2015/16 Football/Soccer thread

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latinoheat said:
This Euro format can suck a dick Turkey lose 2 out of 3 games yet still have a chance to get into the easy half of the knockout rounds.

There are teams tomorrow that purposely losing would actually help their chances in the knockout rounds.
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Yeah the format fucking sucks, also look at Slowakia vs England for example, parking the bus to get THIRD on a 4-team group isn't what a tournament should be about, and the fact that teams like Albania or Turkey still have a good chance to qualify despite losing their first two games... really doesn't make any sense.
 
DestinyUnknown said:
Yeah the format fucking sucks, also look at Slowakia vs England for example, parking the bus to get THIRD on a 4-team group isn't what a tournament should be about, and the fact that teams like Albania or Turkey still have a good chance to qualify despite losing their first two games... really doesn't make any sense.
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not to mention the unfair advantage of being put in a certain group. Italy win their group and get drawn with Spain, and whoever wins group F will probably end up with Belgium, but France, Wales, Germany, and Croatia will end up with a much easier team just because they got drawn in a good group
 
Eagle4 said:
um, England? If we can't exploit the weaknesses of Russia and Slovakia, don't think we can exploit the weaknesses of Spain.
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because they were parking the bus, Spain left space behind them to run into with pace.
something England did against Wales, but because it was stirling, missed the target.
 
imo

Switzerland - Poland
Croatia - Portugal
Wales - Northern Ireland
Hungary - Belgium

Germany - Slovakia
Italy - Spain
France - Rep. Ireland
England - Iceland
 
Eagle4 said:
imo

Switzerland - Poland
Croatia - Portugal
Wales - Northern Ireland
Hungary - Belgium

Germany - Slovakia
Italy - Spain
France - Rep. Ireland
England - Iceland
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I would argue Croatia over Portugal and possibly Italy and Hungary over their opponents but for the most part agree.

Now watch as England tumbles out of the last 16...
 
Switzerland - Poland
Croatia - Portugal
Wales - Northern Ireland
Hungary - Belgium

Germany - Slovakia
Italy - Spain
France - Rep. Ireland
England - Iceland
 
just doing R16 is for pussies

Switzerland - Poland
Croatia - Portugal
Wales - Northern Ireland
Hungary - Belgium

Germany - Slovakia
Italy - Spain
France - Rep. Ireland
England - Iceland

Croatia - Poland
Wales - Belgium
Germany - Spain
France - INGERLAND

Croatia - Belgium
Spain - England

Croatia - Spain

you heard it here first lads
 
Switzerland - Poland A more even game than it looks, Poland looks solid defensively, but their attack has been hugely ineffective. Switzerland's defense has looked shaky however, and it's hard to bet against Lewandowski.

Croatia - Portugal Croatia has looked like a better team than Portugal in every aspect of the game, except perhaps for the forward quality. Croatia works extremely well as a team, which was showcased by their excellent high pressure and defensive positioning against Spain, while Portugal is a terribly unorganized side that solely depends on their forwards 'magic' to win games, and that's not a sustainable strategy.

Wales - Northern Ireland Northern Ireland is the worst team in the R16, it would take a huge Wales fuck up to lose this one.

Hungary - Belgium Hungary, despite getting the first place in their group, is quite a weak team, they are slow at transitioning and shifting, which makes their defense fragile, and despite a few moments, their attack hasn't been too effective overall. Belgium have their fair share of issues, but their individual quality should be enough to beat Hungary.

Germany - Slovakia Germany shouldn't have that many issues to break down Slovakia, but if they're ineffective towards goal, don't rule out Slovakia getting a goal on the break.

Italy - Spain The most anticipated game of the R16, I actually think Italy is overrated. Their game against Belgium was good, but they still conceded tons of chances against a Belgium that had Fellaini in the no10 role, so I'm unsure if they will be able to stop Spain's attack. However, if they are able to disrupt Spain's build-up play and get the ball to their wingbacks, they can threaten Spain in the counterattacks. Spain is the better side, but this game will be close.

France - Rep. Ireland Should be an easy game for France...

England - Iceland I actually wouldn't be surprised if Iceland beat England thanks to a set piece or a counterattack. England has showed an inability to break deep-lying defenses, and Iceland is expected to do just that. England's the favourite, but an upset is quite possible.
 
Italy to beat Spain

Wales to beat Belgium in Quarters

England out to France in Quarters

Croatia vs Wales & France vs Germany semi finals.

Germany over Croatia in the final
 
Switzerland - Poland
Switzerland impressed me vs France, especially Xhaka. Thanks to the offensive wingbacks Rodriguez and Lichtsteiner, Xhaka has the space he needs to play his through balls. Sadly, they have no consistent finisher up front, Mehmedi is unstable, Embolo is too inexperienced. Poland defended well against Germany but their offensive was bad so far. If Lewandowski and Milik can step up their game, I can see Poland winning though.

Croatia - Portugal
Croatia is better as a team, especially in midfield. Rakitic and Modric are incredibly good, Badelj plays extremely well. I don't see them losing unless Ronaldo and Nani can create some magic moments.

Wales - Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is almost non-existant offensively while Wales has some individual quality with Bale and Ramsey.

Hungary - Belgium
The individual quality of Belgium is most likely enough to defeat Hungary.

Germany - Slovakia
Should not be a problem for Germany with the same offensive lineup as against the ultra defensive Northern Ireland. Gomez can bind 1-2 defenders in order to create space for Götze, Özil and Müller.

Italy - Spain
Very interesting match. Spain should win if they use their chances and Busquets doesn't make mistakes, but Darmian and Candreva could cause trouble.

France - Rep. Ireland
The offensive power of France in the final third is phenomenal. Pogba and Payet will find ways to break through the Irish defensive bulwark. However, their build-up was disappointing so far which is why I believe that they will lose to Italy/Spain/Germany in the seminfinal.

England - Iceland
England lacks creativity in midfield, but they should be able to break the Icelandic defense thanks to their individual quality.
 
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I do not like Poland's attacking set up at all, there's a huge disconnection between the forwards and the midfield, and very few links and support for the man on the ball, both Grosicki and Blaszczykowski usually end up isolated when they have the possession and have no other option besides crossing or just sending a long pass backwards. Same when Krychowiak/Maczynski receive in attacking positions - they have no teammates around so they usually end up turning the ball over.

I hope there's some adjustment for the second half, either Milik or Lewandowski need to drop deep to support the build up play. Another option would be that Grosicki/Kuba cut inside to create a passing option between the lines, with the fullbacks overlapping to provide width, but that's a very offensive set up and probably not the best if you want to preserve the 1-0, still something to consider though.
 
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