What to expect next from the Group of 16 clashes
With bigger names such as Germany, Argentina, Portugal and Spain, taking an exist from the tournament, it has came upon the younger breeds of this generation superstars to make a name for themselves and also entertain the masses. The unpredictability of this years World Cup has made fans bite their nails, watching their favorite teams leave the stage one after the other. Who would have thought that Russia will qualify for the quarter-finals and that to by beating Spain; the 2010 World Cup champions with their own breed of talent and names to speak of. Messi's Argentina collapsed as it was defenseless, Ronaldo's Portugal was defeated as they were denied any opportunity to score by the Uruguayan defenders and Spain; maybe left stranded by their own luck, losing on penalties 4-3 to Russia. But all these matches had one thing in common; they made us stick to our seats for a full ninety minutes of play (120 minutes in Spain vs Russia match). What should we expect next? With only four matches left will they be able to make us hold our breath for full 90 minutes? Let's count the factors.
The Brazil vs Mexico match is set to be played this evening at Samara, between the two big names of American football. With Mexico already having an edge over Brazil as they have already won six of the nine fixtures against Brazil. But this time they will have to face a complete Brazil team who have just come off from a win on Serbia 2-0,showing them their way home. With bigger names to their sides they look motivated and poised towards winning the tournament, with other top contenders of the cup crashing out of the tournament. But that could also be the fate of 5 time world cup champions if the Mexicans change the tone of the match. Mexico's advance to quarter-finals will depend on the advents of their strikers especially Hirving Lozano, who made the unthinkable happen against the Germany. Brazil has a plus point as Mexico has never beaten them in a World Cup match, but that could change as they had also not beaten Germany but they did so in their first match. Mexico lost their third group match which brought into picture their fragile defense which seemed strong at a point, Brazil would like to find motivation from that. Neymar has yet to make a name for himself in this tournament with Phillipe Coutinho garnering all the praises.
The second match will be played tonight at Rostov-on-Don between Belgium and Japan. Belgium looking a strong contender for playing the finals this year; a strong team with names such as Eden Hazard, Romelu Lukaku, Fellani and Kevin de Bruyne. The chance of a loss doesn't seems anywhere near, but they would need to play a promising game. Lukaku would like to improve his score in the race for the Golden Boot taking on lead from Harry Kane. Japan advanced to the round of 16 from the group stages on the basis of fouls committed despite losing their last match. They will have to play the match of their life if they want to succeed to the quarter-finals.
The third match will be played between Switzerland and Sweden tomorrow evening. The match would be between two of the European countries fighting for their survival in the tournament. Switzerland undefeated at group stages with two draws and one win would look up to do something different this time around and instead of securing a draw mindset, they would like to come in the match with a winning mindset, as their opponents will be coming with two wins and one loss from their group matches. Sweden lost only to Germany in the group stages and that too, to a last minute goal from Toni Kroos. Whereas Switzerland has struggled to create goals and score in the points table.
The last match of the Group of 16 clashes will be played between a South American and an European nation; Colombia and England. The 1966 world cup winners will look forward to recreate the same aura and tell their tales for the centuries to come. Both the teams won two matches and lost one at the group stages and would like to boost up their winning scores. England's captain Harry Kane would like to score to maintain his lead over the Golden Boot. England seems a balanced team at his tournament and would look forward to playing their best. With the likes of James Vardy, Jesse Lingard, Gary Cahill, Eric Dier, Harry Maguire, Dele Alli and Danny Welbeck, the England team looks perfect and strong at all the fronts. Whereas Colombian team will be looking to turn the tables and advance to the quarterfinals. With the spark of their team; James Rodriguez, missing the match due to a calf injury, much will depend upon the strikers Falcao and Carlos Sanchez to motivate and steer the team towards victory. Let's see which team lives to tell the tale. May the best team advance to the next stage.
Who do you think will play this years final game? Share your opinion in the comments box.