Subject: 2018 World Cup (at FT forums)
Posted by: Lpez
Date: May 19 18
Hello everyone! The most important tournament in international association football is coming soon, and it is very exciting! As we did four years ago, we will be having recaps and discussions at the FunTrivia Forums. I hope you will join us!
Posted by: Lpez
Date: May 19 18
Hello everyone! The most important tournament in international association football is coming soon, and it is very exciting! As we did four years ago, we will be having recaps and discussions at the FunTrivia Forums. I hope you will join us!
781 replies. On page 12 of 40 pages. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
Lpez
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Iran vs Spain is underway. Iran 0-0 Spain Reply #221. Jun 20 18, 12:00 PM |
| Lpez
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At 30', Spain is still unable to score. Iran 0-0 Spain Reply #222. Jun 20 18, 12:30 PM |
| Lpez
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At half time, Iran 0-0 Spain Reply #223. Jun 20 18, 12:49 PM |
Mixamatosis 
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horadada. No one's really having a go at Ronaldo. It's just a bit of humour. Actually the Ferrari analogy was meant to be very complementary. Reply #224. Jun 20 18, 12:50 PM |
| Mixamatosis
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Typo I meant complimentary. Reply #225. Jun 20 18, 12:50 PM |
| Lpez
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The second half is underway. Iran 0-0 Spain Reply #226. Jun 20 18, 1:04 PM |
| Lpez
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At 52', Spain is attacking much more but Iran still has their 10 men defending! Iran 0-0 Spain Reply #227. Jun 20 18, 1:12 PM |
| Lpez
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Finally! At 53', Diego Costa of Spain scores! Iran 0-1 Spain Reply #228. Jun 20 18, 1:13 PM |
sectant
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Yes, but how much does he give to Faith And Hope? (Sorry, thought I'd get on the comedy bandwagon too!) Question not in need of an answer: When do Holland and the U.S.A. play? Reply #229. Jun 20 18, 1:16 PM |
| Lpez
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At 62', Iran scores but the goal is disallowed as Iran celebrates. It is being checked by VAR. Iran 0-1 Spain Reply #230. Jun 20 18, 1:22 PM |
| Lpez
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At 66', VAR confirms an offside. No goal. Iran 0-1 Spain Reply #231. Jun 20 18, 1:25 PM |
nasty_liar
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I guess Ronaldo donated millions that he avoided in paying tax?? Just another take on things there.... I’m sure he took bad advice and he’s not the only one that has been caught out that way. I won’t judge him, I’m not qualified. All I can do is judge him as a player and he happens to be one of my favourites ever. Phenomenal player, great talent, huge character and takes on talismanic properties when wearing the Portugal shirt. I am really enjoying him finally having a momentous World Cup. I hope he gets plenty more goals and that we see Portugal go far. Reply #232. Jun 20 18, 1:39 PM |
| nasty_liar
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Tough luck Iran! Just a lucky break or a better finish away from equalising! Reply #233. Jun 20 18, 2:00 PM |
| Lpez
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Yes! Spain needs to improve the way they close their matches, especially defensively. Final score: Iran 0-1 Spain Reply #234. Jun 20 18, 2:01 PM |
C30
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I think when the likes of Spain and Portugal come up against more fancied teams, we will see them "up a gear". Spain v Iran............somewhat, IMO, of a forgettable game....Spanish attack v Iranian defense......somewhat dour encounter. Reply #235. Jun 20 18, 2:19 PM |
| Mixamatosis
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Commentators saying teams like Iran and Morocco lack world class attackers up front. Does this come down to money, lifestyle and reputation I wonder? What world class players would want to play for these countries at the expense of their own careers? I think the only way forward for these countries may be to develop home grown talent and then allow them to gain experience playing in European leagues. Reply #236. Jun 20 18, 3:25 PM |
| Mixamatosis
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Of course foreign world class players wouldn't be able to play for the national sides anyway though they would be able to act as a model for skills development. Reply #237. Jun 20 18, 3:27 PM |
| Lpez
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Mix, sometimes I think players make those decisions thinking about how often they will be selected and play with their national teams. 17 of Morocco's players were not even born in that country! My assumption is that they believed, and probably correctly, that they wouldn't have a chance in teams like France. If the situation was the other way around (i.e. a world class player who could play for either France/Italy/Spain or Morocco/Saudi Arabia/Panama, with all due respect to the latter, they have more chances of winning championships and advancing their careers with the former.) Take the example of Diego Costa, born in Brazil but decided to play for Spain. Reply #238. Jun 20 18, 6:34 PM |
| Lpez
