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Topic Originator: GG Riva
Date: Sun 28 Jun 11:04
Well, that`s the group stages out of the way. I thought they might be tedious and made a decision before the tournament that, other than the Scotland games, I`d watch the BBC highlights first thing in the morning without knowing the score. It`s worked out pretty well. I`ve enjoyed nearly all the highlights, not so much the Scotland games.
I was struck by how full the stadia appeared to be at almost every game, in spite of the sky high prices for admission, accommodation, and travelling to each venue. Was there no segregation? Fans wearing their country`s colours appeared to be randomly scattered around the grounds.
Last but not least, it wasn`t difficult to see that many of the stars so far have been players with black African ethnic roots. Not only are they fantatically talented footballers, they are also strong, fast, mobile and skillful. African countries are now better coached at these tournaments and a good number have made it through to the knockout stages. The only thing stopping one of them winning the WC is that many non African countries are able to field black players themselves.
Not your average Sunday League player.
Post Edited (Mon 29 Jun 06:11)
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Topic Originator: Dave_1885
Date: Sun 28 Jun 11:35
Own nations governing bodies given tickets behind the goals at either end, same as the Euros. The rest of the stadium is general sale, so the no segregation is anyone thats bought through FIFA ticketing. Don’t think the games have been sell outs, like FIFA keeps claiming. Camera angles will be helping with that impression though.
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Topic Originator: parsmad68
Date: Sun 28 Jun 11:38
Quote:
Dave_1885, Sun 28 Jun 11:35
Own nations governing bodies given tickets behind the goals at either end, same as the Euros. The rest of the stadium is general sale, so the no segregation is anyone thats bought through FIFA ticketing. Don’t think the games have been sell outs, like FIFA keeps claiming. Camera angles will be helping with that impression though.
I was there. Definitely NOT sellouts. Or at least lots of empty seats.
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Topic Originator: PeachtreePar
Date: Sun 28 Jun 12:24
While none of the African nations won their groups they definitely have brought a bit of colour to the World Cup. Quite impressive that so many qualified for the last 32. I think only Tunisia didn’t qualify.
Appreciate the Tartan Army for all the goodwill they left behind. I’ve had lots of American friends and colleagues mention it. I know it must be disappointing that we didn’t qualify again out of the group stage but it was tall order to get points from the #6 and #7 ranked FIFA teams. It needed them to not play well but the gulf in quality just too much. Perhaps it was the manner of the defeats, although only saw two of the matches and missed the Brazil game. It’s not like we can go out and buy a striker in the transfer market.
I am going to the England v DR Congo game on Wednesday. Two tickets for a hospitality suite. Looking forward to it but where I’m going to get a DR Congo shirt at the last minute I don’t know. I know a little bit of French but I might stick out like a sore thumb!
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Topic Originator: kozmasrightfoot
Date: Sun 28 Jun 19:49
I`ve observed that many of the more striking (no pun intended) goals have been the same, s player cuts in a step from left/right and curls into the far corner. Loads of identical but lovely goals.
Pars fan.
Magpies fan.
Mens tennis fan.
Alternative rock fan.
Not a fan of much else.
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Topic Originator: TAFKA_Super_Petrie
Date: Sun 28 Jun 21:27
Quote:
Dave_1885, Sun 28 Jun 11:35
Own nations governing bodies given tickets behind the goals at either end, same as the Euros. The rest of the stadium is general sale, so the no segregation is anyone thats bought through FIFA ticketing. Don’t think the games have been sell outs, like FIFA keeps claiming. Camera angles will be helping with that impression though.
Was wondering about this. Are these the ones in lime green bibs behind goals in some of the games? Notice it empties with five minutes still to play.
---------------------------------------------------------------
"People always talk about Ronaldinho and magic, but I didn't see him today. I saw Henrik Larsson; that's where the magic was."
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Topic Originator: red-star-par
Date: Sun 28 Jun 22:24
Quote:
kozmasrightfoot, Sun 28 Jun 19:49
I`ve observed that many of the more striking (no pun intended) goals have been the same, s player cuts in a step from left/right and curls into the far corner. Loads of identical but lovely goals.
All graduates of the Joe Cardle Coaching Academy
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Topic Originator: GG Riva
Date: Mon 29 Jun 06:18
I`ve changed the thread title to WC Impressions as that is probably more accurate.
Another impression I`ve formed is that most of the stars on show are either current or past Premier League players, and no doubt those numbers will almost certainly increase over the summer as the wealthy elite clubs reach for their cheque books.
Not your average Sunday League player.
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Topic Originator: parsfan
Date: Mon 29 Jun 06:37
I`ve not seen that much beyond the Scotland games. One thing I`ve noticed a couple of times, in a real throw back to the past, is refs with a packet of fags tucked into short sleeves.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
The universe is ruled by chance and indifference
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Topic Originator: SeasonedPar
Date: Mon 29 Jun 09:19
Looking at the goals of the tournament so far, I’m struck by the number of fantastic shots from outside the box.
