Here are the predictions and matches for groups F to I.
Group F
This has been one of the more interesting groups, with Georgia forcing unexpected draws. It also features Greece, who are always unpredictable, and Israel, who aren't in UEFA. With Malta, this is probably the most Mediterranean of the 9 groups.
8-9/10/10
Georgia (89) play Malta (150) and Greece (12) play Latvia (68) on the Friday, but for religious reasons Israel (36) play Croatia (11) on the Saturday. Georgia and Greece should win, but Israel-Croatia is worth paying attention to.
12/10/10
Latvia (68) play Georgia (89), and Greece (12) play Israel (36). With their recent performance Georgia could win, and Israel may hold Greece to a draw. Malta and Croatia play on November 17.
Group G
My favourite group, because it features my country England! It also includes Wales, Bulgaria – whose coach has resigned after they lost to Montenegro – and Switzerland. With their good wins in September, I expect England to easily win this group.
8/10/10 [England not playing]
Wales (84) play Bulgaria (54) and Montenegro (41) play Switzerland (21). Both games could go any way, although – and I hate to say this – Wales will probably lose.
12/10/10 [Bulgaria not playing]
Switzerland (21) play Wales (84) and England (6) play Montenegro (41). Switzerland and England are my predictions to win.
Group H
Iceland have done poorly in their games and are by far the worst team in the group, but Cyprus held Portugal to a 4-4 draw that makes things interesting. Denmark and Norway are the two Scandinavian teams. This is very much a Western Europe group.
8/10/10 [Iceland not playing]
Cyprus (43) play Norway (14), and Portugal (8) play Denmark (29). I honestly cannot say who will win, although I expect Portugal win if they can get over their draw.
12/10/10 [Norway not playing]
Denmark (29) play Cyprus (43), and Iceland (100) play Portugal (8). Cyprus might be able to beat Denmark, or it could go the other way. However, Portugal have a chance of an easy win against Iceland.
Group I
Poor old Scotland were demoted despite some reasonable football, to become the UK's third team. And now they have Spain to contend with. But with Liechtenstein, the Czech Republic and Lithuania this should still be an interesting group for them.
8/10/10 [Liechtenstein not playing]
The Czech Republic (37) play Scotland (47) and Spain (1) play Lithuania (42). While Spain should win, Scotland have a challenge I hope they will rise to and at least draw.
12/10/10 [Lithuania not playing]
Liechtenstein (149) play the Czech Republic (37), and Scotland (47) play Spain (1). I forsee a loss for Scotland, and a victory for the Czech Republic.
Showing posts with label group G. Show all posts
Showing posts with label group G. Show all posts
13/09/2010
Euro 2012 Qualification: Groups G, H, I September
Before I forget, here's the last three groups:
Group G
England won both their games (hooray!), and Wales, Bulgaria and Switzerland both lost their only games. Montenegro also won both their games.
So England's points were 1177.5 against Bulgaria, and 1372.5 against Switzerland.
Montenegro's were 870 against Wales, and 1177.5 against Bulgaria.
Obviously Wales, Bulgaria and Switzerland have 0 points.
England lead the group on goal difference, with Bulgaria second. Again by goal difference, Wales are third, with Switzerland fourth and Bulgaria last.
Group H
Group H was full of surprises for one member: Portugal. They only managed a draw and a loss. Norway, however, beat Iceland and Portugal. Iceland also lost to Denmark. Cyprus drew with Portugal.
Portugal got a low 342.5 points from their draw.
Cyprus got 480 in the same game.
Norway had 907.5 points from beating Iceland, and 1440 from beating Portugal.
Denmark also got 907.5 points from their victory over Iceland.
So Norway lead the group with Denmark second, Cyprus third on goal difference, Portugal fourth, and Iceland last.
Group I
Scotland scraped a win over Liechtenstein after previously drawing with Lithuania. Cup holders Spain also beat Liechtenstein, and Lithuania beat the Czech Republic.
So Scotland had 370 points from their draw, and a low 442.5 for beating Liechtenstein.
Spain had their 442.5 over Liechtenstein as well.
Lithuania had 397.5 points from drawing with Scotland, and 1267.5 from beating the Czech Republic.
Liechtenstein and the Czech Republic both got no points.
