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OFFICIAL thread. FIFA Confederations Cup, Brazil 15-30 June.
- Thread starter hans kraay fan club
- Start date
joeinbrighton
New member
Japan are a decent team. They were a bit overawed by the occasion in their first match against Brazil, but they keep possession as well as some of the more marquee teams and Endo, Kagawa and Honda have been good players for some time now and a few of their players featured in the team that did well at the Olympics last year. You feel that what they perhaps lack to go to the next level is a consistent, goal-getting centre forward. They've merited their lead so far, albeit I didn't think the penalty decision for the first goal was correct.
joeinbrighton
New member
Japan have a weakness at defending set-pieces as well which Daniele De Rossi has just exploited. 2-1 Japan with 5 minutes of the 1st half left.
raz_18
Thomas Parrott
What a game! 4 - 3!
- Thread starter
- #45
Haha
If Japan are going to play all that enterprising tika taka next year in Brazil then I for one am delighted they made it. They certainly look a different unit from the sides they've produced in the past. They really ought to ruin a fairly poorly managed Mexican side last up.
Dancing Sock
New member
Score predictions for the Spain game tonight?
Going for 13-0.
Going for 13-0.
- Thread starter
- #49
A draw will almost certainly see Uruguay through on GD. Suarez and Cavani will ruin Tahiti.
Does anyone believe that Spain *won't* go easy on Tahiti? Honestly, they're not going to make any friends by tucking 15 goals past pub league players are they? For this reason, I honestly think they will settle for nine.
The only way Tahiti are going to score is with a freak long range effort. The sort that goes in once every 300 times. So my prediction is 9-0.
This does rely on Nigeria not successfully parking the bus against Spain though, and Spain will already be through.
Richy_Seagull
Well-known member
That Italy Japan game last night was fooking fantastic.
mejonaNO12 aka riskit
Well-known member
I have to say, this tournament is ticking all the boxes at the moment.
The big players showing up? Yep. Neymar, Pirlo, Balotelli(who I've been SO impressed with)
Good games? Yep.
Tahiti score? Yep.
ps how much will SPAIN whack Tahiti for tonight? Or will they go gently on them? Put me down for 8-0
The big players showing up? Yep. Neymar, Pirlo, Balotelli(who I've been SO impressed with)
Good games? Yep.
Tahiti score? Yep.
ps how much will SPAIN whack Tahiti for tonight? Or will they go gently on them? Put me down for 8-0
Dancing Sock
New member
Spain won't give a shite will they? The whole point of football is to win, and score as many goals whilst doing so, they'll hit double figures, if they don't then they should be sincerely disappointed with them selves tbh. Nigeria could have easily of scored 12 the other night, so Spain will match that if not better.
- Thread starter
- #54
They weren't 'over-awed'. They were plain knackered.
They'd played a WC qualifier in Iraq 3 days earlier, and had only arrived in Brazil at 3.00am the day before the match. They had absolutely no chance of getting a result in that match.
Dancing Sock
New member
It was wasn't it, brilliant game.
Sent a cheeky message to my Italian mate when they were 2-0 down, at full time I got one back!
- Thread starter
- #56
I think I agree with this. 9 or 10. Any more would make them look like BULLIES.
Nigeria don't have it in them to do that. They are bang average. TAHITI created 4 or 5 presentable openings against them.
(I think its immaterial anyway, as Uruguay will do them 2-0 tonight)
I agree with what you say except one thing. It's nice that Tahiti scored, but they've not really added much to the tournament have they?
Just looking at the results in the 2012 OFC Nations Cup, the winners of which won this Confederations Cup place, I see that New Zealand didn't even make the final - they lost the might of New Caledonia in the semis, who then of course lost in the final.
So two questions. 1) How on Earth did that happen? and 2) Should Oceania be invited to the Confederations Cup at all, seeing as they're not remotely competitive?
Dancing Sock
New member
Agreed, but they've qualified fair and square though, they won the OFC nations cup and that's that, off to Brazil.
I do agree. Whilst they are absolutely shit, I personally think they deserve their place as things stand (although I'd rather Oceania was absorbed by the Asian federation). But Tahiti really do add nothing to the tournament.
- Thread starter
- #60
1. NZ either didn't take New Caledonia seriously (didn't get all their Europe based players back, etc), or NZ didn't WANT to win it.
2. Of course they should. The question you are really asking (as per other recent threads about Australia) is 'should the separate Oceania Confederation exist at all?'. The fact is, currently it DOES, and you can't have a 'Confederations Cup' without the winners of all the confederations.
that.