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yup, they were friendlies, and you know how shit England are at them, 6-0 should cover it for this game !grin!

I have to agree with Diplodocus here Buttsie. I am the first person to always be cautious when the draws are made as games are never decided on paper but England got a great draw and if they can't qualify from that Group well........

I think we'll win the group and win it comfortably.

The main danger to England is the weight of expectation because there's a genuine feeling in the country that we have a great chance this time around and that pressure could tell.

Its a lightweight group when compared to say

Italy
Czech
Ghana
U.S.A.(out in the first round SWEET)

or

Netherlands
Argentina
Serbia & Montenegro
Ivory Coast

To be honest i was just saying it could be difficult if the team doesn't play attacking football.I still think Sven teams are structured far to defensively,perfectly illustrated by the tactics in Korea 2002 against a ten man Brazil

Will be interesting to see what formation he eventually settles on

Sure you'll qualify but then has England ever not qualified for round 2?

cheers
B...OZ

I think we always have got to the 2nd round although if somebody older than myself knows differently then I'll bow to there better judgement.

Ericcson is very cautious and conservative in his approach but that's to be expected from a guy who predominately made his name in Italy with Roma, Sampdoria and Lazio.

The feeling over here is that England may never get a better chance to win it and I suppose outside of Brazil then we have as good a chance as anybody but it's that weight of expectation that concerns me.

With us then we are either going to win it or get knocked out in the first round. It's either eurphoria or desolation. Why can't we accept that we are good enough to make the quarters or semis but maybe that's it?

Paraguay have only been to the second round of the last two world cups Deuce. They lost 1-0 to France in 1998 and 1-0 to Germany in 2002 so they are tuff nuts to crack.

Anything is possible in Football on any given day which is why you can dare to dream.

Theres probably 8/10 teams that have a realistic chance at lifting it
Just depends on who's playing best as a TEAM on the day.

All this media hype that Brazil has already won it is farcical given that its in Europe and their record their isn't that of a World Champion who is untouchable

Not that long ago France spanked them 3-0 in a final

I haven't looked at the draw to see who's likely to meet who at the business end of the tournament but logic says another Germany v Brazil final is most likely.

England being 4 years wiser should give a decent showing

cheers
B....OZ

I haven't looked at the draw in detail but I believe if England and Brazil win their groups then they are seeded to meet in the semis but they would both have to get that far first.

I take your point about Brazil and World Cups in Europe but remember just about all of their 1st team and most of the squad play for European clubs so that shouldn't be a poblem for them this time around.

As for teams that can win it then I have it down to 6, Brazil, Argentina, England, Italy, Holland and Germany.

I could maybe make a case for the Czech Rep but I think they could be dangerous without and cause some upsets without really have a chance at winning it.

The Germans will be dangerous but only because they are at home. They have on thw hole average players and at the moment no team but that can change between now and the start.

I think as we are seeded 2 and Brazil 1 we are likely to meet in the final if we both win everything. From what I can guesstimate we will meet holland in quarters and argentina in semi - no bother!

Yes that would be logical but remember this is Sepp Blatter's Fifa and we know how logical he is.

My point is that on any given day most of the teams left are capable of beating anybodyelse regardless of ranking

The team with the best all round squad should win but it doesn't always pan out that way.

Who picked Greece to win Euro 2004?

I wouldn't right of France,Spain & Portugal just yet

Still a lot of time to go before the Cup starts,anythings possible

We will wait and see which players turn up uninjured and fresh for the tournament

cheers
B....OZ