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Choose wisely World Cup thread

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Posted: #26
Hey BB, what do you think about all the overs? Do you see the rest of the opening games playing out that way?
 
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Posted: #27
Quote Originally Posted by e_nygma:

Hey BB, what do you think about all the overs? Do you see the rest of the opening games playing out that way?


IMO it's a small sample size to make any conclusions and/or declare this a trend.

On paper it looks like 6 overs from the last 8 games, but I doubt it will play out that way, 4-4 probably. And the fact most games had very early goals certainly helped a lot, add some 2nd half injury time goals & gk mistakes into the mix, and it's no wander the overs are 7-1.

If you look at the wider picture 2010 saw a ton of unders & draws early, so you can just see this as things evening out, too.
 
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Posted: #28
France have had their fair share of problems since the last WC, which was a complete debacle. They weren't convincing in their q group & looked doomed after the 0-2 in the first leg of the play-off. But the Gods had other plans & France became the first team ever who managed to overturn a 0-2 deficit. Their boss Dechamps, was a WC winner as a player in '98 & this will be his first WC as a coach.

Their roster is full of good players, but Ribery is out and most of the rest lack experience from the big tournaments, with Lloris, Evra & Benzema the only guys with 50+ caps. On the other hand their only loss in their last 10 was the already mentioned game in Ukraine and they have played well(3-0-1) in the preparation games.

Hard to say what to expect of them. The missing of Ribery is big on paper, but he hasn't had the best of seasons. If the defense keeps doing what they have been doing( 1 goal conceded in last 8), they could very well pull off an "Italy".
 
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Posted: #29
Honduras played a mediocre q campaign, but benefited from Mexico's weakness and finished 3rd in their final group with a 4-3-3 record. Prep games were bad with only 1 victory in 6 since late '13. & with Suarez as their coach they are winning just 40% of their games despite playing in a pretty weak federation.

No big names to mention, they have a few of their guys playing in Europe, but nowhere near any top teams. Normally , teams like this would be easy pray in a this group, but European teams have yet to produce something when not playing each other. Even considering that, France should have too much individual quality to swing the mach their way sooner or later vs a team who was 0-1-2 0-3 in 2010.

 
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Posted: #30
WRONG FORUM!

https://www.covers.com/postingforum/POST01/showmain.aspx?spt=30717

 
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Posted: #31
Quote Originally Posted by LOLKNBR:

WRONG FORUM!

https://www.covers.com/postingforum/POST01/showmain.aspx?spt=30717



5K views says you're wrong mate.
 
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Posted: #32
Group F: Argentina, B&H, Iran, Nigeria

Argentina have started their campaign with just 4 point after the first 3 games, but then won 8 of their last 13 & topped the group with a 9-5-2 record. Under Sabbella, who's been their coach since mid 2011., they have been playing mostly offensive 4-3-3 for obvious reasons. Although they are one of the older teams in the tournament, a lot of their squad has below 20 caps, but the guys they will lean on have the experience needed for this tournament.

They have some roster issues as Aguero, Palacio, Demichelis, Higuain, Mascherano and Garay all have problems ahead of their opening game. Even all that could be irrelevant as the little wizard is fit & has a chip on his shoulder & as already mentioned, the Europeans have yet to show something meaningful for '90. The other games don't look too hard for them either.
 
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Posted: #33
Bosnia & Herzegovina have been a revelation if the European qualifiers. This generation has shown potential for a while, this time everything has fallen into place & they have been rewarded with their first WC finals appearance(bear in mind this is a young country, just 20ish yrs old). Susic has been at their helm since '09 mostly using a 4-4-2 formation which fits them very well.

Dzeko is their best player, but the rest of their offense & midfield are no mugs either, skill or experience wise. The defense is another story, where except Spahic with 74 caps the rest of the roster don't have 74 caps between them put together. But they do have a world class keeper in Begovic to save their *ss.

They played Argentina w/o Messi some 6 months back & lost fairly easily 2-0, but their motivation is at an all time high this time round. If they lose the first game, the weak group still provides them with a decent chance of going through to the knock-out round, even if the historical odds are stacked against them.
 
