World Cup 2014

If it's luck, it's incredible luck.

Purely guessing 50/50 5 times in a row is a 1/32 chance, 3%. Even if you improve the odds to 2/3 per kick by knowing tendencies or some process of psyching out the shooters, 5 times in a row is still only 13%.

Meanwhile you can watch the CR kicks and pause them at the moment the ball is struck, Krul is still crouched upright, with his head centred above his feet. He hasn't moved yet. Do the same for Navas, he's got both feet to one side and he's already stretching one way or the other (and he guessed wrong 2/4 times, just as you'd expect). I can post screenshots if you want.

If Krul was so confident about forcing the shooter's hand by making his little promenade around the box, why would he be late off the line? And shouldn't he have saved the 4th kick? It was struck not far from his starting position, several feet inside the post, would've been easy to get over there if he could anticipate where it was going.

a hundred xposts to LBI re Brilliant Orange

I'm only a little ways in, but it's kind of fascinating. As much a cultural overview, he ties a lot into art, architecture & societal stuff. i think I enjoy the specific football stuff more, even though I find the broad perspective interesting. I love the early stuff about Ajax, I dont really know any of that so it's had me on a few fun youtube rabbitholes, like Johan Cryuff (!!!! holy shit !!!!)

Brilliant Orange is amazing.

"or some process of psyching out the shooters"

Kurt the fucking trash-talker

I mean where was the ref?

Navas, guessing -- Robben's penalty, keeper's head to the left of both of his feet when struck:
http://i.imgur.com/lSd2klb.png
http://i.imgur.com/TEVx8Bu.png

Krul, not guessing -- 2 separate penalties, keeper's head centred above feet when struck:
http://i.imgur.com/u1ibhOL.png
http://i.imgur.com/lWsB5eh.png

Navas, moving early, stretching nearly to the post:
http://i.imgur.com/kNFSv08.png
http://i.imgur.com/2CtBadc.png

Krul, moving late, failing to reach a shot well inside the post:
http://i.imgur.com/aFH4MwI.png
http://i.imgur.com/97n50W3.png
http://i.imgur.com/cA3hnj0.png

has krul any previous as heel cos i hadn't really noticed

classic dutchman steez otoh i spose

say what u like about him but unlike every other recent penalty save hero at least he stayed on his fecking line

As a goalie I gotta say, Krul's committed in both of those. His weight is going in the direction of dive; it's physically impossible for him to go the other way.

What he's done is cater for a more central or high penalty on that side. More importantly, he hasn't revealed his direction (see: Julio Cesar vs Colombia) by diving early. But he has decided on the direction. Exemplary penalty goalkeeping tbh

Not expecting it but would be v glad if Holland-Arg is as good as their 1998 WC game with the denisbergkampdenisbergkampdenisbergkamp winner. Really love the dutch opener in that game as well, a lovely headed thru ball. Ah the days when Ariel Ortega was the new Maradona...

http://abload.de/img/lvgfyjt4.gif

lol that was meant to be this

http://giant.gfycat.com/GroundedSatisfiedDoe.gif

lol

http://www.sbnation.com/soccer/2014/7/5/5872761/tim-howard-can-even-stop-hugs-from-annoying-people

Next year it's the women's world cup in Canada, by the way - and this is the mascot ("Shuéme, the young female Great White Owl")

http://www.fifa.com/mm//Photo/Tournament/Competition/02/37/45/87/2374587_FULL-LND.jpg

http://abload.de/img/lvgfyjt4.gif

vs

http://www.txssa.org/images/blog-photos/2012/09/07/dan%20and%20laura%20dotson.jpg?Status=Master&sfvrsn=0

Second one is Diego Armando, no? Still not recognizing the first one, sorry

First one is van Gaal, second is Dan Dotson off Storage Wars.

thanks. Van Gaal's head doesn't look so big there, more like Neil Patrick Harris than David Lynch.

lol at me thinking other guy was Maradona.

Imago, I see what you mean. He shifts his weight on Bolanos's (#7) penalty, so he wouldn't be able to jump the other way. You can see he's leaning to his right because his left leg is straight. But by staying closer to a neutral position he could better account for a central or high shot.

That's not the case on Ruiz's penalty though, the image above with the left-footed shooter. Both of Krul's knees are bent, his centre of gravity is midline.

Again there, Krul doesn't get anywhere near reaching the post but the shot is well inside and he's able to save it:

http://cdn1.independent.ie/sport/soccer/article30409651.ece/07180/ALTERNATES/h342/D-M59-NED-CRC_281_Cropped.jpg

A better technique for shooters facing Krul would be not to try to fool him or psych him out but just to place the shot right inside either post. Don't think he'd ever get close to saving a shot placed far enough away from him, even if he guesses right, because he physically wouldn't be able to stretch that distance in time given that he's not jumping early.

that van Gaal gif is apparently from a Pride parade

yup

http://giant.gfycat.com/SpiffyFragrantGreyhounddog.gif

http://i.imgur.com/pO8eHRl.jpg

Holland are the last of the big boys not to have won it, but you could argue that, relative to size, footballing tradition and level of support, Russia are the single biggest underachievers on the world stage. Say what you like about the US but at least they have the mitigating factor of not really giving a shit.

It's totally Russia. If it wasn't for 1966 it'd be England though.

I suppose it would've been Spain until six years ago

I would say Mexico, except they've never gotten past the 16 as far as I know. Lots of money, good league, history, tradition, it's sort of smaxzing they have achieved less than Uruguay, at the very least.

Smaxzing = amazing but I kinda want to let that stand

turkey have an odd but overall surprisingly poor record

teams that have never won it in the top 20 of current FIFA rankings
7 of the 8 previous winners are in the top 10, with France at 17.
Switzerland will never win this thing, c'mon ...

4 Portugal
6 Switzerland
8 Colombia
11 Belgium
12 Greece
13 USA
14 Chile
15 Netherlands
16 Ukraine
18 Croatia
19 Russia
20 Mexico

and the neymar on painkillers fairytale final rumours begin #http://www.iua.upf.edu/formats/formats2/nike.jpg

You'd have said the same about Belgium, but in 2018 they'll be one of the most-feared teams xp

lol rtc

just as well di Stefano's not brazilian

How in gods name are we ranked above the Netherlands

It's tough to find a rooting interest in the remaining teams. I think I'm going with Brazil given the Neymar injury. I just really hope Netherlands don't win.

I'd like to see Argenttina win it. I think we can all agree that Messi deserves a World Cup at this stage.

In order of preference, Germany-Holland-Argentina-Brazil. Could never begrudge Messi being a WC winner and England having a WC win while Holland doesn't seems wrong somehow.

England?

It's a country situated on an island on the edge of western Europe. Part of the United Kingdom

in order of preference Argentina ------------ Brazil - don't care

"How in gods name are we ranked above the Netherlands"

FIFA rankings are pretty crazy.

FIFA rankings have had US as the FOURTH best team in my lifetime which basically no one in their right mind thinks has ever actually been the case.

Dutch the obv team to root for out of what's left

cpt navajotm

xp http://i466.photobucket.com/albums/rr22/alexandralay/gifs/bump.gif

merte&lukas&ozil>messi>robben>hulk

hooray for the three least impressive components of the german side

Seeing tweets that the head of FIFA's hospitality partner has been arrested in a police action against ticket scalping in Rio.

thought BRA-GER was today :(

https://twitter.com/TitiCamara22/statuses/486235993742520320