So Scotland lead their group and Lithuania are second on goal difference. Third are Spain, and last are Liechtenstein and the Czech Rep.
Group G
England won both their games (hooray!), and Wales, Bulgaria and Switzerland both lost their only games. Montenegro also won both their games.
So England's points were 1177.5 against Bulgaria, and 1372.5 against Switzerland.
Montenegro's were 870 against Wales, and 1177.5 against Bulgaria.
Obviously Wales, Bulgaria and Switzerland have 0 points.
England lead the group on goal difference, with Bulgaria second. Again by goal difference, Wales are third, with Switzerland fourth and Bulgaria last.
Group H
Group H was full of surprises for one member: Portugal. They only managed a draw and a loss. Norway, however, beat Iceland and Portugal. Iceland also lost to Denmark. Cyprus drew with Portugal.
Portugal got a low 342.5 points from their draw.
Cyprus got 480 in the same game.
Norway had 907.5 points from beating Iceland, and 1440 from beating Portugal.
Denmark also got 907.5 points from their victory over Iceland.
So Norway lead the group with Denmark second, Cyprus third on goal difference, Portugal fourth, and Iceland last.
Group I
Scotland scraped a win over Liechtenstein after previously drawing with Lithuania. Cup holders Spain also beat Liechtenstein, and Lithuania beat the Czech Republic.
So Scotland had 370 points from their draw, and a low 442.5 for beating Liechtenstein.
Spain had their 442.5 over Liechtenstein as well.
Lithuania had 397.5 points from drawing with Scotland, and 1267.5 from beating the Czech Republic.
Liechtenstein and the Czech Republic both got no points.
So Scotland lead their group and Lithuania are second on goal difference. Third are Spain, and last are Liechtenstein and the Czech Rep.
01/09/2010
Euro 2012 Qualification: 2/9/2010-7/9/2010 part 2
Here's the second set of matches: groups F-I. Since groups G, H and I only have five teams in them, only two games are played in each set of matches, leaving one team out. I've said which team it is every time.
Group F - 2/9/2010
There's only one game on September 2nd. Possibly this is because Israel would not be happy to play on a Friday, with it being the day before their Sabbath, especially with the evening kick off. Israel (38) take on Malta (151) and are likely to win.
3/9/2010
The other two games are on September 3rd. Latvia (49) play Croatia (14), and Greece (12) play Georgia (110). Croatia and Greece are both good enough to win – especially Greece, who have won a Euro competition in the past.
7/9/2010
Georgia (110) play Israel (38), Malta (151) play Latvia (49), and Croatia (14) play Greece (12). It should be a fascinating match between the Croats and Greece, with no predicable result. Latvia and Israel should both win their games.
Group G - 3/9/2010[Switzerland left out]
Montenegro (73) play Wales (73), and England (7) play Bulgaria (43). An easy first game for England that they should win, but Wales have a challenge against their opponents.
7/9/2010 [Wales left out]
Bulgaria (43) play Montenegro (73), and Switzerland (17) play England (7). Easy win for Bulgaria, but England have a challenge. Edited because of mistakes by me
Group H - 3/9/2010 [Cyprus left out]
Denmark (29) play Iceland (79), Norway (22) play Portugal (8). Portugal, a good team anywhere, are most likely to win, and Denmark have a history of good football so should also beat Iceland.
7/9/2010 [Iceland left out]
Cyprus (63) play Norway (22), Portugal (8) play Denmark (29). Portugal again should win, and Norway should beat Cyprus.
Group I - 3/9/2010 [Czech Republic left out]
Lithuania (52) play Scotland (41), Liechtenstein (141) play Spain (1). A win for Spain, no doubt, but Scotland have a challenge.
7/9/2010 [Spain left out]
Czech Republic (31) play Lithuania (52), Scotland (41) play Liechtenstein (141). For Scotland a win seems certain, but the Czech Republic may struggle against Lithuania.
Group F - 2/9/2010
There's only one game on September 2nd. Possibly this is because Israel would not be happy to play on a Friday, with it being the day before their Sabbath, especially with the evening kick off. Israel (38) take on Malta (151) and are likely to win.
3/9/2010
The other two games are on September 3rd. Latvia (49) play Croatia (14), and Greece (12) play Georgia (110). Croatia and Greece are both good enough to win – especially Greece, who have won a Euro competition in the past.
