Unofficial World Cup Thread de 2014

[red]

Un-fucking believable.......the USA can make it through after two games with a win against Portugal.

they could have made it through tomorrow with a win against portugal anyways, unless ghana won

[red]

what a horrible offsides call to takeaway a great goal by B & H

guy was onside by almost a yard

[pbmax]

i can't believe ghana screwed that break up so bad at the end. 3 on 2 with 2 or 3 more guys rushing forward and they don't even get a shot

Exactly. They could have been 5 on 3 if they are patient. I think they were gassed. They kept taking obvious shots from 30 yards out.

That match restores some faith that the US can hang with the Germans. Didn't expect Ghana to come back and also didn't expect them to hold on.

I have to figure out the group play tiebreaker because my quick, off the top of my head math said that the US should want Ghana to win narrowly and still have a shot when they play Portugal. But the TV guys said the US should want the Germans to win going away. Either way, tomorrow its win and in.

[Brandon494]

I'm not a big futbol fan but would it have been better for the USA if Ghana had won?

[pbmax]

I'm not a big futbol fan but would it have been better for the USA if Ghana had won?

With three games a lot of team end up tied on points, so goal differential is big. But I too thought that if Ghana wins, they would try to knock Portugal off next week and make the US's job easier.

The announcers kept talking like the US only wanted Ghana to be buried in the standings and in goal differential.

The bugger is the US game versus Germany. If both need to win, its tough. If German clinches, its a better bet.

[red]

I'm not a big futbol fan but would it have been better for the USA if Ghana had won?

i don't think so, but i'm not 100% positive either

if ghana had lost then they would have had 0 points and even if they beat portugal next week, the us would own the head to head tie breaker, so they couldn't have passed us even if we lost out

portugal could still pass us if they beat us tomorrow and then beat ghana next week. if we tie portugal, then ghana can't pass us , but portugal could catch us with a win next week against ghana. however they aren't looking good on the second tie breaker which is goal differential

in my mind, it would have been better if germany had won today, then they are in and maybe they don't play so hard against us, in a game we may or may not have to win depending on tomorrows game

[red]

its simple really, the goal should be to eliminate the other teams. if ghana had lost today, they would have been eliminated (or as close to eliminated as a team can be, then if the US wins tomorrow, portugal is eliminated

germany and the US go through

now that ghana has a point, and can win (not will, but can) next week, they can end up with 4 points. which means the US has to get at least a tie in one of their next 2 games, which might not happen (might, not will)

germany is going through, to me its better if the other teams start getting eliminated

[red]

keeper for nigeria earned his bonus money in the last few minutes today

[pbmax]

Nate Silver @NateSilver538 33m
The Germany-Ghana draw increased the US chance of finishing 1st in the group -- but reduced its chances to advance. http://53eig.ht/T0k2uD

I guess this sums it up. Ghana is still in it but the US could win outright. Since they aren't likely to beat Germany (though after today that is probably closer than I thought), Ghana being out might help more.

Though I can't help but think that Ghana going balls out versus Portugal might help the US, the fact is that Portugal might be out of it in that 3rd game anyway.

[pbmax]

from above

The reason is a bit technical. One of the likelier outcomes for the Americans is to finish with four points in the group by drawing Portugal or Germany but losing the other match. If Ghana had lost to Germany, it would have finished with three points at best. Now, however, Ghana could also finish with four points if its beats Portugal, potentially denying the U.S. advancement if the teams finish in a tie for second.

http://fivethirtyeight.com/datalab/germanys-draw-didnt-help-the-u-s/

[red]

told you so

[Freak Out]

Thats why I wanted a a German win.....the point I was making earlier Red is that its pretty unbelievable that the US would be in this position at all.

[red]

Thats why I wanted a a German win.....the point I was making earlier Red is that its pretty unbelievable that the US would be in this position at all.

yeah, winning the group of death would be very impressive. but i just care around getting out of the group stage. thats all that really matters right now

[HarveyWallbangers]

Definitely wanted Germany to win. If we tie Portugal and lose to Germany and Ghana beats Portugal, there's a good chance that we are out. Before this started, we all thought we'd need to scratch out 4 points and hope we win the tiebreaker to advance. If we tie Portugal, we'll need Portugal to get a result against Ghana. If we lose to Portugal, we are likely out because we'd need to beat Germany. On the plus side if we beat Portugal and somehow scratch out a tie against Germany, we'd likely get a beatable opponent in the Round of 16 (probably Russia or South Korea, or perhaps Algeria).

[woodbuck27]

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/worldcup/usa-v-portugal-world-cup-2014-match-preview-9554020.html

USA vs Portugal World Cup 2014 match preview: Ronaldo's full fitness still in doubt ahead of key Group G clash
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**** Checking my Satellite TV Schedule.... I have the game on at 6:00 PM EST.

The Schedule today ... Sunday 22 June, 2014:

Group H - Belgium Vs Russia @ 13:00 PM EST

Group H - Korea Vs Algeria @ 16:00 PM EST

Group G - USA Vs Portugal @ 16:00 EST


Note:

** Injury concerns affecting the status of Portugal.

** The USA will have to do without Sunderland striker Jozy Altidore who suffered a hamstring strain last week.

PAST THREE MEETINGS:

USA 3 (O’Brien, Costa og, McBride) Portugal 2 (Beto, Agoos og), World Cup, June 2002

USA 1 (Wegerle) Portugal 0, International Friendly, June 1992

Portugal 1 (Domingos) USA 0, International Friendly, December 1990