Who will win the World Cup ?

Who will win World Cup 2014 ?

  • Total voters
    246
  • Poll closed .
Ze Germans......can't believe Klose is going over Gomez. really hope Argentina don't go far, bunch of mercenaries.
 
Brazil would be my vote. But Italy is the country I'd support and now Holland.
 
For some reason I can not vote - but my smart money is on France.

I expect them to line up as :

Lloris
Sagna Varane Koscielny Evra
Matuidi Pogba Cabaye
Valbuena Benzema Ribery

With such a strong starting XI - I genuinely feel France are being written off before they play a game at the world cup.

Lloris - One of the best goalkeepers in world football.
Varane, Mangala, Kocielny and Sakho - Perhaps the best bunch of national center halfs in world football
Sagna and Evra - Great solid full backs although a bit aging
Pogba - one of the world's best young players
Ribery - who in my opinion should have won the Ballon D'or, and
Benzema - who's probably had the best season of his life.

I know France had to play a deathmatch qualifier to reach the finals, but that's only because they had the World Cup winners and Euro winners Spain in their group. Plus there's no Nasri sulking up the place (as Deschamps said) - so I GENUINELY believe France will go on to surprise everyone and win this World Cup.
 
Ivory Coast will turn up big time out of nowhere and win it with a last minute screamer from Yaya Toure..or not but either way they will win it, you heard it here first ladies and gents and yes I am actually being serious, bet on it.
 
A while ago a friend and I went through every fixture, predicting the results one by one. Spain ended up going out to Brazil in the round of 16, as did France to Argentina, while Belgium succumbed to Ghana. After that stage we ended up with this:

Quarter finals
Brazil 2 - 0 England
Argentina 4 - 3 Germany
Netherlands 3 - 2 Uruguay
Ecuador 1 - 2 Ghana

Semi finals
Brazil 1 - 0 Argentina
Netherlands 2 - 0 Ghana

Final
Brazil 4 - 2 Holland
 
Brazil big favourites for me, outsiders France and Italy. Can't see Spain doing it again and don't think Germany and Argentina are solid enough.
 
Parma Dewol said:
A while ago a friend and I went through every fixture, predicting the results one by one. Spain ended up going out to Brazil in the round of 16, as did France to Argentina, while Belgium succumbed to Ghana. After that stage we ended up with this:

Quarter finals
Brazil 2 - 0 England
Argentina 4 - 3 Germany
Netherlands 3 - 2 Uruguay
Ecuador 1 - 2 Ghana

Semi finals
Brazil 1 - 0 Argentina
Netherlands 2 - 0 Ghana

Final
Brazil 4 - 2 Holland
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I expect Holland to go out in the first round... Their squad it the worst I have ever known (dating back from 1990, my furtest memory of a WC)
 
i was going to say Uruguay but with the possible Suarez injury im not so sure. I just think with the climate being suited more to south americans, the pressure on Brazil and the fact that Argentina seem to be similar to holland(great players not being able to get it together when it matters) I thought Uruguay had a great chance. But now i've gone for Italy, reckon there slower game with suit the conditions

(if Suarez is predicted to be fit for at least the second round can my vote be changed from italy to Uruguay?)
 
Hadn't seen that bet £10 on outright for free £5 bet offer, cheers for posting.

(Know that wasn't the reason you posted, but still)
 
As much as I can see people writing them off on here, I simply cannot look beyond a Spain - Brazil final; with Spain having a point to prove after the Confed.

It has got to a point where people dont want Spain to win only because they are envious of the array of talent at their desposal; or maybe they are tired of the dominance they have held over world football.

Brazil's kryptonite will be the expectation which I think they will succumb under.

I would love for Belgium and France to pull rabbits out of their hats as well!!
 
England will win the World Cup. It's in the stars...

1966

Eurovision Song Contest - Austria

La Liga - Athletico Madrid

European Cup - Real Madrid

Cup Final - not Arsenal, but Everton were 2 goals down and came back to beat Sheffield Wednesday 3-2

And if three teams had been relegated back then, Fulham would have been one of them.

:D
 
TheRedDevil'sAdvocate said:
I'll go with Brazil although i'm concerned about the lack of big personalities in their squad. The pressure from the fans and press on this team will be immense and i don't know how they'll react if a game in the knock out phases doesn't go their way. But they do have a pretty good team, a manager who has won the cup before, the easiest route to the final (possible opponents and far less traveling), they play at home and i can't recall when was the last time a big ref call when against them in a WC.

Since no European team has won the WC on SA soil, the second choice would be Argentina. Their attacking options are incredible, but unfortunately they can't start them all. Their defense's 2/4 are rather weak and their GKs are not top level. Plus i i have watched them several times and i still can't understand what their plan is in the midfield. Where will Di Maria play for instance? And when your best DM is Mascherano of 2014 i'd say that serious problems are ahead. They can progress but only if they find a way to always score one more than they concede... And they are going to concede many goals.

From Europe:
Germany: Probably the team with the most chances to go all the way. Strong team, fast in the midfield and with many big players,like Schweinsteiger and Lahm at their peak. Their starting xi have played many games together. They are always there, either it is the WC or the EC, but Spain's dominance has deprived them of the chance to win a trophy. Their major problem is Low, who only has one tactic in his mind, so they'll be on the auto pilot throughout the tournament.