7/9/2010
Georgia (110) play Israel (38), Malta (151) play Latvia (49), and Croatia (14) play Greece (12). It should be a fascinating match between the Croats and Greece, with no predicable result. Latvia and Israel should both win their games.
Group G - 3/9/2010[Switzerland left out]
Montenegro (73) play Wales (73), and England (7) play Bulgaria (43). An easy first game for England that they should win, but Wales have a challenge against their opponents.
7/9/2010 [Wales left out]
Bulgaria (43) play Montenegro (73), and Switzerland (17) play England (7). Easy win for Bulgaria, but England have a challenge. Edited because of mistakes by me
Group H - 3/9/2010 [Cyprus left out]
Denmark (29) play Iceland (79), Norway (22) play Portugal (8). Portugal, a good team anywhere, are most likely to win, and Denmark have a history of good football so should also beat Iceland.
7/9/2010 [Iceland left out]
Cyprus (63) play Norway (22), Portugal (8) play Denmark (29). Portugal again should win, and Norway should beat Cyprus.
Group I - 3/9/2010 [Czech Republic left out]
Lithuania (52) play Scotland (41), Liechtenstein (141) play Spain (1). A win for Spain, no doubt, but Scotland have a challenge.
7/9/2010 [Spain left out]
Czech Republic (31) play Lithuania (52), Scotland (41) play Liechtenstein (141). For Scotland a win seems certain, but the Czech Republic may struggle against Lithuania.
25/06/2010
Day Fifteen: 25/6/2010
Sven's team win as Chile boil
Well, a disappointing day for Ivory Coast, who played a great match against North Korea but were let down by a draw between Brazil and Portugal, keeping them out of the final sixteen. They were relying on Brazil defeating (and destroying) Portugal, while they did the same to North Korea. You have to be inspired by the North Korean goalkeeper R Myong Guk, who played on to the end of the game despite injuries to his hand and thigh.
This was the first clean game of the World Cup; referee Alberto UNDIANO, who previously had a terrible match with Germany and Serbia, had a change of form. By contrast, seven yellow cards were given out in the game between Brazil and Portugal, which was played poorly by both sides.
So for group G, my predictions come through, but I was glad that I chose to watch Ivory Coast/North Korea rather than Brazil/Portugal.
Interestingly, the Americans seem to be getting deep into this tournament. They're really passionate about their team this year. I think it's because of that 1-1 draw originally and Robert Green's mess-up. 11Points even did a live blog for the first time, following that USA-Algeria game that ended so spectacularly. I think now they understand why the rest of us love football. The sport has always had a minor follow there. The question is: will it increase?
Again, I think 11points puts it succinctly: the people might love it, but the TV networks won't because it doesn't allow for them to take time out in the middle of a half for commercial breaks. What can I say? TOUGH! ITV has managed for years. But at any rate, I think Americans will get behind their national team rather than the league teams. American teams don't often participate in international competitions, so it's fantastic to see the World Cup uniting the USA.
The second pair of games was group H's finale. I had correctly predicted Spain and Chile would go through. All Spain had to do was win to guarantee survival, or draw if the other game turned in Honduras's favour. With the dominance of South America, and the loss of several European teams, it was vital to stay in.
Honduras didn't have much of a chance, though. Losing today means they're the first team to go out of a World Cup without points or goals since Saudi Arabia and China in 2002. (Source: FIFA.com. Someone tell me where all this stupid info comes from!)
The first half went well, as Spain scored two goals, meaning Chile no longer have a goalless tournament. Worse was to come for the South Americans, as Chile gained four yellow cards – two to the same player, and two to players who will also miss out on the next match.
Spain went into the second half feeling like they had already won against 10-man Chile, but were soundly shaken by substitute Millar's goal. However, they can be comforted by the fact that the last player to score against Chile in a World Cup was Brazil's Ronaldo back in 1998 in the final 16, which Brazil won 4-1. At the end of the half, they found themselves kicking around the ball and maintaining the score, just relaxing and keeping things away from Chile.
Thanks to Spain's victory, they will now play European neighbours and rivals Portugal in the final 16. They are only the third team in World Cup history to win their group having lost their opening game – the other two are West Germany (1982) and Mexico (1994).
