The Final Hexagonal Part 2 [R]

[EvanJ]

MoRado locked the original topic (http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=805153) and said it's time for a new one so here it is.

[MoRado]

no polls evan ?

lets add one...like who advances with options like these (top 3 teams, no order)

Mexico, USA, CR
Mexico, Honduras, USA
USa, Honduras, Costa Rica
and so on...

any idea?

[jared9999]

Mexico, US, Honduras go to SA

everyone else stays home

[silverlion]

"The Final Hexagonal, Part 2" Sounds like a Sci-Fi/Action movie:

In a world, where 3 of 6 teams will get to go to South Africa to play in a tournament where 2 of 4 teams in the group-play move on to probably lose to a superpower there will be ten months of pain, heartbreak, surprises, and but everything will end with the US, Mexico, and Costa Rica going to the WC anyways, BUT who will end up in 4th place?

In parts 6-29, we argue about which team will end up fourth in Concacaf and their chances agains Ecuador, Chile, Venezuela, Colombia, and Uruguay.

[\^the king^/]

"The Final Hexagonal, Part 2" Sounds like a Sci-Fi/Action movie:

In a world, where 3 of 6 teams will get to go to South Africa to play in a tournament where 2 of 4 teams in the group-play move on to probably lose to a superpower there will be ten months of pain, heartbreak, surprises, and but everything will end with the US, Mexico, and Costa Rica going to the WC anyways, BUT who will end up in 4th place?

In parts 6-29, we argue about which team will end up fourth in Concacaf and their chances agains Ecuador, Chile, Venezuela, Colombia, and Uruguay.

Lol.

[MetroChile]

I don't think many of us here are "understimating ES", as many Salvis here have claimed. :) But let's look at the situation: ES squeaked by Panama and was placed in the weakest of all groups (even though CR is in it, I think it's fair to say this is the weakest CR team many of us have seen in 2-3 cycles).

So, ES beat Haiti and Surinam (which was kind of expected, considering that in the grand scheme of things those two were probably 2 of the weakest teams in any of the 3 groups in the semis round) but ES failed to get any point from CR (right?). If ES had gotten 4, even 3 points vs. the Ticos, I would be inclined to think that maybe (just maybe), the Cuzcatlecos may have a shot at that 4th spot. That, however, was not the case.

Someone on the old thread argued that because CR was in the same group, then both teams should be considered "weak". That is some flawed logic, though: considering that CR--playing pretty sh!tty for their standards--still managed to take care of business. ES did so against two weak teams: nothing more, nothing less.

ES looks to be what Panama was in the last Hex. I could see ES getting 4/6 points at home vs. Guate and possibly TnT. Anything above that should be considered a bonus.

So, to summarize, none is hating on ES (at least I am not) but based on what I've seen, I think ES will finish last in this Hex unless something completely unexpected does occur; none has a crystall ball (which is part of the beauty of soccer, anyway :) ).

So my prediction is something like this:
1. US
2. Mexico (I see Mexico improving from the very unconvincing soccer they've been playing lately: SGE can't just turn Mexico into WC champs overnight. If people really wanna see results, he needs time; much like is going on with us in Chile with Bielsa :) ).
3. Honduras
4. CR (even as badly as they've been playing, compared to their usual level, I see them getting that 4th spot to face off vs. Uruguay/Colombia/Ecuador).
5. TnT
6. ES

Cheers! =)

[TheMagician11]

the first away game against CR we missed an earn penalty and the ticos made theirs..end of story...game should of been a tie... the second game vs ticos we didnt have our starting squad...the outcome was 3-1 but if u saw the game we dominated the whole second half striking like 4 times of the poles...
something to think about..!!!!!!

[MetroChile]

the first away game against CR we missed an earn penalty and the ticos made theirs..end of story...game should of been a tie... the second game vs ticos we didnt have our starting squad...the outcome was 3-1 but if u saw the game we dominated the whole second half striking like 4 times of the poles...
something to think about..!!!!!!

If we go by "ifs" and "buts", we might as well not even make predictions. :o
;);) It's not anybody's fault that that happened to ES, anyway.

[Azuran]

"The Final Hexagonal, Part 2" Sounds like a Sci-Fi/Action movie:

In a world, where 3 of 6 teams will get to go to South Africa to play in a tournament where 2 of 4 teams in the group-play move on to probably lose to a superpower there will be ten months of pain, heartbreak, surprises, and but everything will end with the US, Mexico, and Costa Rica going to the WC anyways, BUT who will end up in 4th place?

