I forgot about all those big wins against Luxembourg, Slovenia, Belarus and those 2 draws against Albania. And those friendly wins against N. Ireland and Finland. How did they do it. Paraguay would wipe the floor with these teams. They are also in a bad qualifying group. they'll probably cruise to second with Italy taking first. So will that bump them from 19th to a top 10 in the world as well This is a perfect example for why the rankings don't work
I will have a look tomorrow and I'll try to post the detailed point totals for both Bulgaria and Paraguay.
There is a difference if you play a team that is stronger or weaker than you. That was what I was making a reference to.
Because beating a Brazil A team 0-5 in Rio de Janeiro is the same as beating San Marino in San Marino 1-0.
Yeah, of course. Praguay would win versus all these teams. They lost to Honduras and mana others. Just beating Brazil doesn't make you the top football nation.
Paraguay has been a solid team. It's not just this win against Brasil. They are leading the South American Qualifiers are the third best team in South America, made the WC etc, compared to Bulgaria's great achievements. IMO one is clearly better than the other. Also for all the talk about the European teams etc, I would like to see some of those teams, especially those second tier teams who are ranked top 20 play away games against Colombia, Chile, Peru, Urugay, Paraguay, Ecuador etc. Not to mention Brasil and Argentina
I think Paraguay has a very good team, too! But they also had some very bad performances. If they keep their style, they will get a higher rank. Sorry, I'm drunk.
Several factors that make an honest ranking impossible: 1. Not all games matter the same. 2. Not all the best players are in each game. 3. Not all the games are played under ideal conditions for a team. Trying to correct giving less weight to friendlies than to competition games is a partial solution: some friendlies are rivalries and matter A LOT, some games in tournaments are not that important (for example, when a team has already classified from group and play the last game with substitutes). The players available vary, depending on injuries, cards or other compromises. Brazil is playing (of late) without Kaka and Ronaldinho, for example. We all know those two can make a lot of difference. The last one is the trickiest: not all people are similarly adapted to all climates. For a Bolivian, for example, biologically adapted to the height of the Andes, playing in Europe is a big strain on their body. Similarly, it'd be very hard for a European team to play in the heights of La Paz or Quite. Or the heat of Accra or Lagos. The "best team in the world" is different in cold Europe than it'd be in hot Africa or in the rarefied atmosphere of many Latin American countries.
I miss Germany in the poll... why England is included in this top ranking..they even did not qualify for EURO Italy finished in the quarter-finale France -out in the first round Germany: Finale. spain was the best european teams..but if we look at the history and overall performance of the teams in the past, Germany should be ranked higher than Spain.... Germany: 15 times finale in Euro cups, 3 times winner of Euro,
Spain for now. Lets see how long it last because FIFA is so up Brazil and Arg. ass as of late. After Italy won the WC, we were 1 for like 3 months lol What a joke.