Your “Syndicate
Hangover” is proudly presented by “Heineken 0.0”
All of the calories
and none of the intoxication!
This dog don’t bite ;
)
Day 15: Recap
Record—
Spread: 18-30
Straight up: 26-16-6
Hot
Girl Standings
Country
|
Tally
|
Games Played
|
Sweden
|
35
|
3
|
Poland
|
32
|
3 (finished)
|
Brazil
|
32
|
3
|
Iceland
|
31
|
3 (finished)
|
Germany
|
31
|
3 (finished)
|
Columbia
|
30
|
3
|
Mexico
|
30
|
3
|
Russia
|
29
|
3
|
South Korea
|
28
|
3 (finished)
|
Spain
|
28
|
3
|
Argentina
|
28
|
3
|
Nigeria
|
24
|
3 (finished)
|
Croatia
|
23
|
3
|
Senegal
|
23
|
3 (finished)
|
Belgium
|
23
|
3
|
Iran
|
22
|
3 (finished)
|
Japan
|
21
|
3
|
Egypt
|
21
|
3 (finished)
|
Switzerland
|
21
|
3
|
Portugal
|
20
|
3
|
Tunisia
|
20
|
3 (finished)
|
Australia
|
20
|
3 (finished)
|
Costa Rica
|
20
|
3 (finished)
|
Serbia
|
19
|
3 (finished)
|
Denmark
|
19
|
3
|
Morocco
|
18
|
3 (finished)
|
Peru
|
18
|
3 (finished)
|
England
|
16
|
3
|
France
|
15
|
3
|
Panama
|
13
|
3 (finished)
|
Uruguay
|
12
|
3
|
Saudi Arabia
|
11
|
3 (finished)
|
Recovery from a group stage elimination takes just a bit
longer than I expected, brothers. It didn't exactly help that Mexican fans,
grateful to the South Koreans for assuring the elimination of the Germans,
pulled the ambassador out of the Mexico City Embassy and celebrated made him
chug Tequila.
I mean, damn! This bookie handled his country’s defeat to
Mexico with some class.
Oh well. Everyone likes to see a giant fall and such stories
of insane passion are what this tournament’s all about. Such scenes of amity
warm the heart. Good stuff overall.
Congratulations to El-Tri. We’ll simply have to keep the
Jäger handy and head on over to the Brazilian Consulate when you get eliminated
on Monday. ; )
S.S.S.
Tactical Breakdown 
Casual fans of the game were surely disappointed with the
England-Belgian fixture today. We knew both teams would rest their stars. I
augured as much and toyed around with lineups before setting the Line.
Tacticians of course loved it. Here’s what we saw:
Lineup—England—Match
Two—3-1-4-2 (6/24/18)
Harry Kane Raheem Sterling
|
Ashley Young Kieran Trippier
|
Jesse Lingard R.
Loftus-Cheek
|
Jordan
Henderson
|
Kyle Walker John Stones Harry Maguire
|
Jordan Pickford
|
Lineup—England—Match
Three—3-1-4-2 (6/28/18)
Jaime Vardy Marcus Rashford
|
Dany Rose T.
Alexander-Arnold
|
Fabian Delph R.
Loftus-Cheek
|
Eric Dier
|
Gary Cahill John Stones Phil Jones
|
Jordan Pickford
|
Er…anyone questioning why Raheem Sterling has the starting
role, now? Turgid stuff from him, Dier, Delph, and the two dinosaurs at the
back. Definitely Dier wasn’t picked as the anchoring defensive midfielder. Even
Alexander-Arnold disappointed.
Not much positive to take from the B-Selection for
Southgate. Surprised as hell he’s stuck with this awkward wingback formation so
long. Teams are accustomed to its basic flow by now and it still isn’t proven
against top-tier opposition.
Remain cautious in picking them against Columbia. Can’t
project the Semi-finals until we see something more rational.
Lineup—Belgium—Match
Two—3-4-3 (6/23/18)
Eden Hazard Romelu Lukaku Dries Mertens
|
Yannick Carrasco
Thomas Menuier
|
Axel Witsel Kevin de Bruyne
|
Jan Vertongen Toby Alderweireld
|
Dedryck Boyata
|
Thibault Courtois
|
Lineup—Belgium—Match
Three—3-4-3 (6/28/18)
Michy Batshuayi
|
Youri Tielemans Adnan Januzaj
|
Thorgan Hazard Nacer Chadli
|
Mousa Dembele Marouane Fellaini
|
T. Vermaelen D. Boyata L. Dendonker
|
Thibault
Courtois
|
Didn’t take long for Martinez to abandon his high-press,
drop the two wing strikers back, and centralize everything. Played it safe in
the end. Smart stuff actually as it slowed down the game killed Southgate’s
lateral strategy.
