MJ Gunner: Injuries, upsets and one man teams. Where to begin.. When I say one man teams I am referring to Diego Forlan v. Manchester United's Park Ji Sung, I mean Uruguay v. So. Korea. Okay they are not exactly one man teams but those are the headliners and they've had pretty impressive showings thus far. South America and Asia as continents have been quite exceptional thus far and this game should impress viewers and pundits. I say Suarez and Forlan each score to knockout a South Korean side that can only manage one goal.
The injuries.. well most teams are picking up knocks and battling existing injury but England v. Germany is where I see two battled teams showing us a cagey affair by less than full fit squads. Schweinsteigger may sit and Rooney is definitely showing the woes of a long club season. Phil Lahm was quoted and I piggyback him, this one could go to pens. Pens where ze Germans will win.
Argentina v. Mexico is going to be an office-stopper. Especially if Carlos Vela is deemed fit and can participate for Mexico. Mexico has everything and nothing to play for. If Mexico loses, yeah sure they played a powerhouse Argentina but a win would be monumental. Here's to hoping the two quick passing, attack oriented sides put a few into the net on the way to an Argentina victory. The likes of Messi, Higuain and Tevez surely cannot be stopped but in this World Cup I was surely certain Italy and France would still be chilling in Johannesburg preparing for their next big match.
Matt I will let you take the reigns for the rest of the matches. I don't think I could put an objective sentence together for the USA v. Ghana game. I want blood filled revenge and a freaking early brace of goals.. We'll find out soon who plays Brazil and Portugal and I am sure you will have the wraps on those previews because La Roja will hopefully be involved.
Me: Well as I write this the bottom half of the bracket is in the process of being completed so we'll talk about that a little later.
We stand a chance against Ghana. A good chance: we are experienced, mentally tough, and a cohesive unit. But we also are a little lax in the discipline and finishing department. Ghana is young, and missing their talisman Michael Essien. They will be physical and defensive. It will be a lot like the game against the Algerians, but the Ghanians have a bit more talent. If we don't concede early and don't have too much of a hangover from the dramatic win, we could do quite well. We are going to be at a serious disadvantage crowd-wise, with Ghana being the last African side. I will not be surprised if we fall behind and allow Ghana to just sit back and defend in numbers. Luckily there has to be a winner, so being cagey and trying to simply not lose is no longer in the books.
I really like Uruguay. As you said, Forlan and Suarez are both on target so far this tournament. But what amazed me is they didn't concede a single goal in the group stage. That is impressive I don't care who was in their group. This side is skilled but also physical and disciplined. South Korea is just disciplined and very fit. I see another win for a country from South America.
The big question for the England-Germany game is the heads of the English. Are they thanking their lucky stars they are just in the knock-out rounds? Was the 1-0 win a spark? Will they tighten up against their long-time rivals Germany? Germany may not be full strength, and Schweinsteiger is a huge loss in the midfield. I just think the Ozil is in too fine a form to be shackled and no one from England has shown that prowess yet. Rooney is the difference maker: Man U Rooney shows up and England could shock some people; typical England Rooney shows up and they could be down to 10 men and out of the tournament.
You are absolutely right about Argentina-Mexico. This should be a cracker. Messi will have acres of space to work his magic. I will be interested to see whether Maradona sticks Tevez back in the starting line-up. Everyone has been praising his performance, but he just doesn't seem to work that well wit Higuain and Messi for me. Maybe it's his fabled selfishness, or maybe its just that the English game doesn't have swift ground combos with strikers and forwards, but he just can't seem to find his battery mates from the run of play. I noticed in their game against South Korea that as soon has Tevez came off and Aguero came on, the Argentinians played quicker, more open football. It could have just been an off day for Tevez, we shall see.
The games this weekend should be excellent because there will be winners and losers, no ties; only big boys play in this sandbox. Go USA! and see you Monday.
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