World Cup 2014: Thanks for the memories

A strange and surreal moment occurred last night, early in extra time. Courtesy of the BBC's Guy Mowbray we discovered that Germany had gone unbeaten in 27 matches. Argentina, their cup final challengers, had gone 23 games unbeaten. As this alarmingly meaningless number was burbled over the mic, Argentina's maestro Javier Mascherano executed a perfect sliding tackle on Bastian Schweinsteiger. Which got you more excited?

'The purpose of art is washing the dust of daily life from our souls', said Pablo Picasso. And it's hard to see how football gets more exciting following a World Cup that sought, demanded, emotional responses. A host country that belted out its national anthem that brought tears to the eyes. A classic rock track, retouched by a swarm of boisterous Argentines, just for the occasion. James Rodriguez. There were so many examples of the beautiful game here that the numbers game feels remote. Silly.

Stat after stat was fed by Lineker to Hansen, like Polo mints to a former champion thoroughbred put out to pasture. The first time since 1946 this. The only time in history that. Even FIFA are not immune. They, in their own way, are beginning to compartmentalise a game that burst at the seams here. Their award of the Golden Ball to Lionel Messi felt fraudulent; it was dubbed 'a marketing trick' by Diego Maradona shortly afterwards. When no one can see the point of the award given, it calls into question the legitimacy of that award. Messi performed well, but Maradona, as ever, had his finger on the pulse of the sport's still-beating heart.

The game does not need the bits businesses can't do without. Numbers are the boring half of a story well worth listening to. The World Cup should be like the world's best ever holiday photo collection. Every picture should tell a brilliant story - and there were so many. The aforementioned Rodriguez, a star in the remaking. The Costa Ricans. Tim Cahill's astonishing strike versus the Dutch. Neymar's bravura performance - at times he appeared to be stooped with the weight of expectation.

Perhaps the best example of Brazil's success was the USA. As a team - as a nation - their watershed moment was as authentic as they come; an almost, last-gasp sort of a match against a fancied Belgian side who were on the ropes as the US players summoned unknown reserves and tore into them. They could have won. Even better - millions of people wanted to see them win. And they weren't all American.

Brazil offered so much to so many. It's a spiritual home for the game - a genuinely great choice by FIFA. Its infrastructure, as noted by many journalists, was good, not the horror show many were led to believe. Live television showed matches in airplanes - a brilliant idea, and one that should be implemented for the next World Cup and, if necessary, European Championships. And the fans were everything a major tournament needed to grab the attention undivided.

So FIFA ought not to forget the intangibles when next flinging the merry-go-round for its biggest global moneyspinner. Accidents will happen and mistakes will be made but there can be no doubt this was a huge, huge success for all involved.

So of course - here's my tournament highlights. Where possible I've added some relevant context. Numbers be damned.

Player of the tournament: James Rodriguez

Who else? Golden Boot winner having played two games less than Thomas Muller, it feels almost asinine to point out Rodriguez's emblematic qualities for the most tear-streaked Copa in recent memory. Besides a near-assault by Brazil's hustling defence and midfield in their quarter-final punch-up, Rodriguez did the near-impossible: he took Falcao out of the picture. When you consider the fact that the centre forward was so important to the nation's tournament plans that the president of Colombia went to see him following his surgery, Rodriguez's achievements are all the more amplified. And that goal. Pffffft.

Team of the tournament (playing 4-2-3-1)
Neuer; Lahm, Hummels, Blind, Mena; Mascherano, Kroos; Cuadrado, Robben, Rodriguez; Muller.

Best match

Undoubtedly Holland 5-1 Spain. A watershed moment; the moment everyone knew this World Cup would be different. The Brazil demolition will perhaps live longer in the memory, for its extraordinary historical connotations, but it was essentially a 30 minute match. Van Gaal had dismantled the famous Dutch 4-3-3 and but for some slipshod play from David Silva, Holland very nearly went in 2-0 down at the break. Instead, Van Persie's extraordinary salmon leap (left)past a baffled Casillas, and one of the great solo performances from Arjen Robben cut the Spanish to smart little red ribbons. From that point on all bets, metaphorically speaking, were off.

