There were a whole bunch of friendlies plus two qualifiers just after the November rankings were released, plus a friendly between Poland and Bosnia&Herzegovina on 10th December. Looking at the results of these games, I predict:
Poland and Bosnia-Herzegovina drew 2-2, but won their earlier friendlies against Ivory Coast (19) and Slovakia (18) respectively, so both teams should gain. Their opponents will lose out.
England will probably fall in points, though maybe not position, as will Germany. France should gain after beating England.
Portugal beat first-placed Spain 4-0, incredibly. That gets them the maximum possible points for a friendly game - 600 - and may result in them even overtaking England (dare I say it). The Netherlands, who beat their opponents Turkey (29), might even go top. But that's less likely.
Expect Luxembourg, Romania, Northern Ireland and Belgium to do well after draws. Northern Ireland's was with a poorer team, but they maintain good form.
Finally, Georgia beat much better opponents in the form of Slovenia (15), and will also gain.
Showing posts with label spain. Show all posts
Showing posts with label spain. Show all posts
08/10/2010
Euro 2012 Qualification: 8/10/2010 results
UEFA have drastically updated their MatchCentre to display the matches far more sensibly. I won't go into the changes, but let's just say it is much simpler to use and has much less scrolling! It also now displays team statistics, including results and averages of previous games between the two sides.
My complaints would be first that it is still not updated very well as the match goes on. It can take some time to get the 'live' results appearing, and corrections often have to be made so you can't trust what it says. [Portugal's own goal was originally credited to one of the Danish players]
Secondly, in the statistics section there are red (home) and blue (away) bars to show how many goals, cards, shots etc. each team has had. But while some of these are positive, others are negative. It can therefore be hard to see which team is dominating a game – if a team has a good number of shots but a low number of cards, it looks like an even game, but a good number of shots and high number of cards looks like a dominated game.
Most Unexpected Result: Armenia 3 – 1 Slovakia. Surprising because Armenia are 89 points lower in rank than Slovakia, who were in the World Cup!
Most Expected Result: Hungary 8 – 0 San Marino. Because San Marino are... one of the worst international football teams in the world.
Most Embarrassing Result: Serbia 1 – 3 Estonia. Serbia helped Estonia to their victory with an own goal in extra time at the end of the second half. This was the first of two own goals scored today.
Most Promising Result: Northern Ireland 0 – 0 Italy. Holding Italy to a scoreless draw is fantastic for any team. Northern Ireland would have no shame in losing to Italy, but drawing shows that their victory against Slovenia was not a fluke result. More importantly, Northern Ireland are the only team in the British Isles who didn't lose tonight! (England weren't playing; Ireland lost to Russia; Wales lost to Bulgaria; Scotland lost to the Czech Republic)
Most Unusual Result: Portugal 3 – 1 Denmark. Why Unusual? Portugal scored all the goals! At least they managed to win despite this.
Cleanest Game: Spain 3 – 1 Lithuania; Moldova 0 – 1 Netherlands; Northern Ireland 0 – 0 Italy. No cards of any kind. Spain continue the way they were going in the World Cup before the final (they were the only team to get no cards in the group stages). However, it's a very clean game for the Dutch. And Northern Ireland earn more kudos for not getting any cards against Italy, who have been known in the past to dive.
Dirtiest Game: Wales 0 – 1 Bulgaria. In this awful game one Welsh player – defender Chris Gunter (Nottingham Forest) – got a straight red card. His teammate Sam Ricketts (Bolton) got a yellow, as did four Bulgarian players including another Bolton player.
My complaints would be first that it is still not updated very well as the match goes on. It can take some time to get the 'live' results appearing, and corrections often have to be made so you can't trust what it says. [Portugal's own goal was originally credited to one of the Danish players]
Secondly, in the statistics section there are red (home) and blue (away) bars to show how many goals, cards, shots etc. each team has had. But while some of these are positive, others are negative. It can therefore be hard to see which team is dominating a game – if a team has a good number of shots but a low number of cards, it looks like an even game, but a good number of shots and high number of cards looks like a dominated game.
Most Unexpected Result: Armenia 3 – 1 Slovakia. Surprising because Armenia are 89 points lower in rank than Slovakia, who were in the World Cup!
Most Expected Result: Hungary 8 – 0 San Marino. Because San Marino are... one of the worst international football teams in the world.
Most Embarrassing Result: Serbia 1 – 3 Estonia. Serbia helped Estonia to their victory with an own goal in extra time at the end of the second half. This was the first of two own goals scored today.
Most Promising Result: Northern Ireland 0 – 0 Italy. Holding Italy to a scoreless draw is fantastic for any team. Northern Ireland would have no shame in losing to Italy, but drawing shows that their victory against Slovenia was not a fluke result. More importantly, Northern Ireland are the only team in the British Isles who didn't lose tonight! (England weren't playing; Ireland lost to Russia; Wales lost to Bulgaria; Scotland lost to the Czech Republic)
Most Unusual Result: Portugal 3 – 1 Denmark. Why Unusual? Portugal scored all the goals! At least they managed to win despite this.
