WORLD CUP 2010

[andy7171]

So when is the final game? Saturday or Sunday? What time? 2:30pm?

Duck the Futch!

[TigerStripe]

I'm not much of a soccer fan, but I have watch more soccer the last few days than I have in my entire life.

So it will be the Netherlands against Spain for the World Cup title after Spain's 1-0 victory over Germany.

Netherlands vs Spain
11 July - 2:30 PM ET - ABC

Did anyone predict this?

[SunCoastBlueHen]

Did anyone predict this?

One soccer analyst I saw predicted this final. I think his name was Hans Pedro Fernandez-Van der Berg.

[Screamin_Eagle174]

NED ER LANDS! NED ER LANDS! NED ER LANDS!

[grizzaholic]

[bandl]

Did anyone predict this?

One soccer analyst I saw predicted this final. I think his name was Hans Pedro Fernandez-Van der Berg.

Check out my predictions in this thread...maybe page 4 or 5 or so. I'm a god.

[bandl]

I got Spain and Brazil in the finals... with Brazil knocking out Holland in the quarters.


Group A: Mexico and South Africa advance... I can't see France going anywhere this year, I'd say SA makes it through based off home turf, but really this is a toss up. Mexico wins the group

Group B: Argentina wins group easily, Messi scores about 50 goals. Coin toss for the rest, I've got Nigeria advancing.

Group C: Depending on Saturdays outcome. Currently I have USA winning the Group with England advancing. My English friends down here tell me I'm being silly, but I just tell them they are being twits for thinking they will do better this year with less of a team than 2006.

Group D: Germany wins group easily, another toss up for who advances. I'm going with Ghana, no real reason besides I had a friend in college who played on our intramural soccer team from Ghana... he was sick nasty. We won the league twice with him on the team.

Group E: Holland wins group, Cameroon advances

Group F: Italy wins group, Paraguay advances

Group G: Brazil wins group, Portugal advances... they had trouble qualifying, but I think with Drogba's questionable state, Portugal should be able to advance. Poor North Korea... should they even bother showing up?

Group H: Spain wins the group. Toss up amongst the rest, but I got Switzerland advancing.



Second Round:
Mexico beats Nigeria
USA beats Ghana
Germany beats England
Argentina beats South Africa
Holland beats Paraguay
Brazil beats Switzerland
Italy beats Cameroon
Spain beats Portugal

Quarters:
Brazil beats Holland
USA beats Mexico
Argentina beats Germany
Spain beats Italy

Semis:
Brazil beats USA
Spain beats Argentina

Finals
Spain beats Brazil



Lionel Messi leading goal scorer.

189 yellow cards/2.5 avg per match (considering how the past few world cups have gone, this is a gross underestimation)
17 red cards



I think if the groups break down the way I see it, USA has a legit shot to get to the Semis. USA has to win their group though, otherwise they are going to have a much tougher match up against Germany.

I'm not sure about Messi with Argentina....it's not his style of soccer and he doesn't play well in their formation. I think he's going to struggle to score, just like in the qualifying matches, Maradona is going to try something really stupid that he's never tried before, something like 4 strikers and 2 defenders, and Argentina is going to bow out in the group stage (Nigeria and Greece advancing). I think Rooney is going to be the difference in group C, and England will win the group with the US advancing. But if the US just tries to piss of Rooney until he snaps and he gets a red, I can see them winning the group . And I can never count out France, Germany and Italy even if they don't seem as strong as in years' past.

Group A - France winning, Uruguay advancing
Group B - Greece winning, Nigeria advancing
Group C - England winning, USA advancing
Group D - Germany winning, Serbia advancing
Group E - Holland winng, Cameroon advancing
Group F - Italy winning, Paraguay advancing
Group G - Brazil winning, Portugal advancing
Group H - Spain winning, Chile advancing

France beats Nigeria
Greece beats Uruguay
England beats Serbia
Germany beats USA
Holland beats Paraguay
Italy beats Cameroon
Brazil beats Chile
Spain beats Portugal

France beats England
Germany beats Greece
Holland beats Brazil
Spain beats Italy

Holland beats France
Spain beats Germany

Holland beats Spain

Bump

My quarter picks weren't so great but I had 3 of the final 4 (France...really?? Talking about them retrospectively is so easy.) and I have both of the finalists.
And while I was absolutely off about Argentina, at least I was right about Messi.

[JMU DJ]

I'm not sure about Messi with Argentina....it's not his style of soccer and he doesn't play well in their formation. I think he's going to struggle to score, just like in the qualifying matches, Maradona is going to try something really stupid that he's never tried before, something like 4 strikers and 2 defenders, and Argentina is going to bow out in the group stage (Nigeria and Greece advancing). I think Rooney is going to be the difference in group C, and England will win the group with the US advancing. But if the US just tries to piss of Rooney until he snaps and he gets a red, I can see them winning the group . And I can never count out France, Germany and Italy even if they don't seem as strong as in years' past.

Group A - France winning, Uruguay advancing
Group B - Greece winning, Nigeria advancing
Group C - England winning, USA advancing
Group D - Germany winning, Serbia advancing
Group E - Holland winng, Cameroon advancing
Group F - Italy winning, Paraguay advancing
Group G - Brazil winning, Portugal advancing
Group H - Spain winning, Chile advancing

France beats Nigeria
Greece beats Uruguay
England beats Serbia
Germany beats USA
Holland beats Paraguay
Italy beats Cameroon
Brazil beats Chile
Spain beats Portugal

France beats England
Germany beats Greece
Holland beats Brazil
Spain beats Italy

Holland beats France
Spain beats Germany

Holland beats Spain

Bump

My quarter picks weren't so great but I had 3 of the final 4 (France...really?? Talking about them retrospectively is so easy.) and I have both of the finalists.
And while I was absolutely off about Argentina, at least I was right about Messi.