In parts 6-29, we argue about which team will end up fourth in Concacaf and their chances agains Ecuador, Chile, Venezuela, Colombia, and Uruguay.

I laughed.Have some rep for making my day.

Anyways, here are my early predictions. I'll state my reason once we get closer to the Hex. Right now its to early to tell.

1. USA
2. Mex
3. Hon
4. CRC
5. T&T
6. ES

[zacateca]

USA's COUNTER ATTACK STYLE can be BROKEN by leaving two stay at home sweppers. they rely on DONAVAN's speed. HE FAKES SHOT THEN goes RIGHT/LEFT. Theyr corner kick RELY on BIG NIGERIAN origin players to do DAMAGE. CANOOT DO SAME OVER & OVER.
USA plays for the TIE unless COUNTER_ATTACK OPPORTNITIES ARE AVAILABLE. good choice for
ANYBODY in the HEXAGONAL that wants a WQ SPOT.

[shadowmwo]

USA's COUNTER ATTACK STYLE can be BROKEN by leaving two stay at home sweppers. they rely on DONAVAN's speed. HE FAKES SHOT THEN goes RIGHT/LEFT. Theyr corner kick RELY on BIG NIGERIAN origin players to do DAMAGE. CANOOT DO SAME OVER & OVER.
USA plays for the TIE unless COUNTER_ATTACK OPPORTNITIES ARE AVAILABLE. good choice for
ANYBODY in the HEXAGONAL that wants a WQ SPOT.
Lol

[zacateca]

I don't think many of us here are "understimating ES", as many Salvis here have claimed. :) But let's look at the situation: ES squeaked by Panama and was placed in the weakest of all groups (even though CR is in it, I think it's fair to say this is the weakest CR team many of us have seen in 2-3 cycles).

So, ES beat Haiti and Surinam (which was kind of expected, considering that in the grand scheme of things those two were probably 2 of the weakest teams in any of the 3 groups in the semis round) but ES failed to get any point from CR (right?). If ES had gotten 4, even 3 points vs. the Ticos, I would be inclined to think that maybe (just maybe), the Cuzcatlecos may have a shot at that 4th spot. That, however, was not the case.

Someone on the old thread argued that because CR was in the same

group, then both teams should be considered "weak". That is some flawed logic, though: considering that CR--playing pretty sh!tty for their standards--still managed to take care of business. ES did so against two weak teams: nothing more, nothing less.

ES looks to be what Panama was in the last Hex. I could see ES getting 4/6 points at home vs. Guate and possibly TnT. Anything above that should be considered a bonus.

So, to summarize, none is hating on ES (at least I am not) but based on what I've seen, I think ES will finish last in this Hex unless something completely unexpected does occur; none has a crystall ball (which is part of the beauty of soccer, anyway :) ).

So my prediction is something like this:
1. US
2. Mexico (I see Mexico improving from the very unconvincing soccer they've been playing lately: SGE can't just turn Mexico into WC champs overnight. If people really wanna see results, he needs time; much like is going on with us in Chile with Bielsa :) ).
3. Honduras
4. CR (even as badly as they've been playing, compared to their usual level, I see them getting that 4th spot to face off vs. Uruguay/Colombia/Ecuador).
5. TnT
6. ES

Cheers! =)


USA's """"BORING" but "EFFECTIVE" COUNTERATTACK STYLE is NOW Expected by EVRYONE. '
DONAVAN :WILL BE """"""""""""SHADOWDed""""""""""""""" EVERY GAME.
USA CORNER KICKS """"""WILL Be""""" DEFENDEd BY""" EVRYONE in CONCACAF""" like life deended on IT! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ?AGAINST USA!!!!!!!!!!

AFTER That!!!!!!! MEXICO is WEAK because OF """"""""""""the EUROPEAN GUY!!!
HONDURAS IS WEAK beacuse of THIER COACH.PLAyer RELATIONS...
Coata RICa is NOT what they USED TO BE!!!!!!!!!!
T&T is too OLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! & not Experience enought,
Dwight York is Still CONCACAF KING, PLEASE COACH YoUNGER PLAYERS!!!!!

HNDURAS!!!!!!! TWO PLAYERS is NOT ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[MetroChile]

USA's COUNTER ATTACK STYLE can be BROKEN by leaving two stay at home sweppers. they rely on DONAVAN's speed. HE FAKES SHOT THEN goes RIGHT/LEFT. Theyr corner kick RELY on BIG NIGERIAN origin players to do DAMAGE. CANOOT DO SAME OVER & OVER.
USA plays for the TIE unless COUNTER_ATTACK OPPORTNITIES ARE AVAILABLE. good choice for
ANYBODY in the HEXAGONAL that wants a WQ SPOT.

