World Cup 2010 Thread!

[gtech]

Bye Bye Rio

[TAKTAK]

I'm hoping for the Netherlands, as that's who i drew in works sweepstakes :S

[danroyle]

i think england with ferdinand out we can play a more solid defense (will undoubtedly get slated but Rio has looked slow and well of form this year) Terry and carragher in central defense would be good,

Stevie G taking the armband will help him find his form especially if fabio lets him play behind the Roondog!

I am hugely excited this year i have my flags wallcharts horns got the 5 year old the sticker album and had him practicing his Roondog songs we are well up for it.

[this_is_gav]

i think england with ferdinand out we can play a more solid defense (will undoubtedly get slated but Rio has looked slow and well of form this year) Terry and carragher in central defense would be good

I think Terry has looked awful this year. Whether it was the Bridge problems or otherwise, the number of key mistakes he made from then until the end of the season was something else. Ferdinand was in a different situation - coming back from injury. Could he have peaked in time for the World Cup? It didn't look like it in the friendlies, but then when has England ever performed well in friendlies? If he wasn't captain I think there'd be more pressure on him for his spot.

I think a more balanced look to defence would be Terry and Dawson. One tough commanding centre-back and one cultured one who can pick out passes all game long.

Carragher didn't have a good season. Admittedly he was playing centre-back one game and switching to right-back the next, but he never looked that strong. Still, he did have to cover for Johnson's side of defence, so was a little more exposed.

If it were up to me it would be King and Dawson as the first choice. They looked excellent for Spurs in the final few weeks. It's just that lingering doubt over whether King can play 2 matches in a week.

Why Dawson was dropped over Upson in the first place I'll never know. He was the best centre-back consistently last season.

[jim]

Carragher's been awful for years. I'm almost certain that it will be Terry and King unless King can't play.

[roorooroo]

No idea this time..it's a lottery on how the referees perform in the big games.

[TAKTAK]

I reckon Spain and Holland will end up in the final, with a 1 - 0 victory to Spain, scoring in the 59th minute thanks to a well placed cross

[this_is_gav]

Holland are in cracking form, but Robben got injured yesterday and it doesn't look like he's going to make the finals.

Ivory Coast were looking like a worthy watch in a fascinating group, but Drogba's gone and crocked himself, so he's doubtful too, and key to their chances.

I wonder who the surprise will be this year. There's always one which comes out of nowhere. Ireland, Australia, Cameroon, Senegal, Ghana, Bulgaria and Ecuador all spring to mind from the past couple of decades.

[Parm]

Some really entertaining games thus far.

South Africa's opening goal was epic, what a great moment for the sport and the continent. Such a shame they didn't win it in the last minute.

Argentina looking good as always, but then again their defence is looking as fragile as usual too.

I'm still fancying England though! One big slip, but an otherwise good performance.

[stavroshamster]

I'm still fancying England though! One big slip, but an otherwise good performance.

Am I the only one who thought the England performance last night was actually really poor? Apart from the goal there was hardly any invention whatsoever, Rooney was not in the game - the USA obviously did a good job of keeping him at bay, and without him we looked average at best.

I seriously don't understand why people think this is our best chance for ages to win - I think we have about 3 world-class players in our team (Rooney, Gerrard and Lampard) and two of those still don't play together very well.

Our goalkeepers are frankly not good enough - I would play Hart but don't think he has enough experience.

Our defence looks poor - King is a good defender but is nowhere near fit. JT has lost his authority and looks a shadow of himself. Johnson has been injured most of the year. Carragher is past-it, and I've never rated Ashley Cole as a defender (although he's good down the wing).

As for Heskey - yeah he can hold up the ball, but he can do nothing else! That's fine if Rooney is allowed space to play (which he might be against lesser teams) but he wasn't against the US and he won't be against the better European sides either. By the end I was willing Peter Crouch to come on - and I don't think I've ever done that before!

Seriously, if we get past the quarters I will be amazed.

The worse thing about this is that these are the best players this country can produce, and even under a fantastic manager we look poor. It's time for the FA/Premier League to introduce a minimum number of British players in club squads IMHO.

[Barrichello]

Our goalkeepers are frankly not good enough

How dare you!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNi4vTYoynU

[Georgy291]

How dare you!!!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNi4vTYoynU

im sorry but the US goal keeper deserves a medal for his effort last night, by far the best goal keeping i seen so far in world cup

[Parm]

Am I the only one who thought the England performance last night was actually really poor? Apart from the goal there was hardly any invention whatsoever, Rooney was not in the game - the USA obviously did a good job of keeping him at bay, and without him we looked average at best.

Yeah but you've got to remember, we're England - not Brazil.

For me, the fact that we were able to keep the ball for long periods, and create some very decent chances, is a good sign. We didn't have many (if any) stand out performances, but you've got to believe that there will be games when the stars shine. There were signs of Rooney coming alive, but it didn't quite happen.

That's arguably our toughest group game out the way, and we came out with a point. Win the next one (fingers crossed) and take it from there.

[Saracen]

Who do I want to win? I'm English, so I guess England.

Who do I think will win? I don't know enough to have a basis for an uneducated guess, let alone an educated prediction.

[shadowmaster]

Just watched Germany and that is how you play football, top performance. I wish England could play like that

[neonplanet40]

I tipped Germany to win it a month ago and put a bet on it too. Good to see them getting off to a good start!