miamihoya
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
Posts: 698
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Post by miamihoya on May 30, 2006 18:23:53 GMT -5
And in the kind of coincidence that makes 4:30 in the afternoon a little more random, guess who played an international friendly this afternoon: soccernet.espn.go.com/report?id=194783&cc=5901This is one you don't see every day: West Bromwich Albion keeper Tomasz Kuszczak's hopes of earning a World Cup starting place nosedived when he allowed Martinez's long punt to bounce over his head into the net in the 63rd minute. South American goalkeepers scoring goals is sooooooo 1998. haha...the coincidence is almost as odd as a goalkeeper scoring on a punt ball. If only the Colombian squad would of gotten a couple of bounces like that in the qualifying round i'd be alot more excited about the world cup. Either way though, I like US chances despite playing in the group of death. I sense that Italy is going out in the group stage (sort of like France in 02) and US and Czech will advance. Gotta try to get first in the group tho, because second place is likely to face the brazilian squad in the round of 16. Nobody wants to see that team.
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Post by AustinHoya03 on May 31, 2006 12:03:07 GMT -5
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Post by HoyaSinceBirth on Jun 1, 2006 0:30:23 GMT -5
I'm so psyched for the world cup. Unfortunately it seemed that this draw was designed to screw me being a czech-american. My dad grew up in Prague before his family fled the country in 1968. So yeah i'm a little torn at this point. I'm hopping that both the US and the Czech Republiv advance but this group is very difficult. I really don't like the US's chances. The czechs and the Italians are very very good and will be playing on their home continent. It seems likea a lot of people are underestimating Ghana but they're a very good team and beating them wont be as easy as people are hopping. I wouldn't be surprised if the US lost all three games. And that's not a knock on the US it's just the reality of this tough group.
As far as the new ball is concerned it's true they design the balls to make scoring easier for the atackign players cause that's what people want to see so goalies hate them but they adjust and in the end it doesn't make that big of a difference.
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Post by StPetersburgHoya (Inactive) on Jun 1, 2006 9:07:05 GMT -5
The ball sounds very similar to the one that was used in Champions League and UEFA Cup games - I don't know why the ball is causing such a stir. I'm guessing the real culprit is a slow day at the USA Today sports desk.
Also HBS - 68 - a good year to get out of Czechoslovakia.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 1, 2006 16:24:40 GMT -5
The real question is then, Poland vs. Georgetown, who do you root for? Ditka. Don't worry, 007... as a second-generation Polish-American (can't compete with your first-gen, I know), I got your back. As my buddy Jacusz Staduczeski (no joke) used to (drunkenly) say, "100% Polski, baby."
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FLHoya
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Post by FLHoya on Jun 1, 2006 17:01:24 GMT -5
Also HBS - 68 - a good year to get out of Czechoslovakia. Do you think it will carry more, less, or equal weight as compared to HSB's dad telling his kids he left Czechoslovakia in 1968 when I eventually tell my kids that I "left" (graduated) Georgetown after the 2003-2004 men's basketball season?
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Bahstin
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
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Post by Bahstin on Jun 5, 2006 9:59:08 GMT -5
How do they decide on the groups? How is it the the US Group is so stacked? Is it random draw, geographic, rank at a certain time?
Thanks.
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miamihoya
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
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Post by miamihoya on Jun 5, 2006 10:16:32 GMT -5
ya its some sort of random draw, although it does involve some sort of ranking system to make sure that all the top teams dont end up in the same group...nonetheless, every year there seems to be a Group of Death where some good team is going to be left behind...this year it seems there are two: Group E with USA, Italy, and Czech all being top ten teams; and Group C with Argentina, Serbia and Montenegro, and Netherlands (not to mention Cote d' Ivorie and Ghana are pretty good African teams). So its a tough road for USA, but i think they can come out on top.
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Deleted
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Post by Deleted on Jun 5, 2006 10:52:38 GMT -5
How do they decide on the groups? How is it the the US Group is so stacked? Is it random draw, geographic, rank at a certain time? Thanks. They seed the Top 8 teams in the draw, and each of them anchors a group, so none of the Top 8 seeds end up in a group with each other. Top 8 this year were Argentina, Brazil, England, France, Germany, Italy, France, Mexico, Spain. Each group then gets filled out with a team from each of the other three Pools, which are sort of geographically organized. One pool is all European, one covers Australia, Africa and South America, and the third includes the US & Central America, the Middle East and Asia (and Serbia/Montenegro ended up in that pool, since Europe had 9 teams in the lower three pools). Italy is the "seeded team" in the group. At the time of the draw, the US was on the cusp of the Top 8, but not quite in (plus, they don't strictly adhere to the FIFA rankings for seeding purposes). Regardless, the US, Czechs and Italians are all in like the top 15 in the latest FIFA Rankings, and Ghana's no slouch among the African teams.
