The group stage of the World Cup ended with yesterday's matches: the last ones to get on the train for the final stages were Germany and Belgium as winners and the United States and Algeria as runners-up. Out, surprisingly (at least compared to initial expectations) Portugal and Russia, two other more or less valuable pieces of Europe that slip out of the World Cup without making too much noise.
The Lusitanians paid for Ronaldo's precarious form and a foolish first match, the one against Germany, which dug the decisive furrow in goal difference, while goalkeeper Akinfeev's two ducks weighed like boulders on the fate of Fabio Capello's Russians (definitely not a good World Cup for the Italians), who opened the door to the round of XNUMX to Algeria, never so high.
So Portugal and Russia are out, but also Spain, Italy (finalists two years ago at the European Championships) and England. Little Europemuch less than expected a lot of Central and South America, the USA, and a sprinkling of Africa, with Nigeria, runners-up in Argentina's group, and, as mentioned, Algeria.
The round of XNUMX will open tomorrow with a match that promises to be spectacular: the Brazil landlord against the spectacular Chile of Sampaoli, who has already delivered the coup de grace to Spain champion of everything in the group stage. The winner will face one between Colombia (which swept group C) and Uruguay. Two all-South American clashes, very open, which promise sparks.
On the same side of the board there are two games that pit the precious pieces of old Europe and the two African survivors: France-Nigeria e Germany-Algeria (for those who remember, a possible revenge of Africans for the Germany-Austria biscuit of 1982). The prediction, in this case, already seems a little more closed, and would open up to a high-born clash between the Germans and the French, even if nothing is written in stone.
On the other side of the board we find the unpublished Holland counter-attacker of Van Gaal (but with Van Persie and Robben up front anything seems possible) in front of the Mexico goalkeeper Miguel Herrera and goalkeeper Ochoa. Two regulars, at these levels, as opposed to Costa Rica and Greece, which, despite having won a European Championship, had never gone beyond the group stage of a World Cup in its history. Neither of them has ever played in a quarter-final: in any case it will be a first time.
To close the picture are theArgentina who, while not shining, always has Messi, never so decisive with the Albiceleste, on his side. South Americans will deal with the Switzerland by Shaqiri. The winner will compete with one between Belgium (full points winner of group H) and solids United States by Jurgen Klinsman.
