Japan playing before Germany on Sunday should help the Germans with knowing just how badly they need to beat Spain. If Japan are on six points, Germany will have to go for the win. If Japan are on three or four points, Germany might be able to get away with drawing Spain.
Early vibes are a bit like 2002 (which is one of my favourite WCs). France and Argentina went out in the group stage. Senegal and South Korea caused huge shocks to knock out France, Spain and Italy. Ireland getting draws against Germany and Spain. The downside to 2002 was that all those shocks ultimately led to two totally forgettable SFs. But hopefully there's enough talented teams in this WC to still end up with a lot of quality at the business end, even if they are some big scalps along the way.
South Korea’s run to the final was littered with incredibly dodgy refereeing decisions. No way deserved to beat Italy. Scandalous
A passing masterclass from Spain, but it looked like a training match. Costa Rica put them under no pressure whatsoever.
