| Marcus007 |
| quote: | Originally posted by Epicurus
hahahahaha...ok there BUDDY. Seriously, you still haven't got a clue. If you've been watching football for so long, as you claim, then surely, you'd recognize the fact that a brilliant display in one or two games in the first round by any team is absolutely meaningless, regardless of the supposed quality of the opposition, and that the supposed struggles by another team this early are equally meaningless.
But instead of meandering in the world of the abstract, I'll give you a concrete example: World cup 1982, in Spain. Brazil, then with the likes of Zico, Socrates, Falcao, Junior, Eder (etc), and headed by one of the greatest coches of all-time, Tele Santana, was a very heavy favourite to take the cup. In their first FOUR matches, they outclassed the opposition so badly that absolutely NO ONE doubted for a second that they would win the cup. Their results were 2-1 vs. Soviet Union (a great side back then), 4-1 vs. Scotland, 4-0 vs. New Zealand and 3-1 vs. Argentina (the defending champs). Not only were their results convincing, but their beautiful play was even more highly regarded. If you think Argentina put on a clinic in that Serbia game, I invite you to get some old footage from '82 and watch that team. You'll be floored. On the flip side, the Italian team BARELY made if out of the first round with three draws, and only went through on goal difference. Back then as well, a great player for Italy, Paolo Rossi, had struggled mightily with his form since he had been suspended for two years beforhand, and was about to be benched with 0 goals in 4 games before the Italian coach gave him a last chance against Brazil. The rest is history, with Italy beating Brazil 3-2, Rossi netting a hat trick, and Italy going on to win their 3rd world cup with Rossi finishing with 6 goals and securing the golden boot.
All this to say: temper your excitement. Results at this stage mean absolutely nothing. Great teams have a knack for getting better as the tournament progresses, just as supposed favourites often get shocked regardless of how well they've been playing.
Finally, as for your ignorant and unoriginal comment about cheering for Brazil, I've been cheering for them since I layed eyes on Zico in '82, when I first started watching football at the age of 4. I had to sit through '86 and '90 in agony as the Brazilian team lost in the quarters and the 2nd round. Not until '94 did I get to celebrate their first victory since '70. I won't even get into '98. So until further notice, you remain in my eyes a footballing n00b. Till next time. |
JESUS CHRIST YOU ARE SO ING ELOQUENT! YOU!
(edit: I miss you Nick :/) |
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