Who would you favor for this likely quarterfinal matchup? What team attributes would be favorable for each team? What team attributes would be unfavorable? Germans Favorable: tactically sound, large physical presence, a killer countering game, deadly on set pieces. Unfavorable: at times, they show no urgency on the attack, inconsistent North Koreans Favorable: pro-Korean crowd, build-up of confidence from emerging from the group of death, strong team mentality, accurate and fast long range shots, quick passing to switch the point of attack Unfavorable: relatively inexperienced at this critical part of the tournament, players can play desperately at times with too much emotion, could be exhausted coming out of group play, lost their playmaker against the US, give too many dangerous set pieces. In the end, I would have to give the edge to Germany mainly because of their experience under a high-pressure atmosphere, their efficiency on set pieces, and their countering game should match up well against the Koreans' attack with numbers.
I think it could go either way. At this point, I'd be favoring North Korea. I'll have to see how Germany performs tomorrow. Maybe they won't even play in the QF.
I was positive Germany would beat England, so at this point nothing would surprise me. England really isn't that good of a team.
i prefer germany because its my favorite team ... and i think they are better as northkorea ... means: if they would play 10 games, most games would be won by germany ... but without this aspects i like the northkorean team and i wish them good luck ... ps: and i hope we will see in the near future also fans from northkorea in forums like this ...
Im going with Germany. They are tried and true with a cup on the shelf. NK had 1 good game vs the US and a game where they didnt exactly slaughter Nigeria to compare to.
why is the match-up LIKELY when it's a 50-50 split it could be usa or north korea... north korea will beat germany if they match up...way too technical for germany, and their pressing defense will shit down germany... the germany group has been the easiest, the germans haven't had a hard match yet....
I'd go more like 60/40. I think odds are that the US can outscore Nigeria by more than PRK can outscore Sweden.
Yeah, I thought it was understood, but I guess some people don't believe Sweden can come back and fight hard. Someone said Sweden won't lay down because they are a proud footballing nation. I agree. After they saw the North Koreans beat the Nigerians unimpressively, I think they are cautiously optimistic that they can get a result against North Korea. USA will look to finally shine. They may likely be looking for a golazo performance against Nigeria.
After seen the Ger:Jap watch, I'd see I'd favor Germany to win. Won't be easy but I think they'll take it.
i agree; i think north korea is capable of beating germany and wouldnt been to surprised if they did, but i still anticipate deutschland emerging victorious.
I think the Group of Death might have taken a lot out of North Korea's players. North Korea won't have the legs to play a world-class opponent like Germany. I can see Germany trouncing them 3-0.
I can't hide my preferences for Germany, honestly, it has to do with a political point of view, but if I have to limit my preferences on the football pitch, I see North Korea as the must likely winner. I don't have a list of the most recent games of this two teams but I do remember last year in the U-20 World Cup, when North Korea beat Germany 2-0 in the preliminary stage. Germany was then, the World Cup holder. I do agree on hopes to read North Korean threads one of this days when access to the internet in that country be open to everybody.
Though this German team to isnt as strong as the '03 team I dont see NK giving them much trouble Saturday!! The Teutonic titanesses should win 2-0 and I dont see them giving up a goal until they meet the US in the Final!!
Uh ... "he" probably meant communism as opposed to a democratic society ... The user name "Mexicana" would also indicate that the "he" is a she, "Mexicano" being the masculine form of mexicana. Que viva Mexico y que gane Alemania!
If NK has the legs, and there was some talk that they looked really tired vs Sweden, the game will be very good. Or one of those ugly heavy weight fights where each team has a counter for the other team's move so no one appears to do much. Which can still be appreciated and a different sort of good. Germany has had more rest. Look for long range shots from NK. We'll get to see how the German keeper (whose name isn't Silke but I've forgotten what it is) deals with those. I didn't see the Germany-Japan game so I don't know if the Germans turned up the intensity meter a bit or not. Anyone who saw a clip (or the game) of the Asian championship game (where NK lost their collective minds over contentious officiating) can see they care -- a lot, maybe too much. Kinda makes you wonder what the gov't promised them if they won. There was a degree of anguish there that kinda made me feel sorry for them. I still prefer Germany but this could go either way.