Cleanest Game: Spain 3 – 1 Lithuania; Moldova 0 – 1 Netherlands; Northern Ireland 0 – 0 Italy. No cards of any kind. Spain continue the way they were going in the World Cup before the final (they were the only team to get no cards in the group stages). However, it's a very clean game for the Dutch. And Northern Ireland earn more kudos for not getting any cards against Italy, who have been known in the past to dive.
Dirtiest Game: Wales 0 – 1 Bulgaria. In this awful game one Welsh player – defender Chris Gunter (Nottingham Forest) – got a straight red card. His teammate Sam Ricketts (Bolton) got a yellow, as did four Bulgarian players including another Bolton player.
23/07/2010
Let's Look At: Fernando Alonso
This week, I'm looking at my favourite F1 driver this season. He's had such a lot of bad luck, but at least Spain won for him in the football two weeks ago!
Name: Fernando Alonso Diaz
Date of Birth: 29th July 1981
Place of Birth: Oviedo, Asturias, Spain
Sport: Formula 1 racing
Car number: 8
Team: Ferrari
Number of F1 races so far: 150
Best finish this season: 1st (Bahrain)
Worst finish this season: 14 (Silverstone)
Average finish this season: 6.3
Average qualifier this season: 7.9
Points this season (up to Silverstone): 98
Points in whole career: 675
Best career finish: 1st (2005 – 133pts, 2006 - 134pts)
Fernando Alonso began his F1 career with Minardi, and came 23rd in his first season, in 2001. In 2002, he was a test driver for Renault, then became one of their best drivers, coming 6th in 2003, 4th in 2004, then winning the championship for them in 2005 and 2006! In 2007 – his one season with Hamilton (that didn't go down so well), he came third to the young driver. He returned to Renault for two more years, before going into Ferrari this year.
Unfortunately, Ferrari have been plagued with problems since Bahrain. Either Massa, Alonso or both have done badly, although a cunning move with the safety car in Monaco brought Alonso up from starting in the pits, to finishing sixth. He's always been determined, but frustrations with other drivers and car problems have held him back.
However, despite all that, Alonso is one of very few drivers this season to not retire – the others are Lewis Hamilton, teammate Filipe Massa, Nico Rosberg and one-race driver Yamamoto. This means that although the Ferraris have had some problems, they haven't been bad enough for retirements yet, making them the most reliable cars in Formula 1. In fact, Ferrari are still the third team in the championship this season, and Alonso is fifth.
Name: Fernando Alonso Diaz
Date of Birth: 29th July 1981
Place of Birth: Oviedo, Asturias, Spain
Sport: Formula 1 racing
Car number: 8
Team: Ferrari
Number of F1 races so far: 150
Best finish this season: 1st (Bahrain)
Worst finish this season: 14 (Silverstone)
Average finish this season: 6.3
Average qualifier this season: 7.9
Points this season (up to Silverstone): 98
Points in whole career: 675
Best career finish: 1st (2005 – 133pts, 2006 - 134pts)
Fernando Alonso began his F1 career with Minardi, and came 23rd in his first season, in 2001. In 2002, he was a test driver for Renault, then became one of their best drivers, coming 6th in 2003, 4th in 2004, then winning the championship for them in 2005 and 2006! In 2007 – his one season with Hamilton (that didn't go down so well), he came third to the young driver. He returned to Renault for two more years, before going into Ferrari this year.
Unfortunately, Ferrari have been plagued with problems since Bahrain. Either Massa, Alonso or both have done badly, although a cunning move with the safety car in Monaco brought Alonso up from starting in the pits, to finishing sixth. He's always been determined, but frustrations with other drivers and car problems have held him back.
However, despite all that, Alonso is one of very few drivers this season to not retire – the others are Lewis Hamilton, teammate Filipe Massa, Nico Rosberg and one-race driver Yamamoto. This means that although the Ferraris have had some problems, they haven't been bad enough for retirements yet, making them the most reliable cars in Formula 1. In fact, Ferrari are still the third team in the championship this season, and Alonso is fifth.
15/07/2010
World Ranking Calculation
The World Cup is over, and the world rankings have been readjusted as of yesterday (14th July). Unsurprisingly, Spain are top of the rankings with 1883 points. But how are the points calculated? FIFA has a simple formula based on several factors:
1 – Whether the match was won or drawn (M. The usual values apply – 3, 1, or 0. If the match is won in penalties, the winning team gets 2 points, and the losing team gets 1.
2 – The importance of the match (I)
Friendly: 1.0 points
World cup/continental qualifier: 2.5 points
Continental finals (eg: Euro) or FIFA confederations cup: 3.0 points
World Cup finals: 4.0 points
3 – The strength of the opponent (T)
Calculated by the following formula: [200 – position of opponent]/100 taken from the most recent FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking.
