Bailey Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 Too bad Argentina's Rojo will be suspended. He's a liability defensively and offensively. Still, think we have a pretty good chance against them. We could take revenge for them beating us in the 1986 semis If we go on through, we could get a Low Countries derby, would love that! I think you have pretty good chance given yesterdays performance from both sides. I would certainly bench Mertens and start with KDB wide and allow Hazard to roam, maybe with Mirallas on the other wing. In the centre, I didnt like the combination of Witsel and Fellaini and I would bring back Dembele because I wasnt overly impressed with Defour the other night either. The back 5 speak for themselves really. As for Argentina, they need to bring some creativity into the centre of the pitch because Gago, Mascherano and the other bloke are as unadventorous as eachother and Belgium should win the midfield battle. Then it become a case of whether Belgium can keep Messi quiet because given the match last night, if they can stop Messi they pretty much stop Argentina, such is their reliance on him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_E Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 I think you have pretty good chance given yesterdays performance from both sides. I would certainly bench Mertens and start with KDB wide and allow Hazard to roam, maybe with Mirallas on the other wing. In the centre, I didnt like the combination of Witsel and Fellaini and I would bring back Dembele because I wasnt overly impressed with Defour the other night either. The back 5 speak for themselves really. As for Argentina, they need to bring some creativity into the centre of the pitch because Gago, Mascherano and the other bloke are as unadventorous as eachother and Belgium should win the midfield battle. Then it become a case of whether Belgium can keep Messi quiet because given the match last night, if they can stop Messi they pretty much stop Argentina, such is their reliance on him. We should just start the same team. Definitely keep starting Mertens. He's had a better season than Mirallas and he's been better than him in almost every Belgium game in the past three years or so. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirallas Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 We should just start the same team. Definitely keep starting Mertens. He's had a better season than Mirallas and he's been better than him in almost every Belgium game in the past three years or so. I disagree I think mirallas should have started yesterday and I think he should start agaisnt Argentina too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rubecula Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 ok if an Englishman puts in his pennyworth? Do not start with Mirallas, use him as a super sub when they get a bit tired. If he is not needed keep him fresh for the next round. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirallas Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 ok if an Englishman puts in his pennyworth? Do not start with Mirallas, use him as a super sub when they get a bit tired. If he is not needed keep him fresh for the next round. Well that is exactly what Mertens is good for. Mirallas is a guy that is a more consistent threat, ideal to wear out defenses for about 60-70 minutes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verreauxi Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 By the way, why isn't Tim Krul starting for the Dutch? Is he hurt? Cillessen looks very under-confident. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bailey Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 We should just start the same team. Definitely keep starting Mertens. He's had a better season than Mirallas and he's been better than him in almost every Belgium game in the past three years or so. From what I have seen of Mertens he is a better footballer than Mirallas but he lacks something between the ears for me. Mirallas isn't the best decision maker in the world but if you give him a chance he generally makes the most of it. Plus I think Argentina would be more worried about his threat in behind than they would with Mertens coming short most of the time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quinn31 Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 Belgian fans being asked to leave a bar or two in a country of 300 million is a non-starter for me. Not a widespread problem or occurrence. Just a troll. Belgium impressed me for the first time in this tournament last night, and I think it will be a great game between them and Argentina. USA gave an inspired effort, but fell short. The US lacks that little bit of quality we need to be able to beat the big boys. We just need that quality and to combine it with our resilience, spirit, and ability to play as a team and we'll be a football power. The US needed 1, Better play from the wings. Our wingers just weren't good enough at creating any chances or going forward. 2. Quality in the midfield to maintain possession. Jones huffed and puffed, and Bradley is a quality player, but unfortunately he had a poor tournament. Had Bradley played better, we may've been slightly better off, but overall we won't be able to maintain enough possession against top quality opponents until we produce some real top quality midfielders. I still think Bradley is a good player, but I wonder if playing lesser competition in MLS left him unprepared for the opponents in this tournament, as he really is a good player. 3. Finally, Jozy Altidore's injury hurt us. He is the only man who can really play the #9 position, and losing him cost us two players, not one because we had to play Dempsey out of position effectively limiting what another one of our best players could do. It was clear that Wondolowski, Aron Johannson, and Dempsey can't play up top as a lone striker. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_E Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 (edited) From what I have seen of Mertens he is a better footballer than Mirallas but he lacks something between the ears for me. Mirallas isn't the best decision maker in the world but if you give him a chance he generally makes the most of it. Plus I think Argentina would be more worried about his threat in behind than they would with Mertens coming short most of the time. Think Mertens is a much better decision maker than Mirallas. And just a better player tout court. And the more time our best players spend on the pitch, the better chance we have of winning. Thus, Mertens should start. I didn't think Mirallas was particularly impressive yesterday either. Caused some trouble by going by a couple of Americans, with a lot of luck a couple of times, but played with blinders on. Edited July 2, 2014 by Steve_E Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirallas Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 Think Mertens is a much better decision maker than Mirallas. And just a better player tout court. And the more time our best players spend on the pitch, the better chance we have of winning. Thus, Mertens should start. I didn't think Mirallas was particularly impressive yesterday either. Caused some trouble by going by a couple of Americans, with a lot of luck a couple of times, but played with blinders on. And Mertens was more impressive? