The Soccer Thread

[USSoccer]

Some website had a draw simulator that I tried a couple times yesterday. The first group I got was:

 

Spain

Ghana

USA

England

 

Which would be amazingly difficult and awesome.

[USSoccer]

One of the 9 UEFA teams will have to be moved into Pot 3. Wonder how they'll determine which one.

 

Bosnia - Lowest ranking

 

They moved France into the special pot.

[Guest]

I simultaneously want to be in a group with Ghana so we can throttle them and also never ever want to see them in competitive play ever again.

[USSoccer]

I simultaneously want to be in a group with Ghana so we can throttle them and also never ever want to see them in competitive play ever again.

 

No, I absolutely want them either in the group or in the R16 again. I so very badly want to see the US just stomp them.

[bukie]

The USMNT is basically automatically in the group of death unless the rest of their group is terrible, because the rest of their selection pool is the entire bottom of the ratings.

[bukie]

As is, all I want for the USMNT:

- No CONMEBOL team in the group stage

- No Netherlands/Italy in the group stage

- No Spain/Germany in the group stage if possible

 

Which leave a group with Belgium/Switzerland, a CAF team, and a decent Euro team.

[USSoccer]

Best case, you end up in Switzerland or Columbia's group.

 

Worst case is probably Germany.

 

ETA: the order in which you play the teams is going to matter, too. If you do draw into a group with Brasil or Germany, you want to play them third; conversely, if you draw Ghana, you want them first, and any of the other African sides third.

[wolf stansson]

Some website had a draw simulator that I tried a couple times yesterday. The first group I got was:

 

Spain

Ghana

USA

England

 

Which would be amazingly difficult and awesome.

That would be fun. One automatically through and three pretty much equally matched. The US is the worst of the three, but it's pretty close.

[wolf stansson]

I ran the simulator 30 times.

1 - Very confident we'd win the group.

8 - Reasonably confident we'd get out of the group.

5 - No chance we get through the group.

16 - Varying degrees of maybe to probably not.

 

It's going to be a crazy World Cup.

[wvcbxl]

Group F: Belgium, Chile, Ghana, Honduras

 

Yes please.

[wolf stansson]

Good primer on the US U-20 team for '15's cycle if you're into that sort of thing.

http://americansoccernow.com/articles/ramos-u-20-roster-takes-shape-in-first-camp

 

Lots of promising young pros.

[shnsajax]

Ramsey was inches away from a would be GOTY then Southhampton gave up what might be the worst goal of the year minutes later.

[shnsajax]

Wes Brown gets a straight red for a hard tackle in which he wins the ball and doesn't make any contact at all. Had he made contact though it would have looked bad. Stoke beat Sunderland 2-0. Jozy gets on in the 85th. Shea rides the bench.

[wvcbxl]

The Liverpool derby was a highly entertaining game. :D

[CubInOK]

Aron scored with his team down 2 men today.

[wolf stansson]

Aron scored with his team down 2 men today.

Clip:

 

Tidy.

[USSoccer]

This Houston/KC game tonight has been a complete joy. Fantastic fight and a great crowd.

[wolf stansson]

Great goal, Dom Dwyer. Great dime drop from Benny. KC leads.

[USSoccer]

That was the most I've seen Benny care in a game since June of 2010. He was everywhere on the field.

[USSoccer]

If tomorrow's game is like tonight's game, it will have been one of the best weekends in MLS in a long while.

 

And my sense is that down 0-2 at home, Portland is going to come out guns blazing. I except extra time in that one. I'm going to go 3-3, with RSL winning on PKs.

[shnsajax]

Today us why City scare me the most. If they have the backline and keeper figured out they they will make a run.

[wolf stansson]

Today us why City scare me the most. If they have the backline and keeper figured out they they will make a run.

Yep. The way they swarm the midfield and those forward are all so cerebral, the only teams that will be able to match them tactically are Arsenal & Chelsea and physically, if City figure those weaknesses out, they'll be too much.

 

 

AVB needs to wear this one though. No adaptation, his players had no confidence.

[wolf stansson]

Mix from downtown.

http://soccer.si.com/2013/11/24/mix-diskerud-goal-norwegian-cup-rosenborg-josh-gatt-molde/

[Guest]

This is USSoccer after watching the Spurs game.

 

http://images.t-nation.com/forum_images/auto/r/786x0/f/2/f20b5_ORIG-randy_marsh_jizz.jpg

[Guest]

AVB needs to wear this one though. No adaptation, his players had no confidence.

 

They don't really have a reason to have confidence. They can't score at all this year and when you fall behind after 15 seconds against a team that annihilates everyone at home, you're screwed.

 

Also, Aguero has scored more EPL goals this year than Tottenham has.