Any team ranked below 150th gets an automatic rating of 0.5
4 – The continental confederation factor of the opposing team(C)
UEFA: 1.00
CONMEBOL: 0.98
CONCACAF: 0.85
AFC: 0.85
CAF: 0.85
OFC: 0.85
Then the final points are calculated as P = M*I*T*C*100
The maximum possible points from a World Cup match is 2,400.
Let's look at the World Cup final to show how this works.
Spain beat Netherlands outside of penalties, so for Spain, M=3. For Netherlands, it's equal to 0 so they get no points from the final.
The importance of the match is I=4.
The strength of Spain's opponent (Netherlands) = [200 – 4]/100 = T=1.96
And there's a continental confederation factor of C=1.00, as both teams are in Europe.
So in total, Spain's points from the World Cup final are:
P = 3*4*1.96*1*100 = 2352
That's only 48 points from the most you can achieve in a game!
Obviously, the actual FIFA ranking isn't calculated only from the last game a team played. If that were the case, Netherlands wouldn't have any points! Instead, and I'm not clear exactly how this works, the matches over the past four years are taken into account. Games in the last year are worth 100% of their points, 50% for those 1-2 years ago, 30% for those 2-3 years ago, and 20% for those 3-4 years ago.
(Source: Fifa.com This is a PDF so make sure you have Adobe Acrobat reader. It's free, so I'm not making them any money by telling you this.)
1 – Whether the match was won or drawn (M. The usual values apply – 3, 1, or 0. If the match is won in penalties, the winning team gets 2 points, and the losing team gets 1.
2 – The importance of the match (I)
Friendly: 1.0 points
World cup/continental qualifier: 2.5 points
Continental finals (eg: Euro) or FIFA confederations cup: 3.0 points
World Cup finals: 4.0 points
3 – The strength of the opponent (T)
Calculated by the following formula: [200 – position of opponent]/100 taken from the most recent FIFA/Coca-Cola World Ranking.
Any team ranked below 150th gets an automatic rating of 0.5
4 – The continental confederation factor of the opposing team(C)
UEFA: 1.00
CONMEBOL: 0.98
CONCACAF: 0.85
AFC: 0.85
CAF: 0.85
OFC: 0.85
Then the final points are calculated as P = M*I*T*C*100
The maximum possible points from a World Cup match is 2,400.
Let's look at the World Cup final to show how this works.
Spain beat Netherlands outside of penalties, so for Spain, M=3. For Netherlands, it's equal to 0 so they get no points from the final.
The importance of the match is I=4.
The strength of Spain's opponent (Netherlands) = [200 – 4]/100 = T=1.96
And there's a continental confederation factor of C=1.00, as both teams are in Europe.
So in total, Spain's points from the World Cup final are:
That's only 48 points from the most you can achieve in a game!
Obviously, the actual FIFA ranking isn't calculated only from the last game a team played. If that were the case, Netherlands wouldn't have any points! Instead, and I'm not clear exactly how this works, the matches over the past four years are taken into account. Games in the last year are worth 100% of their points, 50% for those 1-2 years ago, 30% for those 2-3 years ago, and 20% for those 3-4 years ago.
(Source: Fifa.com This is a PDF so make sure you have Adobe Acrobat reader. It's free, so I'm not making them any money by telling you this.)
07/07/2010
Day Twenty-seven preview: 7/7/2010
Sorry for the lateness!
Today's the anniversary of the London bombings five years ago, when several terrorists tried to cause chaos in Britain's capital. It came the day after London won the right to host the 2012 Olympics: two days next to each other but with completely different feelings.
As for why this is late: I just got my copy of the Sims 3: Ambitions expansion pack and was trying it out. Good: you get to take over your sim's working life. Bad: laundry! I give it 4 out of 5.
Today's match, which is about to start (aaah!) is Germany vs Spain. This is a close one! Yesterday's match also turned out close as Uruguay played well, but Netherlands eventually won. Here's the stats for today:
1 – FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings: Germany are 6th, Spain are 2nd.
2 – Previous matches: of the 20 games, Germany have won 8, drawn 6 and lost 6. Too close to call.
3 – 1994-2006 World Cup ability: Germany have always made the quarter-finals at least, coming second in 2002, and third in 2006. Spain made it to the final 16 in 2006, the quarter-finals in 2002 and 1994, and didn't escape the group stages in 1998.
4 – 1992-2008 Euro Cup ability: Germany won in 1992, and were runners up in 1996 and 2008, but only made the group stages in 2000 and 2004. But Spain won in 2008, although they didn't qualify in 1992, and made the quarter-finals in 1996 and 2000, but only the group stages in 2004. For having beaten Germany in the 2008 final, Spain win here.
