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Sorry, gb- just poking a stick.Meh.. I jumped the gun at the start of the draw. Overly pessimistic based on past results of having always gotten screwed. So shoot me if I got a little jumpy. I did correct my initial reaction to say that I am optimistic now.England's groupI'd have taken that at the start.
Worst Possible Outcome.Or so I've heard.
Fixed.-QG
No worries.. It is all in good fun. This has been a good day for US Soccer. I can't wait for the WC to start. I have to admit that I am oficially unaware of the time difference in SA. So, what time EST will the games begin?Sorry, gb- just poking a stick.Meh.. I jumped the gun at the start of the draw. Overly pessimistic based on past results of having always gotten screwed. So shoot me if I got a little jumpy. I did correct my initial reaction to say that I am optimistic now.England's groupI'd have taken that at the start.
Let's see the time difference was -7 for the draw today (eastern standard time).But then we spring ahead so it'll probably be -6 for the games.Lots of work not getting doneNo worries.. It is all in good fun. This has been a good day for US Soccer. I can't wait for the WC to start. I have to admit that I am oficially unaware of the time difference in SA. So, what time EST will the games begin?Sorry, gb- just poking a stick.Meh.. I jumped the gun at the start of the draw. Overly pessimistic based on past results of having always gotten screwed. So shoot me if I got a little jumpy. I did correct my initial reaction to say that I am optimistic now.England's group
-QG
Acording to Grant Wahl - "all within two hours of Jo'burg and all at altitude"He also goes through the scenarios for the first and second knock-out games (a topic I'd prefer to avoid until the US has at least 4 points in the bank).
I think some Paul Revere, George Washington, or Ben Franklin paraphernalia.
I think ticket prices for that game may approach $750+ on the free market.I know I was hearing prices of 600€ for England matched in WC2006.
wood teeth?
Heh, given the prominence of the other teams that could've been in our group, that's a good sign
From the little I've read so far, both are counter-attack type teams that jump on their opponents' mistakes. We'll have to limit mental errors it sounds like.-QG
I gather that this is pre-draw? North Korea's odds are missing at least one zero on the end and probably 2.-QG
Hmmm....I was thinking the schedule was perfect. If we start off slow, which we did at the Confed Cup, it is less problematic to do so against England in my mind. Otoh, lose that first game to Algeria, and well, now you are up against it. Also, that last game is the one where goal differential may matter and frankly, if we are going to put a big number on someone, it is going to be Algeria. We'll have a clear picture of what we need to do going into that game.
Odds were taken from Bet365. All odds are here. I believe this is post odds as I heard on the radio that England's odds were lowered to 5/1 because of the favorable draw. Could be wrong though.http://www.oddschecker.com/football/intern...-cup/win-market
Only problem is if England qualifies after two games and then rests its players for the finale. We could get screwed there if we need Alegria or Slovenia to lose.
Is it fair to say the altitude will be the same issue for all 4 sides in the US group?
Well let me think this through. If England is 2-0 and Slovenia is 2-0 well were toast anyhow.If England is 2-0 and we tied Slovenia and are 0-1-1 while they are 1-0-1 yeah we're in a lot of trouble.If England is 2-0 and we tied Slovenia and are both 0-1-1 then Algeria will be 1-1 and that'll give us a chance to win and advance.If England is 2-0 and Slovenia is 1-1 and we have beaten them and are 1-1 it's the same as the previous example and we are in a better spot in the goal-differential battle to come.If England is 2-0 and Slovenia is 1-1 and we are 0-2 then we still have a shot in the same fashion as in the confed cup. England won't be guaranteed advancement and we won't be guaranteed out.If England is 2-0 and Slovenia is 0-2 then we are doing a straight-up playoff vs Algeria and it doesn't matter.Of course this is all academic as we are going to beat them just like it's the Revolutionary War!!!
-QG
Not sure about Slovenia. Algeria will play in Cape Town in the middle though, so for them the issue might be the change in altitiude from game 2 to game 3.
