Do or die time for Groups G and H as we complete the Knockout Stage picture and find out who the top 16 at this World Cup are.
Group G: United States vs. Germany
Result: 1-0 victory for Germany
Goalscorers: 55' Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich)
Bookings: 11' Benedikt Howedes (Schalke), 37' Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), 62' Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake)
Lineups
United States (4-2-3-1)
Tim Howard (Everton); Fabian Johnson (Hoffenheim), Omar Gonzalez (LA Galaxy), Matt Besler (Sporting Kansas City), DaMarcus Beasley (Puebla); Kyle Beckerman (Real Salt Lake), Jermaine Jones (Besiktas); Graham Zusi (Sporting Kansas City), Michael Bradley (Toronto FC), Brad Davis (Houston Dynamo); Clint Dempsey (Seattle Sounders, captain)
Changes from last match
Geoff Cameron (who had a less than stellar game against Portugal) and Alejandro Bedoya left on the bench for Gonzalez and Davis to start
Subs:
Alejandro Bedoya (Nantes) 59' for Brad Davis
DeAndre Yedlin (Seattle Sounders) 84' for Graham Zusi
Germany (4-5-1)
Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich); Jerome Boateng (Bayern Munich), Per Mertesacker (Arsenal), Mats Hummels (Borussia Dortmund), Benedikt Howedes (Schalke); Philipp Lahm (Bayern Munich, captain), Bastian Schweinsteiger (Bayern Munich), Toni Kroos (Bayern Munich), Mesut Ozil (Arsenal), Lukas Podolski (Arsenal); Thomas Muller (Bayern Munich)
Changes from last match
Mario Gotze and Sami Khedira left on the bench for Schweinsteiger and Podolski to start
Subs:
Miroslav Klose (Lazio) 46' for Lukas Podolski
Mario Gotze (Bayern Munich) 76' for Bastian Schweinsteiger
Andre Schurrle (Chelsea) 89' for Mesut Ozil
USA's last stop in this crazy Group G ride saved the toughest for last. Ghana is a decent team. Portugal is a great team. But Germany could possibly be the strongest team in the world. There was a lot of wondering if former coaching partners and alleged BFFs Klinsmann and Low had a secret agreement that they would play for a draw, but considering the strength in the lineups and their offensively inclined substitutions, that myth was busted. It was a rainy day and USA know they needed to get a decent result against the Germans to get through to the KO stage, and they did lose but a 1-0 loss to a team who usually scores at least 2 or 3 goals in most matches isn't the most bitter of pills to swallow. FYI, it's not parking the bus if a team spends a legitimate amount of time outside their penalty box. USA looked decent on and off the ball everywhere on the pitch but Germany were still one step ahead for the majority of the match, and Thomas Muller's goal was a fantastic one. It's Muller's 4th goal of the World Cup (tying him with Neymar and Messi), his 9th in all World Cups (5 from 2010 South Africa), and he's just been one of the guys doing great in a Germany shirt. One of them, Bastian Schweinsteiger (who had a slow start to the tournament due to injury concerns) took a couple of fouls in this match. USA had a couple of chances to threaten but either a bad touch from Michael Bradley or a less than perfect finish from Clint Dempsey kept Manuel Neuer's clean sheet in tact. Ultimately there's still much work that needs to be done. USA needs to be more threatening with possession, and Germany needs to reconsider using Philipp Lahm as a full back since Benedikt Howedes didn't look too comfortable (4 CBs in a back 4 is not really a great idea), but both Jurgen Klinsmann and Joachim Low will be happy with their teams performances and getting out of this group that people just couldn't stop thinking about ever since the draw.
Group G: Portugal vs. Ghana
Result: 2-1 win for Portugal
Goalscorers: 31' own goal John Boye (Rennes), 57' Asamoah Gyan (Al-Ain), 80' Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid)
Bookings: 39' Harrison Afful (Esperance), 55' Majeed Waris (Valenciennes), 78' Jordan Ayew (Sochaux), 90+4' Joao Moutinho (Monaco)
Lineups
Portugal (4-5-1)
Beto (Sevilla); Joao Pereira (Valencia), Pepe (Real Madrid), Bruno Alves (Fenerbahce), Miguel Veloso (Dynamo Kyiv); William Carvalho (Sporting CP), Joao Moutinho (Monaco), Ruben Amorim (Benfica), Nani (Manchester United), Cristiano Ronaldo (Real Madrid, captain); Eder (Braga)
Changes from last match
Pepe returns from suspension from the red card he received against Germany and returns to the starting line up in Ricardo Costa's place. Andre Almeida, Raul Meireles, and Helder Postiga (possible injury concerns for the latter two) left off the starting lineup, making way for William, Amorim, and Eder to start.