5 – 2020 Group stages: Germany and Spain both have 2-0-1 records.
6 – Odds: (as of 4/7/2010 at bet365.com) Spain are 15-8, Germany 2-1.
The teams are so close, it's impossible to guess from the stats who will win.
Today's the anniversary of the London bombings five years ago, when several terrorists tried to cause chaos in Britain's capital. It came the day after London won the right to host the 2012 Olympics: two days next to each other but with completely different feelings.
As for why this is late: I just got my copy of the Sims 3: Ambitions expansion pack and was trying it out. Good: you get to take over your sim's working life. Bad: laundry! I give it 4 out of 5.
Today's match, which is about to start (aaah!) is Germany vs Spain. This is a close one! Yesterday's match also turned out close as Uruguay played well, but Netherlands eventually won. Here's the stats for today:
1 – FIFA/Coca-Cola World Rankings: Germany are 6th, Spain are 2nd.
2 – Previous matches: of the 20 games, Germany have won 8, drawn 6 and lost 6. Too close to call.
3 – 1994-2006 World Cup ability: Germany have always made the quarter-finals at least, coming second in 2002, and third in 2006. Spain made it to the final 16 in 2006, the quarter-finals in 2002 and 1994, and didn't escape the group stages in 1998.
4 – 1992-2008 Euro Cup ability: Germany won in 1992, and were runners up in 1996 and 2008, but only made the group stages in 2000 and 2004. But Spain won in 2008, although they didn't qualify in 1992, and made the quarter-finals in 1996 and 2000, but only the group stages in 2004. For having beaten Germany in the 2008 final, Spain win here.
5 – 2020 Group stages: Germany and Spain both have 2-0-1 records.
6 – Odds: (as of 4/7/2010 at bet365.com) Spain are 15-8, Germany 2-1.
The teams are so close, it's impossible to guess from the stats who will win.
05/07/2010
Semi-Finals: The Players
Let's take a look at the teams remaining in the competition. Most of them have players who play all over the world, except for Germany, whose players all work in their home nation.
In descending order, here are the most popular countries to play in for World Cup finalists:
Germany – 28 players The whole German team plus five Dutchmen.
Spain – 24 players Most of the Spanish team plus one Dutchman and three Uruguayans.
Netherlands – 11 players Nine Dutchmen and two Uruguayans.
England – 8 players Three Spaniards and five Dutchmen.
Italy – 6 players Four Uruguayans and two Dutchmen.
Portugal and Chile – 3 players each All Uruguayans.
Uruguay – 2 players Two Uruguayans.
Argentina, Brazil, Columbia, France, Scotland, Sweden, Turkey – 1 player each Apart from one Dutchman (Scotland), all Uruguayans.
This shows the immense popularity of the European leagues. The first three countries are all finalists, but Uruguay come far down. All of these leagues are either European or South American – the dominance of the sport in these countries is obvious, not just here, but also in the three Europeans and one South American in the final.
In descending order, here are the most popular countries to play in for World Cup finalists:
Germany – 28 players The whole German team plus five Dutchmen.
Spain – 24 players Most of the Spanish team plus one Dutchman and three Uruguayans.
Netherlands – 11 players Nine Dutchmen and two Uruguayans.
England – 8 players Three Spaniards and five Dutchmen.
Italy – 6 players Four Uruguayans and two Dutchmen.
Portugal and Chile – 3 players each All Uruguayans.
Uruguay – 2 players Two Uruguayans.
Argentina, Brazil, Columbia, France, Scotland, Sweden, Turkey – 1 player each Apart from one Dutchman (Scotland), all Uruguayans.
This shows the immense popularity of the European leagues. The first three countries are all finalists, but Uruguay come far down. All of these leagues are either European or South American – the dominance of the sport in these countries is obvious, not just here, but also in the three Europeans and one South American in the final.
04/07/2010
Quarter-Finals Summary: 4/7/2010
Sorry that I've completely failed to post the last few days. It's been busy here. Anyway, Brazil were defeated by the Netherlands, and Uruguay beat Ghana in penalties after Gyan failed to get an in-game penalty at the end that would have put his team through. Oops!
Yesterday, there was an awesome victory for Germany over Argentina, and Spain beat Paraguay. So now the European dominance returns, with three of the four finalists in this continent. Two of the four haven't won a World Cup before, so it's quite possible that we could see a new country winning the cup. Personally, I'm with Spain.
Despite being a low-scoring team (in their five matches they have only had 6 goals), Spain also has the tournament's top goalscorer so far – David Villa, who has scored five of those goals. That's an average of one per game.
Germany's Mueller is also a top scorer with four goals, despite his young age (19). However, he will miss out on their next match – against Spain – because of the yellow card he got in yesterday's game. For all the other players, there is now a yellow card amnesty. This is so that people who get a yellow card in their semi-final game won't miss out on the final/third-place playoff. It's probably also because otherwise, so many people would have one yellow card that the teams might struggle to get enough people together for the final!
