All three of these games should be super-competitive. With that being said, my predictions:
SUI 0 - 2 POL
WAL 1 - 0 NIR
HRV 2 - 1 PRT
Wales vs. Northern Ireland in the Brexit grudge match! Must-see TV.
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Winner gets to re-join the EU, right there on world-wide television.
They're both part of the U.K. so not really.
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Jokes, man. Jokes.
Since Sinn Fein immediately suggested Irish unification (and thus EU membership, which its populace favored) while Wales voted heavily to Leave, it seems to fit.
Swiss almost coughed up a soft goal right at the start lol
Time for Lewandowski to get it going. Poland got out of the group without him scoring a single goal. That's kind of impressive.
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Neither of these teams have ever gotten out of group? That really surprises me. Aren't both of these teams usually decent at least? Hell, Greece have won this damn thing.
L with stroke is a W, fellas
Want to see the English lose it after the upset.
You're pulling for these guys?
I didn't think they qualified.
Those guys.
Not sure how SUI didn't score there.
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What a goal!
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Goal of the tournament. Fantastic skill!
Great play!
40 years later...Queen still rocking at sporting events around the world.
Me personally, I'd like to see:
Howard
Yedlin - Cameron - Besler - Castillo
Zardes - Jones - Nagbe - Bedoya
Wood - Dempsey
LATE subs to preserve a win Pulisic for Dempsey, Beckerman for Jones, Orozco for Zardes or Nagbe.
....there is no reason to mail it in versus a top team. You take the win if you can earn it. That said, I have no interest seeing Bradley in this game. We know what he is and what he'll always be - he can be effective versus the slower teams that pack it in, but he has no business being on the field that play with any type of pace, movement or creativity. Give Nagbe a shot in his role.
Plus, Bradley bitched about having to play in a third place game when he was interviewed after the Argentina fiasco.
So let someone play who really wants to play.
PK's for SUI-POL
Polska wins!
Bums me out that these matches can come down to penalty kicks. I'd be a bigger soccer fan if they'd play sudden death until a winner was decided on the field. Take a couple players off every few minutes if need be. I'd rather see a team advance while playing 8 on 8 than on penalty kicks.
I didn't particularly have a rooting interest here. I'd just like to see the better team advance by virtue of a winning football play.
Has to be one of my favorite announcers in all of sports
I would listen to Ian Darke broadcast Purdue-Rutgers Water Polo.
How are the only two Welshman we know both named Bale?
Wales doesn't have that many last names.
It is fairly well known that there are relatively few Welsh surnames. In fact Professor Hartmann (Americans from Wales, 1967) concludes that "Some thirty-nine surnames include about 95 per cent of the Welsh, wherever they are found"
but sometimes nothing happens for an hour
I played defense for my club team throughout my youth and that was my biggest fear in defending a cross. I hated that and watching the far post. Never trusted my own touch.
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Agreed, and it's tough the way soccer scores that. It was much more of a good pass by Bale than a "mistake" by the defender.
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And Wales advances!
They will be partying all night in Wales.
First the EU kiss-off and now this.
Don't fuck with Wales.
Croatia is gonna spend half this game flopping, or complaining to the ref. Srna is one of the worst for that.
That Nani dive was the worst.
Dislike the diving on both sides.
Just needed to get the ball in the open goal.
OT, but funny: my mom is watching the Nats game, and becoming more and more disgusted with them. "They should leave Gio in there until he throws his arm out, and then fire him."
The only reason there so much flopping in soccer is because the refs keep blowing the whistle every time a player dives. If they'd stop calling it, players would stop trying it.
Exactly.
When you flop, you put yourself a man down. If the refs just ignore it and play on, it will stop.
they usually dive when they realize they can't get to the ball, so being "a man down" while the ball goes out for a goal kick is not much of a deterrent. The refs would have to clamp down on it an equivalent amount that they totally blow penalty kills, for example a red card every time it happens
ya'll act like there's not diving and whining to the refs (WRs) and faking injuries (defenders) in football and other 'american' sports. Basketball is especially outrageous with the foul calls
Damn, Portugal scored at 117
Ohhhhh wow, and the Croatia player is probably still appealing to the ref for his flop, instead of playing a little fucking harder.
So, what's your deal with Croatia? I may be a little biased, but every team is guilty of flopping. And there are lot a more egregious floppers than Croatia.
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It just happened to be a Croatia game, I was cheering my ass off for them against Spain because I've always loved Rakitic and Badelj, but hate Srna, and Nani to be fair.
Croatia had their chances. Vida had several chances himself.
Wanna see Ronaldo in the semis
What a gutsy win for Portugal. A very evenly matched game with both teams having a lot of respect for the other.
Having an underwhelming group stage might have been just what they needed to damper expectations and take some pressure off of them.
I think they beat Poland and are in to the semi's!