Official World Cup Thread

**NintendoNut** · 05-22-2006, 04:19 AM

Just over 2 weeks away now. I thought it would be nice to start it now so we can get some pre-tournament predictions underway.

Lets start with the easy one. Who's gonna win?

Koga · 05-22-2006, 05:06 PM

I think Brazil have the best chance, but I hope they don't win. Obviously I want The Netherlands to win, but even if they don't I hope another side than Brazil's wins.

Let's also asses the chances of your own side winning. I think The Netherlands have a very different group, but I suspect they can get at least second (my prediction is that Argentina and The Netherlands will go on from that group). If they survive the group stages I give them a good chance of getting far. They got to the semis in the last three major tournaments they were present at (1998, 2000 and 2004).

Lurch1982 · 05-22-2006, 08:01 PM

I honestly think the US has the potential to go deep. I don't think they could take it unless certain powersquads were upset early on, but I could easily see them land in the final four and possibly the final game.

Legion · 05-23-2006, 04:18 AM

I will laugh long and hard if England lose to Trinidad & Tobego.

I can't see England getting into the finals this year either, especially with the pug-ugly albeit extremely good Rooney out of the compitition for the foreseeable future.

I can see England getting past group stages easily. Problem is, once they're out of groups every match counts, and England has a long and varied history of playing ludicrously badly at these points.

**NintendoNut** · 05-23-2006, 06:43 AM

Rooney'll be fit for the finals. A lot rests on Walcott and Owen, they will ultimately decide how well we do, we can't put too much pressure on Rooney being fit though, that's why I've set my sights on the finals for him.

How Walcott settles into the upcoming friendlies will be crucial.

England winning the tournament is, on paper, a possibility. But as Legion said, we have a history of mucking it up, the other team always wants it more. For that, I blame wimpy Eriksson waiting until now to take a gamble in his career.

I hope Brazil don't win, that would be so boring. I'd like to see Holland win if England don't because I like their players. Don't want France to win or Argentina.

Koga · 05-23-2006, 04:09 PM

A couple of weeks ago I looked at the FIFA rankings and it suprised me how high the US were placed. They're now in joint 5th place with Spain. In front of countries like England, France, Argentina, Portugal and Italy.

I'm not sure how the rankings work, but it seems pretty high. It's probably, because the US hardly have competion in North America, except from Mexico.

Lurch1982 · 05-23-2006, 05:08 PM

Its the players more than anything else. US has a good mix of experienced players and top flight young players. The core group of fielders have been playing on a national team with each other since they were teenagers.

Keller (GK, Borussia Moenchengladbach) has over a decade of experience and is solid in international play. Even then, Tim Howard (GK, Man U, on loan to Everton FC) shows alot of promise and looks to be the US keeper of the future.

Midfield is sick. DeMarcus Beasley (PSV Eindhoven) and Lando Donavan (Los Angeles Galaxy) are already stars before they're 25, and Claudio Reyna (Manchester City) brings the experience to the midfield.

As far as forwards, I'd say McBride (Fulham) is the best guy there. He has the experience and managed to score 3 goals in 2 World Cups as well as hitting 19 Premier League goals since transferring there in Jan. 04.

The team overall is better than it was in 2002, when we beat Mexico and Portugual. Granted, we got jobbed with a sh1t draw, but I think they could shock some people.

Koga · 05-24-2006, 03:34 AM

I don't really follow the premiership, so I'm not familiar with most players you mentioned, although I think Beasley is great.

The US didn't have a lucky draw indeed. If it weren't for the group with Argentina and The Netherlands, group E would've been the group of death.

**Crazyswordsman** · 05-24-2006, 10:50 AM

The US usually places high, but I'll have to pick Spain to win it all. Of course I will be rooting for Italy. -CSM

Koga · 05-24-2006, 11:41 AM

Why Spain? If I remember correctly they struggled a bit in the qualifying stages. They haven't really done great in the past few tournaments either. I though they played very well in the group stages at Euro 2004, but they didn't deliver after that.

Also, why Italy? Are you Italian?

ShyGuy727 · 05-24-2006, 12:43 PM

US didn't look too great last night, 0-1 to Morrocco. Was not impressed with Wolf or Masteroni at all, would much rather see Ching or someone start up there with McBride.