Anyway, no more stats on goals per game/cards per game. I'm a little behind on working these things out. I might have them later in the week.
Yesterday, there was an awesome victory for Germany over Argentina, and Spain beat Paraguay. So now the European dominance returns, with three of the four finalists in this continent. Two of the four haven't won a World Cup before, so it's quite possible that we could see a new country winning the cup. Personally, I'm with Spain.
Despite being a low-scoring team (in their five matches they have only had 6 goals), Spain also has the tournament's top goalscorer so far – David Villa, who has scored five of those goals. That's an average of one per game.
Germany's Mueller is also a top scorer with four goals, despite his young age (19). However, he will miss out on their next match – against Spain – because of the yellow card he got in yesterday's game. For all the other players, there is now a yellow card amnesty. This is so that people who get a yellow card in their semi-final game won't miss out on the final/third-place playoff. It's probably also because otherwise, so many people would have one yellow card that the teams might struggle to get enough people together for the final!
Anyway, no more stats on goals per game/cards per game. I'm a little behind on working these things out. I might have them later in the week.
01/07/2010
The Quarter Finals: Continental Drift
Now we're up to the final eight teams in the competition. They come from three continents, but how does this compare to previous competitions? We were only ever going to get three European teams through, as a twist of fate meant they ended up playing each other instead of nations from other continents.
The perceived European dominance of football has been severely dented this year – only three sides made it from here, and most of the teams come from South America. In previous years, there was a European dominance, with maybe a couple of teams from South America. Even in 2002, Europe had more representation, and the other teams came from a wide spread of continents.
There has never been a World Cup winner outside of Europe or South America, and it looks like that will continue this year. Only Paraguay of the South American teams remaining has not won a cup, but only Germany from the European sides has done so. So it is possible that we may get a new World Cup winner this year – I'm supporting Spain.
| Continent | 1998 | 2002 | 2006 | 2010 |
| Africa | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Asia | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Australasia | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Europe | 6 | 4 | 6 | 3 |
| North/Central America0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | |
| South America | 2 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
The perceived European dominance of football has been severely dented this year – only three sides made it from here, and most of the teams come from South America. In previous years, there was a European dominance, with maybe a couple of teams from South America. Even in 2002, Europe had more representation, and the other teams came from a wide spread of continents.
There has never been a World Cup winner outside of Europe or South America, and it looks like that will continue this year. Only Paraguay of the South American teams remaining has not won a cup, but only Germany from the European sides has done so. So it is possible that we may get a new World Cup winner this year – I'm supporting Spain.
The Quarter Finals: Odds
Eight teams have been eliminated from the competition, and eight remain. Obviously, the bookies have now had to revise their odds. In comparison to last time, the odds have changed a bit. The change (+ if you get more back, - if you get less back) is shown after the odds. Let's take a look at the teams. As before, the odds are bet365.com, Ladbrookes, William Hill (10.00am 1/7/2010):
1-Brazil. Brazil are, unsurprisingly, still top. They easily took care of Chile. They're up against Netherlands/Holland next, who are also a good side. (12-5, 9-4, 5-2 -)
2-Spain. Viva la Espana! They managed to beat Portugal, and now face Paraguay. Not too hard for the Euro Champions. (11-4, 3-1, 11-4 -)
4-Netherlands. Now the third-best in the competition, but they face Brazil next. Can they do it? (7-1, 7-1, 7-1 +)
6-Germany. Germany easily beat a terrible England team. They play Argentina next, who are another fantastic, England-beating side. (7-1, 6-1, 13-2 -)
7-Argentina. And Argentina are just below Germany in the rankings. Both countries have won cups before, so there's pressure at home for more. (4-1, 7-2, 9-2 -)
16-Uruguay. They face Ghana next, and have done well so far in the competition. They are the third of four South American sides still in the competition! (14-1, 14-1, 16-1 -)
31-Paraguay. Paraguay face Spain. They're a long way down, but can David beat Goliath this time? (40-1, 40-1, 50-1 +)
32-Ghana. The last African nation left. They have a nation upholding them, but they're playing Uruguay. (33-1, 33-1, 40-1 -)
The biggest changes were with Ghana (decreasing) and Paraguay (increasing). Paraguay have taken Slovakia's place as outsiders.