Honourable mention: Belgium-USA may have unintended consequences for soccer in the States. Billed as a fairly tight match before kick-off, the game appeared to become a 90 minute physical exam for American goalkeeper Tim Howard, who now holds the record number of saves made in a match with 16. For Belgium, everybody bar coach Wilmots tried. Hazard had a go. Orige had a go. Belgium's defence had multiple gos from set pieces. But the man, like Margaret Thatcher but with more animal rights persuasions, was not for turning. To pick the ball out of his goal, you understand.
When two goals did arrive for Belgium in extra time, the Americans simply went for the jugular - and nearly brought the Belgians down. 'Not good for my heart' was all Wilmots said at full time. For millions of Americans, Brazilians and Europeans around the world, the truth was exactly the opposite.

Best dressed manager

Without a shadow of a doubt Louis van Gaal (left) and his backing group of orange-tied note-taking coaching staff. Whoever thought of this arrangement - and the uniform basis has the distinctive style/structure yin-yang of van Gaal's best arrangements - ought to be provided with some sort of fashion medal. Preferably by someone like Kraftwerk, who'd probably love this sort of thing.

Honourable mention: Jogi, Jogi, Jogi. Eternal cool, and now a World Cup winner. The only manager in football who could drink a cognac and smoking Marlboro Reds in the dugout without getting automatically sent off, the man didn't wear a single suit in the entire tournament. Bravo.

Best goal

The shrinking gap between video game goals and real life goals continues apace. Some quite astonishing aerodynamics went into Robin van Persie's airborne header-lob, but people do tend to overlook the cross from wing back Daley Blind that was so accurate van Persie didn't even break stride to befuddle Casillas.
Tim Cahill's crossbar smash-in may prove to be the moment to prompt the paradigm shift between real goals and goals scored on FIFA on X Boxes everywhere. A goal so unique that you (probably) couldn't score it on a computer, it was that good.
But the best still has to be Rodriguez's jaw-dropping effort versus Uruguay. So good, the Colombian commentators went nuts even by their usual standards. And the look on his face - 'did I just do that?!' - is one that should guarantee a place in the greatest of greatest hits.

Best national anthem

Chile. Just listen to this, and feel the hairs on the back of your neck stand up.

Best set piece

Yes this category's mainly included because you'll probably never again see Thomas Muller act so comically in a football match. But there were some genuinely good ones. The USA's straight ball, almost deadpan in tone, from a free kick, right through the Belgian defence at 2-1 down had hearts in mouths everywhere. David Luiz's whomp versus Colombia made every British journalist momentarily re-consider their appraisal of him as 'a bit dodgy'.
But the winner  - sorry, England - is Italy's inspired corner-kick routine from which Claudio Marchisio scored the opening goal. A goal of simple brilliance, with the ingeniously illusory element provided by - of course - regista di tutti registas Andrea Pirlo. Bloody marvellous.

Pics courtesy of The Guardian, 101 Great Goals and Eurosport Australia

The Identity Thieves

This World Cup's most successful teams have shed their national identities in favour of tactical innovations, led by - who else? the Germans

 

To Sunday then, and to two sides who appear to be dressed in each others kit. History counts for much in football, and the cultural elements of Germany and Argentina appear, like their shirts, shorts and socks, to have been jumbled up in the wash and pulled out by the wrong teams.

How, for example, have an Argentina side containing the likes of Messi, Higuain, Lavezzi, Aguero - that is just the forwards - won five consecutive games by one goal margins? They should be playing more like... Germany, who for all their offensive genius - witness that unholy thrashing again and again on YouTube - have looked distinctly average so far defensively.

Don't stop there, though. Pull the lens back further, and it quickly becomes apparent that in a country in revolt before the tournament began, mini-revolutions have happened all over Brazil. The hosts appear a good place to start, with Phil Scolari, arch pragmatist that he is, making a mental note of his creative resources and the psychological pressures on his side and deciding a more aggressive approach over jogo bonito would be the most likely path paved with gold.

He was wrong of course, but Scolari's changes are the archetypal smoking gun. His tactics should not be questioned - the resources at his disposal, in a country of 200 million, most definitely should be. Holland, the Seleção's opponents on Saturday night, didn't so much change their identity as develop multiple personality disorder, with coach van Gaal (below) unceremoniously dumping the famed 4-3-3 of Cruyff's era and deploying whatever suited the situation.

Van Gaal is not a typically reactive coach - he most went with 4-3-3 in his time at Barcelona for example - but in Brazil he flexed and maximised his resources time and again, culminating in the psychological masterstroke of deploying Tim Krul to unnerve the Costa Ricans. Manchester United fans will be salivating at the season in prospect.