USA's """"BORING" but "EFFECTIVE" COUNTERATTACK STYLE is NOW Expected by EVRYONE. '
DONAVAN :WILL BE """"""""""""SHADOWDed""""""""""""""" EVERY GAME.
USA CORNER KICKS """"""WILL Be""""" DEFENDEd BY""" EVRYONE in CONCACAF""" like life deended on IT! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ?AGAINST USA!!!!!!!!!!

AFTER That!!!!!!! MEXICO is WEAK because OF """"""""""""the EUROPEAN GUY!!!
HONDURAS IS WEAK beacuse of THIER COACH.PLAyer RELATIONS...
Coata RICa is NOT what they USED TO BE!!!!!!!!!!
T&T is too OLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! & not Experience enought,
Dwight York is Still CONCACAF KING, PLEASE COACH YoUNGER PLAYERS!!!!!

HNDURAS!!!!!!! TWO PLAYERS is NOT ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Don't type in CAPS, please. :)

[Warlord]

ES is going to finish dead last whether the salvis like hearing it or not. Its just stark reality for these central american minnows.;)

[MoRado]

ES is going to finish dead last whether the salvis like hearing it or not. Its just stark reality for these central american minnows.;)

i would be really surprised if ES doesnt finish last and trinidad doesnt finish right before them
Both seem to be the weakest teams in the HEX

[\^the king^/]

USA's """"BORING" but "EFFECTIVE" COUNTERATTACK STYLE is NOW Expected by EVRYONE. '
DONAVAN :WILL BE """"""""""""SHADOWDed""""""""""""""" EVERY GAME.
USA CORNER KICKS """"""WILL Be""""" DEFENDEd BY""" EVRYONE in CONCACAF""" like life deended on IT! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ?AGAINST USA!!!!!!!!!!

AFTER That!!!!!!! MEXICO is WEAK because OF """"""""""""the EUROPEAN GUY!!!
HONDURAS IS WEAK beacuse of THIER COACH.PLAyer RELATIONS...
Coata RICa is NOT what they USED TO BE!!!!!!!!!!
T&T is too OLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! & not Experience enought,
Dwight York is Still CONCACAF KING, PLEASE COACH YoUNGER PLAYERS!!!!!

HNDURAS!!!!!!! TWO PLAYERS is NOT ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow.

[Moises]

ES is going to finish dead last whether the salvis like hearing it or not. Its just stark reality for these central american minnows.;)
like it or not jamrock aint in the HEX!! HAHAHA!!!:D

[Moises]

USA's """"BORING" but "EFFECTIVE" COUNTERATTACK STYLE is NOW Expected by EVRYONE. '
DONAVAN :WILL BE """"""""""""SHADOWDed""""""""""""""" EVERY GAME.
USA CORNER KICKS """"""WILL Be""""" DEFENDEd BY""" EVRYONE in CONCACAF""" like life deended on IT! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! ?AGAINST USA!!!!!!!!!!

AFTER That!!!!!!! MEXICO is WEAK because OF """"""""""""the EUROPEAN GUY!!!
HONDURAS IS WEAK beacuse of THIER COACH.PLAyer RELATIONS...
Coata RICa is NOT what they USED TO BE!!!!!!!!!!
T&T is too OLD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! & not Experience enought,
Dwight York is Still CONCACAF KING, PLEASE COACH YoUNGER PLAYERS!!!!!

HNDURAS!!!!!!! TWO PLAYERS is NOT ENOUGH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

wipe that brown stuff coming out of your mouth.

[Warlord]

like it or not jamrock aint in the HEX!! HAHAHA!!


You'll have the distinction of not qualifying for anotha WC yet again after advancing to tha hex. How many times has it been now huh?;)

[ChiqiTico redded]

Any predictions about the Hex next year is an utter stupidity. It is almost as stupid as thinking that having a great qualification process is a likely factor of making it far to the World Cup (and we all SHOULD know that is not true).

