1. The Cream Always Rises To the Top
This World Cup in Brazil is the first World Cup in which every single winner of the group stages has won their respective matches in the Round of 16 and progressed to the Quarterfinals. Costa Rica, Colombia, Brazil, Argentina, Holland, France, Belgium and Germany – each of these teams had topped their group. Also, none of the eight teams in this list has lost even once in this World Cup, which is also a first. This means that the best 8 teams of the tournament have gone through to the last eight – which sets up some really exciting quarterfinal clashes. Except for Costa Rica, each of the other teams in this list has excellent chances of winning the whole tournament, and it would take a brave man to bet against any of them.
2. Luis Suarez to Barcelona?
The most controversial footballer on the planet may well join the most respected club in the world. While Barcelona’s president Josep Maria Bartomeu has refused to confirm that the Catalan club are already in talks with Liverpool with the intention of signing Luis Suarez, he has pretty much hinted that the controversial striker was on his agenda. Already, a plenty of Barcelona players and officials are coming out with excuses for Luis Suarez’s behavior in Brazil – where he was punished for having taken a bite out of his Italian rival, defender Giorgio Chiellini’s shoulder – including Barcelona’s latest signing, Croatian midfielder, Ivan Rakitic. Liverpool are said to be asking for a record $80 million plus star Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez in exchange for Suarez. If Luis Suarez does indeed move to Barcelona, the Catalan side will have a forward line of perhaps the three best attacking players in the world – Lionel Messi, Neymar Junior and of course, Luis Suarez. Add Andre Iniesta, Xavi, Pedro and possibly Alexis Sanchez (if he stays) to the mix, and you have perhaps one of the greatest attacks in the history of football.
3. Will Football Ever Be a Popular Mainstream Sport in the United States?
While the United States have performed exceedingly well in the World Cup before bowing out to Belgium in the second round, fact is that football or soccer is nowhere in the list of the most popular sports in the country. Americans care about football only when the World Cup is around, otherwise the world’s most popular sport is largely peripheral to an average sports fan in the United States. This is because football or soccer is largely seen as a foreign sport, mostly played by immigrants and girls. Sadly, the fact that soccer is widely played by young children, both boys and girls across the country, is held against it, as the typical sports fan in the United States doesn’t consider soccer “manly” enough – at least not in the same league as American Football, Baseball, Basketball and Ice Hockey. While the last match against Belgium saw an upwards of 30 million people watching the game all over the United States, whether that really translates into more respect for the game remains to be seen.
4. #goalsweeper
After the Germany-Algeria game, the social media was dominated by talk of German goalkeeper Manuel Neuer’s extraordinary performance as he played almost as a sweeper rather than as just a goalkeeper. Neuer’s frequent runs out of the German box were breathtaking to say the least. In fact, it seemed that there was just Neuer who was often standing between Algeria and a stunning upset. Germany’s serious defensive weaknesses were exposed, as time and time again the Algerian forwards got behind the German back four, and only to have Neuer rush out of the box, showing brilliant skills with the feet, playing as a sweeper, even tackling his opponents. It was as though Germany had 11 outfield players rather than just 10. Neuer was the best performer for Germany and the reason for their success. No wonder the biggest global trend on Twitter for two whole days was #goalsweeper.
5. The Red Devils and the English Premier League
Finally, if there is one team in the World Cup with the most number of likely English Premier League prospects, that has to be Belgium. Belgium’s footballers, also known as the “Red Devils”, are young, powerful, fast and skillful – which makes them just perfect for the EPL. Every English club worth its name would be dying to have Divock Origi, Kevin De Bruyne, Thibaut Courtois in their sides. Many Belgian star players already play in the EPL, including Manchester City captain Vincent Kompany, Romelu Lukaku, Eden Hazard, Marouane Fellaini, Kevin Mirallas and others. These players have been forged in the fires of the EPL and this is reflected in the way they play their football.
