2014 FIFA World Cup

[wonderbread]

We dont have another striker with his speed or skill, so we are going to be lacking on attack without him

[marble21]

How much trouble are we in without Altidore?

We dont have another striker with his speed or skill, so we are going to be lacking on attack without him

Just exactly HOW BAD are your other strikers then?

[leopard88]

They might have a poor goal difference which might hinder thier chances

I believe head-to-head is above goal difference when it comes to tie breakers. So Portugal beating USA by any score would mean USA having to get some sort of result against Germany to get out of the group.

Head-to-head comes fourth --

The ranking of each team in each group shall be determined as follows:

a) greatest number of points obtained in all group matches;

goal difference in all group matches;

c) greatest number of goals scored in all group matches.

If two or more teams are equal on the basis of the above three criteria, their rankings shall be determined as follows:

d) greatest number of points obtained in the group matches between the teams concerned;

e) goal difference resulting from the group matches between the teams concerned;

f) greater number of goals scored in all group matches between the teams concerned;

g) drawing of lots by the FIFA Organising Committee.

[Billy B]

How much trouble are we in without Altidore?

We dont have another striker with his speed or skill, so we are going to be lacking on attack without him

Just exactly HOW BAD are your other strikers then?

Jozy is a lot better than he's shown in either of his stints in England. The problem now is that the US doesn't have another target forward to replace Altidore. Part of the reason Ghana dominated a lot of that match was because we didn't have Jozy's hold up play to help keep possession and move forward. Johannsson isn't the same type of forward and it showed since he was barely involved at all. I'm curios to see what Klinsmann does because he can't just replace Altidore with Johannsson (or Wondo) and play the same way.

[marble21]

They might have a poor goal difference which might hinder thier chances

I believe head-to-head is above goal difference when it comes to tie breakers. So Portugal beating USA by any score would mean USA having to get some sort of result against Germany to get out of the group.

Head-to-head comes fourth --

Guess I was wrong. Must be the Champions League I am thinking of... maybe.

By that then, a small loss to Portugal wouldn't be the end of the world as it could mean that a draw against Germany (who may have already qualified by then) would be enough - all hypothetically of course. It also means a draw against Portugal almost puts Portgual out.

[Billy B]

How much trouble are we in without Altidore?

We dont have another striker with his speed or skill, so we are going to be lacking on attack without him

Just exactly HOW BAD are your other strikers then?

Jozy's a lot better than his two stints in England. The problem that the US is facing now is that they don't have a true replacement for Altidore. Johannsson isn't a target forward and it showed in that game. Part of the reason Ghana dominated a lot of the match was that the US didn't have Altidore's hold up play. Even when he wasn't scoring goals, Jozy could keep possession and push forward. It will be interesting to see what Klinsmann does because he can't just put in Johannsson (or Wondo) and play the same way we did with Altidore up top. But if they do stick with it, I'd like to see Wondo get the start.

It's also worth noting that the US was able to get three points with Michael Bradley, perhaps the most important player on the team, having his worst game in recent memory. He'll certainly play better Sunday and they really need him playing well to get a result against Portugal.

[IanC]

They might have a poor goal difference which might hinder thier chances

I believe head-to-head is above goal difference when it comes to tie breakers. So Portugal beating USA by any score would mean USA having to get some sort of result against Germany to get out of the group.

Head-to-head comes fourth --

Guess I was wrong. Must be the Champions League I am thinking of... maybe.

Not the Champions league either.

7.06 If two or more teams are equal on points on co

mpletion of the group matches,

the following criteria are applied to determine the

rankings (in descending

order):

a) higher number of points obtained in the group ma

tches played among the

teams in question;

superior goal difference from the group matches

played among the teams

in question;

c) higher number of goals scored in the group match

es played among the

teams in question;

d) higher number of goals scored away from home in

the group matches

played among the teams in question;

e) if, after having applied criteria a) to d), two

teams still have an equal

ranking, criteria a) to d) are reapplied exclusivel

y to the matches between

the two teams in question to determine their final

rankings. If this

procedure does not lead to a decision, criteria f)

to h) apply;

f) superior goal difference from all group matches

played;

g) higher number of goals scored from all group mat

ches played;

h) higher number of coefficient points accumulated

by the club in question,

as well as its association, over the previous five

seasons (see

paragraph 9.02

[marble21]

Surely there must be a competition somewhere that uses head to head before goal difference haha.

[Kramerica Industries]

Well, La Liga uses head-to-head results over goal difference in deciding the table. That's definitely true.

Just this past season, if Barca had beaten Atletico on the final day, they would've both finished tied on 89 points but Barca's superior head-to-head results (four points to one) would've given them the championship. As it was, Atletico forced a draw and finished three points clear.

[Nyk33]

Congratulations on beating Ghana but they are not the team that appeared in the last World Cup.

Premature to be talking about qualifiying out the group when you have to play two European powerhouses still. Yes Portugal got stuffed by Germany but they wont just roll over and be licking their wounds. They will be more of a threat now after the defeat and more determined to prove a point. They might have a poor goal difference which might hinder thier chances but a win against the U.S.A will leave you with having to beat Germany. That would be the shock of the tournament.

The hard work has only just started for the U.S.A team.

Agreed. I still have a feeling that Germany and Portugal are going to come out of this group since I don't see the US being able to hold on for dear life against Portugal like they did against Ghana.

I'm just happy that they were able to deliver a major blow to Ghana's World Cup campaign. They are pretty much our 2nd biggest rival (Mexico being 1st) IMO.

[-kj]

It's not so much that Jozy is the best striker, but he fills a role that no one else on the US does.