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Posted: #34
Sensational capping Sir. 10-3-2 is out of this world. And I've managed to add a little on top of that making my own bets by just following your write ups and opinions. Keep killing it, you're in a zone.

 
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Posted: #35
Quote Originally Posted by Gogic:

Sensational capping Sir. 10-3-2 is out of this world. And I've managed to add a little on top of that making my own bets by just following your write ups and opinions. Keep killing it, you're in a zone.



Thanks Gogic.
Yes it's been a great start, but the games have been fairly easy to cap so far. Let's just hope we can avoid the curve balls along the way.
 
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Posted: #36
Iran are no strangers to the WC finals & this will be their 4th appearance, but the generation of Ali Daei who was leading this team in '98 & '06 is long gone. This team has no big names and it was already a big surprise when they managed to beat South Korea in their q group & make it to the WC finals directly as group winners. There will be one familiar face in their ranks though. The coach Queiroz has been with them since 2011. under him they are playing  4-2-3-1 with decent success, but the lack of a guy who can put the ball into the net is easy to spot & a big problem.

The lack of experience, not only at the big stage, but also at the "lower levels" is also easy to spot as only 6 of their players on the 23 man roster have  more than 20 caps for their NT.

In '98 & '06 they managed to win one & draw one in their six group games, but it's pretty hard to see them snatching a point from anyone here.
 
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Posted: #37
Nigeria was a revelation back in '94 when they reached the knock-out phase in their first WC finals, a result they repeated in '98, but it's been all downhill for them since then. A horrible performance in '02 where they collected just 1 point, not qualifying in '06 & only 1 point in '10 was a horrible run of results.

In 2011 they appointed homegrown Keshi as coach who was an assistant for the NT during the glory days. He changed their style to a defensive 4-3-3 which brought some of the old glory back winning the African Cup of Nations in '13.

The team is a mix of experience & youth, which is probably the best formula for any team, but with no major stars & this Nigerian generation has still a lot to prove to be compared with the guys from the '90s. A lack of a creative midfielder is pretty obvious & they could have problems even vs a (very) defensive Iran.
 
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Posted: #38
Germany had a bit of trouble in their q group, but managed to come on top in the end. Under Low since 2006, they won 71 from their 105 games which makes him one of their most successful managers ever. All that's missing is a win on the big stage, as they reached at least the SF in all their big tournaments under his leadership.

The team is full of world class players & familiar faces, with the midfield being so good they might not even miss Gundogan & Reus who are injured. The only problem seems to be no real striker available except Klose, but that most likely won't be that important as Low will prefer the Tika-Taka style in a 4-2-3-1 formation & in such a scheme of things Muller will be preferred to any real striker anyhow.

Despite their great record at the WC finals, they haven't won it since 1990., while recent history saw them play in the final in '02 & finishing 3rd in '06 & '10 tournaments.
 
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Posted: #39
Portugal had some real problems in their q group, but eventually finished 2nd behind Russia. In the play-offs they faced Zatan led Sweden team, but disposed of them with wins home & away. Bento has been in charge of this team since 2010 & tailored his 4-3-3 formation around Ronaldo.

Other than arguably the worlds best player, there is plenty of talent & experience around him, but on a slightly lower level than he's used to in Madrid and the way Meireles-Veloso-Moutinho will perform will probably be key for them. Also, Ronaldo has been semi-injured for a while & it's a big question how this will affect his game since everything in Portugal team revolves around him.

Portugal has a surprisingly bad qualifying history for the WC finals, making just twice in the 20th century, but they have made it in '02, '06 & '10. 6-3-5 record in those tournaments isn't exactly much to write home about, but they did finish 4th in '06.
 
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Posted: #40
Any specific plays britbull?
 
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Posted: #41
He's a tout... u need to pay for his picks.
 
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Posted: #42
Quote Originally Posted by kdoggflog01:

He's a tout... u need to pay for his picks.


That's actually nowhere near the truth, as there are free picks available daily, like Germany ML today.
 
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Posted: #43

Quote Originally Posted by BritBull:



That's actually nowhere near the truth, as there are free picks available daily, like Germany ML today.