Native said:
I'm not sure there can be any complaints with our draw. One could easily argue that England is the 2nd worst Pot 1 team ahead of SA (I don't necessarily agree but it's easy enough to defend). All of the other 7 teams are quality teams.England's going to be really good. A few guys that get lost amongst the hoopla surrounding guys like Lampard, Gerrard, Terry, Rooney, Crouch,....are Shaun Wright Philips and Jermaine Dafoe. They are both extremely fast and can make a lot of matchup problems for anyone coming down the flanks.Someone mentioned one particular problem is going to be if England wins their first two games and rests their starters. Well, it's really an embarassment of riches for the English side, in particular on offense. They may be a bit suspect in the back, especially on the sides and goalkeep, but midfield and strikers there is talent to spare.And don't think this team will not be hugely inspired to do well here in light of their recent letdowns on the world class stage.I root for Germany, and the US, but England is a team I wouldn't mind seeing winning it all either.Sammy3469 said:
I'm not so sure I would sit back against England. I think the way to beat them is to press them, be in their faces and hope that Rio or his CB partner make a mistake. I think if we sit back it will be just what they want us to do and they will pick us apart. Rooney is quick and any of Defoe, Lennon or Walcott would be tough speed-wise, but their CMs aren't very fast in Lampard, Gerrard and Barry. I would worry as you mention that Crouch or Heskey (or even C. Cole) would cause of CBs problems if they start pumping in crosses.Sammy3469 said:
Agreed. The difference in style between Spain and England is night and day. Packing the middle against England simply won't work as they will make quality crosses and have multiple players who are pretty good in the air. Their power fits us pretty well though as we have the size to match up (assuming we are healthy). Spain has mostly little players and we just constricted their space. We need an entirely different strategy vs England.
Not to mention the, gasp, David Beckham angle.ESPN has be pinching themselves. 1st game for the Americans, vs England. On a Saturday afternoon. Before any possible disappointments or letdowns could affect the team. 6 months of pre-match hype. Ratings Bonanza!
Don't be too quick to dismiss South Africa. We had what was considered an unfavorable draw in '94, with Colombia, Switzerland, and Romania and we came away with a famous victory against Colombia and a draw and got through (although as a 3rd-place team, now impossible).Mexico improved later in qualifiers but still was a bit uneven overall. France hasn't had a great year. Uruguay had to qualify via playoff. All of those teams could be tripped up, especially if the the home team gets a shock goal early to get the crowd going.-QG
Call me crazy but if Defoe and Rooney are the strikers I'd much rather try to cross it to them than leave space in the middle especially since Garrard,Lampard/Rooney all shoot so well from outside the box (one of our biggest weaknesses). While having Lennon/Johnson/Cole make crosses into the box is a scary thought, I'd much rather have them doing that trying to hit Rooney than giving Lampard repeated shots from 25 yards.Having said that, with the altitude and the fact that many of the English guys will have played a long season, I'd also be applying high pressure that gives way at midfield.
No - I think there's some intrigue there and that while there will be a good fight for 2nd I'm sure, Spain has 3 opponents that it can't afford to take lightly.Based on the FIFA Oct 09 ranking (1 to 32) of the teams, here's the sum for each group. 66 is average, higher is more favorable.Group A: 74 (RSA 31, Mex 15, Uru 20, Fra 8)Group B: 70 (Arg 6, S Kor 28, Nigeria 23, Greec 13)Group C: 68 (Eng 7, USA 10, Alg 22, Slovenia 29)Group D: 61 (Ger 5, Australia 19, Ghana 26, Serbia 11)Group E: 63 (Netherland 3, Japan 27, Cameroon 12, Denmark 21)Group F: 76 (Italy 4, New Zealand 30, Paraguay 18, Slovakia 24)Group G: 58 (Brazil 1, North Korea 32, Cote D'Ivoire 16, Portugal 9)Group H: 52 (Spain 2, Honduras 25, Chile 14, Switzerland 11)-QG
You're only looking at it from one angle. One could also say that the reason that the teams in our pool from Pots 3 and 4 have such long odds is because they are in a pool with the strongest Pot 2 team and the third-strongest seeded team.The truth is probably a bit of both.
When I look at Group H I see three very good mid-flight teams scrapping for that #2 spot. Assuming Spain does what Spain can do. All in all Groups G and H look the most interesting.
Good draw for the Netherlands. Not too easy, not too hard, but certainly not a group to underestimate. We should be able to finish first under normal circumstances and I think Cameroon and Denmark aren't too far apart in strength. Japan is definitely the lesser of the 4 teams.I think we have a good shot to advance out of this group, possibly facing Paraguay in the 2nd round and a likely match up vs Brazil in the quarter finals, which is where I predict the tournament will end for us, but you never know. Games still need to be played and Brazil has its own work cut out for them and it's certainly no sure thing for them to finish first in a group with Portugal and Ivory Coast.
I know all the media are going gaga over this, but since N Korea is so weak, it's actually not that bad a draw for them. They now basically have a 50-50 shot of going through which is about what their shot would be with two 20-ish ranked teams (and what their odds were before the draw). The one bad part is a draw vs. Portugal means that it will go to GD and then goals, so everyone will be laying wood on N Korea.
I get playing it pessimistically safe, but c'mon- you know the Dutch are as capable of beating the top teams as any other team in the WC next year. Didn't they finish undefeated in qualifying too?eta: I guess having your team lose in the quarters to Brazil isn't that pessimistic... but if the Netherlands were my team, I'd be feeling pretty good about their chances.
I watched a N Korea game... of the teams in the WC I've watched, they're definitely better than NZ and Slovakia. Not great- but not terrible either.