1-Brazil. Brazil are, unsurprisingly, still top. They easily took care of Chile. They're up against Netherlands/Holland next, who are also a good side. (12-5, 9-4, 5-2 -)
2-Spain. Viva la Espana! They managed to beat Portugal, and now face Paraguay. Not too hard for the Euro Champions. (11-4, 3-1, 11-4 -)
4-Netherlands. Now the third-best in the competition, but they face Brazil next. Can they do it? (7-1, 7-1, 7-1 +)
6-Germany. Germany easily beat a terrible England team. They play Argentina next, who are another fantastic, England-beating side. (7-1, 6-1, 13-2 -)
7-Argentina. And Argentina are just below Germany in the rankings. Both countries have won cups before, so there's pressure at home for more. (4-1, 7-2, 9-2 -)
16-Uruguay. They face Ghana next, and have done well so far in the competition. They are the third of four South American sides still in the competition! (14-1, 14-1, 16-1 -)
31-Paraguay. Paraguay face Spain. They're a long way down, but can David beat Goliath this time? (40-1, 40-1, 50-1 +)
32-Ghana. The last African nation left. They have a nation upholding them, but they're playing Uruguay. (33-1, 33-1, 40-1 -)
The biggest changes were with Ghana (decreasing) and Paraguay (increasing). Paraguay have taken Slovakia's place as outsiders.
30/06/2010
Day Nineteen: 29/6/2010
Penalties prove me wrong, but Spain win!
After a rather disappointing game ending in 0-0 after extra time between Paraguay and Japan, we finally saw our first penalty shoot out of the World Cup. After one of the Japanese players hit the crossbar, Paraguay were able to complete their penalties and make it through to face an Iberian side.
Meanwhile, Spain received their first card of the tournament, destroying their clean record. But it was worse for Portugal, who saw a player sent off. Although they won't continue in the tournament, a sending-off means that the player will have to miss his country's next international game. Spain won deservedly, going 1-0 up in the second half thanks to another goal from Villa. He's one of the top scorers this competition, along with Slovakia's Vittek and Argentina's Higuain.
Spain also broke Portugal's clean sheet for the tournament, and they are still the cleanest-playing team, with only one card.
There are no more games until July 2nd, so over the next few days when I'm not busy, there'll be a few stats posts about the cup coming out.
Goals per game: Mean – 2.19, Median – 2.5, Mode – 2, Range – 7
Cards per game: Mean – 3.91, Median – 5, Mode – 5, Range - 10
After a rather disappointing game ending in 0-0 after extra time between Paraguay and Japan, we finally saw our first penalty shoot out of the World Cup. After one of the Japanese players hit the crossbar, Paraguay were able to complete their penalties and make it through to face an Iberian side.
Meanwhile, Spain received their first card of the tournament, destroying their clean record. But it was worse for Portugal, who saw a player sent off. Although they won't continue in the tournament, a sending-off means that the player will have to miss his country's next international game. Spain won deservedly, going 1-0 up in the second half thanks to another goal from Villa. He's one of the top scorers this competition, along with Slovakia's Vittek and Argentina's Higuain.
Spain also broke Portugal's clean sheet for the tournament, and they are still the cleanest-playing team, with only one card.
There are no more games until July 2nd, so over the next few days when I'm not busy, there'll be a few stats posts about the cup coming out.
Goals per game: Mean – 2.19, Median – 2.5, Mode – 2, Range – 7
Cards per game: Mean – 3.91, Median – 5, Mode – 5, Range - 10
29/06/2010
Day Nineteen preview: 29/6/2010
Today we have the final two games of the last 16. There's an Iberian battle of epic proportions, and the craziest country in the world take on Paraguay.
Paraguay vs Japan
In terms of ranking, Paraguay are 31st in the FIFA/Coca-Cola rankings, and Japan are 45th. Point one to Paraguay.
The teams have faced each other seven times, drawing five of those times, and Paraguay winning the other two. Point two to Paraguay.
Japan have failed to make it to the 1994 World Cup, and made it to the final 16 on home turf in 2002. Otherwise they have only faced the group stages. Paraguay also failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup, and have otherwise had three final 16 knockouts, and one group stage knockout. Point three to Paraguay.
In this World Cup, Japan have a 2-0-1 group stage record, while Paraguay have a 1-2-0 record. Point four to Japan (for two wins against one).
So Paraguay are winners by the stats. But it's close, especially as the teams are both low-ranked.
Spain vs Portugal
Spain are ranked 2nd in the world. Portugal are third. Point one to Spain.
In their 33 matches, Spain have won 15, drawn 13 and only lost 3. Point two to Spain.
In the World Cups from 1994-2006, Spain have made it to two quarter-finals, one final-16s and one group stage. Portugal did not even qualify for 1994 or 1998, went out in the group stages once, and came fourth in 2006. So point three to Spain.
In the Euro Cups from 1992-2008, Portugal made it to the final once, the semi-final once, and the quarter-finals twice (but did not qualify in 1992). Spain were champions in 2008, but otherwise have had two quarter-finals and one group stage (also failing in 1992). Point four to Portugal.
Just by this World Cup, Spain have a 2-0-1 record to Portugal's 1-2-0, which gives point five to Spain.
Spain have the advantage, especially in recent years (winning Euro 2008 when Portugal went out in the quarter-finals), so they are likely to win.