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_E Posted July 2, 2014 Report Share Posted July 2, 2014 And Mertens was more impressive? I'm not making the decision on the last game. He has to play because he's the better player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bailey Posted July 3, 2014 Report Share Posted July 3, 2014 Think Mertens is a much better decision maker than Mirallas. And just a better player tout court. And the more time our best players spend on the pitch, the better chance we have of winning. Thus, Mertens should start. I didn't think Mirallas was particularly impressive yesterday either. Caused some trouble by going by a couple of Americans, with a lot of luck a couple of times, but played with blinders on. I thought Mirallas did more in the 20 or so minutes of normal time that Mertens had done in the 70 before him. I thought Mirallas was pretty average in ET time mind you, he kept running into trouble. I have only watched Mertens at the WC so I havent seen anything of him prior to that, so whilst he looks a more technical player, I cant say that I have seem him impress in other facet of his game. I'm not making the decision on the last game. He has to play because he's the better player. You sound like Roy Hodgson Matt 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirallas Posted July 3, 2014 Report Share Posted July 3, 2014 I'm not making the decision on the last game. He has to play because he's the better player. Mertens is a weapon, but that's just not how I would use him. Mertens is a speedy little killer, whereas Mirallas is a more of a skillful dribbler who scores just as easily, but can deliver a decent assist too. I also like his interaction with teammates on the field better than Mertens. I'd rather have Mirallas for the majority of the game, only to use Mertens as a projectile to fire at worn out defenses late on in the game. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeO Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 "Very very good game" according to Shearer. I thought it was scrappy as fuck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MC11 Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Klose looked absolutely goosed there Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cornish Steve Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 France really deserve to equalize. Their passing, both close and distance, is quite impressive, and the pace of this game is blistering. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeO Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 "Very very good game" according to Shearer. I thought it was scrappy as fuck. And at the end he says, "We wanted to see better football second half" . Punditry of the highest order Alan . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bailey Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Didn't see the first half but I thought the 2nd half was poor. Apart from Benzema no one else was really putting in the effort and like the last game Matuidi was a huge disappointment. Completely missing, poor decisions offensively and defensively and then almost went hiding. Not sure the subs FROM Deschamps were the wisest either. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
verreauxi Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Pathetic performance from France from about the 65th minute onward. Their body language suggested that they had collectively given up despite a few nice individual attempts. Giroud...what a joke. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve_E Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Hopefully Brazil-Colombia will be a bit more exciting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeO Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Hopefully Brazil-Colombia will be a bit more exciting. It has been. That's the best forty five minutes Brazil have played by a street, Columbia played their part also but maybe a bit of an inferiority complex? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bailey Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 It's certainly been fast and furious! I think Colombia are suffering mentally. They are trying to rush everything when they just need someone with a cool head to pick the right pass. They have had a couple of golden chances to create a great chance but they have screwed them up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Louis Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 This referee has been terrible, he may as well be wearing a Brazil shirt. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirallas Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Go Bacca! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bailey Posted July 4, 2014 Report Share Posted July 4, 2014 Great effort from Colombia but they just didn't have enough quality on the pitch. I think if they had started with the formation they ended with it might have been even closer. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zequist Posted July 5, 2014 Report Share Posted July 5, 2014 Neymar is out for the rest of the tournament with a broken back. Some people were saying earlier in the tournament that he was carrying Brazil on his back in this World Cup - well, we're sure going to find out if that's true. If they can beat Germany without him and without Thiago Silva, there should be no questioning their championship worthiness after that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mirallas Posted July 5, 2014 Report Share Posted July 5, 2014 Neymar is out for the rest of the tournament with a broken back. Some people were saying earlier in the tournament that he was carrying Brazil on his back in this World Cup - well, we're sure going to find out if that's true. If they can beat Germany without him and without Thiago Silva, there should be no questioning their championship worthiness after that. Maybe for the best. Now at least if they lose they will have a good excuse. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
msloan78 Posted July 5, 2014 Report Share Posted July 5, 2014 Dante will probably come in for Thiago Motta and Hernanes or Jo for Neymar. Players like Hulk and Fred have really got to step up if they're going to earn me £40. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
markjazzbassist Posted July 5, 2014 Report Share Posted July 5, 2014 rooting for belgium (since they beat the us) and costa rica (concacaf brethren) today. here's to the underdogs! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeO Posted July 5, 2014 Report Share Posted July 5, 2014 Kev starting ahead of Mertens. Gladly see my tip (Argentina) being wrong on this one! Argentina starting XI: Romero, Garay, Zabaleta, Biglia, Di Maria, Higuain, Messi ©, Mascherano, Demichelis, Lavezzi, Basanta. Belgium starting XI: Courtois, Alderweireld, Kompany ©, Vertonghen, Witsel, De Bruyne, Fellaini, Hazard, Mirallas, Van Buyten, Origi. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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