The best sort of comparison we could, logically, make is about what we saw in the "semifinal" stage of CONCACAF WCQ. My views on these teams are:

United States
They played at their style and effectively made it work result wise vs two weak teams (Guatemala & Cuba) although not in the most convincing fashion (Teams in the "Big Three" of CONCACAF should be winning by a reasonable margin vs these sort of teams). They did, however, win all of their games for a combined score of 11-1 (Great numbers which prove the strenght of the US at home). Their only slip-up might be the Trinidad and Tobago away game ALTHOUGH it must be said that the US was already qualified at that point (hence, the reason Bob Bradley sent an understrenght team) and Trinidad and Tobago were still fighting for a spot in the hex.

Overall, it was a good performance. Could it been better? Sure but not by much. But they got time to improve.

Trinidad and Tobago
They are a team that did what was required to qualify for the Hex, nothing more, nothing less. Highlights? Beating the US and Cuba (away). Headache? Guatemala. Their level of play, though, was at times inconsistent where they could be playing really great in one half and in the second they will look like a raindeer staring at the headlights. The good thing is that they got time to improve now. I really liked seeing Daniel Keon play.

Honduras
My assesment is almost the same as Trinidad and Tobago. At times spectacular and at times quite horrible. The 1-0 win over Mexico was, in my opinion, horrific to watch and I fail to see how a bare-minimum win vs a Mexican team worse then when they had Enrique Meza as coach + being at home in San Pedro Sula is any indication of Honduras sweeping the hex (I forgot the goal was an own goal).

But as I said, where there is utter horror, there was brilliance as well and I enjoyed their games vs Canada in both legs and vs Mexico in Mexico City. The results vs Jamaica were very predictable and I predicted right.

In short, I wasn't truly impressed by anything Honduras did. It wasn't bad but it wasn't great, either.

Mexico
Where to begin?....

They got all of their wins at home, yes, and it looked, at least to me, swift sailing for the Mexicans.

However, what followed should be made into a soap opera due to the drama, the close calls, the panice, etc...losing to Jamaica was a bad result, yes, but slip-ups happen and I thought that maybe they just had a bad night (add to that the fact that under "Golazo" Sanchez was GK that night).

However, the game vs Canada should be considered and utter embarrassment, as Futbol Picante said, as Mexico only managed a draw vs Canada, a team that was eliminated, a team that sent scrubs to play...a team that has no professional league!

And if that wasn't bad enough, they ended up losing to a very unefficient Honduran team in a game which Mexico self-destructed, in a game where the Mexicans were biting their nails as Jamaica got closer and closer with their scoreline and it got to the point where even "Golazo" Sanchez was pleading to David Suazo to not attack anymore. Ultimately, Mexico came withing 3 goals of going out of the World Cup. Even more so, the goal that Vuoso scored vs Canada changed EVERYTHING as well as the shot that hit the post in the 76th minute vs Canada (if the opposite of either would have happened, meaning that Vouso didn't score and/or the shot actually went in, Mexico would have been out). That is how close it came.

However the past is the past and there is now time to improve on certain aspects because I still believe Mexico has the talent to make it. Suggestions?

1- Get rid of Sven. I highly questioned his appointment to the MFT and my suspicions proved correct. Didn't FMF watched England under his reign? How about Manchester City? (Likelihood of this happening: never)

2- Give Ochoa the chance to prove himself during the hex (another con vs Sven on insisting to pick "Golazo" Sanchez due to "experience"). Everytime I see Sanchez as goalkeeper, he is always receiving a golazo and I am starting to think the golazo that Maxi gave him has left him traumatized since then. Why? Let's look how many golazos....

-Golazo from Maxi in the World Cup
-Golazo from the gringo in the Gold Cup
-Golazo from Messi in the Copa America
-Golazo from the Honduran in the Azteca
-Golazo from the Jamaica in Kingston
-Golazo from the two Canadians in Edmonton AND it was almost three

3- Build a team from the local league. Why bring a bunch of primadonas that probably doesn't care about the shirt is beyond me...

Costa Rica
Not much to say about us. We had an easy group and we made it look easy as it should be. We still got plenty to improve on but we are on the right track. We have yet to be tested and must utilize the next few months to prepare.

El Salvador
The weakest of the bunch. Yes, they were in an easy group but in that easy group, they got pounded by us in their own house (again) and even Haiti managed to get a point out of them.

If they can't even beat a modest team like Haiti away, what chance do they have on even getting one point out of decent teams such as Trinidad and Tobago, never mind Honduras, US, Mexico, and Costa Rica?

Good luck to everyone on the hex and let's have a wild time.

BTW funny pic
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Oschangopiedadmotivatorcb5.jpg (http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Oschangopiedadmotivatorcb5.jpg)