Spain: The players who won them everything since 2008 seem to be out of form. From their midfield of Busquets, Xavi, Alonso only the latter had a good season. Iniesta seems to be "lost" under Tata and Pique's season can be decribed as average at best. Still, they are "lucky" regarding 2 of their major problems. Azpi is a great choice at RB, so Ramos will play as CB and nullify the absence of Puyol. And Diego Costa is a massive boost in their offense. It's a big deal when you can start with the best forward in the world, right now, especially when your other options are Torres and Villa. On paper they have the best defense and keeper. I also think that if Barca win the title, it will be a major lift up for all these players who are the backbone of the national team.

Dark Horses:

Italy: Who can write them off? Juventus' defense, a play maker of Pirlo's caliber, De Rossi and Montolivo-Marchisio in the midfield and plenty of attacking options. Players who can follow several tactics and have strong survival instincts (others call it defend like your like depends on it).

Holland: They have the best manager in the tournament. My major concern is that Snejder and RvP aren't in good form, so they'll depend highly on Robben to make things happen. And my, how many youngsters are in the squad and the starting xi? Far too many i'd say...

France: I saw their squad and it's quite good (especially now that Nasri, the personification of bad Karma, is out). Pogba, Cabaye and Matuidi are a physical trio, good on the ball and can offer many runs in the midfield with or without the ball. Varane and Mangala are good CBs and Benzema had a very good season. Ribery's form is an issue, but they seem like a pretty balanced squad. Good thing for them is that the expectations, back at home, are not high.
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yup

aeeing neymar everywhere. There team isn't that good imo.
 
CurryCantona said:
Ribery - who in my opinion should have won the Ballon D'or, and
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He wasn't even good enough to be top 10 IMO, he's a good player and had a great season.. although he may just about be world class some people on here rate him way too highly.
 
I reckon Brazil will do it. I don't think they've got the best squad, but I think being in their home country will push them to higher performances.
 
I think a South American team will take it. Brazil would be favourites for me but that's the reason why I think they won't win it, too much pressure. Argentina for me then.
 
CurryCantona said:
Lloris - One of the best goalkeepers in world football.
Varane, Mangala, Kocielny and Sakho - Perhaps the best bunch of national center halfs in world football
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Brazil has by far the best bunch of CBs. Silva, Luiz and Dante. All of them in their prime, plus Maicon/Alves RB and Marcelo LB. If Germany would have a top LB they would be in too with the likes of Lahm, Hummels, Mertesacker and Boateng.

But yes, i think France is underrated. They really have a strong squad but their keyplayer Ribery is totally out of form.
 
Columbia anyone? Their FIFA UT squad is incredible even without Falcao!
 
OutlawGER said:
Brazil has by far the best bunch of CBs. Silva, Luiz and Dante. All of them in their prime, plus Maicon/Alves RB and Marcelo LB. If Germany would have a top LB they would be in too with the likes of Lahm, Hummels, Mertesacker and Boateng.

But yes, i think France is underrated. They really have a strong squad but their keyplayer Ribery is totally out of form.
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By far the best bunch of CB's ? Ramos, Piqué,Javi Martinez and Albiol disagree with that..i'm surprised than as a Bayern Munich fan (than I think you are ?) you are saying than Dante is a good CB...and about France for me they dont have the squad to be a threat for the favorites at all , i would put them behind Chile,Uruguay,Germany,Spain,Argentina,Italy,Brazil and even probably behind Portugal,Belgium or England right now , they dont have a real leader and their only world class player is having a horrible season (Ribery) . Most of the french people than I know (sadly I know a few :D ) are not expecting anything from that team.

They have a few talented young players like Varane,Pogba or Griezmann , they will be a threat in 2016 at home for sure , but not this year imo.
 
So, according to this poll the US has more chance of winning this then Belgium, Holland and France. Ridiculous :)
 
Brazil without even tampering with the water,refs decisions,home crowd.Might look at the odds on Belgium reaching the semi final.
 
With the humidity factor I will say a South American team for sure, matter of fact the team with more local players. People saw the way Brazil destroyed Spain and the main reason was the conditions were terrible and the Spaniards couldn't play at 100%
 
CurryCantona said:
For some reason I can not vote - but my smart money is on France.

I expect them to line up as :

Lloris
Sagna Varane Koscielny Evra
Matuidi Pogba Cabaye
Valbuena Benzema Ribery

With such a strong starting XI - I genuinely feel France are being written off before they play a game at the world cup.

Lloris - One of the best goalkeepers in world football.
Varane, Mangala, Kocielny and Sakho - Perhaps the best bunch of national center halfs in world football
Sagna and Evra - Great solid full backs although a bit aging
Pogba - one of the world's best young players
Ribery - who in my opinion should have won the Ballon D'or, and
Benzema - who's probably had the best season of his life.

I know France had to play a deathmatch qualifier to reach the finals, but that's only because they had the World Cup winners and Euro winners Spain in their group. Plus there's no Nasri sulking up the place (as Deschamps said) - so I GENUINELY believe France will go on to surprise everyone and win this World Cup.
Click to expand...



French squad is absolutely brilliant and yes i would bet they going to win the WC if not at least they going to improve better than the last competitions which is disaster at it was. :smirk:
 
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