They remain the favorites in my book and today’s performances
by Chadli, Fellaini, and Vermaelen gave one of the game’s more intelligent
managers something to think about. Their road to the final continues. Looking
forward to a potential Quarterfinal showdown with Brazil.
S.S.S.
Salute to Fallen Comrades
Tunisia—“The
Eagles of Carthage”
-3
games played
-5
Goals scored
-20
Hot Girls
Khazri exits on a high note. Stellar match from him today. Next
up for the Carthaginians it’s the 2019 African Cup of Nations in Cameroon. As
mentioned in the Day Twelve Recap, they’re drawn in the same qualifying group
as Egypt and Niger. We’ve witnessed this team’s potential in this tournament
and they didn’t even bring their best roster. Expect them to make a run.
Lineup—Tunisia—PROJECTED
(4-4-2) (6/9/18)
Wahbi Khazri Saber Kalifa
|
Bassem Srarfi Naim
Sliti
|
M.A. Ben Amor Ferjani Sassi
|
Oussama Haddadi Hamdi Nagguez
|
Ali Maaoul S. B. Youssef
|
Farouk Mustapha
|
Lineup—Tunisia—Match
One (4-3-3) (6/18/18)
N. Sliti
W. Khazri F. B. Youssef
|
Ellyes
Skhiri
|
Anice Badri Ferjani Sassi
|
Ali Maaloul Dylan Bronn
|
Yassine Meriah S.B.
Youssef
|
Mouez Hassen
|
Lineup—Tunisia—Match
Two (4-3-3) (6/23/18)
A. Badri W. Khazri
F. B. Youssef
|
Ellyes Skhiri
|
Ferjani Sassi Saif Khaoui
|
Ali Maaloul Dylan Bronn
|
Yassine Meriah S.B.
Youssef
|
Mouez Hassen
|
Lineup—Tunisia—Match
Three (4-3-3) (6/28/18)
F.B. Yousserf W. Khazri
N. Sliti
|
Ferjani Sassi Ghailene Chaalali
|
Ellyes Skhiri
|
Oussama Haddadi Hamdi Nagguez
|
Rami Bedoui Yassine Meriah
|
Aymen
Mathklouthi
|
Panama—“Los
Caneleros”
-3
games played
-1
(legitimate) Goal scored
-13
Hot Girls
Didn’t see much from this country, not even from the
promising players I had some interest in. We missed you in this tournament,
Yanks. Can’t believe you thought bringing back Bruce Arena was a good idea. Not
much entertainment value from your replacements I must say. Looking forward to
not writing about them anymore.
Lineup—Panama—PROJECTED
(4-3-3) (6/10/18)
Ismael Diaz
|
Blas Perez Gabriel Torres
|
V. Pimentel G. Gomez A. Godoy
|
Erik Davis
M.A. Murillo
|
Felipe Baloy Roman Torres
|
Jaime Penedo
|
Lineup—Panama—Match
One (4-5-1) (6/18/18)
Blas
Perez
|
J. L. Rodriguez Edgar Barcenas
|
Anibel Godoy Armando
Cooper
|
Gabriel
Gomez
|
E. Davis F. Escobar R. Torres
M.A. Murillo
|
Jaime Penedo
|
Lineup—Panama—Match
Two (4-5-1) (6/24/18)
Blas
Perez
|
J. L. Rodriguez Edgar Barcenas
|
Anibel Godoy Armando
Cooper
|
Gabriel
Gomez
|
E. Davis F. Escobar R. Torres
M.A. Murillo
|
Jaime Penedo
|
Lineup—Panama—Match
Three (4-5-1) (6/28/18)
Gabriel Torres
|
J. L. Rodriguez Edgar Barcenas
|
Ricardo Avila Anibal Godoy
|
Gabriel Gomez
|
L. Ovalle F. Escobar R. Torres
A. Machado
|
Jaime Penedo
|
Poland—“Bialo
Czerwoni”
-3
games played
-2
Goals scored
-32
Hot Girls
So many players will be set to retire. That may actually
prove a blessing in disguise. Building a new Golden Generation around
Lewandowski and Milik may take a couple years, but the central cogs aren’t
going anywhere. You’ll definitely need to formulate a more dynamic attacking
strategy as the shutting down Milik’s circle arc proves too easy and the foray
into a 3-4-3 didn’t work. Nice to see some familiar faces on the pitch today
for what may be the last time.
