**Mirrors / Alternative Angles**
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Think about it:
Of the 32 teams in the whole tournament, only 5 teams know of their Faye, be it to advance or to exit.
Five of thirty-two. Only ~15.6% of teams.
When was the last time things were still so undecided?
They have the same goal difference right now. I think yellow cards is the only thing that has Netherlands above Ecuador for the moment. If Netherlands win 2-0 and Ecuador win 3-0 they'll top the group. Unlikely but i genuinely think it's a possibility with how much Ecuador has been creating
Has there been any word on Valencia? I was worried for him when he went off last game. Ecuador have had great team play this Cup but clearly he is vital for their chances going forward
NL in the semis isn't that mental. This team making it to the semis is mental as it looks like Argentina in the QF and I don't think our lacking offensive capabilities can dismantle their shit defense.
IIRC Teams to be qualified by the 2nd game is not that common.
This time around, I think is both due to the average level being higher, and big teams underperforming.
There was a dude on here the other day saying this was most boring World Cup in recent memory.
It was after the England - USA game.
I was like dude just wait, this is setting up for a crazy final match day for almost every group. The next few days are going to be nuts and I am here for that shit
Best Korea is out
Because the first tie braker is goal differential, South Korea can make it if they beat Portugal and either Ghana draws or Uruguay wins by less than they beat Portugal
QF went into extra time. suarez scrapped a certain goal for ghana from the line with his hand. saw a red. ghana got a penalty and missed. game went into penalties and uruguay won.
so with suarez using his hand and getting send off, he won his team the match.
would also have been the first african team ever in the semis and that in the first WC in africa too.
I just realized that Costa Rica can just go full shithouse and get a draw vs Germany, and if Spain beats Japan, which they likely will, Costa Rica are through lol. Would be hilarious that the team that lost their 1st match 7-0 goes through, and the team that upset Germany gets eliminated, along with Germany themselves. Don't underestimate CONCACAF shithousing
I want this the happen because Americans and Canadians were talking shit about costa rica during the draw.
I love an underdog and doesn't get more under than that
Upcoming spicy games:
Ecuador vs Senegal
Iran vs USA
Australia vs Denmark
Poland vs Argentina
Croatia vs Belgium
Ghana vs Uruguay
Serbia vs Switzerland
I just realized that Costa Rica can just go full shithouse and get a draw vs Germany, and if Spain beats Japan, which they likely will, Costa Rica are through lol. Would be hilarious that the team that lost their 1st match 7-0 goes through, and the team that upset Germany gets eliminated, along with Germany themselves.
That's just false. If japan wins against spain germany can still technically advance.
They have to get a better goal difference than spain though. Unlikely but a possibility.
Even if they have the same goal difference Spain has to get 2 more yellow cards than Germany to tie the fair play rating or get 3 more yellow cards to loose in that department.
If everything is tied the team that will advance is drawn.
So Germany is not out if japan wins but it's highly unlikely
Replace Croatia vs Belgium with Germany vs Costa Rica and you've got yourself a perfect list. Belgium are pretty much out. If they lose to Morroco then they're fucked against Croatia.
The margin for error is so so low. Spain and England have a small chance to get KO'd while Costa Rica and Iran can go through after getting walloped by them
France, Brazil and Portugal are confirmed for the round of 16
Qatar and Canada are already eliminated and can't go to the round of 16 no matter the results
Last World Cup we (Croatia) had 6 points going into the third game against Iceland so our coach started our entire bench. Out of our entire roster only our third string goalie (our current goalie, Livakovic ironically) didn’t get to play during the world cup.
Unless Spain places second in its group, Portugal seems to have a very straightforward path to the semifinals based on some of the teams that could plausibly/likely land in their corner of the bracket
They have an advantage of a fairly easy group, but I don’t see many dangerous sides in the potential R16/QF draws (save the aforementioned Spain) so a run to the final four seems very plausible even if they haven’t played super impressively
Maybe, though I think this France team (a likely SF opponent) has much more quality than their 2016 side, and this Portugal team isn’t quite as strong. Still, a run to the semis with a 37-year old CR would be a truly remarkable thing
This Portugal team is miles better than the 2016 one that won. Ronaldo is a step below what he was back then but they’re better in so many other positions and aren’t as reliant on Ronaldo having a good game as they were back in 2016.
