So Morocco, Belgium and England all with a chance to get one over their former colonial overlords.
Some good history in Norway v England clashes. I doubt the Norwegian comms will remember the current England pms name to call him out if they do get one over him though.
If England go on to win it they'll likely have to beat Norway with Haaland, then Argentina with Messi, then France with Mbappe. If they do that it'll be one of the all-time great WC runs to glory. Won't happen, but I can dream.
France v Morocco will be Morocco sitting very deep and then trying to catch France on the counter. Morocco are actually well equipped to play that strategy. Early goal for France could make this a good game.
Spain v Belgium might see Belgium keeping their big names on the bench again and try to frustrate Spain for an hour then hope to grab something late.
Norway v England and both teams are most dangerous with space to run into so I expect this to be a cagey one before the first goal as both teams are reluctant to get caught out.
Argentina v Switzerland and if the Swiss are still without Manzambi and Vargas starting then it will be a repeat of their Colombia gameplan and hope to frustrate.
@No-Quarter said in FIFA World Cup:
If England go on to win it they'll likely have to beat Norway with Haaland, then Argentina with Messi, then France with Mbappe. If they do that it'll be one of the all-time great WC runs to glory. Won't happen, but I can dream.
Knockout list of strikers defeated would be
Wissa (missed a great chance)
Jimenez (missed a great chance or 2)
Haaland ....
Messi
Mbappe
From the commentators remarks sounds like the France v Morrocco match up has a big brother v little brother vibe so there will be plenty of emotions for the fans more so than a normal comp game.
It's great to be a neutral and even though I'd love to see Morocco take it, the French really do play beautifully.
I hope there's not too many unecessary dramatics/stoppages.
That's why France are so dangerous. They have players all over their front line that can score ridiculous goals from half chances. They lack a tiny bit of quality in the midfield (compared to the rest of their starting XI) but its not as evident because most teams are just parking the bus against them. It will show up if they face Spain in the next round imo.
said in FIFA World Cup:
What's with the Hannibak Lecter mask the English sub is wearing?
@African-Monkey said in FIFA World Cup:
No way that was a penalty. Spence should have been booked for simulation
@Higgins said in FIFA World Cup:
Clear penalty?
Hmmm
Pleased to see a crackdown on simulation
Idiotic by the Swiss already on a yellow to do such an obvious dive
Enjoy watching from the stands
Suisse defence pretty stoic with 10 men. But Argies pressure and mountain of possession in the last 10-12 minutes
England have a massive opportunity to advance against a less than great Argentina side.
Spain haven’t shown the kind of killer instinct that the French team have, but they will try to strangle France. I can’t stand Argentina’s mastery of the dark arts, I’m hoping for a France vs England final
Jayden Adams, 25, died after playing for South Africa at the World Cup.
South Africa's players' union described his passing as "an immeasurable loss" for the country.
Adams started two of South Africa's group stage matches despite the death of his grandmother the day before the 1-1 draw with Czechia.
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haha
love south american teams
they've got absolutely no respect for anyone, especially european teams
possibly only argentina can beat france
they can play like paraguay if they need to
the difference is, that unlike paraguay, they can score
paraguay are the only team to cause france any sort of trouble so far
if england want to win it; they are guna have to step it up a bit more yet
and show some composure
the rich kids are going home
was ok with all the var today
really like the way colina seems to have cleaned up all the nonsense in the penalty area at corner time
var even made me laugh with the simulation send off
very silly by the swiss player; and he knew it; completely f'd it up for his side
his first yellow would have been a straight send off in rugby league (running thru the kicking leg of an opponent)
England in the Semis - again.
Against Argentina - again.
I feel a recurring nightmare coming on all over again
@Victor-Meldrew said in FIFA World Cup:
England in the Semis - again.
Against Argentina - again.I feel a recurring nightmare coming on all over again
England won the last meeting. But that was 22 years ago. And it wasn't a SF
I just recall Gascoigne breaking down in tears when he got the YC that would mean he'd miss out on the Final. (1990 SF apparently.)
I dont know how it works but part of me wants a win for Gazza.
Messi is a freak and doesn’t dive as much as some of his more annoying team mates.
I like this England side and want them to beat this crop of Argentinian divers.
I see Antonio Rattin died today.
He did more for the Argie-Eng rivalry than even Diegos hand-of-god
the anticipation of another eng/Arg match up might have got him overexcited!
They were doing a lot more than just diving when Antonio took the poms on.
Whilst I’m willing this England team to win, jeez they make it hard sometimes, and the cynic in me feels they’ll be found out by the likes of Argentina/France/Spain. They play some pretty uninspiring stuff, far too flat and defensive, lacking pace and reliant on flashes of individual brilliance.
@ACT-Crusader said in FIFA World Cup:
Messi is a freak and doesn’t dive as much as some of his more annoying team mates.
I like this England side and want them to beat this crop of Argentinian divers.
I don't see Argentina as any worse than the other teams for diving - and Embolo is the worst of all for diving before the contact, most divers wait until after the contact.
It is hard to work out if Argentina is any good though, but they are on an extraordinary tournament winning streak having won the last World Cup and the last 2 Copa Americas. And in this tournament, they have rarely looked assured and seem to take long time-outs when they let the other side play. Messi plays like a man who has 8 games to play and wants to make sure he can still run at the end of the 8th i.e. most of his time is spent walking around near the half-way line.
The change to 5 subs has really helped the teams with more depth. Norway were probably the better team over 90 minutes and dominated long stretches of the second half - but England could keep bringing on top class players to change the game (Rogers) and quick athletes (Spence) and Norway couldn't and once the keeper made that mistake early in extra time, the game was effectively over.
@KiwiPie said in FIFA World Cup:
I don't see Argentina as any worse than the other teams for diving - and Embolo is the worst of all for diving before the contact, most divers wait until after the contact.
slight correction, not just diving before but swinging his leg to make contact rather than just receiving contact.
glad he got pulled up for it