Successful change naturally depends on resources - Brazil are clearly the key protagonists here but to witness England's quiet exit at the group stage despite a markedly different approach in their game versus Italy shows you are still only as good as your players and the system they play.

But this was the World Cup when to stand still was to die. Italy and Spain, two of the biggest names in world football, both went out early and Prandelli notably came in for some criticism when he reverted to a traditional Italian 3-5-2 versus Uruguay- and lost, having deployed a relatively successful 4-2-3-1 in the previous European Championships that got them all the way to the final.

As for Spain, their story is entwined with that of the demise of Barcelona, where tiki-taka is on the ropes after an almighty hammering from the Dutch and German powerhouses in international and national football. Down, but never out - they are both too good, and football moves too quickly, for that movement to have died out.

Sunday's final is a victory for the postmodern - bar Alan Shearer's bleating, everyone recognises Germany's reinvention in identity following their 5-1 thrashing at England's hands in 2001. These Germans recognise efficiency can be art, that speed is more beautiful than physicality.

Meanwhile the Argentinians have simply done the opposite of what everyone expected. A goal machine before the tournament, they recognised early that sides would hide away, lock the castle gates, pull up the drawbridge and throw buckets of burning faeces off the battlements, and simply not played in their customary style. Some breathtaking moves against Nigeria aside, Argentina have depended on their defensive triumvirate of Garay, Demichelis and Mascherano to stifle teams when they did venture forward. The result; a most un-Argentinian sequence of results.

What to expect on Sunday then? Unknown. Germany undoubtedly go in as favourites and despite some parsimonious results, the Albiceleste defence was never the strongest in the tournament. Ironically, in a tournament full of identity swaps, Argentina might want to rediscover theirs if their intention is to take the trophy in Rio.

Picture courtesy of Mirror.co.uk

The Premier League: A Trans Europa Success

English football does not simply need less foreign footballers - it needs more, and it needs the best, to improve at international level

One hundred and ten! proudly tooted the Premier League at the start of the World Cup. Can you guess what the number relates to? No, not the average percentage of debt to profit ratio for each Premier League club, although good call. It's actually the number of Premier League players involved in Brazil.

 

One hundred and ten. Like a lot of numbers, it feels significant. Assuming each Premier league squad boasts an average 23 players, as per this World Cup, that infers that nearly a quarter of all the players we watch week in, week out on Match of the Day et al are international players capable of playing in the world's biggest and best football tournament.

 

Rubbish, grouches the football traditionalist who's no doubt sick of seeing England getting knocked out early again, and perhaps mutters to himself that the English would do a lot better without these foreign international players clogging up their youth teams.



None of the 2014 Ballon D'or winners play in England

Would they? Nationalism is a funny thing and it has not infected sport in the same way as it has politics and culture in Britain. In England, we love watching Silva, Hazard, Oscar, Aguero, Kompany, Van Persie and Ozil. Football fans in this country are not overtly racist and it would be an interesting exercise to see who the average terrace fan voted for at the last European elections.

It's certainly true to say England has a problem with foreign footballers, but what it really has a problem with, as usual, is ownership and strategy. Of the last eight nations left in the World Cup, 37 players play in the Premier League. That's around 20% of the eight squads - and that figure's significantly heightened by ten French players and 11 Belgians. If you strip those two away, the figure becomes less than 10%. Compare that to the Bundesliga, on 38%, and La Liga, on 33%. Still the best league in the world?

 

Of course, you think, it's natural that if you speak Spanish or Portuguese - as Argentina, Brazil and Colombia do - you'll want to be around people like you. Spaniards, for example. Except that's also not true. Nine leagues are represented in the Brazil and Colombia squads, and seven in the Argentina squad. In England, Spain and Italy, the squads are represented by two, four and two respectively.

 

Travel really does seem to broaden the mind and it appears, superficially at least, there's little doubt that the English are simply too insular when it comes to their football. But the economics, unlike South American leagues, make it hard to resist playing in one league when it could set the player up financially for life.

 

The exception of course is Germany, who have 20 of their players based in the Bundesliga. But there is room to develop youth there, without risk of clubs going through the blender should relegation occur. The '50+1' shareholder model is characteristic of a philosophy which ensures financial fair play is pretty much already in place. In both Italy and Spain there are serious long term debt issues for various clubs - much like the Premier League. This year's Spanish champions, Atletico, are over £100 million in debt over unpaid taxes.