Subs:
Silvestre Varela (Porto) 61' for Joao Pereira
Vieirinha (Wolfsburg) 69' for Eder
Eduardo (Braga) 89' for Beto
Ghana (4-2-2-2)
Fatau Dauda (Orlando Pirates); Harrison Afful (Esperance), John Boye (Rennes), Jonathan Mensah (Evian), Kwadwo Asamoah (Juventus); Mohammed Rabiu (Kuban Krasnodar), Emmanuel Agyemang-Badu (Udinese); Christian Atsu (Vitesse), Andre Ayew (Marseille); Majeed Waris (Valenciennes), Asamoah Gyan (Al-Ain, captain)
Changes from last match
Sulley Muntari and Kevin Prince-Boateng were not available for this match (will explain below) so Agyemang-Badu and Majeed Waris filled those vacancies. Change in formation from 4-2-3-1 to 4-2-2-2
Subs:
Jordan Ayew (Sochaux) 71' for Majeed Waris
Afriyie Acquah (Parma) 76' for Mohammed Rabiu
Wakaso Mubarak (Rubin Kazan) 81' for Andre Ayew
Ghana and Portugal managed to get a point from their first two games thanks to some thrilling 2-2 draws against Germany and USA respectively, but they needed to get things to go their way in this match to advance, but both faced vital set backs. Portugal's 4-0 loss to Germany put them in a huge hole in terms of goal difference, and two of Ghana's best players were sent home early for being dumb. Kevin-Prince Boateng and Sulley Muntari got in a fight during training, Boateng insulted the coach, Akwasi Appiah, and Muntari assaulted a member of the Ghana management. And things only went from bad to worse for Ghana in this game despite causing USA and Germany so many problems in their matches against Ghana. First, John Boye scored an own goal. Then, a poor clearance by Fatau Dauda sent the ball perfectly to Cristiano Ronaldo. You do not give the best player in the world a free goal, and that's exactly what they did to made sure Ronaldo kept his streak of scoring exactly 1 goal in every World Cup he's been in. Yeah, Ronaldo's got 3 World Cup goals total. That's less than Messi has scored in this World Cup alone. Those costly Ghanian errors cancelled out Asamoah Gyan's stunner he put past Beto. However, this result didn't do either of them any good. For Portugal, once against USA and Germany end their dreams earlier than they hoped for. And for Ghana, Germany nearly got another victory against them and USA finally got theirs. It's the group of death, and Portugal and Ghana are the victims with the German coaches successfully navigating through these rough waters.
Elimination Analysis: Ghana
For a nation who is only in their 3rd World Cup and whose first World Cup was 8 years ago, they made an immediate impact. They beat Czech Republic and USA in the Group Stage before hitting a brick wall against the Brazilians in the Round of 16, the only African nation to get that far in Germany 2006. Once again Ghana was Africa's only representative in the KO Stages after beating Serbia, narrowly losing to Germany, and tying with an Australian team that, like Portugal this year, were battered by Germany 4-0. They beat USA once again and looked like they found a 2-1 victory against Uruguay until Luis f-ing Suarez stuck his hand out and you know the rest of the story, and if Asamoah Gyan was reading this he'd thank me for not reminding you guys. Anyway this made Ghana the 3rd African nation to reach the quarterfinals following 1990 Cameroon and 2002 Senegal. Going into this World Cup, it was no secret they were a decent team and they made themselves truly a part of this group of death, but at the end of the day maybe it just came down to wanting it more. They thought they had USA at their knees no matter what and players were talking smack and got their payback courtesy of John Brooks. They played a great game against Germany but they couldn't replicate it against Portugal. If they did, they might've gone through instead of USA. But why did they crumble? Well it certainly didn't help that Boateng and Muntari got themselves exiled. But not much will change. There's still lots of Ghanians playing for decent clubs in European, especially in the French (Andre Ayew) and Italian (Kwadwo Asamoah) leagues. The days of the world underestimating Ghana are over, and they'll be one of the stronger teams from Africa and favorites to represent at Africa in World Cups for a while.