Compare that to Scotland. Timid, slow build up, players turning back inside, playing square or safe balls backward. Steve Clarke bawling at them in the 2nd half v Brazil “take your man on”!
Lack of confidence, frightened to make another mistake which would lead to a goal? A few more shots would’ve been great to see, but they’d need to move the ball quicker to create space.
Steve Clarke getting a lot of stick and players need to look at themselves too. Win as a team, lose as a team.
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Topic Originator: wee eck
Date: Mon 29 Jun 09:33
There`s an article on the BBC Sport website describing how the SFA went to great lengths providing the players with everything they asked for regarding accommodation and facilities, etc. Apparently this was not the case two years ago when the Euros were in Germany and it was hoped these improvements would help boost morale, team spirit and performances. It obviously hasn`t worked.
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Topic Originator: Raymie the Legend
Date: Mon 29 Jun 09:54
I’ve been impressed with refs waving away claims for fouls, where there has been minimal or no contact. It’s amazing how these players make miraculous recoveries when they see the ref waving play on.
Domestic refs. Please take note.
It`s bloody tough being a legend
Ron Atkinson - 1983
Post Edited (Mon 29 Jun 09:54)
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Topic Originator: SeasonedPar
Date: Mon 29 Jun 10:12
This is the article Wee Eck. A very interesting read. Can someone do the clicky thing?
Pampered, protected & primed - so why didn`t Scotland players perform? https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/articles/cdr4nz0m74go
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Topic Originator: RhinoPars
Date: Mon 29 Jun 10:40
Quote:
Raymie the Legend, Mon 29 Jun 09:54
I’ve been impressed with refs waving away claims for fouls, where there has been minimal or no contact. It’s amazing how these players make miraculous recoveries when they see the ref waving play on.
Domestic refs. Please take note.
My thoughts too. It is nice that more refs are letting the game flow and not blowing up every minor contact. Credit to VAR ref in last night’s South Africa vs Canada game who rightly disallowed a Canadian penalty claim when Canadian player moved his one leg sidewise to manufacture contact and then go down.
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Topic Originator: neilholland999
Date: Mon 29 Jun 11:11
Quote:
wee eck, Mon 29 Jun 09:33
There`s an article on the BBC Sport website describing how the SFA went to great lengths providing the players with everything they asked for regarding accommodation and facilities, etc. Apparently this was not the case two years ago when the Euros were in Germany and it was hoped these improvements would help boost morale, team spirit and performances. It obviously hasn`t worked.
The ridiculous errors at the back are what cost us, not the morale, team spirit or performance levels. Getting off to a decent start in the morocco and brazil matches would have given us a bit more confidence in what we were doing imo.
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Topic Originator: wee eck
Date: Mon 29 Jun 11:24
It must be a manager/coach`s nightmare not being able to legislate for individual errors, especially from seasoned pros.
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Topic Originator: SeasonedPar
Date: Mon 29 Jun 12:39
Clarke was clearly frustrated we weren’t getting g up the park fast enough. Might be a reason for his decision?
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Topic Originator: Indiapar1
Date: Mon 29 Jun 12:53
I think there is a big difference in terms of a strategy to qualify, a strategy to get through tge group stages and the knockouts. Most teams seem to go for a quick start and look for a goal early, something we sucumbed to. Ultimately playing safe football doesnt always win you games paricularly against good sides. The loss to Brazil is one thing but it was all over bar the shouting with the loss to Morocco. We had a tough group at the end of the day, but really needed two great performances in the first two games. Alot of if, buts and maybes but really the truth is we were good enough to qualify but not progress any further.
G Wardrope
Post Edited (Mon 29 Jun 15:49)
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Topic Originator: Stanza
Date: Mon 29 Jun 15:16
Before the group stages, Opta statisticians said that getting 3 points would give a 67% chance of qualification, and even a 3rd place team with 3 points and a -3 GD still had a 42% chance of getting through. This may have influenced the thinking of Scotland`s management.
In the event, six teams finished with 3 points. Cape Verde came 2nd in their group, 4 teams came 3rd and Turkey came 4th. Only Cape Verde and Senegal qualified - a 33% success rate.
Really, our losing to Morocco and Brazil was to be expected, and on their own the 0-1 and 0-3 were probably not too bad. But Senegal took the last 3rd place qualifier spot with a positive GD (+2). For Scotland to have pipped Senegal we would need to have beaten Haiti by 7 goals, which was never going to happen.
Perhaps we were doomed before we started. Hindsight gives perfect vision ...
_________________
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Topic Originator: fcda
Date: Mon 29 Jun 15:22
It`s probably a bit of a flaw in that, by the time Senegal played, they had a much clearer picture of what was required than we did.
They previously changed the schedule to ensure the final group games were played at the same time, avoiding any unfair advantage.
Having best placed 3rd teams makes that more difficult to arrange.