Why is no one talking about Sweden. Zlatan is, in my opinion, the greatest footballer out there right now that isn’t really a household name (at least in the US). Sweden has a great shot of winning this whole thing IMO- the team is loaded and has great confidence, Zlatan said recently that this Swede team is much, much better than the Euro 2004 squad, which wasn't too shabby. Larsson-Ljunberg-Zlatan...*drools*.

Koga · 05-25-2006, 06:14 AM

Hmm, I haven't really thought about Sweden, but now that you mention it, it's a great team. I think it's almost certain that England and Sweden will proceed from their group. Unless Paraguay pulls a stunt like 8 years ago. Remember that France had the most trouble beating them in the last 16?

**Crazyswordsman** · 05-25-2006, 07:08 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Koga

Also, why Italy? Are you Italian?

No, I'm American. I've just always been a fan of Italy and its soccer. -CSM

Koga · 05-25-2006, 08:02 AM

Really? I dislike the defensive way the Italians and Italian club teams usually play.

**NintendoNut** · 05-25-2006, 03:32 PM

AC Milan + Jaap Stam = nuff said. I don't think Italy will go too far, they've been on a bit of a decline over the last few years, they didn't get far in Euro 2004 so they don't have much hope here.

I like Brian McBride, he's not the best player in the Premiership but is underrated in my opinion. I remember Kasey Keller, he was the Spurs goalkeeper a while ago. He was alright and Tim Howard did well in his time in goal for Man Utd whilst Van Der Sar was injured.

Koga · 05-26-2006, 06:40 AM

Speaking of Jaap Stam, he's the only player I would've liked to be on the team, who isn't. I don't mind that there's no Seedorf or Davids, but I really think they could've done with one experienced player in the defence. Now they've only got Giovanni van Bronckhorst, who is experienced, but he's better at building up an attack (I just translated that literally, I have no idea whether it's good English than man to man defence.

**NintendoNut** · 05-26-2006, 07:01 AM

On Sweden: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/foot...en/5018834.stm

So Van Bronckhorst is an attacking defender, rather like Ashley Cole or Gary Neville? I dunno cos I never see him play. I enjoyed watching Jaap Stam when he played with Man Utd, whenever I play football I play as a defender so I learned a lot from watching him. Quality player.

Koga · 05-26-2006, 03:50 PM

Yes, exactly. You may have seen him play, but not be aware of it. At Barcelona he calls himself 'Gio' (that's also the name on the back of his shirt). He played in the final of the Champions League (as well as most other matches Barcelona played this year).

**NintendoNut** · 05-27-2006, 06:13 AM

Ah yes I just about remember seeing him play, didn't do a lot as far as I remember.

How do we feel about Argentina's chances? I think Hernan Crespo is overrated.

Koga · 05-29-2006, 04:17 PM

I just saw an interview with the Brazillian Coach and he wasn't as sure of his chances as the rest of the world seems to be. He said that the European teams had a big advantage, because it's a home tournament for them, which means more fans and that they will be better able to cope with weather conditions. He claimed that when the Brazillian team arrive in Germany (June 5th) it would be only 1 degrees Celcius. I find that hard to believe as those are winter temperatures for North Europe.

Still, he makes a good point that Brazil may have a disadvantage. He also mentioned the fact that most European leagues stopped a month before the start of the World Cup.

05-22-2006, 04:19 AM	#1
NintendoNut NinNut Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Hold on, I know this..... Gender: Posts: 8,298 Thanks: 84 Thanked 41 Times in 31 Posts Points: 49,483.76 Bank: 0.00 Total Points: 49,483.76 Donate	Official World Cup Thread Just over 2 weeks away now. I thought it would be nice to start it now so we can get some pre-tournament predictions underway. Lets start with the easy one. Who's gonna win?

05-22-2006, 05:06 PM	#2
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	I think Brazil have the best chance, but I hope they don't win. Obviously I want The Netherlands to win, but even if they don't I hope another side than Brazil's wins. Let's also asses the chances of your own side winning. I think The Netherlands have a very different group, but I suspect they can get at least second (my prediction is that Argentina and The Netherlands will go on from that group). If they survive the group stages I give them a good chance of getting far. They got to the semis in the last three major tournaments they were present at (1998, 2000 and 2004).

05-22-2006, 08:01 PM	#3
Lurch1982 Senior Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Katrinaland, USA Gender: Posts: 9,278 Thanks: 122 Thanked 253 Times in 140 Posts Points: 36,458.03 Bank: 338,725.11 Total Points: 375,183.14 Donate	I honestly think the US has the potential to go deep. I don't think they could take it unless certain powersquads were upset early on, but I could easily see them land in the final four and possibly the final game.

