La Copa Mundial: Day 8 & 9

Well, last night I watched three matches and then woke up this morning for three more. Four of the six turned out to be thrilling games. But because there were six, I will cut down on my comments and focus more on what's ahead for the teams vying for the Round of 16 as well as the rest of the second matches left.

--Argentina's 6-0 win over Serbia & Montenegro will deceive anyone who didn't see the match. Serbia & Montenegro's team fell apart before the opening whistle, and it showed, as they gave up three goals in the first half. There's no way of knowing how good Argentina really is until they play Holland next Wednesday.

--Holland and Ivory Coast provided us with the game of the tournament so far, with the Dutch eeking out a 2-1 victory. Robin Van Persie looked great and Ruud Van Nistelrooy began his trek to the Golden Boot, but the Ivory Coast played yet another great match, pushing their attack to the brink of numerous tiebreaking chances. Holland will need to control more against Argentina.

--Here is how Group C shakes out:

-Holland and Argentina are into the second round with records of 2-0. As of right now, Argentina is in first because of their +7 goal differential. So, for the Dutch to take first in the group and avoid a meeting with Portugal, they need to beat Argentina. Argentina can afford a tie, needing only the point to clinch first and a likely matchup with Mexico. So on Wednesday, these teams will have something play for and it will be a fantastic match.

--Mexico played terribly against Angola, which surprised everyone...but me. If you look at my preview of this match in the last post, I said to not be surprised if they tie. And look what happened. Now, Angola has a favorable final match against a demoralized Iran team, meaning that Angola should win. But they need to win big. I'll shake it out for you in a little bit.

--Portugal hammered Iran easily, without much surprise, 2-0 to take control of Group D. Portugal now only needs a tie against Mexico to win the group. They would prefer to win, guaranteeing first place. Iran is done.

--Group D looks like this:

-Portugal is 2-0 with six points. Mexico is 1-0-1 with four points, carrying a +2 goal differential. And Angola is 0-1-1 with one point and a -1 goal differential. This means that the following results have to happen for Angola to make the next round:

Portugal needs to beat Mexico by two or more goals
Then Angola must win by one goal or more
BUT, if Portugal wins, say, 1-0 over Mexico, and Angola wins 1-0 over Iran, Mexico is through. In other words, Angola would do well to win by a few goals and hope Portugal hammers Mexico.

--Ghana! Ghana! Ghana shocked the Czech Republic 2-0, surprising everyone but me with their possession-intensive attacking. I predicted a 1-0 Ghana victory back before the entire Cup started, so I am proud to have picked the upset. But Ghana's win also opens the door for the U.S. More on that in a few lines.

--Italy and the U.S. played a match hindered by awful officiating. It's a shame when officials want the spotlight and make harsh, quick decisions that hurt the competitive nature of a game. Italy's player, Daniele De Rossi, elbowed his way to the showers, and deservingly so. I didn't understand the Mastroaeni red card, or the second yellow on Eddie Pope. The referee didn't warn players very often and almost seemed like any foul would result in a booking. But both teams played a competitive, well-fought match for about 80 minutes, then they were just tired. A great result for the U.S.

--Group E now takes on two critical matches on Thursday.

-Italy is in first place with four points.
-The Czechs and Ghanans both have three
-And the U.S. has one point

So, for the U.S. to make it, Italy must beat the Czech Republic and the U.S. must beat Ghana. Now, a tie between the Italians and Czechs means the U.S. has to thump Ghana, which I really don't see happening. So let's leave it at this: the U.S. needs to win and hope Italy beats the Czech Republic. Anything less than a Czech loss is disaster for the U.S. But they have to get things done in their own match, which could be very difficult.

--Tomorrow's matches look exciting. I expect Japan and Croatia to play a solid match, but I think the Croatians will win by a goal, say, 1-0. Brazil should beat Australia in a physical match. Watch the Aussies try to slow things down with physical, rough play, avoiding any Brazilian buildup and lengthy Brazilian possessions. That is hard though, so Brazil will probably win, I'll say, 2-0. The last match of the day is France and South Korea, and this could be problematic for an underachieving French team. The French can't seem to score, so South Korea might be able to surprise people. I'm gonna call it a 1-1 draw. Enjoy the games.

This is the new part of each blog entry, where I will include the status of teams -- Definitely in, definitely out, on the brink or close to being in.

(A) Germany is definitely in, and so is Ecuador. That means Poland and Costa Rica are out.
(B) England is definitely in. Sweden is close to being in, but Trinidad & Tobago are on the brink, hoping to bounce back. Paraguay is definitely out.
(C) Argentina and Holland are definitely in while the Ivory Coast and Servia & Montenegro are definitely out.
(D) Portugal is definitely in. Mexico is close to being in, but Angola is on the brink. Iran is definitely out.
(E) Italy is close to being in, but so are Ghana and the Czech Republic. The U.S. is on the brink.

So there you have it. This list will be longer after tomorrow.