Where do I find the picks?  Thanks

 

 
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Posted: #44
Quote Originally Posted by BritBull:



That's actually nowhere near the truth, as there are free picks available daily, like Germany ML today.



Actually, sounds like it's extremely close to the truth, since there are "free" picks, there must be "pay only" picks. And none are posted here, so what's the point other than promoting your pay service?

I like you Brit, you know your stuff and you were always above board with your plays and records, but you went tout (which is fine) and you have to stop promoting your services here, which, in an underhanded way, you're doing.
CPL XIX Winner. Punter. Scotch lover. Big Man.
 
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Posted: #45
Quote Originally Posted by JohnBlaze12:

Where do I find the picks?  Thanks

 



The rules here don't allow me to mention other places, but send me a pm & I'll explain.
 
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Posted: #46
Quote Originally Posted by Ganda:




Actually, sounds like it's extremely close to the truth, since there are "free" picks, there must be "pay only" picks. And none are posted here, so what's the point other than promoting your pay service?

I like you Brit, you know your stuff and you were always above board with your plays and records, but you went tout (which is fine) and you have to stop promoting your services here, which, in an underhanded way, you're doing.


Mate, it's not me who mentioned any kind of picks in the first place and I was asked to post my opinions on the teams.... and what you're basically saying is I should never post anything sports related on any forum for the rest of my life, since that would automatically be (underhanded) self promotion.
 
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Posted: #47
Ghana had an easy task in their African qualifying group which led them to a play-off match with Egypt. 6-1 win at home in the first leg was more than enough to ensure them a place in the WC finals. Ghanian FA is infamous for the speed they use up coaches & Appiah is the 16th NT boss since 2000. He took over in 2012. and implemented a 4-2-3-1 formation which saw Ghana achieve some decent results, but lately he's been experimenting & a 4-3-2-1 could be his first choice for the tournament.

Their midfield & attack bring us some well known faces like Essien, Muntari, Prince Boateng or Gyan Asamoah and this should be the stronger side of their game. The defense looks shaky on the other hand, with the GK as their biggest problem in regards to quality & experience.

This team doesn't have a long & prosperous history at the WC finals, in fact this will be just the 3rd time they qualified, but both in '06 & '10 they were a worthy opponent, making it to the round of 16 & the QF respectively.
 
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Posted: #48
USA had some ups & downs in their qualifying campaign, but finished on the top of the group eventually. On the bench there's a familiar face of Klinsmann who's been the boss of the USA NT since mid 2011. & with him in charge they won the Gold Cup last year. The formations & tactics vary depending on their opponent, but to put it plainly, he mostly uses 4-2-3-1 vs stronger opponents and 4-4-2 vs weaker ones.

USA doesn't have a real star, but that's nothing new for them, as it has been a team effort that got them to the finals since the '90s. Howard, Beasley, Bradley & Dempsey have all made around 100 appearances for their NT & should once again provide the backbone in Brasil. Their defense seems pretty thin for a big stage & unless Howard pulls off some magical stuff between the posts they will have problems beating anyone.

The past performances have been hit & miss, despite this being the 7th consecutive time they are in the WC finals, and they have managed to go through the group phase in '94(R16), '02(QF), '10(R16) and own a 7-5-17 overall record, which will probably get worse by the end of the tournament.
 
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Posted: #49
Hi guys my name is britbull... come find me on Twitter and I'll give you a bunch of winners.
 
 
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Posted: #50

Quote Originally Posted by Ganda:




Actually, sounds like it's extremely close to the truth, since there are "free" picks, there must be "pay only" picks. And none are posted here, so what's the point other than promoting your pay service?

I like you Brit, you know your stuff and you were always above board with your plays and records, but you went tout (which is fine) and you have to stop promoting your services here, which, in an underhanded way, you're doing.

Ganda, I don't subscribe to Brit's picks (or any tout for that matter), but I don't think there's a problem w/ what's he's doing. He's giving general thoughts about all the teams. I think some are useful and others I disagree with.  But it's another data point from someone I consider knowledgeable. 

Personally, I don't see why the covers people don't post directly in forums.  It'd get greater visibility.

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