World Cup II (Post III)

Hello All,
We left off with all of the winners of the group stages. The matches after this will get especially intense as it is now a tournament with a loss resulting in elimination. These are always the most exciting matches, even though the group play matches have also been known for intense drama and excitement.

Alright, I am going to outline my predictions for the next stage of the competition, the Round of 16 as it is called. It always starts off with the winner of each group taking on the runner up from the Group following the first group. For example, it would be the winner of Group A taking on the Runner-Up of Group B. Then it would be the winner of Group B taking on the Runner-Up from Group A. I know it gets somewhat complicated but you can always check out this webpage if you need any help: http://www.fifa.com/worldcup/matches/kostage.html.

Alright, so lets get started. Remember these are only my predictions.

France (1A) vs. Nigeria (2B)
I think this would be a very interesting match-up and would go very deep into the game before we saw a goal. However, I see France pulling off the win, probably late in the game or even during stoppage time at the end of regulation. This would of course knock out Nigeria who, if they made it this far, would still be commendable for their team.
Winner: France

Argentina (1B) vs. South Africa (2A)
Probably another great match with some good names on each side. Argentina has a reputation for having great football squads, however they have fallen off the stage lately and I see that happening again. South Africa will have an incredible momentum coming out of Group play and also home field advantage.
Winner: South Africa

England (1C) vs. Australia (2D)
Four years ago Australia made it our of group play and fought with Italy to a 90-minute scoreless tie. They lost on a very disputed penalty that resulted in a penalty kick and a win for Italy. While Australia has made it back to the big stage of the Round of 16, they will not be able to get passed England, although I could see it going as far as end of regulation penalty kicks.
Winner: England

Germany (1D) vs. United States (2C)
Both teams come into the game injured and clinging on to momentum from the group stage. The U.S. will come out firing and playing strong. They have been known for some huge upsets over the past two years (Spain in the Confederation Cup for instance), however they probably won't be able to compete with Germany and 2006 World Cup top scorer Miroslav Klose. This is where the U.S.'s run will most likely come to an end.
Winner: Germany

The Netherlands (1E) vs. Slovakia (2F)
As much as I would love nothing more than to see Slovakia come flying out of group play and start dominating everyone, I don't think it will happen. They will put up a helluva fight in their first World Cup, but fall to the strong Netherlands team in this round.
Winner: The Netherlands

Italy (1F) vs. Denmark (2E)
Italy is the defending champion and De Rossi is a dominating midfielder, huge striker Giuseppe Rossi and let us not forget Italy big goaltender Gianluigi Buffon. Denmark who may just barely squeak out of group play will not be able to touch Italy in the next round.
Winner: Italy

Brazil (1G) vs. Switzerland (2H)
A game that will be dominated by Brazil for all 90-minutes. I wouldn't be shocked to see a five or more goals scored in the game, but probably all for Brazil. Kaká and goaltender Júlio César usually cannot be stopped. Expect to see them once again dominate the game.
Winner: Brazil

Spain (1H) vs. Portugal (2G)
This would be the most explosive game that we would see to this point. Many would not even be willing to bet money on it because of the risk involved. Both teams are stacked, both teams are experienced, and both teams are lusting for the Cup, possibly more than any others. This game will go scoreless and finally be decided in Penalty Kicks. When it gets to that point, Torres, and Villa will dominate on the one side, and Casillas will be dominating at the other for Spain.
Winner: Spain

Alright, again we will leave it here. These matches would be big, intense games and would lead to even more explosive games in the next round. I'm tellin' ya, the 2010 World Cup may be the best we've seen in a LONG time. Thanks for readin...

-Adam