It starts tonight with Argentina-Canada which we may very well lose just to keep the “cabala” (an object or an act believed to bring you good luck.)
If I had to bet I’ll put my money with Uruguay this time around, Brazil is not its usual self and Argentina never wins anything in which it is the favourite (Due to amost-chronic “Victory Disease”).
Colombia may surprise everyone though, they are in rare form.
Priests at an Football Cup inauguration ceremony? WTF?
Is that (Cabala) what happened when Saudi Arabia won in Qatar against Argentina?
Canada has made many mistakes but is playing surprisingly well. Some real chances and, for Canada, impressive ball control. No score at halftime, thanks to some luck and some decent goaltending.
Argentina with the possession but Canada is certainly playing very well, I think they had more chances even.
Just in case I’m switching to the tv I used during the World Cup and sitting in the same place, I don’t believe in cabalas but you never know…
Well… whadayanow? it worked.
Great passes by Messi but obviously the victory is due to my actions thousands of kilometers away…
Canada has a real goaltender. Some good saves, even on a couple Messi breakaways, but ultimately he couldn’t compensate for some serious defensive errors. Still, Canada had some real chances and might easily have had a goal. A respectable effort.
Good thing for Argentina that Frodo was working his ring. Perú won’t be so lucky on Tuesday.
I think it was 50% me and 50% the players, I’m humble like that.
More seriously, did you see the second goal? it was art, shades of Di Maria vs France.
It was perfectly timed. A lovely goal, though in the wrong direction.
A pretty good performance from Canada. The first half especially made you think that on a good day and with a few breaks they could get a result against a team like Argentina. But really, it was closer to Argentina scoring 4 or 5 than Canada getting a draw.
Sure. But this is why Crepeau impressed. And in the first half, I would not say the Argentines looked significantly better.
For a team barely cracking the top fifty, it is a reason to be hopeful.
If Canada had scored some of the opportunities they had in the first half we may have had Saudi Arabia redux, Argentina must improve their defensive coordination or we may not be so lucky next time.
Canadian goalkeeper was the man of the match.
Peru and Chile tied without goals…
US starts today with a game they kinda need to win
I’m on vacation and it kicked off at midnight local so I’m not sure I’ll watch live or not.
USA with a convincing win over Bolivia. Missed a bunch of easy chances, but that hurts a lot less when you still win easily… and a good sign that so many easy chances were generated.
US had two odd halves, though. Two scores in the first half, right at the start and the end of the period, and very little in between - I think they were at about .25 xG on the half.
Second half, though, they registered over 2 xG but never put the ball in the back of the net. I’m sure they were frustrated that they didn’t record more goals, and only 2-0 over the weakest team in the group could come back to haunt them later.
Brazil is really a shadow of their historical selves, ties 0-0 with Costa Rica…
I wouldn’t give them for dead yet, though, cuz I remember Saudi Arabia…
Costa Rica has been underrated outside CONCACAF for a while (remember them topping their WC group with England and Uruguay?), but still, not a great result for Brazil.
True that, but this Costa Rica team is, on paper, far poorer than the one in 2014, their star goalkeeper from that era Keylor Navas is not playing anymore and more than half the team plays in local Costa Rica teams.
On the other hand they had Gustavo “Park an aircraft carrier in the goal, everybody in the back and God as our only forward” Alfaro as a coach, notorious for getting good results with any team.