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World Cup Group B (Spain/Netherlands/Chile/Australia)

Hachiko

The Akita on Utopia
Well, it looks like the Earthquakes aren't the only team from San Jose that I look down on...thanks guys. #Hipster
 

Chase

Well-Known Member
BqcLIM0CAAEb9fL.jpg
 

chibob

Well-Known Member
Hey guys, has Travis rode (strutted) in here riding a wave of Spanish tears to condemn the need for technical players versus better athletes? Or how Chile's team of small mobile twinks isnt good enough to beat a big tall team of atholetes!!! No, not yet? Good.
 

Snorky's Shame

Well-Known Member
I'm talking some solace in the fact that Spain is back to being Spain in tournaments. They'll probably win 6-1 against Australia like in 1998. All we need now is reports of some infighting between the Madrid and Barcelona players.

I guess it's easy to say in retrospect, but perhaps Spain's World Cup was doomed once Madrid won the Champions' League. Once that happened, you now had two sets of players (Barcelona and Madrid) that have won everything there is to win in the game.

I think that's more likely what happened to Spain instead of infighting. Xavi and Casillas get along much better than Hierro and Guardiola ever did.
 

DeadMan

aka spiker or DeadMong
I guess it's easy to say in retrospect, but perhaps Spain's World Cup was doomed once Madrid won the Champions' League. Once that happened, you now had two sets of players (Barcelona and Madrid) that have won everything there is to win in the game.

I think that's more likely what happened to Spain instead of infighting. Xavi and Casillas get along much better than Hierro and Guardiola ever did.

Plus they all have been playing probably around 55 games per year for about 6 years now. They have a lot of miles on them.

Honestly, it's not all that surprising that Spain get eliminated from this group. The surprising thing was how horrible they played. Gave up 7 goals and only scored 1. They probably would have put up a better fight without Costa and Casillas, but still. Even France in 2002 had a better World Cup defense than this crap.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
Plus they all have been playing probably around 55 games per year for about 6 years now. They have a lot of miles on them.

Honestly, it's not all that surprising that Spain get eliminated from this group. The surprising thing was how horrible they played. Gave up 7 goals and only scored 1. They probably would have put up a better fight without Costa and Casillas, but still. Even France in 2002 had a better World Cup defense than this crap.


Deadman setting up the brick_trap. It is all that surprising.
 

Snorky's Shame

Well-Known Member
France also had the excuse of no Zidane for the first two games and a less than 100% one for the third.

Plus, they hit the posts/crossbar a lot in Korea as well.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
Hey guys, has Travis rode (strutted) in here riding a wave of Spanish tears to condemn the need for technical players versus better athletes? Or how Chile's team of small mobile twinks isnt good enough to beat a big tall team of atholetes!!! No, not yet? Good.

I will say that when Plan A doesn't work, it behooves a team to have a Plan B. What we saw was the result of not having that Plan B, and I honestly think I'm one of the few people who predicted Spain losing in this fashion (though I thought it would be in the quarterfinals). I figured they'd come up against a midfield that would just run them over with pressure and then smash them on a counter tacking advantage of the fact that Spain's holding/defensive mids are old as fuck at this point and liabilities. I'm going to dig up my exact post for this "Atoadaso" moment.
 

chibob

Well-Known Member
I will say that when Plan A doesn't work, it behooves a team to have a Plan B. What we saw was the result of not having that Plan B, and I honestly think I'm one of the few people who predicted Spain losing in this fashion (though I thought it would be in the quarterfinals). I figured they'd come up against a midfield that would just run them over with pressure and then smash them on a counter tacking advantage of the fact that Spain's holding/defensive mids are old as fuck at this point and liabilities. I'm going to dig up my exact post for this "Atoadaso" moment.

70ui4w.gif


Love me a gif.
 

DeadMan

aka spiker or DeadMong
Deadman setting up the brick_trap. It is all that surprising.