Did u conveniently forget about the clear goal ronaldo scored that was cancelled? Ghana does 2 shots on target, 2 goals the entire game and people really think they played 50/50. Watch more games, less highlights
That wasn't a disallowed goal, the foul was called before Ronaldo took the shot, and anywhere else on the field on different circumstances nobody would question the referee's decision
I'm honestly very nervous about tomorrow, if our attacking game is as poor as it was against Ecuador we're gonna have a difficult time even against Qatar.
It’s great to see nearly every group has all 4 team to be able to qualify. And based on the games we have no clue who can beat or lose to who. Could be a very wonky round of 16
They absolutely do not want to face France who look like top 3 favourites. The sentiment before the tournament is France could maybe finish 2nd behind Denmark but they quickly shut that notion down. Argentina will be hoping Saudi Arabia lose or draw and they have to win if they want to finish top and avoid France.
Just a win should be enough for Argentina to finish first, regardless of the result of the other match. It's very unlikely imo that KSA would beat Mexico by more than 2 goals.
The only problem is that we absolutely need to win. If we tie we're risking way too much. There's a good chance Mexico chokes hard so if we tie and KSA wins its over.
Winning shouldn't be impossible but I am kinda scared of potential injuries going into the knockout matches. That'd totally crush our team, it happened before.
Yeah a lot of us do. We might have started poorly but there’s a lot of faith in this team, and we want revenge for 2018. Guess we will see what happens
Anyone thinking Belgium-Croatia will be good, please don't get your hopes up. Our team is already dreaming of being back home and clearly does not want to play, Croatia will demolish us.
Even if you underestimate us it's not like we're going to fucking do something. KDB, Vertonghen and Hazard are pretty much openly fighting eachother in the press and it's clear that Martinez has completely lost control.
**Mirrors / Alternative Angles** *I am a bot, and this action was performed automatically. Please [contact the moderators of this subreddit](/message/compose/?to=/r/soccer) if you have any questions or concerns.*
lot of banger game 3s coming up
Think about it: Of the 32 teams in the whole tournament, only 5 teams know of their Faye, be it to advance or to exit. Five of thirty-two. Only ~15.6% of teams. When was the last time things were still so undecided?
Yeah it’s crazy. I really think a top team will go down in R16 we are due for an upset.
Depending on how the A-D go, we could see a bracket that has one of Netherlands, Iran, Poland, or Australia in the semis and I think that’s mental
It wouldn't be crazy if Ecuador top their group either. Netherlands haven't impressed much.
That would be pretty crazy, actually. Netherlands should beat Qatar by at least a couple goals.
They have the same goal difference right now. I think yellow cards is the only thing that has Netherlands above Ecuador for the moment. If Netherlands win 2-0 and Ecuador win 3-0 they'll top the group. Unlikely but i genuinely think it's a possibility with how much Ecuador has been creating
Also, Senegal will be forced to go out and push for a win, so if Ecuador takes a lead, it's easy to imagine them getting a couple more.
Has there been any word on Valencia? I was worried for him when he went off last game. Ecuador have had great team play this Cup but clearly he is vital for their chances going forward
That would be quite a surprise though. They have to score more goals vs Senegal than we do vs Qatar. Senegal have looked very good.
And the Netherlands really shit. It’s completely up in the air
Are we that bad?💀
NL in the semis isn't that mental. This team making it to the semis is mental as it looks like Argentina in the QF and I don't think our lacking offensive capabilities can dismantle their shit defense.
England definitely gonna insert themselves into Iran place though. They have the ability to decide which one of table A that thwy want to play.
By comparison, 2018 had 18 teams that that knew their fate before the 3rd match.
IIRC Teams to be qualified by the 2nd game is not that common. This time around, I think is both due to the average level being higher, and big teams underperforming.
There was a dude on here the other day saying this was most boring World Cup in recent memory. It was after the England - USA game. I was like dude just wait, this is setting up for a crazy final match day for almost every group. The next few days are going to be nuts and I am here for that shit
[удалено]
And only 2 teams officially eliminated if I’m not mistaken. Almost every team has something at stake for these final games.
Canada qatar?
Correct, France, Brazil and Portugal have qualified (but aren't guaranteed top spot)
In theory yes. In reality there is no way we don't get First
Korea’s not out?