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Topic Originator: wee eck
Date: Mon 29 Jun 15:31
It`s not as if Haiti were an easy touch. They gave Morocco a game and Brazil only scored three against them.
I doubt that these Opta forecasts took into account of the likelihood that some teams would not necessarily play their strongest selection if they knew they had qualified while other teams could have the advantage of knowing exactlly what result was required for success.
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Topic Originator: DunfyDave
Date: Mon 29 Jun 16:42
Quote:
Stanza, Mon 29 Jun 15:16
Before the group stages, Opta statisticians said that getting 3 points would give a 67% chance of qualification, and even a 3rd place team with 3 points and a -3 GD still had a 42% chance of getting through. This may have influenced the thinking of Scotland`s management.
In the event, six teams finished with 3 points. Cape Verde came 2nd in their group, 4 teams came 3rd and Turkey came 4th. Only Cape Verde and Senegal qualified - a 33% success rate.
Really, our losing to Morocco and Brazil was to be expected, and on their own the 0-1 and 0-3 were probably not too bad. But Senegal took the last 3rd place qualifier spot with a positive GD (+2). For Scotland to have pipped Senegal we would need to have beaten Haiti by 7 goals, which was never going to happen.
Perhaps we were doomed before we started. Hindsight gives perfect vision ...
^^^ Well summarised Stanza. That`s summary gives true perspective
DunfyDave
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Topic Originator: red-star-par
Date: Mon 29 Jun 17:40
See even right after the final whistle, looking at all the results we needed to go our way, I still thought there was a fair chance that some of them could happen, but pretty much every one of them went against us. We really needed a bit of luck against Morocco- we were always up against it with 2 very good sides in the group.
At least with Clarke gone we won`t need to worry about reaching the finals for a generation. A lot of us will never see Scotland in the World Cup again
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Topic Originator: USMac
Date: Wed 1 Jul 13:44
None of the 3 teams in either of Groups E and F that qualified for the knockout round made it past the round of 32. The top 2 teams in F were paired against the top 2 teams in C.
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Topic Originator: ipswichpar
Date: Wed 1 Jul 14:19
Apparently there were 495 possible fixtures for the round of 32 by the time you work through all the different options.
All driven by the fact that it wasn`t as simple as the numbers weren`t a power of 2.
Need to get back to 32 teams next time as this approach doesn`t seem to add anything much more than FIFA trying to rinse the fans as much as they can.
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Topic Originator: wee eck
Date: Wed 1 Jul 14:33
It gives the fans of more countries the opportunity to see their team play at a WC finals tournament. Part of FIFA`s remit is to grow the game throughout the world surely? You can hardly sing the praises of teams like Cape Verde then say there are too many teams there.
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Topic Originator: GG Riva
Date: Wed 1 Jul 14:42
Quote:
ipswichpar, Wed 1 Jul 14:19
Apparently there were 495 possible fixtures for the round of 32 by the time you work through all the different options.
All driven by the fact that it wasn`t as simple as the numbers weren`t a power of 2.
Need to get back to 32 teams next time as this approach doesn`t seem to add anything much more than FIFA trying to rinse the fans as much as they can.
While I agree that the WC is far too bloated with 48 teams and playing 72 games to eliminate 16 teams is farcical, it does produce more live games, or less "dead rubbers" if you prefer.
Not your average Sunday League player.
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Topic Originator: DunfyDave
Date: Wed 1 Jul 15:02
Quote:
GG Riva, Wed 1 Jul 14:42
Quote:
ipswichpar, Wed 1 Jul 14:19
Apparently there were 495 possible fixtures for the round of 32 by the time you work through all the different options.
All driven by the fact that it wasn`t as simple as the numbers weren`t a power of 2.
Need to get back to 32 teams next time as this approach doesn`t seem to add anything much more than FIFA trying to rinse the fans as much as they can.
While I agree that the WC is far too bloated with 48 teams and playing 72 games to eliminate 16 teams is farcical, it does produce more live games, or less "dead rubbers" if you prefer.
^^^ I am actually OK with it. More games = More fun
It also gives smaller nations a wee taste at the big table. Cape Verde etc
FIFA, as much as I detest them, did OK with this.
DunfyDave
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Topic Originator: Playup_Pompey
Date: Wed 1 Jul 16:20
After we played we needed 4 results to go out way in the remaining games. in the end 1 of them happened. Absolutely wild, but the damage was done conceding against Morocco and whilst i dont think we played badly we showed too much respect and played infront of our own 18 yard box rather than at halway line or try pin them in. we lost all shape because KT was put on a man Marking job on Haikimi.
Regarding the preparations and stats etc there is huge details available showing we have outperformed etc based on previous tournments and not sure if Digs still posts on here but he has shared plenty details based on the fact his boy was out there with the team as one of the sport scientists. I travelled over for the bolivia friendly and we certainly looked much better prepared than we were going into Germany 2 years ago.
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