Your “Syndicate
Hangover” is proudly presented by “Renegade: Hammer & Sickle Imperial Stout”
Meh. It’s still
probably better than your local “Hipster IPA”
Day 3: Recap
Record—
Spread: 1-3
Straight up: 2-1-1
Hot
Girl Standings
Country
|
Tally
|
Games Played
|
Russia
|
8
|
1
|
Cameroon
|
3
|
1
|
Chile
|
2
|
1
|
Australia
|
1
|
1
|
Germany
|
1
|
1
|
Mexico
|
1
|
1
|
Portugal
|
1
|
1
|
New Zealand
|
0
|
1
|
Once again I’m seeing cameramen focusing in on the same
foreign fans over and over again! Something’s definitely amiss. Of course it’s
a totally unscientific extrapolation, but I’d surmise that there couldn’t have
been more than a hundred traveling fans amongst the 28,000 in Sochi today. No
way of proving that, but, if there were more Germans why the hell did I count
THIRTEEN separate shots of:
1)
The same two German girls
2)
An elderly couple rooting for the opposing sides
3)
Two Middle-Aged German Dudes eager to extend handshakes
4)
One solitary pocket of Aussies
Could be poor Camera Grip Work, but optimism isn’t gaining
traction. Syndicate Member 56-M wrote in to declare the Advent of “The Summer
of Vicey slowly talking himself into Russia”. He’s likely correct. I’ll surely
find some way to get hyped over the course of the coming pages. That’s why we
hold the ConfedCup. It’s a way of working out all the doubts and kinks before
the Big Show next Summer. Just not there, yet brothers. Expect more pissing and
moaning for the time being ; )
On the topic of “working out kinks”, everybody wants to talk
about “VAR”. Your friendly bookie feels like he can live with “Video Assisted
Refereeing”, provided that the Refs are ABSOLUTELY NOT permitted to interrupt that
flow of the game by scampering off to the sidelines in order to view instant
replay under a “Hood”. Eighty-Six that element of the system and I think it can
work well. I’ll even go so far as to disagree with the commentating consensus
today and state that I don’t think Australia’s second goal came courtesy of a
Tomi Juric Handball. Having reviewed the tape, it looks to me as if he was
trying to get his arm out of the way and play the ball off his shoulder. VAR
got it right, even if it spelled bad news for my Krauts.
Enjoyed just about everything about the match and the
coverage today. Beheld some promising signs from our “Prospect Team”. They ran
out of gas and ideas in the final half hour of the match, but that’s to be
expected from a young group that doesn’t have much experience playing together.
A thoroughly entertaining match punctuated by one of my favorite things in the
world: Lothar Matthäus struggling through post-match analytical commentary.
Good times, good times. ; )
We love you, Lothar!! You’ve invented an entirely new
language! Never go away!
LINEUP—Deutschland—PROJECTED (4-5-1)
Julian Draxler
|
Amin Younes Timo Werner
|
Leon Goretzka Sebastian Rudy
|
Emré Can
|
J. Hector S. Mustafi
M. Ginter J. Kimmich
|
Marc-André
ter Stegen
|
LINEUP—Deutschland--ACTUAL (4-5-1)
Sandro Wagner
|
Julian Draxler Julian Brandt
|
Lars Stindl
|
Leon Goretzka Sebastian
Rudy
|
J. Hector S. Mustafi
A. Rüdiger J. Kimmich
|
Bernd Leno
|
Essentially what I was trying to do in projecting the German
Lineup during the Group Phase Preview was to determine what our best eleven
might look like drawn from this Kader. I fully expected to see a very different
squad in today’s match.
Löw obviously has
experiments to undertake in non-crucial matches like today as he attempts to develop
and advance the team. Wagner and Stindl got starts. Why not? It’s worth seeing
if Kimmich. Rudy, and Brandt have the technical ability to link up with a tall
target man. The placement of Stindl turned out to be quite the masterstroke.
Love how they have him as the trailing attacker whenever flank play draws away
the defenders. Antonio Rüdiger deserves a full audition as the man who may
ultimately replace Boateng. Neuer’s recent injury also underscores the
importance of giving all three squad keepers a full 90 minutes in this
tournament’s group stages. A solid backup is an absolute necessity should the
greatest keeper in the World somehow fall prone.
Some important lessons to draw from today include the need
for Rudy and Brandt to work harder on their full-match fitness, the need for
Goretzka to improve his short-passing game, and the need for Rüdiger to make
smarter decisions with his centerback partner….even if Mustafi was mostly to
blame for the defensive lapses.
Experimentation will take a back seat to the need to qualify
for the Knockout Stages of this tournament in the next match against Chile. Löw
will start more experienced players in the interest of clinching the group.
