OT: World Cup (2018 and 2026)

[I Touchdown There]

loved seeing Brazil only tie

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[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

Yeah, Messi played a good match, but his issues with PKs continue. Iceland really crowded him and, going forward, Argentina didn't do a good enough job of creating space. Moreno was killing Di Maria on ESPN FC for going into an already crowded middle and making it even more congested. Ronaldo has certainly lost a step, but the man is still clutch and he craves the big moment. I said before this started that Brazil was the most loaded team. Arnie disagreed. Time will tell.

Iceland's strategy worked. Play hard D and take advantage of the chances they do get.

Possession obvioulsy matters, but it doesn't if you can't score. Iceland bottled them up.

Very well coached team those Vikings!

[Culex]

loved seeing Brazil only tie

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But that goal by Coutinho was insane.

[horus13]

We've still got Belgium to see, but so far Spain's been the best. Early days though. One thing's for sure, it got a bit more interesting with Germany losing yesterday.

[Culex]

We've still got Belgium to see, but so far Spain's been the best. Early days though. One thing's for sure, it got a bit more interesting with Germany losing yesterday.

Yes Spain looks like my favorite so far.

[sailorsam]

In the unlikely event that England win the world cup.... if you think Eagles fans were bad after winning the SB... England would basically have to shut down for about a week lol

Mexico beats Germany 1-0
siesmometers picked up the celebration

https://sports.yahoo.com/mexicos-win...181244846.html

"Case in point: During Mexico’s thrilling 1-0 victory over reigning champion Germany, government officials reported a man-made seismic activity occurred right around the time El Tri scored in the 35th minute in downtown Mexico City."

Vive El Tri!!!

[arnie_uk]

Yeah, Messi played a good match, but his issues with PKs continue. Iceland really crowded him and, going forward, Argentina didn't do a good enough job of creating space. Moreno was killing Di Maria on ESPN FC for going into an already crowded middle and making it even more congested. Ronaldo has certainly lost a step, but the man is still clutch and he craves the big moment. I said before this started that Brazil was the most loaded team. Arnie disagreed. Time will tell.

Brazil rely to much on neymar. If he has a bad day they won't beat a half way decent side.

France have a class starting 11 and top quality 3 or 4 subs but just don't play well together.

Spain, even though they drew, played the best football so far.

I think Belgium could make some noise

[Complex]

Mexico beats Germany 1-0
siesmometers picked up the celebration

https://sports.yahoo.com/mexicos-win...181244846.html

"Case in point: During Mexico’s thrilling 1-0 victory over reigning champion Germany, government officials reported a man-made seismic activity occurred right around the time El Tri scored in the 35th minute in downtown Mexico City."

Vive El Tri!!!

That game went down the exact way I thought it would - Mexico would transition quickly from defense to offense, skipping the midfield almost altogether. The technical midfield play of the Germans was basically removed from being a factor by the quick Mexican attack. Astoundingly the Germans seem to totally ignore the threat the second half and seemed to do nothing to counter it. Despite the play of the Mexicans, they Germans hit 2 posts and missed some opportunities. The Mexicans played to their strengths and it worked. They earned that victory. Germany will need to win each of their remaining games by 2 goals each. I don't see Mexico putting up a lot of goals so hopefully Germany can squeak through on goal differential.

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

Brazil rely to much on neymar. If he has a bad day they won't beat a half way decent side.

France have a class starting 11 and top quality 3 or 4 subs but just don't play well together.

Spain, even though they drew, played the best football so far.

I think Belgium could make some noise

Top to bottom I just like their roster. Quality at all levels of the field. Lukaku is one of my favorite players and their D core is strong. Courtois is great too.

[The Excellector]

While I still feel that Brazil has the best top-to-bottom-to-bench roster, Arnie is right that, much like Argentina relies too much on Messi, Brazil relies too much on Neymar. When it reaches a point of placation, it becomes a problem. In Argentina, it's a little more of when Messi isn't there, the rest of the team doesn't step up. With Brazil, they can do just fine without Neymar, but once he arrives, he becomes the focal point.

[GreatWhiteNorthRaven]

While I still feel that Brazil has the best top-to-bottom-to-bench roster, Arnie is right that, much like Argentina relies too much on Messi, Brazil relies too much on Neymar. When it reaches a point of placation, it becomes a problem. In Argentina, it's a little more of when Messi isn't there, the rest of the team doesn't step up. With Brazil, they can do just fine without Neymar, but once he arrives, he becomes the focal point.

That's why I think a team like Spain gets an advantage. They have some star power, don't get me wrong, but they don't build around 1 guy.

Working around someone is fine when they deliver (i.e. Ronaldo), but it's not a great idea. It'll give a team like France and Belgium a leg up because they have a lot of solid guys but they dont seem to play through one person (I'd add Germany and the English int othat group as well - well I guess we'll see how much England uses Kane)

[horus13]

I want to see this Belgium team play a decent team, Panama's nowhere close to this level. Maybe the England game will tell us more about what to expect.

Brazil won't reach the final. Any of the top European teams can take them out.