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WCAD 3-26: Questions Asked, Questions Answered
72 Plays8 months ago
Amit and Austin get together to break down a jam-packed October window, featuring dark arts from both Gustavo Alfaro's Paraguay and El Alto-aided Bolivia, a much needed response from Brazil, and answers to our important Asian qualification questions. Plus, Qatar are in trouble and Uzbekistan are on the up.
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Transcript
World Cup Qualification: A Year in Review
00:00:01
Speaker
Since we brought the podcast back a little over a year ago now to talk World Cup qualifying, we've had some pretty good windows. We've had some pretty good international football. We've had some major trainers to talk about. But mean I think the the World Cup qualification window that we just witnessed was among the best that we have witnessed so far. And you look at the calendar, we've got a lot more of this to come until the actual World Cup. It's only going to get better. This is good stuff.
00:00:26
Speaker
Yeah, the the closer we get, the more the stakes rise. And I think that is one thing. And also just the the quality of the teams, their chemistry, um they're they're playing as good as football as you can get in international qualification. We saw a lot of good stuff at the tournaments in 2024. But as qualification windows go, I'm with you, Austin. This was up there. I know we had an entertaining one in September. This was entertaining and some good dramatic football. So you can feel ah the the tension creeping in in all the confederations. So that's what makes this really fun. And by all of that that you're talking about there, you are mainly amitt just talking about the Solomon Islands Fiji match that you watched at 2 a.m., right? Just that one. ah Nothing else. no No Asia, no South America. I'm ah
Confederation Highlights and Upcoming Matches
00:01:12
Speaker
i'm an Oceania head here.
00:01:14
Speaker
All right, on today's show, we're gonna talk about the window that we just made this. We'll talk about Congo, we'll talk about Asia, and we'll touch on what's happening in Oceania. Again, the other confederations, Congo CAF is off until next June. CAF will be back in March. There's been a lot going on in CAF. They've been qualifying for the Africa Cup of Nations. but It's just one thing too many. I'm sorry, folks. We just can we can't be tuned in on Africa a Couple of Nations Qualifying. But it's given us great scenes. It looks like Ghana are going to miss the African Couple of Nations. So it's going to be really interesting to see how that then vibes with what we get next March with the World Cup Qualifying. Because these teams will have built and destroyed momentum in in some cases. So that'll be good. We'll check in there. And then, of course, UEFA, which won't kick off until next March. so
00:01:54
Speaker
Lots plenty to come, but
Paraguay's Path: Can They Sustain Success?
00:01:55
Speaker
we had a lot go on in it. Let's start in Conable and I think the best way to kind of break down what we saw from Conable here in this window is to go and go through the most important matches of the window that we saw. And I think by doing that, we can pretty much touch on on everything that matters and everyone that matters. So I think the most important match that we saw here was Paraguay's 2-1 home win against Venezuela yesterday. Venezuela admit. Both teams coming into this match came into this match off of a good point in their first match of the window. Paraguay had gotten a nil-nil draw away against Ecuador. but Venezuela had gotten a 1-1 draw at home against Argentina in a like
00:02:33
Speaker
one third waterlogged pitch, one third completely fine pitch. That match was was fascinating because one pass you had played, it would just roll normal. And the next pass you had played, it would just stick in the puddle. And also there were moments when you could tell Argentina was like, ah, should we complain? And then we realized that like, if they complained and laid the match, they might have to stay another day in Venezuela. And they were just not ready. Like, it's just like, we'll just take our point and go home. So anyway, both teams of it came into this match off the back of a good point.
00:02:59
Speaker
Venezuela took an early lead through John Arnbudu. Paraguay got a gift of a penalty, but Julio and Siso missed it. And it looked like Venezuela were kind of vibing and getting the momentum. And then Antonio Sinabria, the nine who Paraguay had desperately been looking for all qualification, finally showed up. He had been on the outs under the two previous managers, gets the recall under Gustavo Alfaro, bangs in two goals.
