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Post by Panda on Oct 10, 2009 23:40:18 GMT 1
European Group 8: CYPRUS 4-1 BULGARIA IRELAND 2-2 ITALY MONTENEGRO 2-1 GEORGIA ITALY qualify for the World CupItaly survived a scare against Ireland after Sean St. Ledger's late goal looked to have given the Irish victory at Croke Park but a last-minute equaliser gave Italy the point they needed to win the group. The draw was enough for Ireland to clinch a playoff spot after Bulgaria's crushing defeat in Cyprus. Montenegro achieved their first ever World Cup win, beating Georgia. 1. Italy (Q) 9-21 (+10) 2. Ireland (P) 9-17 (+4) 3. Bulgaria 9-11 (0) 4. Cyprus 9-9 (-1) 5. Montenegro 9-8 (-5) 6. Georgia 9-3 (-8)
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Thor
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Post by Thor on Oct 10, 2009 23:47:04 GMT 1
1-5-3 (so far) is a pretty decent record for Montenegro given it is their first attempt.
I'm disappointed in Slovakia! They had such a great chance to win the group but now they need to go to Poland and win. It's going to be difficult. When was the last time the 5th seeds - which Slovenia are - managed to win a group?
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Post by Panda on Oct 10, 2009 23:54:23 GMT 1
European runners-up table:
teams in bold are currently in 2nd place in their group teams in teal are definitely in the playoffs
Russia 7-15 (+9) Ukraine 8-15 (+4) Switzerland 7-14 (+6) Slovenia 8-14 (+6) Bosnia 7-13 (+10) Greece 7-13 (+6) Portugal 8-13 (+4) Slovakia 7-13 (+2) France 7-12 (+1) Ireland 7-11 (+2) Latvia 8-11 (+1) Croatia 7-11 (-1) Norway 8-10 (+2) Israel 7-9 (+7) Czech Republic 7-9 (+1) Sweden 7-9 (0) Northern Ireland 7-8 (-3) Hungary 7-7 (-3)
Norway will be the team to miss out unless Hungary manage to finish 2nd in Group 1 but fail to overhaul their goal difference, which would require Malta getting a big win over Portugal.
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Post by Panda on Oct 11, 2009 0:02:26 GMT 1
When was the last time the 5th seeds - which Slovenia are - managed to win a group? I doubt it's ever happened. A few 4th seeds, perhaps. Norway in 1994 spring to mind when they were in a group with Holland, England and Poland. Turkey were also in there but they were sh*te back then so were probably seeded 5th. I'm not sure what Ukraine's seeding was for 2006 qualifying. They were in a group with Greece, Denmark and Turkey.
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Post by Panda on Oct 11, 2009 0:11:50 GMT 1
QUALIFIERS SO FAR: HOSTS SOUTH AFRICA EUROPE DENMARK ENGLAND GERMANY ITALY NETHERLANDS SERBIA SPAIN SOUTH AMERICA BRAZIL PARAGUAY AFRICA GHANA IVORY COAST ASIA AUSTRALIA JAPAN NORTH KOREA SOUTH KOREA
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Post by Panda on Oct 11, 2009 0:14:42 GMT 1
1-5-3 (so far) is a pretty decent record for Montenegro given it is their first attempt. I'm disappointed in Slovakia! They had such a great chance to win the group but now they need to go to Poland and win. It's going to be difficult. When was the last time the 5th seeds - which Slovenia are - managed to win a group? If Slovakia don't win their group we could potentially have a World Cup with no first-time qualifiers (if New Zealand beat Bahrain).
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Thor
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Post by Thor on Oct 11, 2009 0:21:21 GMT 1
When was the last time the 5th seeds - which Slovenia are - managed to win a group? I doubt it's ever happened. A few 4th seeds, perhaps. Norway in 1994 spring to mind when they were in a group with Holland, England and Poland. Turkey were also in there but they were sh*te back then so were probably seeded 5th. I'm not sure what Ukraine's seeding was for 2006 qualifying. They were in a group with Greece, Denmark and Turkey. I'm happy that one of the Slovs will make it. Shame the other will probably lose a play-off Ukraine probably were 4th seeds although that was a 7 team group anyway.