Eh, I mean it was a group with 3 very good teams. One of them had to go down. There were a reasonable amount of people predicting Spain (although a lot more, including me, picked the Dutch) to get eliminated. To me, surprising would be something like Brazil getting eliminated in the group stage. That's all I'm saying.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
Eh, I mean it was a group with 3 very good teams. One of them had to go down. There were a reasonable amount of people predicting Spain (although a lot more, including me, picked the Dutch) to get eliminated. To me, surprising would be something like Brazil getting eliminated in the group stage. That's all I'm saying.


Spain was the second most favored team to get out of their group, Brazil was the the most favored team. Congrats.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
Here is where I look like fucking Nostradamus predicting the rise of the 5-2-3 formation dominating Tiki Taka

I can't wait until 2038 when the US wins the world cup by playing a 5-2-3 formation on ultra defensive/counter attacking. We will have 1 "technical" player on the team and he'll play in one of the CDM spots and make great passes up to the forwards while regaling the rest of the team with stories about Liverpool's 1996 season. The other CDM will be a classic destroyer type who is mute and only knows one passing technique (FULL POWER). The wings will be Olympic class sprinters who are forbidden to ever shoot at goal unless we are up by more than 3 goals (only crossing allowed) and the lone striker will be a 6'7 (7'0 if you count the fro) dude named Leroy who can only score goals with his head. We will have kicked our best player off the team during qualifiers when he tries to make us play Tiki Taka.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
More from Nostradamus. I make it look like you mongs have never seen a soccer game before. Ya'll predicting 0-0 draw in that game Spain/Netherlands game. Crown me, bitches.

I can see ur point about Italy and I agree with it, but I honestly think Spain will get run over at some point because they are old. I think they will face a different type of opposition than they did in 2010 or 2012 Euros. Everyone now knows that it isn't a fluke and if you let them play their game they will win, so I expect teams to be a lot more aggressive against Spain and force them to play at a more aggressive game. At that point, I think we'll either see Spain dice up over aggressive teams, or we will see Spain look incredibly vulnerable to counters. I don't think there are many teams that will sit around and let Spain piddle around for the entire game. I think their eventual downfall will be the fact that their holding midfield players are so old and slow at this point that they are borderline liabilities at times on their club teams against counter attacks. If Xabi Alonso and Xavi are both in the game, Spain are just asking to get hammered on the counter (at which point Ramos or Pique will get a red card).
 

DeadMan

aka spiker or DeadMong
I mean, did they even have a Plan A? They created, what, 5 chances over the course of 2 games?
 

chibob

Well-Known Member
I dont think they even got the chance to play their own football, they were constantly trying to get going whilst defending an onslaught.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
The plan that won the last 3 major tournaments... lull teams to sleep and score 1 goal per game. The other teams just didn't play along this time. If Netherlands/Chile just sat back and defended against them instead of pressing, you may have seen a different outcome. I mean it was questionable to me how well the plan worked even in 2010. They lost 1-0 to Switzerland because they had no plan B.

On the flip side, I think if David Silva converts that chance early in the second half, things change and Spain gets to play their game.
 

DeadMan

aka spiker or DeadMong
I dont think they even got the chance to play their own football, they were constantly trying to get going whilst defending an onslaught.

This. I really don't remember Spain ever playing the classic tiki-taka that they did even in the last tournament. Their Plan A couldn't get going at all because of the pressing by the Dutch and Chileans.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
This. I really don't remember Spain ever playing the classic tiki-taka that they did even in the last tournament. Their Plan A couldn't get going at all because of the pressing by the Dutch and Chileans.

Just like Nostradamus said. Teams weren't going to sit back and let Spain play their way again. They were going to press them and take a chance between getting shredded and losing by a lot or beating Spain on counters.

I can't wait until teams who have "figured spain/Barca out" and try that aggressive pressing without realizing there is HUGE risk that goes along with it. Just because Spain was inept capitilizing on it at this tournament doesn't mean that style won't shred pressing teams in the future.
 

