Quote:
Originally Posted by AUSTIN316426808
I picked 'em both and don't see why Netherlands and Germany going through to a semi final is so shocking. If Paraguay beat Spain that would be a big upset, but hearing Germany beat Argentina and Holland beat Brazil doesn't sound so unbalanced.
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I think the shock is more related to the form the teams have shown in the WC till now.
Sure, a Brazil loss was in the cards but the way they lost without even giving a fight till the end and stretching the game into extra time was unexpected. That too after displaying some cracking football throughout the tournament.
The bigger shock came through this Argentina defeat. 4 - 0?! You don't expect a team like the Argentinians to take such a pasting. They were well and truly thumped, just like a big team beating some minnows in Round 1 - say like Brazil drubbing North Korea or something.
A scoreline of 2 - 1 is halfway acceptable by Brazilian standards (maybe), but losing 4 - 0 when you are regarded as one of the top 4 teams of the world and have the Golden Boot of the Year holder in your ranks...it's a stinging defeat.
I guess it all came down to the teams who played more as a team than just a bunch of individually talented players. That's why teams like Uruguay and Paraguay made it this far. And a main reason why Germany and Netherlands managed to upset the applecarts and all calculations of the football pundits.