Lineup—Poland—PROJECTED
(4-4-2) (6/10/18)
Robert Lewandowski Arkadiusz Milik
|
Kamil Groski Jakob Blaszczykowski
|
G. Krychowiak P. Zielinski
|
Maiej Rybus Lukasz Piszczek
|
Kamil Glik Michal Pazdan
|
Wojciech
Szczesny
|
Lineup—Poland—Match
One (4-2-3-1) (6/19/18)
Robert Lewandowski
|
K. Groski A. Milik J. Blaszczykowski
|
G. Krychowiak P. Zielinski
|
Maiej Rybus Lukasz Piszczek
|
Thiago Cionek Michal Pazdan
|
Wojciech
Szczesny
|
Lineup—Poland—Match
Two (3-4-3) (6/24/18)
D. Kownacki R. Lewandowski P.
Zielinski
|
Maciej Rybus Bartosz Berezynski
|
Jacek Goralski Grzegorz Krychowiak
|
Michal Pazdan Lukasz
Piszczek
|
Jan Bednarek
|
Wojciech
Szczesny
|
Lineup—Poland—Match
Three (3-4-3) (6/28/18)
K. Grosiki R. Lewandowski P. Zielinski
|
Eric Jedrezejczk Rafal Kurzawa
|
Jacek Goralski Grzegorz Krychowiak
|
Kamil Glick Bartosz Bereszynski
|
Jan Bednarek
|
Lukasz Fabianski
|
Senegal—“The
Lions of Teranga”
-3
games played
-4
Goals scored
-23
Hot Girls
Massive heartbreak for today for Africa Fans. This bookie
thought he already had enough disappointment to contend with. Now Cisse and the
boys have been cut on the seventh tiebreaker. Yeouch. No more fun for rabid
fans of the Dark Continent. As was the case with Nigeria, we’ve already given
some tactical coverage to this team. Following their upset of Poland, your
friendly bookie gushed over them in the Day Six Recap. I even went so far as to
suggest that they were good enough to attain the Quarterfinals.
It wasn't to be as their powerful striking corps played
progressively worse with each match. Let’s have a look.
Lineup—Senegal—Match
Two (4-3-3) (6/19/18)
Sadio Mané M’Baye Niang Ismaila Sarr
|
Idrissa Gueye Alfred N’Diaye
|
Badou N’Diaye
|
Moussa Wague Youssouf Sabaly
|
K. Koulibaly S. Sane
|
Khadim N’Diaye
|
Lineup—Senegal—Match
Three (4-4-2) (6/28/18)
M’Baye Niang Keita Balde
|
Sadio Mané Ismaila Sarr
|
Idrissa Gueye Cheikhou Kouyate
|
Youssouf Sabaly Lamine Gassama
|
K.
Koulibaly S. Sane
|
Khadim N’Diaye
|
Badou N’Diaye was obviously the big mistake of the second
match. I initially loved how he brought M’Baye Niang up front to spearhead the
attack, but his form gradually declined over the course of the next two
matches. Sarr had no business pressing so high forward with Mané.
Today’s selection was just weird. Moving Sané back after his
brilliant match and switching Sabaly left them sputtering on the midfield
lines. I didn’t really see Cisse making any adjustments as the situation got
more urgent either. Balde and Kouyate stuck with their positioning until the
bitter end.
Sad stuff for us Afro-centrists, but a deserved elimination.
Qualification for CAN 2019 is virtually assured. We’ll see them soon.
“Riffs
of the Day”—Day Fifteen
Reader:
How’s it feel to wake up without your scalp?
Vicey:
Like I just shaved my head with a cheese grater. Thanks for checking in, 45-M.
Reader:
Hector gets a B+? Explain.
Vicey:
Felt like answering a football question for a change. His fatigue late in the
match was a product of his placement. Kimmich got totally shut down, so he was
responsible for pressing high and putting in defensive work. It wasn’t an easy
assignment and I think he handled it well…unlike most of the other outfielders.
; (
We all get a day off, gentlemen. First football-less day in over two weeks.
The Colombian Girls bid you a friendly adieu until the next Round of Lines ; )