[Soarindude]

It's not so much that Jozy is the best striker, but he fills a role that no one else on the US does.

Exactly. Our style of play fits Jozy way more than Wondo or Johansson. To be honest though, Id love to see us start Wondo against Portugal and try and play a little more direct with our striker. Wondo has the potential to score more goals than Jozy, and I'm not sure that's something to complain about. I don't think losing Jozy will hurt the US too badly.

[IanC]

Looking forward to this Belgium match. Three Spurs players in the line up. Most play in the EPL so familiar with the Belgium squad.

[AnythingChicago]

Algeria played a solid first half, but once again the incredible depth of Belgium was key as ManU's Fellaini and Napoli's Mertens scored a pair of beautiful goals (thanks to a couple of perfect passes from former Chelsea teammates De Bruyne and Hazard respectively).

The depth and talent of this Belgian squad is unbelievable. It's just going to be a matter of putting all the pieces together into one cohesive product. If they can achieve that, they'll pose a real threat in the knockout stage.

As for Algeria, it was a great showing from them. Of course they would have liked to salvage at least one point, but there's really nothing they could've done about how well executed those two Belgian goals were. I had read before the match about how Algeria may be the most underrated team in the tournament, and I think they probably are (besides Costa Rica). It'll be interesting to see who comes out of Group H along with Belgium; I honestly believe that each team has about a 33% chance at this point.

[Soarindude]

All I gotta say is, Belgium is a damn good team. If the US has to play them, I'd be considerably worried. I can imagine this side will be able to reach the semi-finals, potentially even finals if they can continue to play well. The fight back against Algeria to win it is always an impressive feat to watch.

[IanC]

I thought that showing by Belgium was poor. They will have to improve if they are to get any further than the quarter finals. The first half they were out of ideas and could not get any balls into Lukaku. The strength in depth is good but for me they were very poor on todays showing against a team which closed them out. Far more is expected for all the talent in the team.

[waltere]

They might have a poor goal difference which might hinder thier chances

I believe head-to-head is above goal difference when it comes to tie breakers. So Portugal beating USA by any score would mean USA having to get some sort of result against Germany to get out of the group.

Head-to-head comes fourth --

Guess I was wrong. Must be the Champions League I am thinking of... maybe.

Not the Champions league either.

7.06 If two or more teams are equal on points on co

mpletion of the group matches,

the following criteria are applied to determine the

rankings (in descending

order):

a) higher number of points obtained in the group ma

tches played among the

teams in question;

superior goal difference from the group matches

played among the teams

in question;

c) higher number of goals scored in the group match

es played among the

teams in question;

d) higher number of goals scored away from home in

the group matches

played among the teams in question;

e) if, after having applied criteria a) to d), two

teams still have an equal

ranking, criteria a) to d) are reapplied exclusivel

y to the matches between

the two teams in question to determine their final

rankings. If this

procedure does not lead to a decision, criteria f)

to h) apply;

f) superior goal difference from all group matches

played;

g) higher number of goals scored from all group mat

ches played;

h) higher number of coefficient points accumulated

by the club in question,

as well as its association, over the previous five

seasons (see

paragraph 9.02

It is head to head in the Champions League

[IanC]

They might have a poor goal difference which might hinder thier chances

I believe head-to-head is above goal difference when it comes to tie breakers. So Portugal beating USA by any score would mean USA having to get some sort of result against Germany to get out of the group.

Head-to-head comes fourth --

Guess I was wrong. Must be the Champions League I am thinking of... maybe.

Not the Champions league either.

7.06 If two or more teams are equal on points on co

mpletion of the group matches,

the following criteria are applied to determine the

rankings (in descending

order):

a) higher number of points obtained in the group ma

tches played among the

teams in question;

superior goal difference from the group matches

played among the teams

in question;

c) higher number of goals scored in the group match

es played among the

teams in question;

d) higher number of goals scored away from home in

the group matches

played among the teams in question;

e) if, after having applied criteria a) to d), two

teams still have an equal

ranking, criteria a) to d) are reapplied exclusivel

y to the matches between

the two teams in question to determine their final

rankings. If this

procedure does not lead to a decision, criteria f)

to h) apply;

f) superior goal difference from all group matches

played;

g) higher number of goals scored from all group mat

ches played;

h) higher number of coefficient points accumulated

by the club in question,

as well as its association, over the previous five

seasons (see

paragraph 9.02

It is head to head in the Champions League

Show us where then.

http://www.uefa.com/MultimediaFiles/Download/Regulations/competitions/Regulations/01/94/62/34/1946234_DOWNLOAD.pdf

Taken from wikipedia for last seasons competion

Tiebreakers

The teams are ranked according to points (3 points for a win, 1 point for a tie, 0 points for a loss). If two or more teams are equal on points on completion of the group matches, the following criteria are applied to determine the rankings:^[1]

1. higher number of points obtained in the group matches played among the teams in question;
2. superior goal difference from the group matches played among the teams in question;
3. higher number of goals scored in the group matches played among the teams in question;
4. higher number of goals scored away from home in the group matches played among the teams in question;
5. If, after applying criteria 1 to 4 to several teams, two teams still have an equal ranking, criteria 1 to 4 are reapplied exclusively to the matches between the two teams in question to determine their final rankings. If this procedure does not lead to a decision, criteria 6 to 8 apply;
6. superior goal difference from all group matches played;
7. higher number of goals scored from all group matches played;
8. higher number of coefficient points accumulated by the club in question, as well as its association, over the previous five seasons.

[waltere]

Highest number of points obtained in group matches between the teams in question, not points gained in total

[Nyk33]

Where the :censored: was this Mexico team during qualifiers?