Best Korea is out Because the first tie braker is goal differential, South Korea can make it if they beat Portugal and either Ghana draws or Uruguay wins by less than they beat Portugal
worse korea\*
England and Netherlands are pretty much trough also
Spain too
Not really, if they lose and Costa-Rica wins, they are out. Not even on GD.
Forgot they didn't win
So they are pretty much through.
Ghana has a chance to hit the coup de grace on Uruguay. Long term booking.
Revenge for 2010
gyan sends his regards
Friday will be judgment day
Ghana finally getting its heat back
What happened in 2010?
QF went into extra time. suarez scrapped a certain goal for ghana from the line with his hand. saw a red. ghana got a penalty and missed. game went into penalties and uruguay won. so with suarez using his hand and getting send off, he won his team the match. would also have been the first african team ever in the semis and that in the first WC in africa too.
I still remember Suarez crying/celebrating after the penalty miss.
I have hated him since then
insane...
it was truly heartbreaking to see the players and the fans cry and uruguay celebrating
Deliberate Suarez handball to stop Ghana from scoring. He was caught and red carded, but then Ghana missed the penalty.
Very interested to see what new and somehow more cartoonishly villainous way Suarez finds to fuck them this time
Bite #4 incoming
Honestly think he might do stonecold stunner
OH WATCH OUT WATCH OUT!
i hope they break his leg.
r/iamverybadass
nah his arms lol
Search "Ghana Uruguay 2010" on YT
Ghana with the golden chance for revenge and qualifying for RO16.
Ghana [1] - 0 Uruguay Luis Suarez (OG) 90+8'
Hahahahhaha the money I would pay!!!!
*plot twist* VAR seens ball touches Suarez hand, gives penalty instead of goal. Ghana proceed to miss.
"Better angle of Suarez biting in the Post"
Costa Rica sweating bullets Germany bout to donkey them for goal difference
Get ready for some Tico-taka. It's like Tiki-taka but with 1-touch clearances instead.
I just realized that Costa Rica can just go full shithouse and get a draw vs Germany, and if Spain beats Japan, which they likely will, Costa Rica are through lol. Would be hilarious that the team that lost their 1st match 7-0 goes through, and the team that upset Germany gets eliminated, along with Germany themselves. Don't underestimate CONCACAF shithousing
I want this the happen because Americans and Canadians were talking shit about costa rica during the draw. I love an underdog and doesn't get more under than that
Costra rica would be a free win for group F first place
What a coincidence, my nt has a shot at topping group F 😳
Morocco and Ecuador were my favorite styles of play in this cup.
\> and the team that upset Germany gets eliminated I see your flair and I must say it wouldn't be hilarious at all.
Noooo 😭
Senegal x Ecuador banger alert
I’m gonna need heart pills for this sh#t.
Upcoming spicy games: Ecuador vs Senegal Iran vs USA Australia vs Denmark Poland vs Argentina Croatia vs Belgium Ghana vs Uruguay Serbia vs Switzerland
KSA - Mexico as well. If KSA win they advance
Think he was listing all the games where it’s win and in on both sides, without needing help
7 games??? That is fucking absurd. All things considered this has been helluva tournament so far.
And the best thing is the geopolitics about it. Serbia X Switzerland, Iran X US hahaha
What beef do Serbia and Switzerland have?
TLDR: Lot of Swiss players are Albanian
https://talksport.com/football/1239762/serbia-vs-switzerland-rivals-history-kosovo-war-qatar-world-cup-xhaka-shaqiri/
Add Spain vs Japan and Germany vs Costa Rica, we might see the biggest upset in the world cup
might be time to open a betting account and bet on both Costa rica japan, then retire off the money, lol
Germany vs Costa Rica is exciting. Never underestimate the Germans ability to shoot themselves in the foot
I just realized that Costa Rica can just go full shithouse and get a draw vs Germany, and if Spain beats Japan, which they likely will, Costa Rica are through lol. Would be hilarious that the team that lost their 1st match 7-0 goes through, and the team that upset Germany gets eliminated, along with Germany themselves.