Paraguay vs Japan
In terms of ranking, Paraguay are 31st in the FIFA/Coca-Cola rankings, and Japan are 45th. Point one to Paraguay.
The teams have faced each other seven times, drawing five of those times, and Paraguay winning the other two. Point two to Paraguay.
Japan have failed to make it to the 1994 World Cup, and made it to the final 16 on home turf in 2002. Otherwise they have only faced the group stages. Paraguay also failed to qualify for the 1994 World Cup, and have otherwise had three final 16 knockouts, and one group stage knockout. Point three to Paraguay.
In this World Cup, Japan have a 2-0-1 group stage record, while Paraguay have a 1-2-0 record. Point four to Japan (for two wins against one).
So Paraguay are winners by the stats. But it's close, especially as the teams are both low-ranked.
Spain vs Portugal
Spain are ranked 2nd in the world. Portugal are third. Point one to Spain.
In their 33 matches, Spain have won 15, drawn 13 and only lost 3. Point two to Spain.
In the World Cups from 1994-2006, Spain have made it to two quarter-finals, one final-16s and one group stage. Portugal did not even qualify for 1994 or 1998, went out in the group stages once, and came fourth in 2006. So point three to Spain.
In the Euro Cups from 1992-2008, Portugal made it to the final once, the semi-final once, and the quarter-finals twice (but did not qualify in 1992). Spain were champions in 2008, but otherwise have had two quarter-finals and one group stage (also failing in 1992). Point four to Portugal.
Just by this World Cup, Spain have a 2-0-1 record to Portugal's 1-2-0, which gives point five to Spain.
Spain have the advantage, especially in recent years (winning Euro 2008 when Portugal went out in the quarter-finals), so they are likely to win.
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
17/06/2010
Day Seven: 17/6/2010
Lots of numbers and surprises!
There are loads of different exciting statistics about today that I've picked up from Fifa and listening to the BBC and ITV. Here are today's top stats:
It's the end of the first week of the world cup. In total, 20 games have been played. 38 goals have been scored in those games, and a shocking 75 cards shown to players, with six sendings-off.
The English league had provided the most scorers (8, if you include Mexican Javier HERNANDEZ who is transferring to Manchester United), but only players from La Liga in Spain – Uruguay's Diego FORLAN and Argentina's Gonzalo HIGUAIN, have scored more than one goal so far.
Tomorrow, Algeria's Nadir BELHADJ will be 28 years old, and playing against England. Well, I don't want to wish him an unhappy birthday, but I am English...
The scariest thing about this World Cup is that for the first time, several players are younger than me. That's a statistic that makes you realise you're growing up. Here are some less-scary stats:
Goals per game: Mean – 1.9, Median – 2, Mode – 2, Range – 5
Cards per game: Mean – 3.75, Median – 3.5, Mode – 3, Range – 6
There are loads of different exciting statistics about today that I've picked up from Fifa and listening to the BBC and ITV. Here are today's top stats:
- Hernandez scores the 2,100th goal in World Cup history! There have only been 18 World Cups, so that's an average (mean) of 117 goals per tournament.
- Higuain scores the first hat-trick in a World Cup since 2002, and becomes the top scorer in the 2010 World Cup. Uruguay's Diego Forlan only held onto that title for one day, when he scored twice yesterday.
- Greece wins their first ever World Cup finals game, and it's the first time they've scored in a finals too! According to Fifa, they took 404 minutes of World Cup gameplay to score their first goal.
- Less happily, South Korean PARK Chu Young scores the second own goal of the tournament.
- Sani KAITA of Nigeria receives the third straight red card of the tournament after a stupid kick at a Greek player. Nigeria had been ahead, but went on to lose 2-1.
- Mexican BLANCO scores the third penalty goal of the tournament, and helps to damage France's chances of qualifying. France now have to defeat South Africa - and Mexico's game against Uruguay cannot end in a draw - for them to qualify.
- The total distance run so far in the World Cup by all players is 4,144,261 metres, or 207,213 metres on average per game. In total that is 103.4 times around the Equator!
- Nigeria is the only team in the World Cup to take all its members from leagues outside the country. In other words, no Nigerian team members usually play in Nigeria.
It's the end of the first week of the world cup. In total, 20 games have been played. 38 goals have been scored in those games, and a shocking 75 cards shown to players, with six sendings-off.
The English league had provided the most scorers (8, if you include Mexican Javier HERNANDEZ who is transferring to Manchester United), but only players from La Liga in Spain – Uruguay's Diego FORLAN and Argentina's Gonzalo HIGUAIN, have scored more than one goal so far.
Tomorrow, Algeria's Nadir BELHADJ will be 28 years old, and playing against England. Well, I don't want to wish him an unhappy birthday, but I am English...