Elimination Analysis: Portugal
Not every great player even gets to the World Cup (George Best and George Weah), and even if you go there it doesn't mean you'll have a good one or you'll win it. After 3 World Cups, it seems like Cristiano Ronaldo's window of opportunity is all done. He'll be 33 for 2018 Russia and he'll likely still be able to make the World Cup squad but will he make as much of a positive impact? Seems unlikely. A lot of people believe Portugal is a one man show. I'm not one of those people. I know that Portugal has several good players like Joao Moutinho, Fabio Coentrao, and Nani. But when Ronaldo's not doing well, Portugal does so much worse. Ronaldo wasn't 100% heading in this World Cup and all it did was make it obvious that Portugal needs him dearly and no one else could quite step it up. Portugal, like Italy, were considered outside favorites to win this World Cup and will be hugely disappointed they couldn't get out of the group stage, just like in 2002 in the height of the Luis Figo days. I guess expectations should've been lower considering Portugal made it here through the playoffs, but then you have teams like Mexico and France, playing like they surely qualified automatically for this World Cup (but they didn't).
Group H: South Korea vs. Belgium
Result: Belgium won 1-0
Goalscorers: 78' Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham)
Bookings: 35' Hong Jeong-Ho (Augsburg), 45' red card Steven Defour (Porto), 50' Mousa Dembele (Tottenham)
Significance of Bookings: Defour will be suspended in Belgium's Round of 16 match
Lineups
South Korea (4-4-2)
Jung Sung-Ryong (Suwon Bluewings); Lee Yong (Ulsan Hyundai), Kim Young-Gwon (Guangzhou Evergrande), Hong Jeong-Ho (Augsburg), Yun Suk-Young (Queens Park Rangers); Lee Chung-Yong (Bolton Wanderers), Ki Sung-Yueng (Sunderland), Han Kook-Young (Kashiwa Reysol), Son Heung-Min (Bayer Leverkusen); Koo Ja-Cheol (Mainz 05, captain), Kim Shin-Wook (Ulsan Hyundai)
Changes from last match
Change from 4-2-3-1 to 4-4-2 formation, and Wook replaces Park Chu-Young in the starting lineup. Son moves to midfield
Subs:
Lee Keun-Ho (Sangju Sangmu) 46' for Han Kook-Young
Kim Bo-Kyung (Cardiff City) 66' for Kim Shin-Wook
Ji Dong-Won (Augsburg) 73' for Son Heung-Min
Belgium (4-2-3-1)
Thibaut Courtois (Atletico Madrid); Anthony Vanden Borre (Anderlecht), Daniel van Buyten (Bayern Munich), Nicolas Lombaerts (Zenit), Jan Vertonghen (Tottenham, captain); Steven Defour (Porto), Mousa Dembele (Tottenham); Dries Mertens (Napoli), Marouane Fellaini (Manchester United), Adnan Januzaj (Manchester United); Kevin Mirallas (Everton)
Changes from last match
Toby Alderweireld, Vincent Kompany, Thomas Vermaelen, Axel Witsel, Kevin de Bruyne, Eden Hazard, and Romelu Lukaku do not start. Only Courtois, van Buyten, Mertens, and Fellaini started the game against Russia but Vertonghen and Mirallas came on as substitutes. Vertonghen fills in for Kompany as captain, and Mirallas plays as a central forward, different from his usual position.
Subs:
Nacer Chadli (Tottenham) 60' for Adnan Januzaj
Divock Origi (Lille) 60' for Dries Mertens
Eden Hazard (Chelsea) 88' for Kevin Mirallas
In a world where Algeria more easily beats South Korea than Belgium did at the World Cup, it seems like a great world for USA fans as they size up their round of 16 opponents. But you're missing the bigger picture. Belgium were already through to the next round, played a lot of their players lower in the pecking order, and were comfortable with a draw against the Taejeuk Warriors. But South Korea knew if they had any shot of advancing, nothing less than victory over the Belgians would be sufficient. Asia's last hope to qualify for the group stage became the 4th of 4 AFC teams not to win a single game at this World Cup (just like Iran, Japan, and Australia; yes Australia is part of Oceania but in football/soccer Australia is part of the Asian Football Confederation). Steven Defour certainly didn't help his case to find more playing time by earning a red card, but the substitute captain Jan Vertonghen earned Belgium a perfect 9 out of 9 points in the Group of Life, I mean Group H. This win confirmed what was nearly certain that Belgium would finish the Group, and on the flip side South Korea finishes on the bottom.