Chile have never won their group in the World Cup. In 1998 they had 0-3-0 and got through. The most they have managed is two wins – in 1930, 1962 and this year. Only three teams have lost the group stages despite winning two matches: Chile (1930), Yugoslavia (1950) and Algeria (1982) although in the first two cases only the group winners went through.
Goals per game: Mean – 2.1, Median – 2, Mode – 2, Range – 7
Cards per game: Mean – 4, Median – 4, Mode – 5, Range - 10
Tomorrow, Uruguay play South Korea and the USA play Ghana. My predictions are on Uruguay and USA to win. So far I've had 86% correct predictions (only Italy and Serbia have failed me so far) but don't use me to bet with! From tomorrow, I will be posting statistics before the games about previous clashes between the teams.
Well, a disappointing day for Ivory Coast, who played a great match against North Korea but were let down by a draw between Brazil and Portugal, keeping them out of the final sixteen. They were relying on Brazil defeating (and destroying) Portugal, while they did the same to North Korea. You have to be inspired by the North Korean goalkeeper R Myong Guk, who played on to the end of the game despite injuries to his hand and thigh.
This was the first clean game of the World Cup; referee Alberto UNDIANO, who previously had a terrible match with Germany and Serbia, had a change of form. By contrast, seven yellow cards were given out in the game between Brazil and Portugal, which was played poorly by both sides.
So for group G, my predictions come through, but I was glad that I chose to watch Ivory Coast/North Korea rather than Brazil/Portugal.
Interestingly, the Americans seem to be getting deep into this tournament. They're really passionate about their team this year. I think it's because of that 1-1 draw originally and Robert Green's mess-up. 11Points even did a live blog for the first time, following that USA-Algeria game that ended so spectacularly. I think now they understand why the rest of us love football. The sport has always had a minor follow there. The question is: will it increase?
Again, I think 11points puts it succinctly: the people might love it, but the TV networks won't because it doesn't allow for them to take time out in the middle of a half for commercial breaks. What can I say? TOUGH! ITV has managed for years. But at any rate, I think Americans will get behind their national team rather than the league teams. American teams don't often participate in international competitions, so it's fantastic to see the World Cup uniting the USA.
The second pair of games was group H's finale. I had correctly predicted Spain and Chile would go through. All Spain had to do was win to guarantee survival, or draw if the other game turned in Honduras's favour. With the dominance of South America, and the loss of several European teams, it was vital to stay in.
Honduras didn't have much of a chance, though. Losing today means they're the first team to go out of a World Cup without points or goals since Saudi Arabia and China in 2002. (Source: FIFA.com. Someone tell me where all this stupid info comes from!)
The first half went well, as Spain scored two goals, meaning Chile no longer have a goalless tournament. Worse was to come for the South Americans, as Chile gained four yellow cards – two to the same player, and two to players who will also miss out on the next match.
Spain went into the second half feeling like they had already won against 10-man Chile, but were soundly shaken by substitute Millar's goal. However, they can be comforted by the fact that the last player to score against Chile in a World Cup was Brazil's Ronaldo back in 1998 in the final 16, which Brazil won 4-1. At the end of the half, they found themselves kicking around the ball and maintaining the score, just relaxing and keeping things away from Chile.
Thanks to Spain's victory, they will now play European neighbours and rivals Portugal in the final 16. They are only the third team in World Cup history to win their group having lost their opening game – the other two are West Germany (1982) and Mexico (1994).
Chile have never won their group in the World Cup. In 1998 they had 0-3-0 and got through. The most they have managed is two wins – in 1930, 1962 and this year. Only three teams have lost the group stages despite winning two matches: Chile (1930), Yugoslavia (1950) and Algeria (1982) although in the first two cases only the group winners went through.
Goals per game: Mean – 2.1, Median – 2, Mode – 2, Range – 7
Cards per game: Mean – 4, Median – 4, Mode – 5, Range - 10
Tomorrow, Uruguay play South Korea and the USA play Ghana. My predictions are on Uruguay and USA to win. So far I've had 86% correct predictions (only Italy and Serbia have failed me so far) but don't use me to bet with! From tomorrow, I will be posting statistics before the games about previous clashes between the teams.
