World Cup 2014

Five great penalties, they need to play to hang on for them every game from now on

Costa Rica showed tremendous nerve in the pens. Happy for them, should never have gone to pens.

Kind of feel we all deserve a medal for having been through that together. Maybe even an HBO miniseries.

Call me crazy, but I honestly think Costa Rica might have a shot against the Dutch. I don't currently have any rational arguments to support this, but... come on.

Can't believe the hatred against Greece itt tbh. Greece playing their negative qualities to the fullest is a thing of great beauty.

imma start demanding a medal every time I see Janelle monad in that fuckin ad tbh

they can beat the Netherlands, just gotta believe

Greece were alright tbh. I wouldn't be feeling sorry for them if it were the real Greece.

WBS, of course Costa Rica have a chance against Holland! This is the 2014 WC, nuff said.

Dutch didn't exackly look like a steamroller tonite

Never writing off the Costa RIcans is the new never writing off the Germans. Is I think what I am trying to say.

Can't believe the hatred against Greece itt tbh. Greece playing their negative qualities to the fullest is a thing of great beauty.

― In the airplane over the .CSS (Le Bateau Ivre), Sunday, June 29, 2014 Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Only in Euro '04 iirc.

I've been accepting Joel Campbell getting all the attention as the usual anglocentric nonsense, but for all I know he might not speak English or have ever even been here.

No, in retrospect the 2004 Euro's win of Greece was a victory for the ugly, the cynical, the dark side, the hideous, the 'losers'. I like my world unfair, I like my world where the ugly can win,

Dutch didn't exackly look like a steamroller tonite

Was having a conversation about this during the game - I really think they might have been deliberately slow-walking the first half, pretending to be more affected by the heat than they were, blah blah blah, only to slam it home in the second half. If true (and I have no evidence other than comparing how they played their last game vs. how they played this one), they're evil, but also kinda brilliant.

I don't believe that to be true for a second. We were on a bare thread

focus on Campbell cos til now he looked the legit creator for CR imo

Man. This world cup.

assume Campbell must've been here the odd time

cr defender almost brained his gk for the goal

rooting hard for the island nation of costa rica (tm espn) against holland

What I mean is, there was an ugly beautiful to them in Euro '04. They held it well, and always, after they found a goal from somewhere. Kept their nerve in possession.

I suppose it helped that in the Euros they were always playing a top Euro team whose reputation could do with a pop.

I keep reading CR as Classic Rock, shame on me

Nowt but love for the Greeks here, but through that extra time you couldn't root against Costa Rica. Plus some of Greece's play when going forward was just so incompetent that you're left pulling your hair out.

Costa Rica were actually playing like that '04 Greek side - everything on the line in the penalty box, last ditch clearances a-go-go. That Greek Side were the kings of the white-knuckle rearguard action, and no-one could take them down. Apart from Russia in the group stages for some reason. This said, Costa Rica were reliant on Navas being man of the match, and Greece in 2004 had Nikopolidis in goal, who was pretty much dreadful.

i think van Gaal's tactics are designed to cope with the heat/humidity but if Mexico hadn't've stayed in their own half after they scored i don't think the Dutch wd've won. that final flourish was the result of being given the freedom to keep attacking i think

Mexico could've done with good possession and coolness after they scored, but they totally fell off instead. Lessons from Euro '04 Greece not learnt.

if you don't have the players to stonewall then it's foolishness to try it

dunphy on Belgium to win

NV OTM. I still don't understand why Mexico sunk back as much as they did after they scored. Totally unnecessary, and totally let us get back I to the game. Almost surreal. Maybe it was stage fright?

the fuck is robben doing with that release. fool.

they subbed off dos Santos almost as soon as he'd scored and you knew then they were gonna try and hang on. just tactical - won't say naivety - just bad tactical misjudgement imo

Really bad. Because we were nowhere near being in the match up until then. But after Mexico scored, they all ran backwards 20 yards, leaving massive space in the midfield we hadn't conquered all match. Such a poor tactical decision.

It's 2014's subbing Riquelme

Basically, Mexico scoring saved us. For Mex started to lean back and Van Gaal had a reason to depart from that awful 5-3-2.

Or 2006 subbing Robben

One of my daydream projects is a book profiling the beautiful teams who lose WCs in a cruel fashion. I'm waiting for Colombia's exit before assigning the 2014 slot to Mexico.

Was thinking of starting an Ochoa v Navas poll, but I'll hang on to see what Enyeama does tomorrow night. This said, I can see a possible case for Algeria grinding out something against Germany, but there's no possible way Nigeria can stop France, is there?

It's 2014's subbing Riquelme

Never defend a 1-0 lead. Really really really never defend a 1-1 tie.

xxp oh there's plenty of ways Nigeria can stop France and it's stressing me out. Enyeama could have a fabulous game and just stop everything. Koscielny could work some of his patented magic and leave the game with a red card/pk combo around the 20th minute, Pogba could go ballistic and earn himself a red card.

theres a tiny chance its not france-germany, nothing more

poor old kuyt y'day, first half patrolled the wing with no shade, then 2nd half LVG had him swap wings so he was doing it again!

no point coddling a workhorse

noticed that, like his whole job was to soak up the u/v

bit of the old u/v, a clockworkhorse oraanje

our old friend louis van, rvp all nonsense now

Really don't know how good France are - we should find out today.

'82 fix might spur Algeria coach team talk, but its Germany. No payback today.

ashley young licking his lips for next season when he becomes united's robben/chief penalty getter

fair play

https://uk.eurosport.yahoo.com/blogs/the-rio-report/greece-surprising-request-turning-down-world-cup-bonus-133423113.html?soc_src=mediacontentstory

That alone says a great deal about the importance of integrity and national spirit, even in a sport as high-profile and rabidly-competitive as football.

http://i.imgur.com/69WxLI3.gif