Here are my thoughts on what that eleven might look like:
LINEUP—Match Two--PROJECTED (4-1-2-3)
Timo Werner
|
Julian Draxler Lars Stindl
|
Leon Goretzka Sebastian Rudy
|
Emre Can
|
J. Hector M. Ginter
A. Rüdiger J. Kimmich
|
Marc Andre ter Stegen
|
Onwards to the Grades:
GRADES—Deutschland
(Match One)
Joshua Kimmich
|
A+
|
Timo Werner
|
A+
|
Julian Draxler
|
A
|
Leon Goretzka
|
A
|
Sebastian Rudy
|
A
|
Lars Stindl
|
A
|
Julian Brandt
|
A-
|
Antonio Rüdiger
|
B+
|
Niklas Süle
|
B
|
Jonas Hector
|
B
|
Bernd Leno
|
B
|
Sandro Wagner
|
B-
|
Shkodran Mustafi
|
C
|
Emre Can
|
D
|
Accuse me of grade inflation if you must, but I liked the
hustle and skill I saw from Julian Draxler today. Couple of defensive errors,
but he still demonstrated great heart, making plenty happen. Rudy and Brandt
tore forward enough times, perhaps too many times. Who cares? Their will to make
plays is what counts. Wagner’s positioning was solid. His colleagues simply
didn’t pick him out. Rüdiger owned his space. Süle’s movement left something to
be desired, but his tackling was strong. Leno could hardly be faulted for that
hard luck first goal. I’ll even forgive him for giving up the rebound on that
second one. It was a wicked deflection. He made some quality saves at full
stretch. Good performance.
There’s the good. Let’s discuss the better. Übermenschen. Another
spellbinding effort from Kimmich. The ice-veined FC Bayern Fullback knows how to
calmly survey the field and telegraph passes. An absolute stud! Timo Werner….good
GOD! He’s the one we’ve been waiting for. He can shake off three defenders and
a time and still get precise efforts in. Explosive talent. He’s on the verge of
a breaking through and breaking out. In all likelihood we’ll witness him do so
in this tournament. An absolute “Über-stud”!! Goretzka’s confident finish was
amazing. He’s well-timed runs and smart poaching were equally impressive. The
future indeed looks bright.
A few negatives to discuss. Mustafi…yet again...turned in
another ill-disciplined effort for that National Team. He just can’t seem to
get his coordination straight on the Grand Stage. Emre Can didn’t even make an
effort to run like a real footballer. What the hell was up with that prissy
trotting? I can only hope that you’re conserving your energy, Emre!!
Overall, your friendly bookie is a satisfied Kraut. Nervy
moments in the final ten minutes, but exuberance ultimately carries the day ; )
LINEUP—Australia—PROJECTED (4-3-3)
Robbie Kruse Timmy Cahill Matthew Leckie
|
Aaron Mooy Massimo Luongo
|
Mark Milligan
|
Aziz Behich Milos Degenek
|
Ryan McGowan Trent Sainsbury
|
Matthew Ryan
|
LINEUP—Australia—ACTUAL (3-4-3)
Tom Rogic
Tommy Juric Massimo Luongo
|
Aziz Behich Matthew Leckie
|
Aaron Mooy Mark Milligan
|
Milos Degenek Bailey Wright
|
Trent Sainsbury
|
Matthew Ryan
|
Been a little while since I’ve seen a true 3-4-3. It put an
awful lot of pressure on Sainsbury. Postecoglou exacerbated the burden by
moving Behich and Degenek out of the defensive corps. Nice gambit, though!
Future opponents of ze Germans take note: Pressing this “Young Gun” team might actually
work. Swarm them out of the neutral zone and hope for some luck on the counter.
Boldly thought out tactics from the Aussie Manager.
GRADES—Australia
(Match One)
Tom Rogic
|
A
|
Trent Sainsbury
|
A
|
Matthew Ryan
|
A
|
Tomi Juric
|
A
|
Timmy Cahill
|
A
|
Matthew Leckie
|
A-
|
Aziz Behich
|
A-
|
Aaron Mooy
|
B+
|
Robbie Kruse
|
B
|
Massimo Luongo
|
B-
|
Milos Degenek
|
B-
|
Robbie Kruse
|
B-
|
Bailey Wright
|
C+
|
James Troisi
|
D
|
“Riffs
of the Day”—Day Three
Reader:
Very interested in your work. Please review contract.
Vicey:
Pathetic. You think you can “Spearphish” me that easily, you damn Ruskies?!?!
Reader:
Timo Werner came to play.
Vicey:
Well done, 56-M. He came to break beer bottles over everyone’s head and take on
all-comers. He’ll take on everyone in the bar “Doc Holiday Style”. Expect
something great.
Round Two Lines are due tomorrow. As we’ve done in years
past, we’ll debut the Lines in the Daily.
DAY FOUR--PREVIEW
Russia vs. Portugal
vs. 
Let’s see what happens when you face a real team ; )
THE
LINE: Portugal +1 Goal (debuting)
Mexico vs. New Zealand
vs. 
Should be a cakewalk…narrated by Jorge Perez Navarro.
THE
LINE: Mexico +2 Goals (debuting)