05-23-2006, 04:18 AM	#4
Legion Member Join Date: Jul 2002 Location: Greater Mancester, UK Gender: Posts: 1,860 Thanks: 10 Thanked 16 Times in 11 Posts Points: 8,433.29 Bank: 6,647.77 Total Points: 15,081.06 Donate	I will laugh long and hard if England lose to Trinidad & Tobego. I can't see England getting into the finals this year either, especially with the pug-ugly albeit extremely good Rooney out of the compitition for the foreseeable future. I can see England getting past group stages easily. Problem is, once they're out of groups every match counts, and England has a long and varied history of playing ludicrously badly at these points.

05-23-2006, 06:43 AM	#5
NintendoNut NinNut Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Hold on, I know this..... Gender: Posts: 8,298 Thanks: 84 Thanked 41 Times in 31 Posts Points: 49,483.76 Bank: 0.00 Total Points: 49,483.76 Donate	Rooney'll be fit for the finals. A lot rests on Walcott and Owen, they will ultimately decide how well we do, we can't put too much pressure on Rooney being fit though, that's why I've set my sights on the finals for him. How Walcott settles into the upcoming friendlies will be crucial. England winning the tournament is, on paper, a possibility. But as Legion said, we have a history of mucking it up, the other team always wants it more. For that, I blame wimpy Eriksson waiting until now to take a gamble in his career. I hope Brazil don't win, that would be so boring. I'd like to see Holland win if England don't because I like their players. Don't want France to win or Argentina.

05-23-2006, 04:09 PM	#6
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	A couple of weeks ago I looked at the FIFA rankings and it suprised me how high the US were placed. They're now in joint 5th place with Spain. In front of countries like England, France, Argentina, Portugal and Italy. I'm not sure how the rankings work, but it seems pretty high. It's probably, because the US hardly have competion in North America, except from Mexico.

05-23-2006, 05:08 PM	#7
Lurch1982 Senior Member Join Date: May 2000 Location: Katrinaland, USA Gender: Posts: 9,278 Thanks: 122 Thanked 253 Times in 140 Posts Points: 36,458.03 Bank: 338,725.11 Total Points: 375,183.14 Donate	Its the players more than anything else. US has a good mix of experienced players and top flight young players. The core group of fielders have been playing on a national team with each other since they were teenagers. Keller (GK, Borussia Moenchengladbach) has over a decade of experience and is solid in international play. Even then, Tim Howard (GK, Man U, on loan to Everton FC) shows alot of promise and looks to be the US keeper of the future. Midfield is sick. DeMarcus Beasley (PSV Eindhoven) and Lando Donavan (Los Angeles Galaxy) are already stars before they're 25, and Claudio Reyna (Manchester City) brings the experience to the midfield. As far as forwards, I'd say McBride (Fulham) is the best guy there. He has the experience and managed to score 3 goals in 2 World Cups as well as hitting 19 Premier League goals since transferring there in Jan. 04. The team overall is better than it was in 2002, when we beat Mexico and Portugual. Granted, we got jobbed with a sh1t draw, but I think they could shock some people.

05-24-2006, 03:34 AM	#8
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	I don't really follow the premiership, so I'm not familiar with most players you mentioned, although I think Beasley is great. The US didn't have a lucky draw indeed. If it weren't for the group with Argentina and The Netherlands, group E would've been the group of death.

05-24-2006, 10:50 AM	#9
Crazyswordsman RPG Mod Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Booyaville (yeah!) Gender: Posts: 8,584 Thanks: 633 Thanked 471 Times in 311 Posts Points: 167,355.15 Bank: 77,775.54 Total Points: 245,130.69 Donate	The US usually places high, but I'll have to pick Spain to win it all. Of course I will be rooting for Italy. -CSM

05-24-2006, 11:41 AM	#10
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	Why Spain? If I remember correctly they struggled a bit in the qualifying stages. They haven't really done great in the past few tournaments either. I though they played very well in the group stages at Euro 2004, but they didn't deliver after that. Also, why Italy? Are you Italian?

