Round 2, The Quarterfinals 2018 World Cup Quick Guide

   The round of 16 concluded two days ago with England breaking their world cup curse and defeating Colombia in a penalty shootout. The 2018 World Cup has been exciting to watch, the drama is unmatched and it seems as if this world cup is scripted, the writers have no idea of continuity. There are 8 teams left after the round of 16 and the matches will only become more tense and dramatic. Russia, Croatia, Sweden, England, Uruguay, France, Brazil and Belgium are among the 8 world's best international teams in the 2018 world cup edition.

July 6

     Uruguay vs France

     The first match of the quarterfinals will be Uruguay and France facing off. This is an enticing match due to the quality of the teams. France destroyed the Argentina side to reach the quarterfinals. Kylian Mbappe demonstrated to the rest of the world that the next footballing star is here. The French side has talented players across the field from their veteran captain goalkeeper to Paul Pogba and Antoine Griezmann. I can understand why the sports websites I visit tend to favor the French. 

     

     Uruguay may share a border with Argentina but that's the only similarity that I can think of that their soccer teams share because of how far these two national teams are in terms of structure and consistency on the pitch. Uruguay is a team that is well organized and that can tactically defend any opponent that they face. Uruguay's head coach, Oscar Tabarez, has been in charge since 2006 and has implemented from the youth to the national team level on how he wants his side to perform. Do not let this confuse you into believing it's due to lack of quality. This is done with purposeful intentions and following their game plan. Uruguay's first goal against Portugal was the longest one-two between Luis Suarez and Edinson Cavani that resulted in a beautifully executed goal. This match is worthy of a semi-final, but only one will advance. I do not understand the numbers I see in the sports websites that I visit in having France as clear favorites. Uruguay have a game plan and a coach who can adjust his team accordingly. I personally want and think Uruguay will win, but France are the favorites here. But the odds should be closer to 50-50 than 63-37. 

     Brazil vs Belgium 

     The next match later that day will be between two early tournament favorites, Brazil vs Belgium. Any time Brazil enters an international competition they can be easily be penciled in as tournament protagonist. The 5 time world cup winners pride themselves in their footballing abilities and their approach to play the game in a Brazilian fashion. That being said this Brazilian side share a very good defensive record this tournament. The Brazilians have only conceded 1 goal this world cup. The only other team left in the quarterfinals to do that is their South American neighbors, Uruguay. 

     Belgium has an insane overabundance of talent in their squad. Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard, and Kevin De Bruyne are the three intelligent and talented players that easily stick out on any roster sheet. This Belgium side is considered by some a "golden generation" that should be challenging to win the tournament and I can understand why. For me this talented Belgium side have not clicked or found a unison rhythm in their play. However, this team can definitely challenge tournament heavyweights. I don't have a clear bias in this match and can see Brazil winning the match. However, Casemiro is out for Brazil due to suspension. If Marcelo starts over Felipe Luis in this match I can see Brazil getting easily countered by the Belgium side. It won't be a 7-1 humiliation or necessarily a defeat, but I see it as a tactical mishap that increases Belgium's probability in winning the match.

               

     

     

2018 FIFA Men's World Cup (Group C)

Group C

France (7)

Australia (40)

Peru (11)

Denmark (12)

                France is a team that is loaded with talented players, from the starting eleven to those sitting on the bench. Not only is the French national team gifted with depth, but the age of most of the players is 26 and younger. This can be analyzed as a team that is built for the future. However, the world cup is played in 2018 and no national team can loan itself success by borrowing from the future. France leads Group C heading into Russia this summer as favorites to win the group and even make a deep run in the tournament. Les bleus were runners-up in the Euros and would enjoy reaching the final in the summer for another opportunity to win an international trophy.

                Australia is the lowest ranked on FIFA’s ranking system of the teams in group C. The Socceroos have qualified for their fourth consecutive World Cup which is an achievement in itself since before qualifying for Germany in 2006 the Australian national team had a 30-year absence. I don’t see the socceroos causing too much trouble for any of the other teams and will most likely be eliminated once the group stage is over.

                Peru and Denmark are close and not just in the FIFA rankings. The two national teams will participate in their fifth world cup in their respective history. I think the two national teams are ranked slightly higher than they merit based on their quality of play. However, they are close in quality which is somewhat indicated by the rankings. How Peru and Denmark perform against Australia will be a key factor in which team will advance to the knockout phase of the tournament. Any slip up against the Australian team will open up a huge opportunity for the other. 

France is an easy pick to finish first, but who will finish in second is a bit more difficult to state with historically assured confidence. I will side with Peru to advance simply because I was memorized by the fans in the stadium who passionately cheered on their national team during the qualification and after it was set that La Blanquirroja would be in Russia in this summer. Denmark has not lost in their last 11 matches winning 6 of them and drawing with the likes of Germany and Chile. They have quality players and can finish 2^nd. My tiebreaker was my emotional attachment to Peru after watching the two national teams play their playoff matches to qualify for the World Cup. I admit that’s not the usual manner in which I attempt to analyze football, but as the world cup nears the emotions are starting to quickly ascend.