Angelo's Soccer Talk

As we are close to embarking on the next round of the FIFA World Cup, it would be important to look back to the greatest moments of the group stage. 32 teams entered the competition, and there were plenty of moments and spectacles that we witnessed in front of our eyes. From Putin's iconic shrug, to Germany's last minute goal to eventual disqualification, the group stage had plenty of shockers. Honorable mentions:  Kroos' 95 minute goal, Maradona entering a new reality, Modric stabbing the hearts of Argentina, Panama's first ever WC goal, Batshauyi basically kicking himself in the face., Korea's final goal to defeat Germany, Putin's shrug, Marcos Rojo's late goal This moment was undeniably the greatest moment of the group stage by far. After 86 intense minutes between Nigeria and Argentina, Marcos Rojo broke the deadlock in thrilling fashion finishing off a Gabriel Mercado cross. In such a tense match, the late winner sent the crowd in a complete ...

This World Cup has been a wild rise of unpredictability and surprises thus far. South American teams have struggled: Colombia lost to Japan, Peru got eliminated after two games, and Argentina are on the brink of elimination. Uruguay still haven't convinced me yet, and Brazil are slowly finding their rhythm. It's been over a day since Argentina's disappointing loss to Croatia, but this has been been coming for a long time. Sampaoli has proven that he isn't the coach for this team, and it doesn't seem that they support him too well either. He plays around too much with his lineups, and he hasn't yet found that connection between the players. How can Sampaoli leave Di Maria, Banega, Lo Celso, Pabon, and Dybala on the bench?? How does he come out with a line of 3 in the back??? Questionable decisions all around from Sampaoli. Like I said in the my previous post, "When analyzing upsets in any sport, you have to ask yourself: 'did the favorite team lose...

June 17th, 2018 will forever be a day to remember for Mexico. In the midst of uncertainty for the team and the #fireOsorio movement, Mexico pulled off one of the most surprising upsets of all time. Mexico did not seem like the underdogs, they came out fighting and confident. They weren't afraid to pressure Germany and they did not back down to Germany's relentless attack. Mexico played a perfect game. They gave Germany no errors to take advantage of, and played the most cohesive game of football this country has ever seen. Ochoa was a physical wall once more. Their defense was perfect. Their midfield was strong. Chicharito and "Chucky" Lozano blitzed towards the goal every opportunity they got. Juan Carlos Osorio set out the perfect lineup and proved to be a coaching mastermind. It was the perfect game. Mexico's goal against Germany was a perfect reflection of the entire game. Mexico won the ball back from Germany after a tackle in their own half. Chichari...

If you could cancel the World Cup right now, the Spain and Portugal game would absolutely be the greatest final ever. This game is instantly going down as a World Cup classic for the ages, as thew two giants traded goals over 90 minutes. It lived up to the hype. This game is easily one of the most entertaining World Cup games I have watched because of the talent and skill on display by all the players on the field. These are all World Class players and the knew how to put on a show for the fans. In this rivalry match, both sides wanted desperately to win, and tension started to build throughout the match. We should also mention the drama coming from both teams. Spain foolishly decided to fire it's coach a whole day before the World Cup started. Ronaldo got "sentenced" to prison. These news coming from the outside could have derailed the match and this game could have ended up much more differently. Instead, we witnessed a football masterpiece in front of our own eyes...

It's a little over a day away from the World Cup. As a result, I'm going to get specific into my predictions for this summer's WC. Last week, I posted my opinion on each team's roster and my thoughts on their talents. Now, I will post my official predictions of important topics such as winner, Golden Ball, Dolden Boot, Biggest disappointment and Biggest surprise. 1. Who is going to win it? Germany. Next Question 2. Golden Ball winner? Lionel Andres Messi. If you answer anyone else you are wrong. 3. Golden Ball winner? I've been putting my money on Neymar since the beginning of my blog. I feel this is the right time to see Neymar take off and make a mark. While not a true goalscorer, he has plenty of freedom in the attack to move around and create space or make plays. Alongside Gabriel Jesus as forwards, both can play off each other to score goals. In fact, Neymar ended in 3rd in 2014 for the Golden Boot. 4. Who will be the surprise team of the to...

That's it, we've reached around nine days until the beginning of the World Cup. The countdown has begun, and now every country has officially released each final 23-man squad for the World Cup. I chose to give my thoughts on each country, and to make it short, I made it 21 words or less. Why did I choose 21??? Well this summer is the 21st edition of the World Cup so why not. Group A: Egypt : MOHAMED SALAH PLZ COME BACK WE NEED YOU AHHH Uruguay : Luis Suarez and Edison Cavani please show us how dominant y'all can really be Saudi Arabia : If I can remember at least 5 of the players' names on this team then it'll be a successful summer for me Russia : This team is good, but not really that good either, but they have home advantage so that could end in their favor. Group B Spain : My beloved Chelsea trio of Morata, Alonso, and Pedro didn't make. Flash 2.0 Bellerin didn't make it. Spain is REALLY good Portugal : Ronaldo and 22 other bums, with the exc...

We're a little over 12 days away from the World Cup. Here's the latest set of news and updates as new information and details are revealed. I'm planning to do these often throughout the next two weeks as we approach June 14th. Salah is injured THIS IS NOT GOOD. I REPEAT, THIS IS NOT GOOD. SOUND THE ALARMS AHH During last week's Champions League final, Sergio Ramo's controversial play against Salah left him on the ground, injured and hopeless. Many have attacked Ramos, calling him dirty and evil and all the nasty things you can imagine. Others have defended him, saying his arm got tied up with Salah's and with the speed they were falling, there was nothing he could do and el pobre Salah was basically stranded. Ooops. Regardless, it doesn't matter whether or not Ramos is guilty or not, THE POINT IS SALAH IS INJURED. That's not good, but Egypt doctors say he'll be ready in time for their second game on June 19th vs. Russia.  Paolo Guerr...