English football is simply a smudge on a broader canvas that reflects the way Britain has relied upon skilled immigration to add value to its most lucrative industries - for example, financial services. For the Premier League, see any building housed in Canary Wharf after close of business, when British citizens can be seen scrubbing at the City's skyscraping artifices.

The difference in football, unfortunately, is that the hired help is often better than the in-house. That has nothing to do with money - that, as can be seen in Colombia's squad make-up, is much more about determination and a strong sense of self-worth. The things an Englishman cannot buy.

Britain needs top foreign talent to improve still further, and a greater focus on buying top-bracket foreign players at cheaper players' expense would still mean great entertainment. But would the inevitable culture change mean a move back to traditional, outmoded English tactics? Moreover, would a change in the number of nationalities reduce the likelihood of Brazilians playing in England? There are many more, but questions like this are important.

 

No one can doubt that the English has improved immeasurably in the wake of David Luiz, Sergio Aguero, Fernando Torres, Nemanja Vidic et al arriving. All have given huge amounts. But if we've learned nothing and simply watched the circus as it passed through town, we have no one to blame but ourselves.

Picture thanks to World Soccer

World Cup 2014: Second Round (Part 2)

So four from four. Yes they were pretty easy to guess, even if Costa Rica were pretty streaky against Greece - but I think the next set are tougher to call, with Belgium versus USA in particular likely to be, in American parlance, a shutout. In one line: I think France, Argentina, Germany and Belgium - just.

France v Nigeria

For coach Deschamps, another Lazarus-esque reanimation. His style has revitalised a French side who very nearly squandered their spot here with a 2-0 away loss to Ukraine in Kiev in April. The home leg, a 3-0 win for Les Bleus, was a microcosm of Deschamps' record so far, with his record of turning around the historical giants of the game neatly encapsulated in one stunning performance that helped everyone remember why France should be considered one of the tournament favourites.

And favourites they rightly are for this game, after a smoothly executed dismantling of a brutal Honduras side and the demolition of Switzerland left them top with a game to spare. Ignore Ecuador: that game simply proved that if Pogba, Benzema (right), Valbuena et al don't have a target, they revert to the sluggish, lethargic French side reminiscent of South Africa.

For Stephen Keshi's Nigeria this is arguably the biggest triumph of all after an error-strewn first match versus Iran and a torrid preceding 12 months. The side with the biggest population in the African continent have either punched above or below their weight in World Cups, depending on your perspective on African football, but with a decent, well-rounded squad capable of playing the best sides - Argentina - at their own game, and with Musa finally bursting into life alongside Emenike, this will be the toughest assignment yet for the French.

Prediction: France to win by two

Argentina v Switzerland

Bookmakers everywhere looked at Argentina's draw and wondered who, or what, would stop their surely irresistible march to the final versus Brazil. The host's most hated neighbours have a relatively straightforward path to the Maracana and Switzerland are the first of their not-so-challenging obstacles towards that target.

Odds have gone as low as 1/2 for a South American win and even without Aguero, Messi (below) appears - finally - to be shouldering a Maradona-moulded mantle that has passed on from some greats without success. In Argentina there are only two players who are revered as godlike. Good job one of them has four goals in this tournament.

 

Swiss coach Ottmar Hitzfeld probably couldn't have wished for a bigger game to end his career on, if this is to be the end, but although the odds are literally stacked against Switzerland, a much deeper, stronger reserve of players than was historically the case will ensure this is a real contest. Bayern's Shaqiri has been the headline act thus far but Inler and Behrami, alongside Dzemaili, will ensure Gago and Mascherano can't take it easy in midfield.

 

Switzerland's real danger is to be found outside the centre however, with Lichtsteiner in particular a very potent threat to Argentina's back three/four, depending on  coach Sabella's preference. But with Argentina's preference for counterattacking football - and Switzerland's recent memory of their dismantling by a similarly minded France - three on two situations could very quickly develop if Behrami charges upfield for attacks.

 

Number ten Xhaka will probably need to have the game of his career so far if they are to make a dent on the favourites, as will striker Drmic. And with the Swiss chances relying on outlandish possibilities like that, expect another South American side in the last eight.