21/06/2010
Day Eleven: 21/6/2010
Portugal leave North Korea behind again as Spain keep a clean game
Here's how the cards and goals are spread over the positions:
Total goals: 67, Total cards: 130 (some players got more than one)
The first game of the day was North Korea against Portugal. At first, the brave Asian side held their ground, but Portugal showed that their draw against Ivory Coast was a fluke as they scored one goal in the first half. In the second half, North Korea fell to pieces as Portugal got six more goals for the top-scoring game of the tournament. Last time these teams met was in the second round of the 1966 World Cup, where North Korea went 3-0 up and then lost 5-3 thanks to the incredible Eusebio! He scored 4 goals in that game, and went on to become the top scorer in the cup. [It was England who won, though :D]
Afterwards, Chile won their second game 1-0, giving them six points. This puts Chile at the top of their group thanks to Switzerland's previous win and Spain's loss. It's likely this group will be determined by goal difference if Switzerland beat Honduras and Spain beat Chile. So it's up to the teams to make sure they score as many goals as possible! This game has been the roughest so far of the tournament, with 10 cards including a straight red to Switzerland! Saudi-Arabian referee AL GHAMDI Khalil has previously refereed the game between France and Mexico, where six yellow cards were given out. It seems from his record that he does often give out a lot of cards, and he's a teacher in 'normal life', so feel sorry for his students! World Referee.com gives him the worst refereeing performance of the tournament so far! He also gave Chile a goal that was clearly offside.
Finally, Spain took on Honduras. After a defeat to Switzerland despite being the better team, they had to do well, and succeeded, winning 2-0. Both goals were scored by David VILLA, which also puts him in contention for the Adidas golden boot. Spain also managed another clean game, getting no cards once again. This means that Spain is the only team in the tournament that has not received any cards!
Goals per game: Mean – 2.09, Median – 3, Mode – 2, Range – 7
Cards per game: Mean – 4.06, Median – 4, Mode – 3,5, Range - 9
Here's how the cards and goals are spread over the positions:
| Position | Goals scored | Number of card earners |
| Goalkeeper | 0 | 3 |
| Defender | 9 | 48 |
| Midfielder | 24 | 45 |
| Striker | 35 | 21 |
Total goals: 67, Total cards: 130 (some players got more than one)
The first game of the day was North Korea against Portugal. At first, the brave Asian side held their ground, but Portugal showed that their draw against Ivory Coast was a fluke as they scored one goal in the first half. In the second half, North Korea fell to pieces as Portugal got six more goals for the top-scoring game of the tournament. Last time these teams met was in the second round of the 1966 World Cup, where North Korea went 3-0 up and then lost 5-3 thanks to the incredible Eusebio! He scored 4 goals in that game, and went on to become the top scorer in the cup. [It was England who won, though :D]
Afterwards, Chile won their second game 1-0, giving them six points. This puts Chile at the top of their group thanks to Switzerland's previous win and Spain's loss. It's likely this group will be determined by goal difference if Switzerland beat Honduras and Spain beat Chile. So it's up to the teams to make sure they score as many goals as possible! This game has been the roughest so far of the tournament, with 10 cards including a straight red to Switzerland! Saudi-Arabian referee AL GHAMDI Khalil has previously refereed the game between France and Mexico, where six yellow cards were given out. It seems from his record that he does often give out a lot of cards, and he's a teacher in 'normal life', so feel sorry for his students! World Referee.com gives him the worst refereeing performance of the tournament so far! He also gave Chile a goal that was clearly offside.
Finally, Spain took on Honduras. After a defeat to Switzerland despite being the better team, they had to do well, and succeeded, winning 2-0. Both goals were scored by David VILLA, which also puts him in contention for the Adidas golden boot. Spain also managed another clean game, getting no cards once again. This means that Spain is the only team in the tournament that has not received any cards!
Goals per game: Mean – 2.09, Median – 3, Mode – 2, Range – 7
Cards per game: Mean – 4.06, Median – 4, Mode – 3,5, Range - 9
20/06/2010
Day Ten: 20/6/2010
Italy continue to be bad, Brazil give no surprises
A shocking game from reigning world champions Italy, who have once again only drawn with supposedly-inferior opponents. New Zealand are the second-lowest FIFA/Coca-Cola ranked team in this World Cup, so what does that say about the Italians? The last time the reigning champions failed to win their first two matches in a World Cup was France back in 2002.
