Rio de Janiero - 2014 Fifa World Cup Thread

[FootballLight]

First topic message reminder :

This **should** be the main article for the Fifa World Cup 2014 competition that happens in 10 days time. Lets try and keep the debate simple yet reasonable about all of the build-up, the stadiums, the countries, the players, the qualifying, the winners and most importantly, the "bought" 2022 World Cup.

Enjoy! (And... lets try and make this World Cup as good as possible considering all of the poor build-up, tragic deaths and he outrageous violence that has been happening over recent months)

[Kurt N. Jurqa]

My god, is this the WC for stupid haircuts.

And moronic commentators?

[The Special Juan]

Has to be 10/11.

Jahu does not want us talking of betting. He says kids are watching.  

Right,  completely forgot about that. DON'T GAMBLE KIDS... BECAUSE GAMBLING IS BAD... M'KAY?

PMSL.

Hey, I won £16 quid betting on the French Open final last week.

[Scrumpy]

What do the 3 stars under the French bag stand for?

I thought they only had 2 euro wins?

They did also win the World cup remember.

I take it that's the big star on top!

Doesn't explain there smaller stars.

My eyes! I think it's three tiny F's

I also thought Stirling scored last night too, trip to the opticians tomorrow me thinks!

[Guest]

Good win for France, won't be tested until last 16. Yohan Cabaye......sensational passing. Honduras an embarrassment, along with J Pearce & his terrible commentating.

[Fernando]

Bosnia starting XI: Begovic, Bicakcic, Spahic, Kolasinac, Besic, Pjanic, Misimovic, Dzeko, Mujdza, Lulic, Hajrovic 


Argentina starting XI: Romero, Garay, Campagnaro, Zabaleta, Di Maria, Messi, Rodriguez, Mascherano, Rojo, F. Fernandez, Aguero.

[Duty281]

Argentina-Bosnia should be good for excitement!

Both teams hell-bent on attack with little regard for defence. Can see Bosnia getting an upset, particularly if they score first.

Could be one of the best games of the entire group stage.

(And you better enjoy it cause Iran-Nigeria is on tomorrow!)

[Crimey]

Is that Maxi Rodriguez? Please say it is!!

[Fernando]

It's the only Rodriguez they have in their squad....

[kingraf]

If that Argentine attack fires...

[Fernando]

Argentina will line up something like this

-----------Romero
Zabaleta- Garay--Campagnaro--Rojo
-------Mascherano--Fernandez < Very good playmaker from deep
Di Maria -----Messi -------Maxi < Shall interchange  
-------------Aguero

[NickisBHAFC]

Gonna be a good game this, looking forward to it.

Any chance the chatbox could be open for it?

[Dolphin Ziggler]

What a lovely vision of the World Cup we had. Football to be played but violent protests an undercurrent in Brazil. Clearly, the Hondurans were very annoyed at FIFA's tax free ride through Brazil and took it out on the French.

Thought the ref handled the first incident well. Pogba's petulant kick wasnt a red and, whilst Palacios was over the top, it wasnt awful. The rest of the game was a bit embarrassing and the officials seemed to patronise the Honduras players by not sending them off.

[Fernando]

Gonna be a good game this, looking forward to it.

Any chance the chatbox could be open for it?

This is sarcasm right?

[kingraf]

Last time an attack looked this devastating on paper was probably Brazil's Fantastic Four... I suspect this Argentine team will fall much the same.

[NickisBHAFC]

1-0. Probably game over lol.

[Guest]

Chat box, chat box, chat box!   

Messi trying too hard tonight. Not at his best

[kingraf]

Messi looks pretty average. Get it to the best player on the team di Maria.

[NickisBHAFC]

Yeah Bosnia have actually played the better football so far. 

Messi been very poor.

[Kurt N. Jurqa]

Current World Cup form

Rooney>Messi

[Lowlandbrit]

Messi's a great player... in a Barcelona shirt.

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

Welbeck > Messi

Anyways if Bosnia show some balls and commit more than three to an attack they could nick something here

[kingraf]

I should have known the Argentina attack was too good to be true

[skyeman]

Lawro is a bit more exciting than Neville last night  

[kingraf]

It's like the Argentine attack just met each other. Absolutely no chemistry

[kingraf]

That was cute. Fantastic interplay there.

[skyeman]

If only Rooney could be that anonymous.

[Duty281]

Grr..a tad disappointed in Bosnia.

That very early unfortunate goal seemed to sap a lot of their strength.

And then the overrated Messi (note to media: he's nowhere near Maradona) gets a jammy finish to end it.

Still, Bosnia will be confident that they can get past Iran and Nigeria. And Argentina, very poor today and gifted an easy group, will make the knockout stages and need a vast improvement.

[Duty281]

Maybe not over...

[skyeman]

Holland the most impressive thus far. Waiting for the Germany game though.

[Duty281]

2-1 FT.

Well you can add Argentina to the list of teams England have looked better than in the first game, along with Brazil, Spain and Uruguay.

[skyeman]

2-1 FT.

Well you can add Argentina to the list of teams England have looked better than in the first game, along with Brazil, Spain and Uruguay.

Agree with that.

[Duty281]

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/worldcup2014/article-2658485/Croatia-players-World-Cup-2014-media-ban-nude-photographs-team-hotel.html

Skinny-dipping...it's an important part of team bonding during the World Cup!

[monty junior]

2-1 FT.

Well you can add Argentina to the list of teams England have looked better than in the first game, along with Brazil, Spain and Uruguay.

Hmm, thought Luxembourg showed a bit more against Italy than England. Ireland looked positively 1970s Brazil against them with the likes of Glenn Whelan and Kilmarnock flop Connor Sammon running the show.