 

Prediction: Buona notte/ bonne nuit/ gute nacht/ iyi geceler Switzerland

 

Germany v Algeria

 

It was bound to happen eventually. Whilst this is probably just another game for the Germans, Algeria may well see this as a long overdue opportunity for revenge for the so-called 'Anschluss of Gijon' between West Germany and neighbours Austria at the 1982 World Cup, when the north African side were eased out of second place in their group following what might be the least competitive game of professional football ever seen.

 

Or they might not. It'll be fascinating to see if Algeria's players are able to stand up to Germany's almost Brazilian rhythms whilst observing Ramadan - Germany's Mesut Ozil has already stated he will not be fasting during the World Cup - whilst playing in almost 90% humidity in Porto Alegre. At least it won't be sunny.

All of the intangible stuff - form, players, tournament history - indicates this'll be a step too far for Algeria, who have looked dangerously prone to submission from long balls and crosses, where their lack of height almost cost them against Russia. Even South Korea, not the most physical side, gave the Algerians a real test, dropping forty yard balls onto Meung-Hin Son and Don-Wong Jook that nearly hauled them back into the game.

Experience should also prove important for the Germans, who with 974 caps between them have nearly three times their opponents on 364. And although numbers aren't everything - as we've seen any time we watched Greece, Costa Rica or indeed Algeria - Germany's squad have scored a whopping 219 goals to Algeria's meagre 40, with the teams at either end of that particular spectrum.

Statistically then, this is a genuine maestros v minnows match-up. For Algeria, Majid Bougherra (left) has been a calming influence, particularly against the Russians in a tense, nervy finale, and they will need him to dominate play throughout. For Germany, their worst enemy is likely to be themselves, although with the close shave versus Ghana still in their collective rearview, it's unlikely Jogi Low's side will shoot themselves in the foot again.

Prediction: Deutschland über alles

Belgium v USA

At the start of this tournament I suggested Belgium would struggle to get past Portugal in the second round. They certainly would struggle now, as Portugal are justifiably out. That's mainly due to a brilliant performance in the second match versus the Americans, whose MLS, created under FIFA duress in 1994, is finally showing signs of flowering into a league capable of producing good players.

Toronto's Michael Bradley, Everton's Tim Howard and ex-Premier League striker Clint Dempsey are the big international names but encouragingly, there's quality sprouting up all over the States. Salt Lake's Kyle Beckerman has impressed with dependable, if not electric performances, whilst Kansas's Graham Zusi has supported Bradley in providing an incisive attacking platform for Dempsey to feed off. Klinsmann has got the team playing in a disciplined diamond pattern that flattens slightly when not in possession and the States have been aggressive in midfield, not afraid to push onto players to force squarer balls and nullify threats.

Belgium's challenge will be to improve on João Moutinho's ideas. Against Portugal, the US were repeatedly caught when Moutinho arrowed diagonals over the US midfield leaving Nani and Ronaldo with opportunities against technically weak fullbacks. Wastefulness and a pretty average distribution from the Monaco midfielder meant the US were able to capitalise, but there's no doubt the Belgians should be looking to force the Americans wider to defend their flanks, nullifying their diamond pattern.

It's unlikely that they will do however. Belgium have no 'quarterback' player to arrow those long balls in, and their single squad fullback, Anthony Vanden Borre, hasn't started a match. Their success will probably come in the form of an extremely solid back line and goalkeeper that the Americans will need to penetrate, but don't expect many goals. 

Nonetheless Hazard, who usually defends his wing well, will terrorise Johnson on the US right and Wilmots simply must deploy De Bruyne (above), his top scorer in qualifying, against Beasley on the Belgium right. Witsel and whoever partners him - likely Fellaini - will do fine with Dries Mertens dropping in. Orige would seem the adventurous choice to start, so expect Lukaku instead. A tight game awaits.

Prediction: Belgium in extra time

Pics thanks to Hattrick.cz, Goal.com, India Today and ESPN FC
 

Thoughts on... World Cup 2014

Why Spain won't win, why Argentina could, and why Brazil probably will

 

It's never nice to see bold predictions spectacularly backfire, as Dutch journalist Simon Kuper learned last night. But I'm going to make some anyway.