First, the card stats. There have been:
4 red cards
5 double-yellows to a single player in the same game
8 players have received two yellow cards in separate group-stages games
85 players have only had one yellow card
The two teams with the least cards given are North Korea and Spain, having not had any, although both teams are yet to play their second group stage matches.
The roughest team so far is Serbia, who have received 8 cards so far including one player sent off with two yellow cards against Ghana. This is partly because of their participation in the nine-card game.
The first game played today was Paraguay against Slovakia. Paraguay held Italy to a 1-1 draw in their first game, which is a mixture of good Paraguayan and bad Italian football. Slovakia lost 2-0, and also had three yellow cards, having previously drawn with New Zealand. If Italy beat Slovakia they will qualify, but if they draw then Paraguay have to beat New Zealand to go through. If Slovakia (somehow) beats Italy, they will qualify provided Paraguay lose. So this group is (surprisingly) anyone's game.
After Italy's disappointing draw with New Zealand, you can only assume that they're not going to retain the cup. A lot of supposedly-good teams this year are failing to do well. France and England have done especially poorly, and after a fantastic start, Germany have also fallen behind. However, Argentina and Brazil are doing well, and we've yet to hear from Portugal.
The big news is that France's star player Nicolas ANELKA has been sent home, and the entire French squad has disputed this decision, and thus refused to train. It remains to be seen how well they will fare against South Africa.
Brazil had another good match against Ivory Coast, winning 3-1. It's Brazil's second victory this World Cup, and continues their fantastic record. Ivory Coast is team led by ex-England coach Sven Goran-Ericcson, who led England to the quarter-finals of the last two World Cups. He may not have been able to beat Brazil, but bringing Portugal to a 1-1 draw is fantastic!
Goals per game: Mean - 1.97, Median - 2, Mode - 2, Range - 5
Cards per game: Mean - 3.93, Median - 4, Mode - 3,5, Range - 8
A shocking game from reigning world champions Italy, who have once again only drawn with supposedly-inferior opponents. New Zealand are the second-lowest FIFA/Coca-Cola ranked team in this World Cup, so what does that say about the Italians? The last time the reigning champions failed to win their first two matches in a World Cup was France back in 2002.
First, the card stats. There have been:
4 red cards
5 double-yellows to a single player in the same game
8 players have received two yellow cards in separate group-stages games
85 players have only had one yellow card
The two teams with the least cards given are North Korea and Spain, having not had any, although both teams are yet to play their second group stage matches.
The roughest team so far is Serbia, who have received 8 cards so far including one player sent off with two yellow cards against Ghana. This is partly because of their participation in the nine-card game.
The first game played today was Paraguay against Slovakia. Paraguay held Italy to a 1-1 draw in their first game, which is a mixture of good Paraguayan and bad Italian football. Slovakia lost 2-0, and also had three yellow cards, having previously drawn with New Zealand. If Italy beat Slovakia they will qualify, but if they draw then Paraguay have to beat New Zealand to go through. If Slovakia (somehow) beats Italy, they will qualify provided Paraguay lose. So this group is (surprisingly) anyone's game.
After Italy's disappointing draw with New Zealand, you can only assume that they're not going to retain the cup. A lot of supposedly-good teams this year are failing to do well. France and England have done especially poorly, and after a fantastic start, Germany have also fallen behind. However, Argentina and Brazil are doing well, and we've yet to hear from Portugal.
The big news is that France's star player Nicolas ANELKA has been sent home, and the entire French squad has disputed this decision, and thus refused to train. It remains to be seen how well they will fare against South Africa.
Brazil had another good match against Ivory Coast, winning 3-1. It's Brazil's second victory this World Cup, and continues their fantastic record. Ivory Coast is team led by ex-England coach Sven Goran-Ericcson, who led England to the quarter-finals of the last two World Cups. He may not have been able to beat Brazil, but bringing Portugal to a 1-1 draw is fantastic!
Goals per game: Mean - 1.97, Median - 2, Mode - 2, Range - 5
Cards per game: Mean - 3.93, Median - 4, Mode - 3,5, Range - 8
15/06/2010
Day Five: 15/6/2010
North Korea battle well against Brazil!
