We’re starting to get deeper into the World Cup, the end of group play, but despite how long the tournament has been going, the action has yet to slow down. Wait, that’s if we’re omitting Group F from the discussion. Despite being led by Argentina and their robust attacking personnel, the entire group has only managed to combine for five goals through the first four games. Strange in a World Cup that has managed to continue an average of 3 goals per match. It’s amazing. Even the casual football fan can admit that very few of the games lack pure entertainment, even if it’s just for one half or some late-game drama. Groups A and B both finished their group play today, with the countries of Netherlands, Chile, Brazil and Mexico advancing to the next round. Every team just named won their game today, with the exception of Chile, who fell to the Netherlands in a game that meant the winner would top the group. In all honesty, I wasn’t impressed with the game between them. After Chile displayed some real potential as force in the tournament, they looked flat and much over-matched against the Dutch. Netherlands, despite not needing a win, were a bit more aggressive. Both teams were missing key players (cards and injury/rest) so the action lacked a bit, both goals not coming until the 77th minute and after. Netherlands has probably been the beast team in the tournament so far, especially considering how bad all the UEFA (European) teams have been. Speaking of bad teams from Europe, Spain was also in action today. Isn’t is weird to read that? A Spanish team, in this era, not performing well and at the very least contending for a title. Anyways, they squared off against Australia in a game that had no stipulations and was only being played for pride. Spain played well, controlling the pace of the game like we’d all come to expect. It’s such a shame that this game will be last image that we’ll have of Spain’s golden generation. They have plenty of young stars but some players that were on the field today, it will be the last that we’ll see with their jersey at a top-level tournament.
The later slate of games featured Group A’s games. Brazil and Mexico were both impressive in their victories today, finishing off their group play in a big way as they both move forward to the knockout stage against their Group B opponents. We’ll start with Mexico’s victory over Croatia. Not because of my rooting interest, but because there was more on the line between these two teams. Mexico came into this game with some questions, only managing one goal in their first two games. Sure, they looked poised for a big game but Croatia had all the momentum after a big win over Cameroon. The game was a bit slow to start but Mexico has the clear advantage early, with two clear chances to go up. Croatia responded nicely and it was a scoreless but competitive first half. The second half was a different story, almost completely dominating by Mexico and after their first goal, the momentum just kept going their way. Croatia managed to get on the board but by that time, it was clear that Mexico would be advancing into the next round. But who would their opponents be? Remember, Mexico still had a shot at finishing atop the group depending on a number of factors. Brazil took care of business against Cameroon though, scoring four and not surprisingly, they were led by their biggest star. Neymar scored twice and is now the top leading scorer for the tournament. Other players have a chance to surpass him in group play but he’s been one of the best and continues to prove that he can lead Brazil to yet another World Cup title. For both teams, it’s the performances that they were looking for. A team always wants to play their best as they’re headed into the most important game of the tournament. There’s no room for error as neither team has it easy. Sure, each would’ve preferred to avoid the Netherlands but Chile has looked just as strong.
Tomorrow’s games (June 24th): Italy-Uruguay (loser goes home) and Costa Rica-England both at 12 pm ET; Japan-Colombia and Greece-Ivory Coast (any team can join Colombia) both at 4pm ET.
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