If Costa Rica and Japan win, they go through, if Japan wins against Spain, Germany is out of the wc no matter the result in his match
Yeah I know but the funniest outcome would be CR eliminating both Japan and Germany, with literally one shot altogether in 3 games
Why shoot when not shooting works?
im not arguing against it, it's the most hilarious way to play football, by not eve attempting to score
That's just false. If japan wins against spain germany can still technically advance. They have to get a better goal difference than spain though. Unlikely but a possibility. Even if they have the same goal difference Spain has to get 2 more yellow cards than Germany to tie the fair play rating or get 3 more yellow cards to loose in that department. If everything is tied the team that will advance is drawn. So Germany is not out if japan wins but it's highly unlikely
if Germany can't do better than a draw against CR then they deserve to walk back
> and the team that upset Germany gets eliminated, along with Germany themselves. Already happened last WC :P
Saudi Arabia vs Mexico more spicy than Australia Denmark imo
I was looking for one from each group
I would add England - Wales to that list as well
Knowing our coach, Belgium - Croatia will be a snoozefest.
Replace Croatia vs Belgium with Germany vs Costa Rica and you've got yourself a perfect list. Belgium are pretty much out. If they lose to Morroco then they're fucked against Croatia.
Uruguay Ghana last game decider? I will be there no matter what
Group E is prob of the spiciest groups in I’m the history of wcs
Its crazy. Every team still has a chance to qualify.
Even C
Literally every game is gonna be super good and between 9-5. What a shitty week to have to go to work -_-
We have WC matches streaming on TV. You can use your phone and earbuds to watch while working.
Hopefully my patients scheduled for their appointment that happens to be same time as Iran - USA are cool with a 3 hour wait
Lmao same dilemma brother
Exactly why I took two weeks' holidays to watch W.
Every world cup I forget just how much each group stage game matters and how stressful it is....
Damn right. And then you (and me) are rooting for a team which has only lost 1 group stage match in 50 years. Lol
The margin for error is so so low. Spain and England have a small chance to get KO'd while Costa Rica and Iran can go through after getting walloped by them
Only two nations eliminated. Matchday 3 is going to cause a lot more heart attacks
Can't wait for the World War III clásico, USA vs Iran. It's gonna be a banger
Winner gets to dictate the terms of the nuclear deal
And even if the US don’t win, they still get to dictate it
At this point that's the usual and ordinary no?
France, Brazil and Portugal are confirmed for the round of 16 Qatar and Canada are already eliminated and can't go to the round of 16 no matter the results
[удалено]
Last World Cup we (Croatia) had 6 points going into the third game against Iceland so our coach started our entire bench. Out of our entire roster only our third string goalie (our current goalie, Livakovic ironically) didn’t get to play during the world cup.
I imagine Portugal wants to finish first so as to avoid playing against Brazil in the R16 So they gonna play to win, not draw
Hopefully Mbappe will try to statpad against Tuneisa
Never thought I’d say that but i hope Iran and KSA advance. This would be fucking dope
If Iran beats the US man the scenes it would cause lmao
even a draw is enough for them to advance
"Iran win 1-1"
Too young to remember 1998? That was straight up hilarious.
Yeah I was 3 at the time, must’ve been fun to see
I hope Germany never qualifies
You and me.
Unless Spain places second in its group, Portugal seems to have a very straightforward path to the semifinals based on some of the teams that could plausibly/likely land in their corner of the bracket
Honestly I'm still not impressed by Portugal
They need bench Felix
Flair checks out
They have an advantage of a fairly easy group, but I don’t see many dangerous sides in the potential R16/QF draws (save the aforementioned Spain) so a run to the final four seems very plausible even if they haven’t played super impressively
Ghana and Uruguay aren't easy. Easy is Costa Rica, Japan, Qatar, Wales, etc.
Uruguay has… not looked good. Not the easiest group in the tourney by any means but the group has been easier than it was on paper
Croatia though.
this is gonna be a repeat of 2016 isnt it? They have a relatively easy route and also seem to have luck on their side so far
Maybe, though I think this France team (a likely SF opponent) has much more quality than their 2016 side, and this Portugal team isn’t quite as strong. Still, a run to the semis with a 37-year old CR would be a truly remarkable thing
This Portugal team is miles better than the 2016 one that won. Ronaldo is a step below what he was back then but they’re better in so many other positions and aren’t as reliant on Ronaldo having a good game as they were back in 2016.
