The World Cup, Germany, and Beer

Sorry, I'm a traitor; I will support Germany when they play the USA. Unless Germany has already qualified for the next round by the time they play the U.S., and then I won't care who wins. I just hope the USA kicks Portugal around and at least ties them.

I'll also be drinking beer in their honor.

 

Cannot wait!

- Is Argentina's path too easy? Spain in the quarters perhaps?
- Will the US make it out? I do not know why, and I am still against Donovan being left off, even if hes not a starter just for the leadership. But if they beat Ghana, I think the slide out of the group. I am also really hoping they just beat Portugal. against Germany? Reuss or no Reuss they are screwed, hell Germany w 10 probably beats the US.
- Am I fooling myself into believing in Holland? yes
- Is the real dark horse Switzerland? Maybe, they have looked strong, but I somehow see them choking and not making it past the group stage. What about Bosnia and Herzegovina (granted I am biased), but I see them making it out of group, and having a chance at making the quarters and losing to Germany. Or even the US, again my dark horse means making quarters, as after that I think it is pretty clear after that (Brasil, Germany, Spain, Argentina)?
Say the US slides through the group in 2nd, they would then most likely face Belgium? Russia? a surprise S Korea?
All of whom I think they could beat, especially after the momentum from having made it out of their group. Granted that is a huge IF...

So being in Germany I will support them, unless they play the US, Bosnia and Herzegovina or Croatia (bias for both based on my wife and visiting every summer).

 

Where to start...

We are all in agreement that Ghana is a must win...and of course hoping that Germany beats Portugal, we would be sitting pretty good at that stage. Many teams have qualified in the past with 4 points, which means that a draw against Portugal, who would then be under huge pressure for a win, would again be an ideal situation. By that stage, we can only hope that Germany has 6 points and play more 2nd stringers where a draw COULD be possible.

In the end, Lady Luck must smile upon you, the Americans relish the underdog/spolier role, I hope that the USA at least makes a good showing and doesn't get whipped somewhere along the line. We had good preparation (having a German as coach = thoroughness) and the talent pool is good and getting better. Jürgen is doing his best to remain unpredictable with formations and line-ups, his mini-trump card.

Here's a great link for friends of Landon Donovan.

Here's to a great tournament!

 

First summer I was in Bamberg was the 1994 World Cup. I used to enjoy telling Germans -- with a complete straight face -- that I believed "the U.S. is going to win it all this year. We've been practicing a lot...." Those of you who have lived there can perhaps imagine the reactions I received.

 

This article in the NY Times gives the reason: Klinsmann's building a team that will truly compete... in the next world cup. Donovan is the old, American way, and Klinsi wants to do things the German way using younger German-Americans who were brought up in the German youth system. I think it's a great approach, and will probably bear fruit in 2018.

 

Those who wear tinfoil hats and build bunkers with large caches of guns, ammo and canned goods think that Jürgen is part of the **** conspiracy to take over America "from within". I would simply be happy with a win against Ghana.

 

Great topic! I’m contractually bound by marriage to support both Germany and the Netherlands, but my heart and soul will (as always) be with the U.S.

As for a dark-horse, I’ll go with Belgium. They really are loaded with young talent, and have one of the best goalkeepers in the world, which goes a long way covering up any mistakes. The Netherlands, on the other hand, I think are rather overrated. They will be lucky to get out of their group (Chile and Spain both look very good).

As for the U.S., well, I think it will be a rough tournament. Portugal, actually, worries me less than Ghana and Germany. But getting 4 points from those 3 teams seems beyond this group of players... But then again, I’m not a big Klinsmann fan. He wants the U.S. to be like Germany, and that doesn’t really fit the athletic culture. Bruce Arena’s comments in the NYTimes article about the solutions to American soccer coming from within rather than Europe seem spot on to me. On top of that, I detest the way Donovan was treated. Whether or not he was capable of helping the team was irrelevant, his dismissal should have been handled with a bit more respect and grace.

As for the beer, I'll be breaking into my stash of American beer that I brought back in March: Jester King and Founder's Breakfast Stout.

 

I'm not sure that Belgium is still considered a dark horse - they are "only" a 25-1 favorite to win the cup.

 

4 points might do it, which is the best case scenario for the US. We might sneak one win in this group, but we're not getting two (unless, as you say, one of these teams completely disintegrates).

The Waldhaus Doppelbock was confusing to me. I'll be interested to hear what you think. I was expecting a "typical" Salvator style dark bock. This ain't that beer... Enjoy!

 

Am I the only one who believes Italy is going to be one of the main favorites? No matter how much their league may have become weaker compared to earlier years, their national team is always strong in tournaments. Just remember: in 2006, that huge betting-scandal was unveiled, some important people were jailed and Juventus had to go down to league two. What did they do? Win the World Cup! After their 2006 win with an old team they struggled a bit, but I believe they are back on track. They made it to the final in the 2012 EURO and played a very good qualification for this tournament now. And, they are our true Angstgegner. We never won a game against Italy in a World Cup...
I'm not sure why Brazil is considered so much a favorite. Only because they're at home? They were disappointing in 2006 and 2010. They surely have a top team now, but it's a young team which has to bear the most public pressure to win the title of all teams.
As @mjtierney2 wrote, the general mood here has become pessimistic. I believe that's a good thing! The general opinion prior to such a tournament is mostly formed by a mass of people who are clueless and don't care about football normally. We have a good generation that would deserve the title and I think they are good enough to make it. They only have to beat Italy, maybe in the final...

 

Game 1 = Skandal. Brazil ain't going far if they play like they did today.

 

Croatia's keeper didnt do anything to help them, but 2 HUGE calls go Brasil's way. The penalty was BS. Why I have been saying for a while all penalty kicks should be reviewed in a booth somewhere, give them 1 min to decide if it should be a pk or not. Then Croatia seemingly have the equalizer and another BS foul call.

I did enjoy an Anderson Valley Gose during the game though

 

Yes :-)

 

Seeing you're from England, you still believe England can be a favorite?