I don't feel to bad about that Brazil pick... had they not choked against Holland, I think they would have had the clear shot to the finals considering how the brackets pretty much broke down how I thought they would . Group A was the real cluster fuck to me, I advanced South Africa because the host country has always advanced (even the USA back in the day), who knew the 5th place South American team would make it all the way to the semifinal??? USA definitely had the draw on that side of the bracket, I picked them because I believed they could make it that far (as I did predict them to win the group) and because I knew none of the Europeans in the pool I'm in would pick them. All in all, I'm in second place in my pool right now... the guy in first also has Spain winning, but I can still pass him based on Red and Yellow card predictions.

I don't know if anyone was right about their pick for top goal scorer

Messi - 0
Rooney - 0
Torres - 0
Kaka - 0
Drogba - 1
Ronaldo - 1

Except for that one guy in the pool who picked Villa... not a bad pick.




Now for the real news... who's right? Paul or Mani?

Paul the Psychic Octopus picks Spain to win World Cup

Paul the Octopus has spoken, and he has come out for Spain in the World Cup final. No comment as of yet from Mani the Parakeet.

Washington mega-chef and Spain enthusiast Jose Andres has Paul's back, taking his brethren off the menu at all his restaurants until further notice.

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/soccer ... ain_t.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

SINGAPORE — A crowd of soccer fans leans forward as Mani, Singapore's World Cup-forecasting parakeet, creeps out of his small wooden cage and chooses between two white cards — one hiding the flag of the Netherlands, the other Spain.

If the bird's many new believers are right, Holland will win its first World Cup championship Sunday. Mani grabbed a card in his beak Friday and flipped it over to reveal the Dutch flag.

http://www.google.com/hostednews/ap/art ... AD9GRDR081" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Joining Paul is Mani, a bird in Singapore that has picked (pecked?) the Netherlands to defeat Spain in the World Cup final. Watch the shocking video:

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/soccer ... ny_in.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Not gonna lie, I like Mani's confidence... he comes right out, doesn't fuck around, picks a card and it's back into his lair. Paul floats around like a schmuck for what seems like forever and then takes his good ol' time pulling a clam out. Paul has the history of picking multiple games correct this world cup.... Mani only has the semi match.

[TigerStripe]

I'm just hoping for a good match.

[TigerStripe]

Germany gets 3rd place with a 3-2 win over Uruguay.

[Screamin_Eagle174]

Down with those putas! Go Nederlands!

[93henfan]

Paul the Octopus says Spain.
Mani the Parakeet says Holland.

[TigerStripe]

It's minutes away...

[TigerStripe]

0-0 at halftime.

[Screamin_Eagle174]

Been an extremely physical match so far, with 6 yellow cards handed out, tying for the most in a final since 86.

[TigerStripe]

I don't watch soccer that much. In fact, I've watched more soccer in the last few weeks than I have my entire life.

It just seems to me that the Spain players are doing a lot of flopping at the slightest contact. They remind me of Duke basketball players.

[Screamin_Eagle174]

I don't watch soccer that much. In fact, I've watched more soccer in the last few weeks than I have my entire life.

It just seems to me that the Spain players are doing a lot of flopping at the slightest contact. They remind me of Duke basketball players.

Yeah, no kiddin. I don't watch much soccer either, and this game is re-enforcing why.


Fuck that octopus.

[TigerStripe]

Spain takes a 1-0 lead in extra time.

[Screamin_Eagle174]

Spain takes a 1-0 lead in extra time.

I was really looking forward to the penalty kick shootout too.

[TigerStripe]

Spain takes a 1-0 lead in extra time.

I was really looking forward to the penalty kick shootout too.

Yeah, me too.

That's about the only part of soccer I really like.

[Mountaineer]

Disappointing snoozefest.

Too many fouls and too much diving (as usual). Not the way I wanted to see things end.

[Screamin_Eagle174]

Well I guess I can't hate the Griz too much after this. The Dutch are now perennial bridesmaids too.

[BlueHen86]

Disappointing snoozefest.

Too many fouls and too much diving (as usual). Not the way I wanted to see things end.

The ref was horrible. He lets a play go on for several seconds and then gives a yellow when the actor er... I mean player stays on the pitch. If it was a foul he should have called it immediately.

Ref's like him are the reason that players flop and stay on the ground: it works.

[DukeJack]

Disappointing snoozefest.

Too many fouls and too much diving (as usual). Not the way I wanted to see things end.

The ref was horrible. He lets a play go on for several seconds and then gives a yellow when the actor er... I mean player stays on the pitch. If it was a foul he should have called it immediately.

Ref's like him are the reason that players flop and stay on the ground: it works.

Yeah I didn't really understand why he was so whistle happy in regulation then completely put it away in extra time. If a guy splits two defenders, goes down, and you card one of them, how is the exact same play 20 minutes later not also an offense?

But in the end, Spain finally buried a chance when the Dutch couldn't, so they get the star.

[EPJr]

Never bet against the Octopus!!!

Octopus finishes perfect World Cup run

Eight picks, eight correct, eight tentacles. Paul the Oracle Octopus is clearly the biggest winner of the World Cup after recording a perfect prognostication record whether he knows it or not (he probably doesn't).

The big question was whether Paul's predictive superpowers would translate to the final - the first match he was asked to predict that did not involve his native Germany. But such piddly concerns did not bother Paul. Mostly because he's an octopus. Just as he predicted, the European champions Spain became world champions for the first time with an Andres Iniesta goal in extra time. And as the Spanish celebrated, Paul floated in his tank, sure of his genius and probably craving a fresh clam.

http://g.sports.yahoo.com/soccer/world- ... sow,255211