[monty junior]

Great goal by Messi, still not as good as 2011 pre but still magnificent.   

Best start to a world cup i've ever seen.

[compelling and rich]

Rooney has never looked good playing on the left, whether he's played there a lot or not doesn't change that, as for Henderson hard to cover the left flank when you're playing on the right side of central midfield. I don't rate Baines as a defender at all and don't think it's a stretch to suggest that the experience of Cole copes far better with the Italian threat.

Hardly bizarre in those conditions, Sterling is all fast twitch muscles so he will cramp up in heat it's completely normal.

one of our best ever teams was rooney playing there, the 08 team had ronaldo and tevez with rooney often playing wider. they were interchangeable but most top attacking teams are anyway

[compelling and rich]

do find it funny that before the game everybody was saying this was a weak italy team, now we have lost its a very strong italian side!

now we also look better than brazil/argentina who all won there first game?!   

england fans dont half make some sh!t up!

[Good Golly I'm Olly]

do find it funny that before the game everybody was saying this was a weak italy team, now we have lost its a very strong italian side!

now we also look better than brazil/argentina who all won there first game?!   

england fans dont half make some sh!t up!

Just cos Brazil won doesn't mean they were good, I thought they were very poor and very lucky

Otherwise you'd be arguing we were better when we drew 0-0 with Algeria if results dictate how you judge performances

[Stella]

T'was a good game, and we may, with a bit of luck, got a draw. I do though worry about our defense. We're gonna need to score at least two every game to get through this tournament.

[SecretFly]

So far it's the Dutch who look most ready to take the Cup. Yep, it's a long way to go but the Dutch are the side that want to play football at a fury that few will live with if they keep it up or even intensify it. Tap, tap, tap again teams have been rumbled (case in point Spain) and if that keeps up I'm not altogether disappointed. Surgical prescision football (waiting ten minutes to perfectly get a tap, tap ball close enough to score) might float some people's boat but it can be paint-dryingly boring.

[Guest]

Nobody is ready to win this cup yet, not even Holland. People knew this Spain side could be rumbled, with the Barcelona demise, it was going to translate to the national side. Holland did well but its one game, defensively they were opened up & vlaar will get destroyed at some point. If you think deguzman/dejong is good enough centrally vs the better, hungrier & energetic sides, unlike spain, then your delusional. This WC is an open race. WC`s are about building slowly & peaking, so looking average in your first game, really means nothing, as long as you picked up the win.

[super_realist]

Still only a few sides capable. Usual suspects and not you know who

[compelling and rich]

do find it funny that before the game everybody was saying this was a weak italy team, now we have lost its a very strong italian side!

now we also look better than brazil/argentina who all won there first game?!   

england fans dont half make some sh!t up!

Just cos Brazil won doesn't mean they were good, I thought they were very poor and very lucky

Otherwise you'd be arguing we were better when we drew 0-0 with Algeria if results dictate how you judge performances

croatia are a strong team, no mugs and brazil got lucky with decisions but still won at the end of the day, maybe a cliche but teams who dont play well and win are the teams you should be worrying about, not rubbish England who yet again another glorious defeat. id rather play poorly and win if im honest

[westisbest]

Nobody is ready to win this cup yet, not even Holland. People knew this Spain side could be rumbled, with the Barcelona demise, it was going to translate to the national side. Holland did well but its one game, defensively they were opened up & vlaar will get destroyed at some point. If you think deguzman/dejong is good enough centrally vs the better, hungrier & energetic sides, unlike spain, then your delusional. This WC is an open race. WC`s are about building slowly & peaking, so looking average in your first game, really means nothing, as long as you picked up the win.

Ron aint getting destroyed by anyone.

Think Holland will get even better.
Put the sword to the Aussies on wednesday.
Have a decent win against Chile.

I hope so anyway.
Always been a big fan of the Dutch.

[GSC]

I have 2 worries on the Dutch, 1 they've peaked too early, 2 they're a bit lightweight

[Pal Joey]

I agree with west - they'll completely dismantle Australia (WC hockey revenge) but I think they will still be able to revert to a tighter game plan (switch gears) and account for Chile in their last group match.

[westisbest]

I actually hope Australia put up a good account account of themselves.

When Cahill scored, though you were going to come back, hoping moreso.
Thought you played pretty well in parts.

Goal ruled out.

Looking forward to wednesday's game.

[Pal Joey]

So do I... but we have to be realistic.

Chile started to lose shape and look quite rattled for a while there after Cahill scored.

[Duty281]

do find it funny that before the game everybody was saying this was a weak italy team, now we have lost its a very strong italian side!

now we also look better than brazil/argentina who all won there first game?!   

england fans dont half make some sh!t up!

Yep England did play better than Brazil and Spain. And Argentina. Oh and Uruguay. And probably Colombia.

Not necessarily in terms of result, but certainly by way of performance.

[The Special Juan]

Germany haven't played yet (or Iran ). I still can't see past Brazil.

[compelling and rich]

do find it funny that before the game everybody was saying this was a weak italy team, now we have lost its a very strong italian side!

now we also look better than brazil/argentina who all won there first game?!   

england fans dont half make some sh!t up!

Yep England did play better than Brazil and Spain. And Argentina. Oh and Uruguay. And probably Colombia.

Not necessarily in terms of result, but certainly by way of performance.

nonsense! colombia walked to a 3-0 win, Argentina while not being at there best cruised nearly all game to a win until last 5 minutes. dont think anyone can argue spain and Uruguay have had mares but dont see what all this great performance from england is. a great performance would mean getting some out of the game. we weren't screwed over, we were beat by a better team (who i still dont think are great shakes themselves)

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