This is very premature, I know, but who do you think will win Russia 2018? I think it will probably be another European country, though I'm not sure which one quite yet.
I honestly think Colombia will take it. They more likely will still be a seed, be in another accessible group, and will crown themselves World Cup champs. If not them, maybe Netherlands or Germany retains the title.
Interesting. Colombia is definitely a good team, but I still see them as dark horses at this point, just like Chile and Belgium. But what do I know? I'm certainly no football pundit.
I liked what I saw of Colombia in Brazil. After a little while, I actually kind of wanted them to win the whole thing. So, I was kind of disappointed to see them go despite having been a Brazil fan at the start of the tournament. I fell in love with Colombia and Chile during the 2014 World Cup. Beautiful, attacking football.
I was rooting for Mexico, but after they were eliminated, I was rooting for Colombia and Costa Rica. Such a shame to see both of them eliminated in the QF's.
Mexico were pretty good too. I remember rooting for you guys against the Netherlands. Very, very unlucky. Were you bitter about the penalty?
For awhile yes. But then I remembered that the game is 90+ min, where you must outscore your opponent. If you don't, then you weren't good enough. No excuses.
I guess that's a positive way to think about it. It's a shame, though, that Mexico can never seem to get past the Round of 16. I hope they can make the quarters for once in Russia.
They made it to the 5th game in 86, that was the first and last time up till now. And I think they can make it with the right coach, but knowing how our federation operates, I doubt they'll get one.
I know. I meant they haven't done so in recent times. 1986 is kind of a long time ago. They also made it to the quarters in 1970, if I remember correctly, but there were only 16 teams then, so they only needed to get out of their group to make the quarters. There was no Round of 16 game to play.
By the way, how do you rate Mexico's chances in the Confederations Cup qualifying playoff against the USA? I know it's not really related to this thread, but since it seems it's just the two of us anyway.
We will lose, our interim coach is a bunkerball strategist who plays for ties. Except that nobody bunkers better in CONCACAF than the USA.
According to Wikipedia, the game's being played in the Rose Bowl. Is that basically a home game for you guys?
Yes. But the USA is used to being the away team all around the world, and still pick up wins. Yes, the last time they faced Mexico in the Rose Bowl, Mexico won 4-2. However, that was the last time they made the mistake of playing toe to toe against Mexico. They haven't made that mistake since, which in turn has led to them being unbeaten against Mexico since.
The USA's been pretty shit recently though. It'll be interesting to see if they can maintain their undefeated streak against Mexico.
By the way, why did your federation fire Miguel Herrera? I remember reading something about him punching a journalist, but that still seemed like an odd reason to me.
Yup, that was the reason. Unfortunately, sports journalists are protected in Mexico as they all journalists are in the USA. So he was fired upon the altercation.
Were you unhappy with the federation's decision? Would you have liked to see him stay? Who would you like to see coaching Mexico going forward?
Yes and no. I hate how the journalists call the shots in Mexico. But Piojo Herrera was not exactly a very good tactician, and some of his call ups were dubious. If he would have shown more tactical prowess, I would have wanted him to stay. But he was fired for a completely bullcrap reason.
Do people in Mexico care about the Confeds Cup? Will it be considered a disaster if they don't make it?
It's a divided opinion. Some say yes, some say no, but what does matter is World Cup Qualifying. We have an interim for 4 games, but what the federation seems to forget is a month later, WCQ starts for Mexico. If Tuca Ferretti is indeed an interim , we are screwed on those two WCQ matches since we'll have less than a month to announce a permanent coach. If he is kept for the entire cycle, we will more likely not qualify or barely qualify like last World Cup. We want someone that will make us play dominant for years to come.