DeadMan

aka spiker or DeadMong
Just like Nostradamus said. Teams weren't going to sit back and let Spain play their way again. They were going to press them and take a chance between getting shredded and losing by a lot or beating Spain on counters.

I think I'm going to start making a bunch of inane predictions, just so when one goes right I can pull it out and act all high and mighty like you.
 

chibob

Well-Known Member
This. I really don't remember Spain ever playing the classic tiki-taka that they did even in the last tournament. Their Plan A couldn't get going at all because of the pressing by the Dutch and Chileans.

Just like Nostradamus said. Teams weren't going to sit back and let Spain play their way again. They were going to press them and take a chance between getting shredded and losing by a lot or beating Spain on counters.

Its this exact reason why I think next season Liverpool will struggle, teams had them figured out by the end of the season.

Cant be one dimensional, need it all.

Got to have it all to be a league/cup winning team.
 

DeadMan

aka spiker or DeadMong
Its this exact reason why I think next season Liverpool will struggle, teams had them figured out by the end of the season.

Cant be one dimensional, need it all.

Got to have it all to be a league/cup winning team.

To be fair, Rodgers at least has shown some tactical flexibility. Maybe they won't challenge for the title again, but I'm guessing they'll still be a top 4 team.
 

chibob

Well-Known Member
Potentially.

I think he is missing a couple key pieces of the puzzle to effectively change tactics on the fly.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
I think I'm going to start making a bunch of inane predictions, just so when one goes right I can pull it out and act all high and mighty like you.

Well I was wrong about the US only getting 1 point. Can't be right about everything, but I'd say my analysis has been far more astute than you soccer guys give me credit for. Prolly because I mix it 50/50 with trolling and trog traps so I can't be expected to be taken seriously. :laughing:

I watch Spain, Real Madrid/Barcelona enough to have seen the writing on the wall for the Xavi/Busquets/Xabi Alonso midfield.
 

Milo

Well-Known Member
Teams didn't "figure out" Liverpool. They just finished their chances Liverpool gave its opponents all season. Unless you mean "figuring out" is better finishing.

After such an incredible run of good luck and great finishing that covered up flaws, it was likely that their defensive weaknesses(which they showed all season) would cost them.
 
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Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
Sorry Milo, they been figured out. Game over. Go home. Just like Spain/Barcelona Tiki Taka dead. No room for a non over reactive opinion in sports analysis. Throwing QB done, Mobile QB in because I saw Tom Brady and Peyton Manning lose and Wilson win.
 

chibob

Well-Known Member
To be honest, Spain got a lot of balls into the final third, the strikers just couldnt fucking fire the trigger.

Iniesta did exactly what he always does; inch perfect passes through the middle, and Costa just fluffed them or Torres under ran them.

Spain shouldve have really played with one central striker and two wide forwards like Telo and Pedro.

Then you have a sturdy central three of Xavi, Iniesta and Buttsex (using buttsex to break up the opposition attacking play) Or you put Isco in as the third option to make add more attacking depth. The centre backs play as normal and so do the LB and RB.
 

chibob

Well-Known Member
Teams didn't "figure out" Liverpool. They just finished their chances Liverpool gave their opponents all season. Unless you mean "figuring out" is better finishing.

After such an incredible run of good luck and great finishing, it was likely that their defensive weakness(they showed it all season) would cost them.

We are all entitled our own analytic opinions, but the way in which they finished their season would point to the fact that they were figured out.
 

chibob

Well-Known Member
Yeh because that wasnt down to any tactical changes or anything like that, just pure dumb luck.

Just like Chelsea yeh.
 

Travis7401

Douglass Tagg
Community Liaison
I'm just glad the US decided to use the tactics of scoring in the first 30 seconds and then the tactic of scoring on a corner at the end of a game. Other teams should try that because you can let the other team dominate 80% of the game and still win! That score in 30 seconds tactic is my favorite because it really forces the other team to spend the rest of the game attacking while you just sit back and defend.
 
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