World Cup Draw

The draw for the 2014 World Cup Finals takes place this Friday at 11 am EST.  Think of it as NCAA Basketball Tournament Selection Sunday gone global.  And like NCAA bracketology, there will be plenty of analysis after the groups are set.  The format won't be officially announced until tomorrow but everyone expects the teams to be grouped as follows:

 

Seeded - Brazil, Argentina, Spain, Germany, Uruguay, Switzerland, Colombia, and Belgium (wait, one of these teams is not like the others)

One Pot - CONCACAF (US, Costa Rica, Honduras, Mexico) and Asia (Japan, Iran, South Korea, and Australia)

Another Pot - Europe (Holland, England, Italy, Portugal, Greece, Croatia, Russia, and Bosnia Herzegovina)

Final Pot - Africa (Ivory Coast, Nigeria, Ghana, Cameroon, Algeria), Ecuador, Chile, and France

 

Each of the eight groups will consist of one team from each pot.  The US pot is generally considered to be the weakest, which is an automatic disadvantage in that their group will not include one of these weaker sides.  ESPN statistician Paul Carr calculates the US odds at advancing to the knock out rounds at 43%, ranging from 15% if placed in a group of Spain, Netherlands and Chile (Group of Death indeed) to 74% if their group consists of Switzerland, Algeria and Croatia.  Don't have the details but I'm sure you can follow the 45 minute draw on TV, radio or online if your schedule permits.

 

Mixed results this weekend for those who follow this wanna-be-maybe-soon-to-be-blog-but-now-just-a-long-email-chain.  Newcastle made me smile with their 4th straight W, which came courtesy of a laser strike by Sissoko shortly after West Brom had tied the scored at 1-1.  A classic "what the hell are you doing shooting from th...GREAT TAKE!"  The Magpies were up to 5th before the Sunday matches and finished the weekend 6th in the table.  And this with the likes of Ben Arfa, Cisse, and Gutierrez left on the bench for the time being.  Not sure what to think but certainly enjoying the run.

 

In Football Manager I get to give pregame, halftime and post-game pep talks, choosing from 5-6 options.  One of those choices after a disappointing performance is "Not good enough."  That has to be the reaction after Aston Villa's 0-0 home draw with lowly Sunderland.  Dennis reported that it wasn't even that close; according to him the Villans had nothing, underperforming in every phase of the game.  His faith is being tested early. 

 

Luke and Michael P saw Arsenal maintain their four point lead at the top of the table with a 3-0 road victory over Cardiff City.  Aaron Ramsey certainly enjoyed his Wales homecoming as he tallied two for the Gunners.  Watching the match, it felt more competitive than the final score would indicate but the quality of Arsenal's finishing was on a different plane than Cardiff's.  This match also included the "YouTubeable Moment" of the weekend when Olivier Giroud, clear of all defenders, stopped dead in his tracks waiting for an offsides call that never came.  At first viewing it was incomprehensible that he stopped; subsequent replays showed that an intervening touch from Ozil probably did mean Giroud was offsides but it was not called and isn't the first rule of thumb "play the whistle?"  As in, upon further review, it's still incomprehensible he pulled up.

 

Supposedly a draw is like kissing your sister but when your whole family got mugged the previous Sunday, maybe it's not so bad.   A 2-2 home draw for Tottenham against Man United was a dramatic improvement and had to make Michael B feel a little better.  Both managers were making noises about wanting the three points but I would have thought given their circumstances, both were relieved to at least get the draw. 

 

Other matches of note include Chelsea 3-1 beating of Southampton.  Again, this matched seemed much more competitive but Chelsea could finish while Southampton's only goal came on an ill-advised back pass from Essien.  That's two weekends in a row where Southampton came to London, looked good, but came away with nothing.  Maybe they're not ready for prime time.  Liverpool slipped seven points behind Arsenal after losing 3-1 to Hull City, the newly promoted side that is playing like they would like to stay in the EPL.  Everton is knocking at the door of the top four after a 4-0 thrashing of Stoke.

 

Quick turnaround as everybody plays mid week, then again on the weekend.  Newcastle has away matches with Swansea and Man United; yikes, that's a tough week right there.  Aston Villa is away to Southampton (smarting after consecutive losses to Arsenal and Chelsea) then away to an absolutely struggling Fulham side, whose manager will be in just his second EPL match.  Arsenal has a couple of tricky matches - Hull City and Everton - but will at least have the advantage of being home for both contests.  Tottenham, though on the road, has Fulham and Sunderland.  Just what the doctor ordered; play two of these and call me in the morning.

 

Bob K reports Sevilla won again and finds itself 6th in the La Ligue table.  Don't forget MLS Cup on Saturday afternoon at 4 pm on ESPN - Sporting KC versus Real Salt Lake.  Yeah, I know the quality isn't EPL but if we don't support what we have, it will never improve.  In England, fans support lower division teams and even with the 20 EPL teams to choose from.

 

Buckle up, busy week.  Make sure you clean out the stale matches from the DVR.