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FLHoya
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Post by FLHoya on Jun 5, 2006 11:01:21 GMT -5
How do they decide on the groups? How is it the the US Group is so stacked? Is it random draw, geographic, rank at a certain time? Thanks. eur.i1.yimg.com/eur.yimg.com/i/eu/fifa/proce.pdfThat's how FIFA says they do it. It changes every year of course, because there's always a different distribution of teams from certain regional zones that makes the World Cup (this year, it's Australia, the extra CONCACAF team, etc.). Usually the one consistent exception to merit + regional blocs is the host nation always ends up with a top seed (both Japan and Korea did last time). Germany and Brazil were put into the groups they're in this year b/c of something to do with being scheduled to play in the biggest stadiums. I dont have the bracket in front of me, but I'm gonna go out on a limb and say that those group winners probably wouldn't meet until the WC Final either. I have never understood the FIFA World Rankings, I think they're worse than the BCS multiplied by Joe Lunardi's bracketology. Mexico 2006 is basically Syracuse...the US/GTown owned them recently, but everyone's impressed by some run in a nice but ultimately meaningless tournament (the BET/Confederations Cup) so the team that's probably worse got a higher seed. Unfortunately, I have serious doubts that either Angola or Iran is Texas A&M. For the record, I also have a feeling that Italy = Michigan State, and if you're willing to say that the European Championships = the BB&T, then it's entirely possible that the Czech Republic = WG.
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miamihoya
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
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Post by miamihoya on Jun 5, 2006 11:14:28 GMT -5
Nice analogies there FlHoya....and your right, Germany and Brazil (if they win their respective groups) would not face each other until the World Cup final. Unfortunatley the runner-up in USA's group would have to face a first-place Brazil in the first stage of the knockout round, so there is a HUGE incentive to win the group, so expect all four teams to play at their best. Even when they know that a tie would advance them, they will fight for the three points awarded by a win. The winner of the group will likely get Croatia/Japan (barring an Australian upset), which is a much better scenario than playing the defending champs. I think the wild card in this group will be Ghana, who although unlikely to advance out of group play, they can be the determining factor in who does. A loss or tie against Ghana will probably be a deathblow in such a competive group.
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FLHoya
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Post by FLHoya on Jun 5, 2006 11:27:20 GMT -5
Okay, this is what I've got going with my predictions, which will almost certainly be wrong as always (Argentina in 2002 was a particularly fun one):
A: Germany, Poland*, Costa Rica, Ecuador (*I reserve the right to change that if Ecuador's goalkeeper goes for a hat trick in the opener).
B: England, Sweden, Paraguay, T-n-T
C: Argentina, Cote d'Ivoire, Netherlands, Dizdarevic-land
D: Portugal, Syracuse, not-A&M M. East, not-A&M Africa
E: Czech Republic, USA*, Michigan State, Ghana (*The US will lose to CZE 1-0, beat Italy 1-0, and beat Ghana 3-1)
F: Brazil, who cares
G: France, Switzerland, Apollo Anton Ohno Haters, that sandwich place next to the Dunkin Donuts
H: Spain, Ukraine, Tunisia, Saudi Arabia (the Atlanta Hawks of the World Cup)
Round of 16
Germany beats Sweden 3-0 Argentina beats Mexico 2-1 Czech Republic beats Croatia 1-0 Ukraine beats France 3-2 England beats Poland 2-1 (just like in qualifying!) Cote d'Ivoire beats Portugal 4-3 Brazil beats USA 2-0 Spain beats Switzerland 0-0 (5-3 on penalties)
Round of 8
Argentina beats Germany 2-1 Ukraine beats Czech Republic 1-0 England beats Cote d'Ivoire 3-1 Brazil beats Spain 2-0
Semifinals Argentina beats Ukraine 4-2 Brazil beats England 1-0
Final Brazil over Argentina 3-2
TIEBREAKER: # of times Dave O'Brien will make a factually inaccurate statement about a player/team and/or try to dumb down soccer for the audience: Eleventy billion
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Post by HoyaSinceBirth on Jun 5, 2006 14:39:08 GMT -5
the fifa world rankings are terrible. a more accurate but still flawed ranking is available here: www.eloratings.net/
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Boz
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Post by Boz on Jun 5, 2006 15:34:11 GMT -5
I am by no means a fussball expert, but I think it's hard/impossible not to get into this event (plus I've been sucked in by Footballers Wive$, dammit!!!). I understand the game pretty well, but I don't know enough about the teams. As such, I have been trying to read up as much as I can over the past several weeks.
The Brits - from what I've read - seems to think that everyone is underestimating Italy and overestimating the Czechs in the "Second Group of Death." Italy sounds like they're coming together at the right time after a tulmultuous year preceding, while the Czechs are injury plagued and also probably overrated.
Just opinions from 4-4-2 and some other publications I've come across. I don't know enough about the international publications to know which are reliable, I just went with the assumption that anyone in England probably would know a lot more than anything I could read in the States.