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Today's Games Portugal 1-0 Morocco Today was probably one of the poorest match-days of the World Cup so far. Cristiano Ronaldo is still the "best" player of the tournament, I think (and for now), and also the top-scorer, with 4 goals. Today, though, he scored a goal early in the match and then disappeared. And if he disappears, then imagine how Portugal plays! Very weak showing by Portugal, who would have very little chances of winning without CR7. Portugal is most likely in, Morocco is mathematically eliminated from the tournament, which is a shame because they were the better team against both Iran and Portugal. Not a good World Cup for Morocco (lost in the first round and lost the 2026 candidacy.) Uruguay 1-0 Saudi Arabia Well, Uruguay keeps winning but they also keep playing unconvincing matches. They have one of the best offensive players in the tournament (Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani), yet they have only scored 2 goals! Not sure what to expect from them. If they end up facing Spain, they will be gone in a heartbeat. Saudi Arabia, no surprises, no one really expected anything else. Coach Pizzi, who failed to qualify Chile, probably knew this from the get-go. The last match between Russia and Uruguay should be an interesting one, as it will decide the group leader. Iran 0-1 Spain Iran's game today was no different from what they and coach Queiroz always do: defend fiercely, play rough, and try to get the opposing team tired so they can counterattack and score. Unfortunately for them, that didn't work out as Spain found a space and scored, and it was too late to come back at that point. There were points of the match where I could clearly see ALL 11 Iranian players inside the Iran box! Not what you want to see if you're a fan of offensive football. It worked against Morocco, not against Spain. Also, not a fan of the Iran goalkeeper and defender who would dramatize every single contact. Truly unsportsmanlike. Today's Refs A disastrous performance by Mark Geiger from the United States, who is no stranger to controversy. He has been involved in a number of scandals, most recently, when he called a penalty for Mexico that clearly was not correct, and that eliminated Panama from the Gold Cup which Mexico went on to win. Panama even abandoned the field for some time in protest! Today, he also missed a clear penalty for Morocco and he seemed to favor Portugal. Even more concerning, Moroccan Amrabat claimed that he heard the referee ask Cristiano Ronaldo if he could have his jersey at the end of the match. Nothing is proven and there is no evidence, but if that is true, big trouble for Geiger and FIFA. Geiger will be leading one of the VAR teams for tomorrow. Frenchman Clement Turpin did a decent job in a match that didn't demand much from him. Uruguay, known for playing rough, controlled themselves slightly, and so did the Saudis. Surely we will see Turpin again. Uruguayan Andres Cunha had a good first match in France vs Australia, where he even became the first ref ever to use VAR in the World Cup. Today, unfortunately, he was not as good. He only booked two Iranian players when he should've given a yellow card to at least five. FIFA said there would be a no tolerance policy to faking fouls, something Iran did frequently, but we have not seen this in action. I do think more cards were in place in this match. Today's Facts - Both Luis Suarez (Uruguay) and Gerard Pique (SPA) played their 100th international cap today. - Cristiano Ronaldo reached 85 goals today with the Portuguese team, becoming the top scorer not only for Portugal, but in all European national teams. He breaks the record of Ferenc Puskas of Hungary, namesake of the Puskas Award. So a great feat! How many more records will he break?! - Diego Costa is the third Spanish player to score three goals in the first two matches of a World Cup, alongside Michel and Fernando Torres. His goal ended a 23-match undefeated streak that Iran had in official, non-friendly fixtures. What's Next This list only has the matches to be played the next day (tomorrow) as well as the next ones involving the teams that played today. That is why some of you have noticed that I am "skipping" some matches. Thursday June 21: Denmark vs Australia, 6am FST REFEREE: Antonio Mateu Lahoz (SPA) Thursday June 21: France vs Peru, 9am FST REFEREE: Mohammed Abdulla Hassan (UAE) Thursday June 21: Argentina vs Croatia, 12pm FST REFEREE: Ravshan Irmatov (UZB) -one of FIFA's favorites! We'll see how he does- Monday June 25: Uruguay vs Russia, 8am FST Monday June 25: Saudi Arabia vs Egypt, 8am FST Monday June 25: Iran vs Portugal, 12pm FST Monday June 25: Spain vs Morocco, 12pm FST Today's Questions - Are Spain and Portugal sure to go through the next round? Or will Iran surprise a Portugal that, without Cristiano Ronaldo, seems completely broken? - Is the golden boot battle one between Cristiano Ronaldo, Diego Costa, and Denis Cheryshev? Or will someone else score more? - Will Argentina be able to come back and beat Croatia tomorrow? Is Messi carrying too much pressure? Thank you all for your comments and for reading. I really appreciate you being on these forums and participating. As always, feedback is welcome. See you tomorrow! Reply #239. Jun 20 18, 7:38 PM |
| C30
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So THIS is where the thread has gone..........I presume some moderator decided (without the use of VAR) to move it.....just spent 5 minutes LOOKING for it! Reply #240. Jun 21 18, 2:32 AM |
781 replies. On page 12 of 40 pages. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
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