[Magic#10]

Second round. The bad teams have been eliminated (still 8 need to go home).

The best 16 teams of the world are left. All respect to them (even England though we beat you on saturday ).
Every team making it so far can feel proud. No shame to go home now as anything can happen in the knock out stages.

Upsets will happen, no doubt. New aspects of teams discovered - the real stars are born now.

Damn I look forward to the World CUP starts for real

 

[Gabemar]

Second round. The bad teams have been eliminated (still 8 need to go home).

The best 16 teams of the world are left. All respect to them (even England though we beat you on saturday ).
Every team making it so far can feel proud. No shame to go home now as anything can happen in the knock out stages.

Upsets will happen, no doubt. New aspects of teams discovered - the real stars are born now.

Damn I look forward to the World CUP starts for real

I don't think you can say that the bad teams have been eliminated with a couple of exceptions here and there, this has easily been the most competitive WC ever. Most of the teams that will get eliminated in the 1st round are as good as the teams making it through. That's just the way it is only 2 teams advance from each group. Not necesarily the best but the ones that got the most points.

 

[Magic#10]

I guess we look at it differently. In my book the team that has the most points in the table, also is the best. The table never lies as someone clever once said


And to claim that France and Argentina are better than the teams qualifying from their group is just far out, I think.

France and Argentina just weren't up for it - I can understand that France weren't as they have won everything but Argentina is a mystery to me - they gotta be hungry..

Big credit for England, Sweden, Senegal and Denmark!

 

[Magic#10]

And I guess I was a bit provocative cos I am SURE that this would have been the attitude if let's say Argentina and France had gone through without any problems.

Heard this statement so many times before from experts, former coaches etc. when the 1st round was over - but I'll agree with them now - the real CUP starts now!

 

[Gabemar]

I don't know but I am sure that if the WC was replayed, not all the same teams would advance to the next round. So yes Sweden and Denmark have displayed some of the best football in the tournament. What I am saying is that the difference between teams is so minimal that is presumptous to think that the ones that advance are definitively better than the ones that didn't. Furthermore any team that really believes that the WC starts now is probably headed home by now because if they didn't bring their "A" game from the beginning of the tournament and gave it all, then chances are they would have had trouble.

 

[Magic#10]

And if the qualifiers were replayed I think Holland and the Czech Rep. (in a play off again of course) would qualify for the WC. I have seen 1 team or 2 (to say the least!) that are worse than these 2 great teams. But they didn't qualify and therefore the don't deserve to be there. Same thing applies to France and Argentina who also don't deserve to be in the 2nd round as they just didn't make it - simple as that.

 

[Kostas]

A thought is over my mind...

If we put up-down the table and qualify the teams that are 3rd and 4th then they will be almost equal to the rest teams

 

[Magic#10]

Double post....

 

[Magic#10]

Would Greece have qualified if you turned the table around?

Best teams qualify - the times we didn't qualify for the WC I don't think we deserved to be there - though it was close in the 94 qualifiers where Denmark was 1 goal short of qualifying ....and I mean 1 goal - not victory - needed 1 stupid goal!

 

[Emiliano]

I think the world cup doesn't prove who the best team in the world is, but which country has the biggest strenght, depth, preparation and...luck . It's all about who can handle the pressure for the longest period of time; too much pressure can blow good teams away ( Holland, France..).

 

[Magic#10]

I think the world cup doesn't prove who the best team in the world is, but which country has the biggest strenght, depth, preparation and...luck . It's all about who can handle the pressure for the longest period of time; too much pressure can blow good teams away ( Holland, France..).

In short you really defined: the best team




I think you mixed it up with : the best players (if it came to that Argentina would win, I think)

 

[Gollum]

Or doping...

 

[Magic#10]

Or doping...

hahaha - good one..

 

[O Glorioso]

Theres no dought about it that France and Argentina are two of the best in the world. There dismay in the World Cup may have been caused by many things. First of all, it was not because they were inferior to the other teams in their group.It may be because of over confidence. Both teams were you may say the most highly favored. The press and public were saying that these two teams were the best and favored to win it, and it may have got in the head of the players. They may have began to believe that they were unstopable and if the press and public say we are then we are. Then theres also the case of underestimation. Clearly these two teams came into their groups believing that they were superior to the others teams by alot.

 

[Magic#10]

Same with Portugal??

You definately underestimated the USA. Sad for you cos I think Korea will win tomorrow and the overconfidence shown against the US will cost you the 2nd round...

It wouldn't be as lousy and sensational as France's and Argentina's exit, but I would be sorry to see Portugal go home as they were "my" team at Euro 2000. Hoped they would be like that at this WC...

 

[colocolo]

The World Cup started for REAL on May 31st .. :lala:

We've had THE BEST 1st Round in a World Cup, that I can ever Remember..
That it does get better, no doubt ... It SHOULD .. But dont be mislead ... The Cup has been running now for 15 straight days !!!

:cap:

 

[Magic#10]

I agree colocolo - I was just provoking I am sure if all the giants had gone through you'd have had to read articles from e.g. Beckenbauer saying that "finally the REAL world cup starts as we're free from the less important teams now" I was simply turning this normal arrogance against the people thinking like this...and also used some irony

So agree wholeheartedly - one of the best 1st rounds I can remember - having followed and watched the WC since 1978 in Argentina.

 

[justaboy]

magic 10 did you really needed only one stupid goal to qualify for WC94???
the why didn't heintze made a own goal then :howler: :howler:

 

[Magic#10]

Yes Denmark just needed 1 stupid goal - the goal difference was the deciding factor.

Heintze making an own goal? Don't think so - he went home before a match against Yugoslavia (a match Denmark won btw) in the qualifiers for Euro 92 because he wasn't in the starting 11. He was called up again when Denmark got a new coach (Bosse Johansson) in 1996 for the qualifiers for France 98. So he has missed 4 ½ season of internationals - guess he could have broken the record for most caps easily if he didn't do that thing in 91...and he could have won the European Championship too...