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ANYTHING WORLD CUP

OldSkool97
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hj_hawk_60

hj_hawk_60

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1. Can the USA beat England in the first game? (Saturday June 12th 12:30 pm central time)
            or
    What will it take for USA to beat England?

2. Win or Lose against England how will USA fair in the first round of the bracket? (This is of course assuming that they don't blow a game against the other 2 teams that they should beat)
           A) A first place win in their group by beating England would most likely have them playing Australia
           B) A second place finish in the group would have them most likely facing Germany

Some things to consider:
  ENGLAND
   A) David Beckham is not playing due to an injury
   B) Ferdinand is not playing due to an injury
 
  USA
   A) Jozy Altidore has been suffering from an ankle sprain

 AUSTRALIA
   A) USA beat Australia 3-1 in an international friendly recently

 GERMANY
   A) Germany's Captain Michael Ballack is out due to an injury
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OldSkool97

OldSkool97

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Group A is all even at 1pt each with the tie between France and Uraguay ->  Mexico and South Africa.

Tomorrows Schedule:

South Korea vs Greece @ 7:30 a.m.  on ESPN
Argentina vs Nigeria @ 10:00 a.m.    on ESPN
England vs USA @ 2:30 p.m.            on  ABC

*All times are Eastern
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CoachL

CoachL

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Little dissapointed with the French team but impressed with Uraguay's defense. Not sure why sub off anelka for henry. i felt Henry and Anelka should have been in much longer and together. Also unsure why Malouda sat for so long.  ???
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hj_hawk_60

hj_hawk_60

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[quote name="bullets13000" post="811499" timestamp="1276236730"]
good analysis, Chocolate, except i'd only give Australia a 20% chance of escaping their group.
[/quote]

Who do you see taking the second place if Australia doesn't?? Slovenia or Ghana? I'd Say Germany is by far the favorite to win the Group, but IMO Australia will more than likely take the second place
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OldSkool97

OldSkool97

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Fifa Rankings:

1. Brazil                    9. France                  20. Australia            34. Slovakia
2. Spain                  13. Greece                  21. Nigeria              36. Denmark
3. Portugal              14. United States        24. Switzerland        38. Hondorus
4. Holland                15. Serbia                  25. Slovenia              45. Japan
5. Italy                  16. Uruguay                27. Ivory Coast        47. South Korea
6. Germany            17. Mexico                  30. Algeria                78. New Zealand
7. Argentina          18. Chile                      31. Paraguay            83. South Africa
8. England            19. Cameroon                32. Ghana              105. North Korea
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bullets13

bullets13

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[quote name="hj_hawk_60" post="811748" timestamp="1276301215"]
[quote author=bullets13000 link=topic=70431.msg811499#msg811499 date=1276236730]
good analysis, Chocolate, except i'd only give Australia a 20% chance of escaping their group.
[/quote]

Who do you see taking the second place if Australia doesn't?? Slovenia or Ghana? I'd Say Germany is by far the favorite to win the Group, but IMO Australia will more than likely take the second place
[/quote]

It's actually Serbia, and i kind of expect them to finish 2nd, but with this group anything could happen.  Australia didn't impress against the US, and they're in one of the toughest groups in the tourney.  It's not that i don't think they can advance, i just wouldn't go so far as to predict them to do so at this point, considering they're probably the 3rd best team in their group, and in one of maybe only 3 groups in the tourney where all 4 teams have a realistic chance of advancing to the knockout stage.
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bullets13

bullets13

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I didn't really feel like waking up for the S. Korea/Greece game, but i'm glad i did.  It's been much more entertaining than either game yesterday.  I've been really impressed with S. Korea.  They're up 2-0 right now with just a few minutes left.
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bullets13

bullets13

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So i want to hear opinions about the world cup ball... here's what i think so far...  it's garbage.  through 7 games we've seen only 9 goals.  in 7 games i've seen exactly 0 quality free kicks that have been put on goal.  i have, however, seen at least a dozen full-field switches where a ball bounced 10 feet in front of the receiving player and still somehow bounced over his head out of bounds.  Another thing that i haven't seen is a long ball that's been connected.  I've probably seen at least 15 great long runs wasted when a quality long ball was sent to them, only to see the ball hit a couple of yards beyond them, and then inexplicably shoot well beyond their reach after a crazy superball bounce. of the 9 goals, i've seen two were what i would call great strikes.  one was SA's goal in the 1st game, and it really got my hopes up that this ball was going to be okay.  the other one was heintze's header for germany, which was a thumper from the PK spot.  other than that, we have: a tap-in volley and a ball that looked to be mishit into the ground that hopped over the keeper for S. Korea's two goals.  Mexico's goal was a can't miss from 2 yards.  one goal was a PK for Ghana.  Steven Gerrard's goal was nice, but it was essential just a pass with the outside of the boot, and there wasn't enough power on it to judge the ball.  this leaves the final two goals: Dempsey's goal against England, and Slovenia's goal against Algeria.  Both of those were on goalkeeper mistakes, and both times i wonder just how much the ball came into play.  Maybe i'm overreacting, but it seems like the quality of play has been effected some by this ball.  please feel free to refute this or chime in with your opinion.
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Guest ECBucFan

Guest ECBucFan

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I am thinking there is truth in what you said, but I would not call it all garbage. Scoring so far is somewhat negated by world class defense. Remember, the best players in the world are here, which includes the best [i]defensive[/i] players, too. Personally, I can find a 1-0 game just as exciting as a 4-3 game, but I realize not everyone feels the same way. Do note we are very, very early yet. I am willing to bet the scoring will heat up in the days to come.
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OldSkool97

OldSkool97

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I agree with what ECBucFan said. There has been some great defensive play so far. Now does that have anything to do with how the ball is kicked by a player? No! The announcers have commented on how the ball has played so far and (i cant recall which guy said it) but he said that they (the players) have had 2wks of practice with the ball prior to the world cup and therefore they should know how the ball playsand there should be no excuses, and i have to agree with that. With the talent that the palyers have they should be able to make adjustments in that amount of time. If I am wrong (about the players not being able to adjust because of how it plays) then the ball must be at fault. IMO its hard to judge.
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