Elimination Analysis: South Korea
Like 2004 Euro Champions Greece, every South Korean team since their 4th place finish in the 2002 World Cup has been compared too and existed in the shadow of that group of players who gifted their nation their greatest moment in their soccer history. South Korea is a team moving in the right direction but still has a long way ahead of it if they want to be the first Asian team to win the World Cup as some rather optimistic Asian soccer legends like Park Ji Sung hope for/predict. They're a skilled and talented team but while USA's domestic players have risen about their league's standards, South Korea's K-League and J-League players don't quite look too impressive. If it wasn't for Igor Akinfeev's horrid mistake South Korea wouldn't have gotten a single point in this World Cup. This team will no longer be content with just qualifying for the World Cup; they've done that since Mexico 1986. But some changes will have to be made otherwise the realistic expectations of this team will rarely exceed an occasional top 16 finish.
Group H: Algeria vs. Russia
Result: 1-1 draw that the Algerians will be much more happy with than the Russians
Goalscorers: 6' Aleksandr Kokorin (Dynamo Moscow), 60' Islam Slimani (Sporting CP)
Bookings: 39' Djamel Mesbah (Livorno), 57' Dmitri Kombarov (Spartak Moscow), 59' Aleksei Kozlov (Dynamo Moscow), 87' Nabil Ghilas (Porto)
Also, Algeria's Liassine Cadamuro-Bentaiba (Mallorca) got booked at 90+2' for time wasting for refusing to give the ball to the Russians who had possession at the time
Lineups
Algeria (4-2-3-1)
Rais M'Bohli (CSKA Sofia); Aissa Mandi (Reims), Essaid Belkalem (Watford), Rafik Halliche (Academica, captain), Djamel Mesbah (Livorno); Carl Medjani (Valenciennes), Nabil Bentaleb (Tottenham); Sofiane Feghouli (Valencia), Yacine Brahimi (Granada), Abdelmoumene Djabou (Club Africain); Islam Slimani (Sporting CP)
Changes from last match
Change from 5-2-2-1 to 4-2-3-1 formation. Medjani moves from defense to midfield. Madjid Bougherra (on a yellow card) left on the bench for this match and was replaced by Belkalem.
Subs:
Hassan Yebda (Udinese) 71' for Yacine Brahimi
Nabil Ghilas (Porto) 77' for Abdelmoumene Djabou
El Arbi Hillel Soudani (Dinamo Zagreb) 90+2' for Islam Slimani
Russia (4-2-3-1)
Igor Akinfeev (CSKA Moscow); Aleksei Kozlov (Dynamo Moscow), Vasili Berezutski (CSKA Moscow, captain), Sergei Ignashevich (CSKA Moscow), Dmitri Kombarov (Spartak Moscow); Denis Glushakov (Spartak Moscow), Viktor Fayzulin (Zenit); Aleksandr Samedov (Lokomotiv Moscow), Aleksandr Kokorin (Dynamo Moscow), Oleg Shatov (Zenit); Aleksandr Kerzhakov (Zenit)
Changes from last match
Change from 4-1-1-3-1 to 4-2-3-1 formation (so the two central midfielders now playing side by side). Kokorin moves to central attacking midfielder. Maksim Kanunnikov on the bench, allowing Kerzhakov to start (sub appearance against Belgium)
Subs:
Igor Denisov (Dynamo Moscow) 46' for Denis Glushakov
Alan Dzagoev (CSKA Moscow) 67' for Oleg Shatov
Maksim Kanunnikov (Rubin Kazan) 81' for Aleksandr Kerzhakov
Everything on the line for these two countries large in area and more promising in talent in this sport than in previous recent years. Russia got off to a great start with a goal from Aleksandr Kokorin, but Algeria were breathing down their neck in set pieces. Russia had most of the possession but failure to score a 2nd goal meant they were dangerously balancing on a tight rope, knowing just one Algerian goal crushes Russian hopes of advancing past the group stage. And that one Algerian goal came from an Algerian free kick which Islam Slimani scored and will be considered Algeria's hero from that match. But really given Algeria's chances of getting out of the group, everyone on that team deserves a medal of honor for playing with such heart, especially Rais M'Bohli. If you watched this game you wouldn't believe me when I told you he was a 2nd choice goal keeper for a freaking Bulgarian club. Russia blew a lot of their best chances and the match ended in a draw, sending Algeria through to the knockout round of the World cup for the first time ever, while the Russians were sent home. Fabio Capello wasn't happy one bit, blaming the referees at this World Cup (who in fairness, shouldn't all be getting A's in their report cards) and the laser pointed at Igor Akinfeev. Yeah that excuse is render invalid when Akinfeev can make mistakes without lasers point at him (remember the South Korea game? Besides Akinfeev admitted it wasn't the laser's fault). The celebrations for the Desert Foxes and their supporters were pure and great as they wrapped up the 16 team lineup for the KO Stage in Brazil 2014.