05-24-2006, 12:43 PM	#11
ShyGuy727 Veteran Member Join Date: Jul 2000 Location: O-H! I-O! Gender: Posts: 10,061 Thanks: 37 Thanked 62 Times in 46 Posts Points: 32,229.98 Bank: 25,651.08 Total Points: 57,881.06 Donate	US didn't look too great last night, 0-1 to Morrocco. Was not impressed with Wolf or Masteroni at all, would much rather see Ching or someone start up there with McBride. Why is no one talking about Sweden. Zlatan is, in my opinion, the greatest footballer out there right now that isn’t really a household name (at least in the US). Sweden has a great shot of winning this whole thing IMO- the team is loaded and has great confidence, Zlatan said recently that this Swede team is much, much better than the Euro 2004 squad, which wasn't too shabby. Larsson-Ljunberg-Zlatan...drools.

05-25-2006, 06:14 AM	#12
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	Hmm, I haven't really thought about Sweden, but now that you mention it, it's a great team. I think it's almost certain that England and Sweden will proceed from their group. Unless Paraguay pulls a stunt like 8 years ago. Remember that France had the most trouble beating them in the last 16?

05-25-2006, 08:02 AM	#14
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	Really? I dislike the defensive way the Italians and Italian club teams usually play.

05-25-2006, 03:32 PM	#15
NintendoNut NinNut Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Hold on, I know this..... Gender: Posts: 8,298 Thanks: 84 Thanked 41 Times in 31 Posts Points: 49,483.76 Bank: 0.00 Total Points: 49,483.76 Donate	AC Milan + Jaap Stam = nuff said. I don't think Italy will go too far, they've been on a bit of a decline over the last few years, they didn't get far in Euro 2004 so they don't have much hope here. I like Brian McBride, he's not the best player in the Premiership but is underrated in my opinion. I remember Kasey Keller, he was the Spurs goalkeeper a while ago. He was alright and Tim Howard did well in his time in goal for Man Utd whilst Van Der Sar was injured.

05-26-2006, 06:40 AM	#16
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	Speaking of Jaap Stam, he's the only player I would've liked to be on the team, who isn't. I don't mind that there's no Seedorf or Davids, but I really think they could've done with one experienced player in the defence. Now they've only got Giovanni van Bronckhorst, who is experienced, but he's better at building up an attack (I just translated that literally, I have no idea whether it's good English than man to man defence.

05-26-2006, 07:01 AM	#17
NintendoNut NinNut Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Hold on, I know this..... Gender: Posts: 8,298 Thanks: 84 Thanked 41 Times in 31 Posts Points: 49,483.76 Bank: 0.00 Total Points: 49,483.76 Donate	On Sweden: http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport1/hi/foot...en/5018834.stm So Van Bronckhorst is an attacking defender, rather like Ashley Cole or Gary Neville? I dunno cos I never see him play. I enjoyed watching Jaap Stam when he played with Man Utd, whenever I play football I play as a defender so I learned a lot from watching him. Quality player.

05-26-2006, 03:50 PM	#18
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	Yes, exactly. You may have seen him play, but not be aware of it. At Barcelona he calls himself 'Gio' (that's also the name on the back of his shirt). He played in the final of the Champions League (as well as most other matches Barcelona played this year).

05-27-2006, 06:13 AM	#19
NintendoNut NinNut Join Date: Mar 2002 Location: Hold on, I know this..... Gender: Posts: 8,298 Thanks: 84 Thanked 41 Times in 31 Posts Points: 49,483.76 Bank: 0.00 Total Points: 49,483.76 Donate	Ah yes I just about remember seeing him play, didn't do a lot as far as I remember. How do we feel about Argentina's chances? I think Hernan Crespo is overrated.

05-29-2006, 04:17 PM	#20
Koga Veteran Member Join Date: Sep 2000 Location: The Netherlands Gender: Posts: 17,095 Thanks: 104 Thanked 186 Times in 117 Posts Points: 109,340.07 Bank: 25,861.92 Total Points: 135,201.99 Donate	I just saw an interview with the Brazillian Coach and he wasn't as sure of his chances as the rest of the world seems to be. He said that the European teams had a big advantage, because it's a home tournament for them, which means more fans and that they will be better able to cope with weather conditions. He claimed that when the Brazillian team arrive in Germany (June 5th) it would be only 1 degrees Celcius. I find that hard to believe as those are winter temperatures for North Europe. Still, he makes a good point that Brazil may have a disadvantage. He also mentioned the fact that most European leagues stopped a month before the start of the World Cup.