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Thor
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Post by Thor on Oct 11, 2009 0:22:12 GMT 1
1-5-3 (so far) is a pretty decent record for Montenegro given it is their first attempt. I'm disappointed in Slovakia! They had such a great chance to win the group but now they need to go to Poland and win. It's going to be difficult. When was the last time the 5th seeds - which Slovenia are - managed to win a group? If Slovakia don't win their group we could potentially have a World Cup with no first-time qualifiers (if New Zealand beat Bahrain). Have Gabon made it before? (I'm guessing not)
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Post by Maximo Mark on Oct 11, 2009 11:12:57 GMT 1
I think it's pathetic that the play-offs are seeded based on FIFA World Ranking. I don't know why FIFA don't just give the big countries a free pass...
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Tom
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Post by Tom on Oct 11, 2009 11:26:18 GMT 1
European Group 3: The Czech Republic and Northern Ireland play each other on Wednesday but both are relying on San Marino getting an unlikely result to stand any chance of making the playoffs. Interesting, shame N Ireland's playoff chances have practically gone, but i get the feeling if the Czechs were looking like qualifying then Marek Matejovsky may be more keen to look for 1st team football elsewhere (though he has been suspended along with other Czech players for ill-discipline off the pitch, something to do with prostitutes lol, which in itself may partly explain why the Czechs have been struggling to qualify lately). So in a way although the prospect of him in a World Cup is appealing im not fussed that they're probably not going to make it. He's been pretty much off the radar ever since we got relegated from the Prem having got injured in Euro 2008 and then not holding down a regular spot in the Reading team.
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Thor
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Post by Thor on Oct 11, 2009 11:56:34 GMT 1
I think it's pathetic that the play-offs are seeded based on FIFA World Ranking. I don't know why FIFA don't just give the big countries a free pass... It absolutely should be based on performance in the groups, seeing as Norway are being eliminated on this basis.
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Oct 11, 2009 12:20:37 GMT 1
I think it's pathetic that the play-offs are seeded based on FIFA World Ranking. I don't know why FIFA don't just give the big countries a free pass... Yet that will help Greece and Switzerland more than Portugal. If they were going to seed, though, they should have announced it pre-tournament.
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Post by Panda on Oct 11, 2009 12:30:10 GMT 1
The rest of last night's results... CONCACAF 4th round: COSTA RICA 4-0 TRINIDAD & TOBAGO HONDURAS 2-3 UNITED STATES MEXICO 4-1 EL SALVADOR UNITED STATES qualify for the World Cup MEXICO qualify for the World CupA dramatic night in North & Central America sees the USA qualify for their 6th successive World Cup. The USA inflicted Honduras's first World Cup qualifying defeat at home for 8 years in a match that saw both teams lead, all 5 goals scored in the space of 31 second-half minutes and Honduras miss an 87th-minute penalty. Mexico are through after a comfortable win over El Salvador, while Costa Rica move into the top 3. Honduras must go to bitter rivals El Salvador on Wednesday and win, while hoping Costa Rica fail to beat the USA in Washington. 1. USA (Q) 9-19 (+6) 2. Mexico (Q) 9-18 (+6) 3. Costa Rica 9-15 (0) ------------------------- 4. Honduras 9-13 (+5) ------------------------- 5. El Salvador 9-8 (-5) 6. Trinidad & Tobago 9-5 (-12)
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Post by Panda on Oct 11, 2009 12:41:30 GMT 1
South America: ARGENTINA 2-1 PERU COLOMBIA 2-4 CHILE ECUADOR 1-2 URUGUAY VENEZUELA 1-2 PARAGUAY CHILE qualify for the World CupChile qualify for the first time since 1998 after beating Colombia, who will miss out for the 3rd finals in a row. It's a remarkable improvement for Chile, who only finished 7th in the qualifying group 4 years ago. Argentina got out of jail against Peru in Buenos Aires. Peru scored a 90th minute equaliser but Argentina managed to win it in injury time to move back into the top 4. They face a winner-takes-all clash with Uruguay on Wednesday for the final automatic qualifying spot. It's so close that either team could still be eliminated with a defeat. Ecuador's loss drops them from 4th to 6th and although they still have a mathematical chance of finishing 4th, realistically they're hoping Uruguay fail to beat Argentina so they can leapfrog them and claim the playoff place. 1. Brazil (Q) 16-33 (+23) 2. Paraguay (Q) 17-33 (+10) 3. Chile (Q) 17-30 (+9) 4. Argentina 17-25 (+2) -------------------------- 5. Uruguay 17-24 (+9) -------------------------- 6. Ecuador 17-23 (-3) 7. Venezuela 17-21 (-6) 8. Colombia 17-20 (-6) 9. Bolivia 16-12 (-14) 10. Peru 17-10 (-24)
