The Football Thread - 17/18 Season

[LipeJJ]

RolStoppable said:

With the round of 16 games done, it's time for the latest edition of the power rankings. Click here to see the previous one.

1. Germany (-) - The world champion looked like a world champion. Admittedly, the Slovakian team was tame, but that shouldn't take away from how convincingly Germany controlled the game. A goal difference of 6:0 through four games is also a strong statement.

2. Italy (up 3) - Eliminated the defending European champion on the back of a strong first half. Got a bit under pressure in the second half, but that gave Buffon a bunch of chances to show how good he still is. He has yet to concede a goal in this tournament.

3. France (down 1) - Got off to a bad start, but turned things around. Still, when a team like Ireland manages to expose issues in the defense, then it has to be considered a serious problem.

4. Belgium (up 2) - Finally played at the level they were hyped up to be. While that is good, it's not good enough to pass the test of consistency. This could have been a one-off against a clear underdog, so I don't want to read too much into it.

5. Portugal (up 2) - It wasn't entertaining to watch, but it was proof that Portugal can play a defensive strategy very well. It clearly came at the cost of the offense though. We'll see how this trade-off develops.

6. Poland (up 5) - The only team to advance by penalties. Poland's strikers wouldn't hit a barn door from five meters away, so this team continues to lag far behind the expectations that "people who know football" had.

7. Iceland (up 6) - Surprising win against England? Probably not. Iceland has repeatedly proven that they are tough to play against and their attack is simple, but effective. Regardless, they remain in the role of the underdog.

8. Wales (up 1) - An own goal of Northern Ireland got them this far. What's worth of note is that they had an up-down-up-down performance through their four games, so maybe we are in for a surprise in the quarter finals. Overall though, this underdog doesn't look as dangerous as Iceland.

Teams previously considered top 8, but eliminated:

Croatia (#3) - Realized too late that football games are won by scoring. (Portugal was considered #7.)
Spain (#4) - Played against the previous #5 (Italy), so it was inevitable that a top 8 team had to leave.
England (#8) - They just allowed it to happen to them. It was hard to sense the will that they wanted to stay in this tournament.

Quarter finals on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday.

You did well.  

I 100% agree with the reasons as well. 

PS: I'm secretly hoping Belgium steals the show and win this Euro even if I know that probably won't happen. The reason? I love to see new powerhouses rising (like Spain did in 2008).