The scariest thing about this World Cup is that for the first time, several players are younger than me. That's a statistic that makes you realise you're growing up. Here are some less-scary stats:
Goals per game: Mean – 1.9, Median – 2, Mode – 2, Range – 5
Cards per game: Mean – 3.75, Median – 3.5, Mode – 3, Range – 6
16/06/2010
Day Six: 16/6/2010
Disappointment for South Africa
Here's some time news for goals:
Latest goal: 95 (90+5') minutes – Alvaro PEREIRA (Uruguay) against South Africa
Earliest goal: 4 minutes – Stephen GERRARD (England) against USA
Mean time to score: 53 minutes
Median Time: 53.5 minutes (same as mean)
Lower Quartile: 36.5 minutes
Upper Quartile: 79 minutes
In other words: Most goals are scored towards the end of the first half, but during most of the second half.
Onto the day's news. Chile unsurprisingly beat Honduras 1-0 after a first-half goal. Their scorer was Jean BEAUSEJOUR, in minute 34 (so a fast goal according to the stats). He's 26 years old, and plays for a Mexican team called America. For a striker, he's a rubbish goalscorer, having only taken 2 goals in 28 international matches. There were three yellow cards, and two of those also went to Chile. So far, only three teams have managed to avoid getting any cards – both Korean teams and Spain.
Talking of Spain, they played well against Switzerland, but were shocked when their weaker opponents scored against them. Spain were unable to return the favour, so Swiss player Gelson FERNANDES who scored is probably especially jubilant. Spain avoided any yellow cards, but Switzerland picked up four, including one for their goalkeeper Diego BENAGLIO, breaking the goalkeepers' run of good behaviour this tournament.
But it was South African goalie Itumeleng KHUNE who really ruined the goalies' profiles as he gained a straight red card for his conduct in their game against Uruguay. Finally we had a player who scored two goals, as well-known Diego FORLAN scored in the 23rd minute, and then with a penalty in the 80th minute. This makes him the current top scorer in the 2010 World Cup.
Goals per game: Mean – 1.647, Median – 2, Mode – 1,2, Range - 4
Cards per game: Mean – 3.47, Median – 3, Mode – 3, Range – 6
Tomorrow, we see France take on Mexico (and hopefully play better) as a David-and-Goliath battle takes place in the form of Argentina on South Korea. Data to come on the country the goalscorers play in.
PS: Each day of the weak I'm going to release different data. Monday: Cards and goals of the different positions. Tuesday: Ages of goalscorers. Wednesday: Times of goals in matches. Thursday: Countries that goalscorers usually play in. Friday: How many own goals/penalties/other goals. Saturday: Ages of card receivers. Sunday: Card statistics (yellows/two yellows/reds).
Here's some time news for goals:
Latest goal: 95 (90+5') minutes – Alvaro PEREIRA (Uruguay) against South Africa
Earliest goal: 4 minutes – Stephen GERRARD (England) against USA
Mean time to score: 53 minutes
Median Time: 53.5 minutes (same as mean)
Lower Quartile: 36.5 minutes
Upper Quartile: 79 minutes
In other words: Most goals are scored towards the end of the first half, but during most of the second half.
Onto the day's news. Chile unsurprisingly beat Honduras 1-0 after a first-half goal. Their scorer was Jean BEAUSEJOUR, in minute 34 (so a fast goal according to the stats). He's 26 years old, and plays for a Mexican team called America. For a striker, he's a rubbish goalscorer, having only taken 2 goals in 28 international matches. There were three yellow cards, and two of those also went to Chile. So far, only three teams have managed to avoid getting any cards – both Korean teams and Spain.
Talking of Spain, they played well against Switzerland, but were shocked when their weaker opponents scored against them. Spain were unable to return the favour, so Swiss player Gelson FERNANDES who scored is probably especially jubilant. Spain avoided any yellow cards, but Switzerland picked up four, including one for their goalkeeper Diego BENAGLIO, breaking the goalkeepers' run of good behaviour this tournament.
But it was South African goalie Itumeleng KHUNE who really ruined the goalies' profiles as he gained a straight red card for his conduct in their game against Uruguay. Finally we had a player who scored two goals, as well-known Diego FORLAN scored in the 23rd minute, and then with a penalty in the 80th minute. This makes him the current top scorer in the 2010 World Cup.
Goals per game: Mean – 1.647, Median – 2, Mode – 1,2, Range - 4
Cards per game: Mean – 3.47, Median – 3, Mode – 3, Range – 6
Tomorrow, we see France take on Mexico (and hopefully play better) as a David-and-Goliath battle takes place in the form of Argentina on South Korea. Data to come on the country the goalscorers play in.
PS: Each day of the weak I'm going to release different data. Monday: Cards and goals of the different positions. Tuesday: Ages of goalscorers. Wednesday: Times of goals in matches. Thursday: Countries that goalscorers usually play in. Friday: How many own goals/penalties/other goals. Saturday: Ages of card receivers. Sunday: Card statistics (yellows/two yellows/reds).
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