So the group stages are over and what have we learnt from those?
Firstly Spain the holders just didnt turn up and i think this Real Madrid / Barcelona thing is something to do with it. They played in the first two matches like a group of 11 players who didnt get on and showed no real heart especially in the game against Chile who in my opinion are no world beaters.
Secondly England...I thought we played ok in the game against Italy but as i have said a few times now the lack of a "plan B" was always going to be our downfall. We never had a man in the box when needed and rarely had runners attacking the space in the 18 yard area, the only time we did was when Rooney scored against Uraguay.
Why bring Chamberlin when he obviously wasnt fit ? He should have taken the chance then to bring another striker.
Yes the defence didnt look solid at times but surely not bringing Cole was another big mistake as Baines cant defend and was wasted going forwards as he had to keep passing inside instead of getting to the byline due to us not having that focal centre forward most teams have.
But lets see what happens when the dust settles.....I think we will see the end of Hodgson in the next month by "mutual consent"...Who takes his place will be another matter but maybe Raffa Benitez a proven "cup" manager could be the answer.
The Italians and Portugal were also on the plane home and to me it looks like they are in a worse state then we are.
One team going home that i really enjoyed watching was Australia...Very limited player wise but gave it 100% in every match and with just a bit more luck could have made it to the knockout stages.
The two surprises for me are Holland and France both not fancied by the layers pre tournament but now both amongst the favs to lift the cup.
For me i think the Dutch may not be quite as good against a well organised side but they have what looks like an easy ride to the semis playing Mexico next then the winners of Costa Rica and Greece.
The French are my pick to win it now even though they have a fairly tough game against Nigeria and then possibly Germany to make the semis where the hosts Brazil may well await.
Brazil and Argentina havnt really looked as good as we all expected but i can see them improving as this goes on and must both make the semis.
The small nations like Costa Rica, Algeria and Columbia have all be a joy to watch along with the spirit and fitness of the USA.
I think Columbia might just surprise Uruguay who after loosing Suarez will lack some bite up front.
So we look forwards to the knockout stages where i see the games being a lot tighter then the group ones and i can see a couple of these games going all the way to pens...
I cant see many shocks so my Semi Final line up will be.
BRAZIL V FRANCE
ARGENTINA V HOLLAND
Both games being repeats of finals where France and Argentina came out on top (1998 & 1978)
Lets hope it continues to entertain us and also that we show a profit on our bets.....
