FIFA World Cup 2018 chat thread

[yuppie]

A lot rests on tomorrows result. But from the 2 games so far, Argentina do not deserve to progress.

Im sure Fifa will find a way to put Messi into the team of the tournament though. Even if they dont get out of the group.

[Gingerfinch]

Well that was a hiding. Argentina will be hoping for a draw tomorrow, then Croatia beating or at least drawing with Iceland.

Or hoping that Nigeria turn Iceland over tomorrow, then at least, qualification will still be in their own hands

True.

[sussexpob]

Queue footballing morons telling us Messi is a pile of do do.. Probably shows the BBC journalistic integrity nowadays they have quoted two people calling Messi average in the match report.

Nothing says average like 400 goals and 25 odd trophies

[yuppie]

Messi was pretty average in this game. Is that what they were talking about?

[sussexpob]

Messi was pretty average in this game. Is that what they were talking about?

No. Just an average player overall.

[yuppie]

Messi was pretty average in this game. Is that what they were talking about?

No. Just an average player overall.

Lol.

[bigfluffylemon]

Well well well. Warning, long post ahead.

I thoroughly enjoyed the Denmark-Australia game. Was about as compelling as a low scoring draw can be. It might have helped that I had a stake in it though. Funny - I get wholeheartedly behind the Socceroos, but despite having lived here for many years now, I find it hard to support the Australian cricket team, even when they're not playing England. Maybe it's growing up with the long rivalry between the cricket sides that doesn't exist in football, maybe it's the fact that Australia are usually the underdogs in football, maybe it's the fact that the Aussie cricket team always seems to consist of a bunch of arrogant *modded*s, I'm not sure.

The penalty call was questionable at best - frankly, I was very surprised when it was given. I guess Australia could argue it was justice after a tight VAR penalty was given against them in the France game. Nonetheless, I think a draw was a fair result overall. After the first ten minutes, I thought Australia were in for a hiding, but they came back very well indeed. Eriksen's goal was superb, but he didn't do a lot else, I was surprised he was given Man of the Match. Personally I'd have given it to Matt Leckie. He was excellent, and behind everything good that Australia did, until Arzani came on as a sub. That kid's got some promise.

Australia's problem is that in both games they really haven't looked like scoring from open play. They just don't have the quality in the final third to turn pressure into chances, and chances into goals. While there were plenty of good breaks, the delivery into the area was usually poor, or there wasn't an attacker in place, or on the rare occasion the ball found the target the first touch wasn't good enough. Part of that was due to the quality and organisation of the Danish defence, but I couldn't help but feel that there were a few situations where a natural striker like a Kane or a Costa would have slotted something away. Cahill might be getting on a bit, but the man is a natural goalscorer - you can't help but feel he would have offered more threat in the box than the likes of Nabbout or Kruse - the latter was particularly wasteful.

Australia have exceeded my expectations in the tournament in how well they've played, but they still only have a point. Did they deserve more? Perhaps, but not overwhelmingly so. Technically they're still alive, but they need to beat a decent Peru side, and hope the French do them a favour against Denmark. Given both France and Denmark will be happy with a draw, and France have been sub-par so far, it is likely to be a quiet game. No one expected Australia to progress, but it will still be a bit of a disappointment for me to see them leave.

As for Croatia-Argentina, wow. Argentina truly are mediocre side, Messi excepted. Perhaps we should have seen this coming - they only just made it through South America qualifying needing a string of results to go their way in the final round, and then drew with Iceland in a pretty ordinary showing. Yet no-one in the prediction game called the result. A one man team is always going to be a problem, but the issue that I see it is that their style doesn't mesh with Messi's talents at all. With Barcelona, he has quality support up front which allows him to use his amazing vision and distribution ability to give options. With Argentina, they're playing from much deeper so he doesn't have the support, and it's not too hard for other teams to isolate him and keep him marked. And without a free-flowing Messi, Argentina don't have the skill to create many chances.

Argentina have Nigeria last, who are pretty weak, so they may well still go through. But it's out of their hands now. Who'd have thought Iceland-Nigeria would be such a critical game?

[Durhamfootman]

Argentina have Nigeria last, who are pretty weak, so they may well still go through. But it's out of their hands now. Who'd have thought Iceland-Nigeria would be such a critical game?

If Nigeria beat Iceland then Argentina will at least have the chance to score a shed load of goals in the final game to try and qualify. Biggest problem will be getting them to beat Iceland.... Nigeria looked utterly dreadful in the first game

[budgetmeansbudget]

I though Leckie was a bit static on the wing, and didn't offer enough spark to the team. He couldn't conduct the play enough and lacked power in his running. He wasn't able to plug the gaps in front of the defence, and when he surged forward he wasn't able to hertz the Denmark back four enough. He certainly couldn't socket it to Schmichael.

All in all he didn't fit the bill for MOM.

[Durhamfootman]

I'm guessing Leckie is a type of spark plug?

good effort, budget

although you perhaps missed the opportunity for an Ohm My God?

[budgetmeansbudget]

Slang for electricity up norf isn't it?

[sussexpob]

I dont think you can blame Argentina's players, the coach left about 5-6 players who were better than what they had on the pitch. Seems par for the Argentinian course really in the modern era..... hire some mental coach who doesnt know what hes doing.

How that Mesa got in the team (and not subbed in both games after doing nothing) which Dybala and Di Maria sat on the bench.... incredible

[yuppie]

I dont think you can blame Argentina's players, the coach left about 5-6 players who were better than what they had on the pitch. Seems par for the Argentinian course really in the modern era..... hire some mental coach who doesnt know what hes doing.

How that Mesa got in the team (and not subbed in both games after doing nothing) which Dybala and Di Maria sat on the bench.... incredible

After this World Cup i can see Messi giving up on the National team. Its just not worth it for him.

[sussexpob]

After this World Cup i can see Messi giving up on the National team. Its just not worth it for him.

By the sounds of it, for once he isnt the one taking the pounding in the press. The stress on his face last night before the game seems to have been taken as a sign of what it means to him, a point that has often left him with little support in the past when Argentinians think of him as de facto Catalan.

The manager's press conference last night was brilliant. One of the most interesting I have ever seen. He told Argentinians to lay off Messi, took the blame with honesty in his own ability, said he loved Argentina but his passion was not backed by skill in decision making, and basically said before ripping apart Lionels legacy just remember that it was the rest of the 10 players that let him down all the time.

Lionel will almost certainly quit (again). I think he pretty much hates playing for Argentina, and I can tell you the way people talk about him in his country is shocking.

[sussexpob]

But yes..... the Argentininas are stuck in a kind of "Gerrard, Lampard, Scholes" type saga where they havent found the best way to stack their talent in similar positions, while they are so bare in others.

They tried playing all of them in 2010 and didnt win. They tried to play a number and went to more functional specialist in 2014 and the final was seen as a failure. This time they went for players to fit a system based on no previous big name merit, and that has ended disastrously.

A world class coach would have won the cup at one point in 2010/14/18 with those resources.