Everyone in England also seems to believe the following three things:
1. With Owen, Rooney, Beckham & Gerrard leading the team, there is enough talent to beat Brazil.
2. ONLY England has the potential to beat Brazil.
and, in true British fashion,
3. No one thinks they actually WILL beat Brazil.
(they also think Germany sucks and will go nowhere, but there may be more to that than just football analysis ;D)
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afirth
Bulldog (over 250 posts)
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Post by afirth on Jun 5, 2006 15:57:09 GMT -5
Haha, 007, you know we love you and your Polish heritage, we're just giving you a hard time. As someone who also has Polish ancestry but doesn't feel nearly as strong about it as you do, it's nice to hear your about your passionate loyalty. I brought up the loyalty thing because I thought it was interesting, and it always kinda Editeded me off when during US-Mexico soccer matches, a lot of immigrants would show up fiercely supporting Mexico. But then again, if I were in their shoes, I'd probably do the same thing, so I can't really blame them. The real question is then, Poland vs. Georgetown, who do you root for? I feel 007's pain. if it weren't for '98, I'd probably get a lot more crap for rooting for France than I already do. I still want to know the answer to this Poland v. Georgetown question though... :-D
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miamihoya
Silver Hoya (over 500 posts)
Posts: 698
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Post by miamihoya on Jun 5, 2006 16:11:06 GMT -5
Brits need to worry about beating Argentina in a possible second round game, before they even start thinking about the Brazilians. England and Argentina probably have one of the fierciest world cup rivalries and always play classic games, so it would be a great matchup. And i understand that Rooney has an injured foot and his availability is highly questionable, which could be a huge blow for England (although they are in a relatively weak group).
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Post by washingtonhoya on Jun 5, 2006 22:01:56 GMT -5
Well, as long as FLHoya has started the predictions game, I might as well throw mine in. I mean, it's not every day you get to predict WC results against the USMNT's "Captain for Life" (as named by decidedly not Coach for Life Steve Sampson*) Group A Germany Poland Ecuador Costa Rica Group B England Sweden Paraguay Trinidad and Tobago: Scotland's going to the World Cup! Group C Argentina Ivory Coast Netherlands: Someone has to underperform, more likely the Dutch than anyone else. Serbia and Montenegro: Would have helped their chances by naming Sead to the roster, but it's too late now. Group D Portugal Mexico Iran Angola Tie between this and Group H as the weakest groups in the tournament. Group E Czech Republic United States Italy Ghana Group F Brazil Japan Croatia Australia Group G France Togo Korea Switzerland Group H Ukraine Tunisia Spain: Invincible on paper, 2 draws and a loss and out on grass. The Spanish way. Saudi Arabia Round of 16 Germany def Sweden Argentina def Mexico Poland def England Portugal def Ivory Coast Czech Republic def Japan France def Tunisia Brazil def United States Togo def Ukraine QF Germany def Argentina Portugal def Poland Czech Republic def France Brazil def Togo SF Germany def Portugal Brazil def Czech Republic Final Germany 2-3 Brazil *Incidentally, Sampson was the same guy who cut Harkes from the team a few weeks before France 98, decided to play a 3-6-1, and used wunderkinds like Chad Deering and Brian Maisonneuve in his starting midfield. Edit: I'm not very smart.
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Post by AustinHoya03 on Jun 5, 2006 23:52:29 GMT -5
Spain: Invincible on paper, 2 draws and a loss and out on grass. The Spanish way. When Raúl is kissing his ring finger and aeroplaning down the pitch, you can kiss my you-know-what. Iker Casillas = Wall of Steel. Viva España. Sorry, just wanted to get the smack restarted now that the Polska talk has died down. (For the record, Spain is my #2 team after the USA.) Here are my predictions. It's gonna be a crazy cup, but with a predictable result. Opening RoundGroup A: Deutschland, Polska Group B: England, Paraguay Group C: Argentina, Ivory Coast (toughest group to predict) Group D: México, Portugal Group E: Italia, USA Group F: Brasil, Australia (Ozzie Ozzie Ozzie/Oy Oy Oy) Group G: France, Korea Group H: España, Tunisia Advance RoundsGermany over Paraguay Argentina over Portugal England over Poland Mexico over Ivory Coast Australia over Italy Tunisia over France Brazil over USA Spain over Korea (revenge for 02) Germany over Argentina Mexico over England Australia over Tunisia Brazil over Spain Germany over Mexico Brazil over Australia Brazil over Germany
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Post by HoyaSinceBirth on Jun 5, 2006 23:54:47 GMT -5
wow i didn't know about the rule that the if the host country makes it to the semi finals they get to play in both games. would we have seen an all german final if they had taken care of brazil. It's a shame they couldn't beat them even with two tries.
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Post by StPetersburgHoya (Inactive) on Jun 6, 2006 1:56:30 GMT -5
Spain over Korea (revenge for 02) Korea is not going to make it that far. Sure they made it that far when playing at home with Hiddick as their coach but this time will be different because: 1. Dick Advokaat is a good coach but he's no Hiddick. 2. Korea just lost 3-1 to Ghana in its last International test in Korea before leaving for Germany with their starters playing the entire game - their were major break-downs in the defense. 3. Um, I don't know quite how to say this but since they aren't playing in Korea they won't have the following things: a. home crowd b. sports culture that is accustomed to fixing big sporting events in Korea's favor for reasons of national pride - see Men's Boxing 1988 Olympics. c. having a friendly draw Now that their hired gun coach has left and national pride and performance in front of home fans is no longer at stake, expect a drop off in their performance - see USA 1998.
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