Some info on the ages of goalscorers:
Oldest scorer: 33 years, 7 months, 26 days – JI Yun Nam (North Korea) against Brazil
Youngest scorer: 20 years, 9 months, 0 days – Thomas MUELLER (Germany) against Australia
Mean age: 27.5
Mode age: 29 (5 players)
Range: 13
Interestingly, nobody has scored more than one goal yet. Let's hope that changes soon! Tomorrow: info on the times the goals were scored during the game.
So today we had New Zealand verses Slovakia (two teams lucky that there's only one good team in their group – Italy – so they have a chance of going through). This game resulted in a draw, and New Zealand defender Winston REID made the best use of injury time to score a goal in the 93rd minute. Reid is the second-youngest goalscorer, aged 21. Between him and the next-youngest is a gap of about three years. Slovakia's Robert VITTEK, who plays his football in Turkey, had scored in the 50th minute. He's 28 – which fits the goalscorer profile better!
Next up was the Ivory Coast, playing Portugal. You'd think Portugal would win, but like many other supposedly-good teams this tournament, they failed to impress, only getting a 0-0 draw with the African side. There were three yellow cards in this game, including one for Christiano RONALDO, who's well known for his diving – and his winking!
Finally, the North Koreans won the hearts of the world as they played against Brazil. Brazil will always be one of the best teams, having never failed to qualify for a world cup, and won it five times as well, most recently in 1998. They scored two goals and gained a yellow card in a clean game, but North Korea managed to hold back Brazil for the entirety of the first half, and Korean defender JI Yun-Nam, the oldest scorer in the World Cup so far, got a last minute goal to show just how good their team are. I may not approve of the country's government, but I care for the players. I was especially moved by JONG Tae-Se's passion.
Goals per game: Mean- 1.571, Median – 1.5, Mode – 1,2, Range - 4
Cards per game: Mean – 3.643, Median – 3, Mode – 2,3,6, Range – 6
Games seem to be getting cleaner, and the goals more interesting. Tomorrow is the sixth day of the tournament. Group H round off the first matches, and South Africa play Uruguay in their second games.
Some info on the ages of goalscorers:
Oldest scorer: 33 years, 7 months, 26 days – JI Yun Nam (North Korea) against Brazil
Youngest scorer: 20 years, 9 months, 0 days – Thomas MUELLER (Germany) against Australia
Mean age: 27.5
Mode age: 29 (5 players)
Range: 13
Interestingly, nobody has scored more than one goal yet. Let's hope that changes soon! Tomorrow: info on the times the goals were scored during the game.
So today we had New Zealand verses Slovakia (two teams lucky that there's only one good team in their group – Italy – so they have a chance of going through). This game resulted in a draw, and New Zealand defender Winston REID made the best use of injury time to score a goal in the 93rd minute. Reid is the second-youngest goalscorer, aged 21. Between him and the next-youngest is a gap of about three years. Slovakia's Robert VITTEK, who plays his football in Turkey, had scored in the 50th minute. He's 28 – which fits the goalscorer profile better!
Next up was the Ivory Coast, playing Portugal. You'd think Portugal would win, but like many other supposedly-good teams this tournament, they failed to impress, only getting a 0-0 draw with the African side. There were three yellow cards in this game, including one for Christiano RONALDO, who's well known for his diving – and his winking!
Finally, the North Koreans won the hearts of the world as they played against Brazil. Brazil will always be one of the best teams, having never failed to qualify for a world cup, and won it five times as well, most recently in 1998. They scored two goals and gained a yellow card in a clean game, but North Korea managed to hold back Brazil for the entirety of the first half, and Korean defender JI Yun-Nam, the oldest scorer in the World Cup so far, got a last minute goal to show just how good their team are. I may not approve of the country's government, but I care for the players. I was especially moved by JONG Tae-Se's passion.
Goals per game: Mean- 1.571, Median – 1.5, Mode – 1,2, Range - 4
Cards per game: Mean – 3.643, Median – 3, Mode – 2,3,6, Range – 6
Games seem to be getting cleaner, and the goals more interesting. Tomorrow is the sixth day of the tournament. Group H round off the first matches, and South Africa play Uruguay in their second games.
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