Literally anything can still happen. Australia are not a measuring stick. And despite that there was a period during which they could have re-tied the match. Spain has won the World Cup despite losing the opening match. Argentina could still win their group. France were fine and eventually did their job but I don't think anyone looks like a champ yet, including England and France.
Hard to tell whether tomorrow will give us some more disappointing 0x0s, solid upsets or favorites making statements. Hoping to see something from Japan and Morocco in particular as far as upsets go. I don't buy the Canada hype but if they pull something off that will be awesome.
Yep. I think all we found out today is that France is not going to implode. They still have a lot of talent even after losing 3-5 important pieces. The depth of their talent pool is actually pretty impressive. But, as I've stated before, the formation they put out today technically leaves them very exposed defensively. We will get a better picture of where they are at when they play Denmark ... even if Denmark didn't have a great game vs Tunisia.
Argentina got the best possible result today between Mexico and Poland (a draw). This makes the Arg x Mex game a must win for both teams. I think historically Arg owns Mex and this Mex team doesn't look particularly impressive. And I've already expressed what I think about Poland. The question mark is if Saudi Arabia can ride today's win against Poland. They, after all, only had 3 shots today 2 of which were goals. Their plan worked today, but it was risky and they were close to paying a high price for it. Argentina also has to worry about finishing 1st. IMO their chances would be small of getting past France.
Did you see photographs of Messi's foot from before today? There was swelling, and those who watched the match in its entirety (Brazilian sports journalists) said that Messi's performance today (the PK goal notwithstanding) indicated he isn't 100% physically. If that's the case, and if his foot is not 100% by the time Saturday's match starts, that's a negative for them. I do believe Mexico is likelier to lose than to win, but as today showed, you never know what happens.
In addition to their talent pool, France showed mental fortitude. That's a characteristic that champions always have. France and England alone have lived up to their billing. Let's see how well Germany, Spain, and Brazil do.
I still wouldn't bet against Argentina 1st in the group. If they win both matches and Poland and Mexico beat Saudi Arabia, Argentina would be first on 6 and SA last on 3, despite the historic upset. Certainly Saudi Arabia could upset one of the remaining teams and still move on in second. Poland and Mexico definitely hurt themselves today.
Yes. That definitely may have played a role in his poor overall performance. Definitely a concern for the Mexico game. Crossing my fingers we can stay healthy for the whole WC. Which is typically impossible.
Alemanha 1, Japão 0. Intervalo. The match is better than some of the 0-0 matches we've seen so far, but not that exciting either. Both sides had a goal called off for offside.
I don't get why Japan isn't pressing more.... The Germans are so prone for that and make mistakes every time when they get pressed
Let's go.... I would laugh my ass of if they would fail in group stage again..... They would have to win the game.... Because against Spain I think, things won't get easier
I was sure Japan could beat at least one of the UEFA giants in the group. Winning the first one means the Spain match could be for first place.
That looked like a classic FIFA match to me.... Penetrating the opponent.... Getting no goal. Opponent gets one time with a long ball in front of mine - - - - > goal. xD
Belgium was really bad. This generation looks done. Spain just amazing chemistry even if the opponent was weak.
Yep I could Spain honestly see as a threat. But in defense they are still very inconsistent....will be interesting to see against better more attacking opponents
Switzerland 1 Cameroon 0. The goalscorer was born in...... Cameroon. He didn't really celebrate when he scored.