 

 1. Spain won't win again

Simply put, Spain are far too close in organisation and style to club side Barcelona, who ended this season without a trophy for the first time in six years. There are seven Barcelona players in the Spain squad. Real have three, and league champions Atletico have four. Five of those Barca players started last night's game, and Pedro came on during the second half.  

 
Both sides monopolise possession. Both sides have struggled to score goals recently, with Barca's end-of-season form particularly unsettling from a Spanish perspective. The numbers are very similar: Spain controlled matches with 65% possession at the last World Cup and a staggering 68% at Euro 2012. Barca's record is very similar, with 67% in 2010 and 68% in 2012. Real Madrid, la seleccion's other main source of players, offered 56% in both 2010 and 2012.

Goals have also been hard to come by for Spanish strikers, with only Brazil-born Diego Costa scoring more than 20 goals in his respective league this season. Whilst Spain have relied on a solid defence and vast amounts of the ball to control matches, the signs last night were ominous. 

Ramos, tormented by Robben, appears to have left his form in Lisbon. Pique seems affected by that anxiety and exhaustion that has consumed the blaugrana in their final weeks. And perhaps Casillas (above), struggling for game time, has finally hit the wall after a career laden with awards. With all of these barriers to overcome, it will not be La Roja who lift the trophy in the Maracana.

 

2. Brazil enjoy home comforts

 

As Nate Silver's noted, Brazil are nearly unbeatable at home when it really counts. Leaving aside a very streaky performance versus a bold, adventurous Croatia, Group A should hold no further worries for them, with a Mexico side rebounding from a dismal 12 months and a Cameroon side yet again distracted by pay issues from its FA.

 

Plenty of commentators have observed the near-religious fervor the team experiences in Brazil, and it is very tempting to wonder how much of Thursday's performance was down to nerves. Scolari's side do look very vulnerable to thrusting counterattacks down the wings, with Alves particularly at fault on Thursday evening, and sides that can capitalise on this will enjoy chances aplenty. But Brazil rarely come apart when it really matters, and still boast a team spread across Europe complete with genuine stars - Neymar (above) and Thiago Silva being the standouts. 

 

But the most compelling reason for tipping Brazil lies in their history at home. As mentioned, the last time Brazil last lost a competitive match in their home country was 1975. The only surprise is that bookmakers have not chosen the hosts as their runaway favourites - for that is what the form book suggests. 

 

3. Belgium will struggle

 

Every serious football hipster wants to see Belgium do well. And with a squad containing some of Europe's premier talents, it's likely they'll make short work of a group that offers only Russia as the serious competition. Hazard, De Bruyne, Kompany and co will also see the tournament as a chance to make a dent on the 'good on paper' theory plenty will subscribe to.
 
Their weak point, unfortunately, is a lack of goals. Although plenty of the team have contributed, Christian Benteke is their top scorer with six goals since 2010. And with Benteke out through the injury, Belgium will need to find goals from elsewhere - and on current form at this World Cup, lots of them.
 

The other significant problem is Belgium's second round opponents, who will probably be either Germany or Portugal. Portugal may not possess as much strength in depth as their illustrious group counterparts, but in Ronaldo they will offer every team a serious threat and a backing squad of Joao Moutinho, Pepe, Fabio Coentrao and Varela will keep Belgium occupied. This is probably two years too early. Expect big things in 2016. 

 

4. Argentina should run Brazil close

 

La Albiceleste are ranked as second favourites to lift the Jules Rimet trophy behind the hosts Brazil, but leaving aside home advantage, the Argentines possess a far stronger squad than almost everyone else, bar the Germans and Spain. A dazzling forward line containing Higuain (right), Aguero and Lionel Messi is backed up by a renascent Fernando Gago and Real Madrid's Champions League final architect, Angel di Maria.

 

Statistically they are South America's deadliest side - with the highest ball retention figure at 85% and more goals (35) than every other side, they will run riot in a weak group containing Bosnia-Herzegovina, Nigeria and Iran. They have scored two goals or more in more than a third of all games since 2010, and that habit of building unassailable leads will be important in sticky, sapping conditions. And with potentially the easiest route to the final of all of the favourites, the neutrals have more than one reason to hedge their bets on Brazil's hated neighbours winning in their backyard.

 

5. Sometimes statistics count for nothing

 

Jonathan Liew makes England to be statistically the model team for winning the World Cup. And that's really why you should take all of the above with a large pinch of cachaça.

Photos from Soccer Lens and The Guardian