Elimination Analysis: Russia
If Russia don't sort things through and the draw comes to bite them in the ass, maybe South Africa won't be the only host nation to get eliminated in the group stage (but they'll be followed by Qatar, no doubt). And a lot will be rethaught after this. Will Fabio Capello keep his job or was getting Russia to this World Cup enough to keep the Russian Federation happy? Will the Russian players be urged to leave their domestic league and play elsewhere in Europe? Will Igor Akinfeev get the Robert Green treatment? Well considering Robert Green wasn't played again after his mistake while Akinfeev remained Capello's 1st choice keeper, at least all is not lost for them. Where was the Russian team that looked like a forced to be reckoned with in qualifying and shoved Portugal into the playoff route and a date with Sweden to qualify for the World Cup? That's what everyone in Russia is wondering and hoping they'll see again soon.
Na na, na na na na, hey hey hey, goodbye
Australia 4th Group B
Bosnia and Herzergovina 3rd Group F
Cameroon 4th Group A
Cote D'Ivoire 3rd Group C
Croatia 3rd Group A
Ecuador 3rd Group E
England 3rd Group D
Ghana 4th Group G
Honduras 4th Group E
Iran 4th Group F
Italy 3rd Group D
Japan 3rd Group C
Portugal 4th Group G
Russia 3rd Group H
South Korea 3rd Group H
Spain 3rd Group B
Even though you guys didn't survive the group stage, you still provided a lot of fascinating moments in the World Cup, and aside from a few exceptions, your fans will still be proud of you.
Congratulations Knockout Class of 2014!
Algeria 2nd Group H
Argentina 1st Group F
Belgium 1st Group H
Brazil 1st Group A
Chile 2nd Group B
Colombia 1st Group C
Costa Rica 1st Group D
France 1st Group E
Germany 1st Group C
Greece 2nd Group D
Mexico 2nd Group A
Netherlands 2nd Group B
Nigeria 2nd Group F
Switzerland 2nd Group E
United States 2nd Group G
Uruguay 2nd Group D
6 European teams, 5 South American teams, 3 North American teams (a first), and 2 African teams (another first) are in the knockout stage. No Asian teams made the cut. This is what the World Cup is all about: the knockout stage. No second chances. Do or die. 15 games (not counting the 3rd place match), 15 dreams of World Cup glory out the door. Some may be disappointed that their team didn't get this far and maybe bitter that one of their less favorite teams did. But not me. I look at this lineup, remember the games they've participated in so far, and I'm looking forward to the rest of this tournament. Even the David and Goliath matchups like Argentina vs. Switzerland or Germany vs. Algeria, judging by the way this tournament has gone so far, have the potential to be entertaining games. So get ready for what hopefully will be a great World Cup ride.
Up Next
1A Brazil vs. 2B Chile
1A Colombia vs. 2B Uruguay
Another 2010 rematch! Here we go again! Brazilian fans at a minimum expect them to keep their quarterfinals streak that's been kept alive since their victory in 1994 USA going, especially against the likes of Chile. However, as Spain found out the hard way, Chile have the potential to give favorites a sucker punch or two. How many Chilean punches will Scolari and his Brazilians be able to take, and will Neymar be able to deliver another knockout blow?
Colombia have been one of the most fun teams to watch so far, while the same isn't exactly true for Uruguay, whose chances of lasting much longer in this World Cup took potentially a fatal blow with Pacman, I mean Luis Suarez's, ban. But like Colombia, Uruguay are still a talented team without their main man. However, the last match Suarez didn't appear in, they lost....to Costa Rica. Anywho, this looks like one of the closest matchups in the Round of 16.
These matchups assure at least one South American team will make it to the semifinals. It's the 2nd World Cup in a row where 5 South American teams made it to the knockout stage (Brazil Argentina Uruguay Paraguay and Chile in 2010, the above 4 plus Argentina in 2014). The winners of these two matches will face each other in the quarterfinals. The losers will be out. The stakes have been raised, who will keep their dreams alive one day more?
Oh and the other matchups are France vs. Nigeria, Germany vs. Algeria, Netherlands vs. Mexico, Costa Rica vs. Greece, Argentina vs. Switzerland, and Belgium vs. USA, but more on those matchups later.
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