Sir Thursday Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Group E looks pretty decent too:NetherlandsDenmarkJapanCameroonThough the Netherlands look best, I wouldn't really call any of those weak...Sir Thursday Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bronn Stone Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I would guess that the happiest teams are Spain and France right about now.Groups B and E seem pretty wide open. Could see just about anyone advancing from either.G is the toughest though not quite a Group of Death IMO. North Korea is not in for a fun time though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kuroishi Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Well, FIFA hasn't let us down in the end, even if Charlize Theron didn't seem too thrilled about it. :D (now, I'm patiently waiting for the fixing accusations to come - not on this board, but they sure will come...)Poor North Koreans won't go very far... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fireball07 Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 G is the toughest group, but D is fairly difficuly too.Germany should be good enough to pull through, but they'll find it difficult to beat Serbia, I'd say that game will be a draw, but they'll have to expose the defensive frailties of the other teams. Ozil looks like a good player for them.England got a piss-easy group, and France's wasn't too bad either. Of course we said that in 02 aswell. Hope springs eternal. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Mongoose Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Well, FIFA hasn't let us down in the end, even if Charlize Theron didn't seem too thrilled about it. :D (now, I'm patiently waiting for the fixing accusations to come - not on this board, but they sure will come...)Poor North Koreans won't go very far...Fix! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horza Posted December 4, 2009 Author Share Posted December 4, 2009 A lot of these groups look like they could be interesting.Most of the teams in A are pretty well balanced and SA with home advantage will not be a walkover. Ditto B where the Argies are spotty, SK and Greece will put up a fight and Nigeria will get home continent advantage. C is fairly tame, D is the all-round toughest, E well balanced, F a joke, G all three teams will need to whip hedgehog NK and hope and H has an even battle for 2nd. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Mongoose Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Predictions?A1 South AfricaA2 MexicoA3 UraguayA4 FranceB1 ArgentinaB2 NigeriaB3 South KoreaB4 GreeceC1 EnglandC2 USAC3 AlgeriaC4 SloveniaD1 GermanyD2 AustraliaD3 SerbiaD4 GhanaE1 HollandE2 DenmarkE3 JapanE4 CameroonF1 ItalyF2 ParaguayF3 New ZealandF4 SlovakiaG1 BrazilG2 North KoreaG3 Ivory CoastG4 PortugalH1 SpainH2 SwitzerlandH3 HondurasH4 ChileTop of the two bold teams in all cases to top the group, including Mexico beating France.I really think a lot of African teams will get through their groups. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renasko Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 The result of the draw:Group A1 South Africa2 Mexico3 Uruguay4 FranceGroup B1 Argentina2 Nigeria3 South Korea4 GreeceGroup C1 England2 USA3 Algeria4 SloveniaGroup D1 Germany2 Australia3 Serbia4 GhanaGroup E1 Netherlands2 Denmark3 Japan4 CameroonGroup F1 Italy2 Paraguay3 New Zealand4 SlovakiaGroup G1 Brazil2 North Korea3 Ivory Coast4 PortugalGroup H1 Spain2 Switzerland3 Honduras4 ChileSo, here's a very raw prediction of how things will go (correct me if I've gotten the structure wrong).Group winners of A meet runner-ups of B, right? And so on? Going off that, I'd say we'll have...Last 16France - NigeriaSouth Africa - ArgentinaEngland - GhanaUSA - GermanyNetherlands - SlovakiaCameroon - ItalyBrazil - ChileIvory Coast - SpainQuarter FinalsFrance - Argentina England - GermanyNetherlands - ItalyBrazil - SpainSemisArgentina - EnglandNetherlands - BrazilFinalEngland - Brazil(Did I get the structure right there? All assuming there's no upsets, which there of course will be :P) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Mongoose Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I think you're right about the structure, Renasko.Predicting all the way to the final? Very brave. ;)I was surprised to see England in the final in your prediction, but looking at the draw it does seem we're in the easier half. If Argentina and France keep their current managers, it looks like England or Germany in the final, IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Renasko Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Yea, though you beat me to the punch a bit. :P I expect England to make their way to the final, beating their two old adversaries, but inevitably being a class too low, with Brazil winning. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Horza Posted December 4, 2009 Author Share Posted December 4, 2009 Nate Silver has some typically wonky pre-draw analysis here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alcibiades Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I fancy us to steal a draw against England! It'll depend on how our injury situation works out between now and the cup. We need our first choice center back pairing back, as we have no depth. We also need to see if we can get our new German {Jermaine Jones) fit and bedded in to central midfield. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Wedge Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I'm pumped to play England. It's like going back to the 1770s!I'd take 1950 in this instance. :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Mongoose Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Sorry, Renasko, you've got the structure wrong after the 2nd round. It's more complicated:2nd Round1. Mexico - Nigeria2. France - Argentina3. England - Ghana4. USA - Germany5. Netherlands - Slovakia6. Cameroon - Italy7. Brazil - Chile8. Ivory Coast - SpainQuarter Finals1 Mexico - England 2. Netherlands - Brazil3. Argentina - Germany4. Italy - SpainSemis1. Brazil - England2. Germany - SpainFinal1. Spain - BrazilEdited to put my predictions for group winners instead of yours! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alcibiades Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I'd take 1950 in this instance. :)We gotta come up with some revolutionary war reference to call this game. Saratoga Redux! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Maltaran Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Personally I'd put Portugal ahead of Cote d'Ivoire in group G, but aside from that I agree with all Slick's predictions. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polishgenius Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Nah, with Quieroz in I'd go for Ivory Coast, he's incapable of getting the best out of Ronaldo and without that Portugal will struggle for goals. Whereas Drogba loves playing for his country and will probably therefore beast their defence. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mme Erzulie Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 I think England, Spain and Italy got the easiest groups (on paper, anyway).Groups A, B and D look the hardest to me. Predictions:Group A1 France 2 South Africa3 Uruguay4 MexicoGroup B1 Argentina2 Nigeria3 South Korea4 GreeceGroup C1 England2 Slovenia3 Algeria4 USAGroup D1 Serbia2 Ghana3 Germany4 AustraliaGroup E1 Netherlands2 Cameroon3 Japan4 DenmarkGroup F1 Italy2 Paraguay3 New Zealand4 SlovakiaGroup G1 Brazil2 Ivory Coast3 North Korea4 PortugalGroup H1 Spain2 Chile3 Honduras4 Switzerland Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polishgenius Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 You think Slovakia will finish below New Zealand? Are you serious? I can see them winning that group with a bit of luck, they're a dangerous side and Italy really are poor at the moment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Slick Mongoose Posted December 4, 2009 Share Posted December 4, 2009 Argentina is the most difficult to predict, because it depends entirely on whether they change manager or not. With Maradonna in charge, they could fail to get out of their group. With someone good in charge, they're semi finalists at least.France are much easier to predict - Yes, they would be better with a good manager, but I can't see them changing managers now. Argentina changing managers is much more likely, IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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