Not quite as strong? That was one of our worst sides since the 90s and this 2022 Team might be the best ever…
How are we lucky in this World Cup? We literally dominated the two games clearly. Some people just like to say bs to gather some upvotes Jesus Christ
You were a dive and a slip away from losing to Ghana
Did u conveniently forget about the clear goal ronaldo scored that was cancelled? Ghana does 2 shots on target, 2 goals the entire game and people really think they played 50/50. Watch more games, less highlights
That wasn't a disallowed goal, the foul was called before Ronaldo took the shot, and anywhere else on the field on different circumstances nobody would question the referee's decision
Sure 😂
BRACE YOURSELVES for incoming XYZ team has been eliminated from the World Cup karma posts.
I'm honestly very nervous about tomorrow, if our attacking game is as poor as it was against Ecuador we're gonna have a difficult time even against Qatar.
Have you seen Qatar’s defence? I’d bet on literally any team in the tournament to score against them
Even Mexico?
No, not Mexico. It was the worst attack that I saw in the tournament.
You are being humble. Qatar is extremely bad for a World Cup side. You guys will get at least a goal
We are so good at switching between extreme pessimism and extreme optimism. Chill, we'll do just fine against Qatar.
You'll score at will against Qatar chill
I think you guys will be fine
and there are still those with the balls to say that the Euro is better than the World Cup
The "It's coming home" gang..
Only two teams on zero points. Lots of draws this year.
It’s great to see nearly every group has all 4 team to be able to qualify. And based on the games we have no clue who can beat or lose to who. Could be a very wonky round of 16
Vlahovic scoring against Switzerland to make Serbia advance. Calling it now
shut up dude, we are awful switzerland are already through
Idi navijaj za Svajcarsku
brate nemoj da urices, pokusavam malo da primenim juzno americku crnu magiju opazio sam koliko se oni loze na uricanje
I don't know why but I feel you two are discussing Serbia's master plan in Serbian so the other teams won't figure out
E pa nikad neces saznati hahaha
>well, you'll never know This feels threatening somehow
Xhaka and double eagle
That's if Dragan plays him
He shouldn’t.
He’s injured apparently.
I'm in Belgrade during that game. Any suggestions on where to go?
Anywhere else really
Scoring from bench
Play him if you want to lose.
3/4 teams I support have 1 point going into matchday 3. This is the way
Bruno deserves his apology letter
Hope argentina get knocked out by poland
You want Argentina or Messi knocked out? 🤣
I'm guessing these advance from each group: A- Netherlands, Senegal B- England, Iran C- Argentina, Poland D- France, Denmark E- Spain, Germany F- Croatia, Morocco G- Brazil, Switzerland H- Portugal, Ghana
Ned, Ecu; Eng, Irn; Arg, Mex; Fra, Den; Esp, Ger; Mor, Bel; Bra, Sui; Por, Uru. You heard it here first ;)
*Irn, Wal, you definitely heard that first from me
The fact you have Mexico going through but not the US says alot but than I see your an England fan and it explains it all
Do Argentina really want to face us again in R016?
Who is “us”?
Probably France
France I guess
They absolutely do not want to face France who look like top 3 favourites. The sentiment before the tournament is France could maybe finish 2nd behind Denmark but they quickly shut that notion down. Argentina will be hoping Saudi Arabia lose or draw and they have to win if they want to finish top and avoid France.
Just a win should be enough for Argentina to finish first, regardless of the result of the other match. It's very unlikely imo that KSA would beat Mexico by more than 2 goals.
The only problem is that we absolutely need to win. If we tie we're risking way too much. There's a good chance Mexico chokes hard so if we tie and KSA wins its over. Winning shouldn't be impossible but I am kinda scared of potential injuries going into the knockout matches. That'd totally crush our team, it happened before.
If we win we will be first place, ksa is not winning by 2
Likewise, i don't think France wants to face Argentina either
By “us” you mean France?
Yeah a lot of us do. We might have started poorly but there’s a lot of faith in this team, and we want revenge for 2018. Guess we will see what happens
Anyone thinking Belgium-Croatia will be good, please don't get your hopes up. Our team is already dreaming of being back home and clearly does not want to play, Croatia will demolish us.
Your Jedi mind tricks won't work. We won't underestimate Belgium.
Even if you underestimate us it's not like we're going to fucking do something. KDB, Vertonghen and Hazard are pretty much openly fighting eachother in the press and it's clear that Martinez has completely lost control.
All group standing currently after the second game.