# World Cup 2018 **URL:** \ **Category:** The Game Room\ **Created:** [June 7, 2018, 6:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615 "2018-06-07T18:09:16Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [June 9, 2018, 10:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/61 "2018-06-09T22:18:33Z")
League: SDMB WC 2018 Code: 1552590-76630 If anyone has a problem joining please let me know. ---
**Author:** ![dalej42](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/67e7ee/32.png) [@dalej42](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/dalej42)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/62 "2018-06-10T00:32:28Z")
Admittedly, I don’t follow the Mexican team that closely, but they’re getting beat 2-0 by Denmark in a friendly right now. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 12:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/63 "2018-06-10T00:55:33Z")
> [@dalej42](#): > > Admittedly, I don’t follow the Mexican team that closely, but they’re getting beat 2-0 by Denmark in a friendly right now. That’s bad news for the Mexicans as they open next Sunday against Germany and will have to beat out Sweden and South Korea to advance…for a likely round of 16 match against Brazil. 😛 The USA looked great against France. Its too bad that this wasn’t the team we fielded in qualifying. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 5:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/64 "2018-06-10T05:42:14Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > This is a ridiculous list. Some of those players are wingers, others AMC. Kloses job required size strength and quickness being a lone striker. Many others played on talented sides and didn’t produce. He is a Jack Morris type who gave his best efforts on the biggest stage; a stage that crushes others. Are you defending Klose by comparing him to Jack Morris? That makes him an above average striker, but not really elite. Yeah, second tier. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 6:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/65 "2018-06-10T06:27:32Z")
We all acknowledge that Messi is an elite striker yet he has only scored 5 WC goals and none in the knockout stage. Klose delivered consistently on the world’s largest footie stage. While Germany have been in the top tier of teams why hasnt any other striker produced like him since OG Ronaldo? ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 8:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/66 "2018-06-10T08:20:14Z")
Well, out and out strikers are a rare bird these days. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/67 "2018-06-10T16:26:08Z")
Among people that have scored at least 5 goals at the world cup, Klose is 41st in scoring rate (9 of which have played in at least one of the same WCs as Klose). The reason he has scored the most goals is, for the third or fourth time, that he’s played so many games because Germany has had very poor alternative options. A secondary reason is that the World Cup is a small sample size. Scoring above your long term skill level is definitely possible over the course of 24 games. (People call this clutch, but statistical analysis of several different sports shows this is an after the fact justification i.e. a myth) Klose’s 500+ career games tell the real tale of his value. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 4:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/68 "2018-06-10T16:37:52Z")
Neymar scored a great goal this morning. I think he’s ready and raring to go. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/69 "2018-06-10T16:57:56Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > That’s bad news for the Mexicans as they open next Sunday against Germany and will have to beat out Sweden and South Korea to advance…for a likely round of 16 match against Brazil. 😛 > > The USA looked great against France. Its too bad that this wasn’t the team we fielded in qualifying. They’re friendlies so we need to limit our conclusions – see the US result yesterday for proof – but this is not great for Mexico because I think Sweden is just as strong as Denmark. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [June 10, 2018, 5:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/70 "2018-06-10T17:40:19Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Neymar scored a great goal this morning. I think he’s ready and raring to go. The whole team looked great, and on the road against Austria, who had been playing very well. I watched just about every Brazil match in CONMEBOL qualification and saw how quickly they evolved under Tite. But I haven’t watched much of the German team lately. How have they looked? ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2018, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/71 "2018-06-11T00:21:06Z")
> [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > The whole team looked great, and on the road against Austria, who had been playing very well. I watched just about every Brazil match in CONMEBOL qualification and saw how quickly they evolved under Tite. But I haven’t watched much of the German team lately. How have they looked? This year no so great, they’re 1-1-2 including a loss to that Austria team. In 2017 they were undefeated. IMO their squad is stronger than last time around, they’re my favorites for the tournament. ---
**Author:** ![mcgato](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/ac8455/32.png) [@mcgato](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mcgato)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2018, 1:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/72 "2018-06-11T13:12:49Z")
I vote that we stop the Klose discussion. What are the odds that Suarez bites someone during the world cup? ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [June 11, 2018, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/73 "2018-06-11T14:46:55Z")
