, full of quality players like Mirallas, Hazard, Courtois in goal and Kompany.

Not too sure about the French, like the Dutch, they tend to have a bit of a reputation for in-fighting at the World Cup.

As a proud Scot I will be rooting for the three other teams in England's group  ;D

Belgium is my sleeper pick.

Of course, you have Brazil, Spain, Germany, who are favorites every World Cup. But I can see Belgium taking the Cup.

The quality throughout Belgium's lineup and on the bench screams "legitimate contender" but the problem is that no one has seen a world title performance from the national side.  Maybe it will all come together in Brazil...

Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #26 on: June 05, 2014, 03:03:47 PM »

Offline Celtics18

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I like Belgium as a dark horse as well. 
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Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #27 on: June 05, 2014, 04:39:23 PM »

Offline Who

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I don't think Belgium are a threat. Too young, too inexperienced and a bit lacking in direction from midfield. I see this World Cup as a warm up for Belgium in an effort to get ready to challenge for the Euros in 2016.

I think this World Cup is too much too soon for a young team.

Edit: Belgium strikes me as a team that gets less than the sum of their parts and I think it is because they don't have enough playmaking and creative passing from those central midfield areas. Makes it hard for them to keep their team organized and attacking effectively. Witsel is their only real creative passer and I think playing out in Russia for the last few years has hurt him. Fellaini isn't up to that task. Neither is Dembele. De Bruyne is still young and not ready for the role either. I think this is where Belgium will be let down.

Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #28 on: June 05, 2014, 04:39:45 PM »

Offline Yoki_IsTheName

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I can see Belgium having a very good tournament, full of quality players like Mirallas, Hazard, Courtois in goal and Kompany.

Not too sure about the French, like the Dutch, they tend to have a bit of a reputation for in-fighting at the World Cup.

As a proud Scot I will be rooting for the three other teams in England's group  ;D

Belgium is my sleeper pick.

Of course, you have Brazil, Spain, Germany, who are favorites every World Cup. But I can see Belgium taking the Cup.

Belgium is being picked as a sleeper too much, I think they are already awake.

BTW, Y they no bring Benteke? Is he injured?
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Re: FIFA World Cup 2014
« Reply #29 on: June 05, 2014, 05:01:24 PM »

Offline Who

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France will win the World Cup. That squad is sneaky good.

Yep, you heard it here first.

Yeah, I have been pretty disappointed with Deschamps' continued refusal to consider his team as even a dark horse candidate in the World Cup.

There is loads of talent in that team. Very good keeper in Lloris. Strong CBs in Mangala, Varane, Sakho and Koscielny. Evra is still a good player. Not wild about the RB Debuchy though. The talent in midfield with Pogba, Cabaye and Matuidi is fantastic. Ribery and Valbuena down the flanks. Excellent. Benzema up front. A bit inconsistent but a fabulous talent. Players like Grenier, Sissoko and Griezmann off the bench who can come in and change the flow of games off the bench.

There is just so much to like about that team. Genuine balance. Multiple creative passers. Multiple scoring threats. Quality defense. That to me is a team that has a chance (not a favourite but a darkhorse) of winning the tournament.

Evra had a disastrous season for ManU - did you not view any of his "performances" this campaign?  Digne is a fine young player, but he has very little experience at this level.

Ribery is being assessed for a back injury.  At this point, it is uncertain whether he will
be available for group stage fixtures.

I disagree about Evra. While Evra may not be the player he once was, I thought he rebounded well last season and ended up having a fairly good season for United. One of the few who did sp for them. I think he gets too much criticism and is being written off too soon. Has another year or two of high level football in him. I think he'll do a good job for France.

That is bad news about Ribery. I knew he didn't finish the season in the best of condition or form but I didn't know he was a doubt heading into World Cup. That would be a devastating loss for France.