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Post by Panda on Oct 11, 2009 13:30:47 GMT 1
If Slovakia don't win their group we could potentially have a World Cup with no first-time qualifiers (if New Zealand beat Bahrain). Have Gabon made it before? (I'm guessing not) No, they never have. Teams left in the World Cup who have never qualified: Latvia (have a very small chance of making the playoffs) Slovakia (1 win away from qualification - guaranteed at least a playoff) Bosnia (through to playoffs) Venezuela (need several miracles to finish 5th in South America) Gabon (could win group but relying on Cameroon slipping up) Mozambique (likely to be eliminated today) Kenya (in same group as Mozambique - also likely to be eliminated today) Bahrain (0-0 after 1st leg of playoff with New Zealand)
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Post by Panda on Oct 11, 2009 13:44:12 GMT 1
NUMBER OF FIRST-TIME QUALIFIERS IN EACH WORLD CUP:
1930 (13): Argentina, Belgium, Bolivia, Brazil, Chile, France, Mexico, Paraguay, Peru, Romania, USA, Uruguay, Yugoslavia
1934 (10): Austria, Czechoslovakia, Egypt, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Netherlands, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland
1938 (4): Cuba, Dutch East Indies (Indonesia), Norway, Poland
1950 (1): England
1954 (3): Scotland, South Korea, Turkey
1958 (3): Northern Ireland, USSR, Wales
1962 (2): Bulgaria, Colombia
1966 (2): North Korea, Portugal
1970 (3): El Salvador, Israel, Morocco
1974 (4): Australia, East Germany, Haiti, Zaire
1978 (2): Iran, Tunisia
1982 (5): Algeria, Cameroon, Honduras, Kuwait, New Zealand
1986 (3): Canada, Denmark, Iraq
1990 (3): Costa Rica, Ireland, United Arab Emirates
1994 (3): Greece, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia
1998 (4): Croatia, Jamaica, Japan, South Africa
2002 (4): China, Ecuador, Senegal, Slovenia
2006 (6): Angola, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Togo, Trinidad & Tobago, Ukraine
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frag
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Post by frag on Oct 11, 2009 16:30:01 GMT 1
South America: Ecuador's loss drops them from 4th to 6th and although they still have a mathematical chance of finishing 4th, realistically they're hoping Uruguay fail to beat Argentina so they can leapfrog them and claim the playoff place. 4. Argentina 17-25 (+2) -------------------------- 5. Uruguay 17-24 (+9) -------------------------- 6. Ecuador 17-23 (-3) Actually, Ecuador will be guaranteed 5th if they win (at Chile), as Arg and Uruguay can't both get to 26 points.
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Post by Panda on Oct 11, 2009 16:33:49 GMT 1
South America: Ecuador's loss drops them from 4th to 6th and although they still have a mathematical chance of finishing 4th, realistically they're hoping Uruguay fail to beat Argentina so they can leapfrog them and claim the playoff place. 4. Argentina 17-25 (+2) -------------------------- 5. Uruguay 17-24 (+9) -------------------------- 6. Ecuador 17-23 (-3) Actually, Ecuador will be guaranteed 5th if they win (at Chile), as Arg and Uruguay can't both get to 26 points. Oh yes. Uruguay v Argentina really does look all or nothing...
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vastar iner
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Post by vastar iner on Oct 11, 2009 18:21:32 GMT 1
How on earth could both the linesman, and the referee (who was in an even better position), miss Palermo being about a yard offside? Not only were there fewer than 2 defenders between him and the goal-line when the shot came in, there was fewer than one...
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Post by suedehead on Oct 11, 2009 22:24:44 GMT 1
I think it's pathetic that the play-offs are seeded based on FIFA World Ranking. I don't know why FIFA don't just give the big countries a free pass... It absolutely should be based on performance in the groups, seeing as Norway are being eliminated on this basis. But that would mean FIFA being consistent in their decision making and that cannot be allowed to happen. It would mean the collapse of civilisation as we know it.
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