I am warming to Group H because it not only has a few Southampton guys in it (and former ones like Sadio Mane) but it seems the one most likely to produce the most chaos. It seems like any of the four could finish first or finish fourth. (Columbia, Poland, Japan, Senegal) I’m getting a little pumped. ---
**Author:** ![Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/9de053/32.png) [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackknifed_Juggernaut)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 3:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/74 "2018-06-12T15:28:33Z")
So Goldman Sachs just sent me their 50-page paper on “The World Cup and Economics” that was published yesterday. Here is a summary of their conclusion: “After hours of number crunching, 200,000 probability trees, and 1 million simulations, some of the results are strikingly intuitive: England meets Germany in the quarters, where Germany wins; and Germany meets Brazil in the final, and Brazil prevails.” Cutting to the chase, in the QF, they have France \> Spain, Brazil \> Belgium, Portugal \> Argentina and Germany \> England. That 3rd match would probably be the most watched match in history. In the semis (with the expected scores), Brazil 1.51 - France 1.22 and Germany 1.39 - Portugal 1.25. In the Final, Brazil 1.70 - Germany 1.41 Team of the tournament: DeGea/Kimmich-Ramos-Hummels-Marcelo/De Bruyne-Coutinho-Kroos/Messi-Ronaldo-Neymar ETA: I assume that a defensive midfielder would be needed, but I guess Busquets and Casemiro aren’t sexy enough for a TOTT. ---
**Author:** ![Dale\_Sams](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/779978/32.png) [@Dale\_Sams](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dale_Sams)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 4:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/75 "2018-06-12T16:08:15Z")
> [@madsircool](#): > > That’s bad news for the Mexicans as they open next Sunday against Germany and will have to beat out Sweden and South Korea to advance…for a likely round of 16 match against Brazil. 😛 > > The USA looked great against France. Its too bad that this wasn’t the team we fielded in qualifying. I thought they looked like utter shite. Gave France way too much space. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 4:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/76 "2018-06-12T16:26:38Z")
> [@Jackknifed\_Juggernaut](#): > > So Goldman Sachs just sent me their 50-page paper on “The World Cup and Economics” that was published yesterday. Here is a summary of their conclusion: > > “After hours of number crunching, 200,000 probability trees, and 1 million simulations, some of the results are strikingly intuitive: England meets Germany in the quarters, where Germany wins; and Germany meets Brazil in the final, and Brazil prevails.” > > Cutting to the chase, in the QF, they have France \> Spain, Brazil \> Belgium, Portugal \> Argentina and Germany \> England. That 3rd match would probably be the most watched match in history. > > In the semis (with the expected scores), Brazil 1.51 - France 1.22 and Germany 1.39 - Portugal 1.25. > > In the Final, Brazil 1.70 - Germany 1.41 > > Team of the tournament: DeGea/Kimmich-Ramos-Hummels-Marcelo/De Bruyne-Coutinho-Kroos/Messi-Ronaldo-Neymar > > ETA: I assume that a defensive midfielder would be needed, but I guess Busquets and Casemiro aren’t sexy enough for a TOTT. Looks to me like the massively overrate Portugal. Winning the group, beating Argentina, and being close in skill to Germany are all stretches, IMO. Kroos can play as a defensive or box to box midfielder. Probably would a true defensive midfielder given that those front 3 aren’t going to contribute a huge amount defensively, but team of the tournament isn’t about a cohesive unit, is it? If it’s just the best 11, then that’s a pretty solid lineup. ---
**Author:** ![madsircool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/madsircool/32/3432_2.png) [@madsircool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/madsircool)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/77 "2018-06-12T17:32:56Z")
> [@Dale\_Sams](#): > > I thought they looked like utter shite. Gave France way too much space. A USA team made up of mostly young players draws against Frances stars…in France. If that is what utter shot looks like ill take it anytime. ---
**Author:** ![Red\_Wiggler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/red_wiggler/32/13190_2.png) [@Red\_Wiggler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Red_Wiggler)\ **Post date:** [June 12, 2018, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/78 "2018-06-12T20:42:25Z")
Yes, a little perspective might be in order. I think the starting lineup for the U.S. in France Saturday had a combined 84 caps or thereabouts. ---
**Author:** ![Snarky\_Kong](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/a183cd/32.png) [@Snarky\_Kong](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snarky_Kong)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/79 "2018-06-13T01:32:30Z")
> [@Snarky\_Kong](#): > > Kroos can play as a defensive or box to box midfielder. Probably would a true defensive midfielder given that those front 3 aren’t going to contribute a huge amount defensively, but team of the tournament isn’t about a cohesive unit, is it? If it’s just the best 11, then that’s a pretty solid lineup. ESPN’s best XI is balanced more like an actual team. De Gea - Marcela/Ramos/Hummels/Kimmich - Kroos/Kante/de Bruyne - Messi/Lewandowski/Ronaldo. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [June 13, 2018, 10:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615/80 "2018-06-13T10:09:15Z")
In a bold and innovative move Spain have sacked their manager on the eve of the tournament starting! [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/world-cup-2018/815615.md?page=5)