00:03:23
Speaker
And it's three massive, massive points for Paraguay, heartbreak for Venezuela. And I think this match in particular is maybe one that we will look back towards the end of the qualification cycle and realize just how important it was. Totally. These are two of the teams scrapping for six, for seven. This is going to have massive stakes. I'm really bummed for Venezuela. I thought they played really well here and they were lucky that they you know save the penalty kick- it was a poorly taken one good save by Romo. And I thought Venezuela kind of got the game they wanted this is a about as open as you you'll see Paraguay play they were at home against Venezuela. You know I think Venezuela has we we know they have attacking talent their defense
00:04:06
Speaker
you know they can structurally defend okay, but they it's not the same talent just you know across the the rest of this confederation. Paraguay played open attack. This was a really good game, high level game. And yeah, I think it comes but ah down to Sinabria. We could talk next about, is this sustainable for Paraguay? And you know I'm not so sure. I think this was,
00:04:31
Speaker
two really, really big goals from a player that can do that. They needed this answer. He came in and gave them that. But I think what you saw was that the the very first goal, like the goal to tie the game was a really, really good plea piece of play for Miguel Almorón to set up yep the pass to Sinabria and I mean, this is kind of a this game in a vacuum was a good game, a high-level game. But I think what it really matters here is the the vibes and the momentum shifts in the last part of this quick stretch of three windows that we've seen for these two teams. And it kind of just felt like that Paraguay wouldn't be denied at home,
Bolivia's Home Advantage: A Game Changer?
00:05:11
Speaker
and Venezuela just they' left frustrated again. And I think both these teams kind of played their game. but and And the winning goal also wasn't like
00:05:20
Speaker
much. It was kind of a scrappy rebound that's just in the right place. But this is international football and Venezuela didn't know what is there to say? They could have created a tad more. They could have finished a bit more. They it just wasn't there. Yeah. You talked about the openness of Paraguay to illustrate that point. Paraguay scored more goals in this game than they had scored in the entirety of World Cup qualification going into this game. They had two goals in their first nine matches. They scored two goals in this match.
00:05:49
Speaker
And it really comes down to Gustavo Alfaro pulling the strings and working wonders for Paraguay. Since he took over post-scope America, four matches, eight points, three scored, one conceded. That type of form will get Paraguay to the World Cup and it might get them to the World Cup comfortably. The question, Amit, as you alluded to, is, is it sustainable?
00:06:10
Speaker
And I don't know if it's sustainable long term, but Alfaro has done this everywhere. He's gone every stop. He manages to pull the strings and it's never pretty and he just does enough. And in a battle for six against teams like Parwai don't have to be better than Brazil to make the World Cup, right? They have to be better than Venezuela and Bolivia and they just beat Venezuela. So I think Parwai are the favorites to finish six right now based on what we've seen from these performances and based on the form that they've been playing with.
00:06:38
Speaker
Yeah, based on the standings, just where they're at, you'd have to give them the inside track. and I'm with you. and It's incredible what Alfaro has done. It speaks to the reality of a new manager boost, what it looks like when it actually like plays out. and Certainly, like you can't talk about any of this without acknowledging the importance of vibes and belief. yeah and To me, a lot of this goes back to that Brazil win, yeah the 1-0 Brazil win that is just kind of complete lock-in junk and, you know, hard-fought belief to defend a 1-0 lead the whole way. And then you show up and you you get a fine point with solid recipe and this is the biggest game of their window and they get it done. i'm I think Alfaro's really good ah for for specifically for these kinds of tasks, right? I don't think, I think if you hand Alfaro ah
00:07:34
Speaker
a copo America and a normal Paraguay draw he's not achieving around past but you'd say hey like we're just trying to get a point a game here and try to make three like once or twice oh yeah he's he's gonna really you know, give you the the structure you need. This Paraguay team also, like, you know, based on expectations to the start of the window to where we are now, they did have just one or two ascendant players, right? Like, ah comparatively to to Chile and Peru who are down bad and Venezuela we thought were ascendant, but I think Venezuela's kind of star players are all a little bit older in their primes, really. This is
00:08:18
Speaker
did They are the favorites for six. It is a long way of answering that question. It's not done. And I do think like the the question back, I would ask you is like, I don't think they can keep getting a point to get this. They're going to need to find two or three more wins. Right. And where do those come from? Yeah. So so you look at what's left for far away. They have a whole match against Argentina in November. That is probably tough looks. They have to play Uruguay to close things out next June in the penultimate window.
00:08:47
Speaker
Ecuador at home in September to close things out. That's decent. They still have Chile at home in March. That's probably gotta be three points. Then their away matches are against Colombia, Brazil, Bolivia. That's gonna be a big one onto that in a minute. And then Venezuela and Peru. So there's opportunity, excuse me, just Peru. There's enough opportunities for points in there. Yeah, yeah like it's yeah I think they can there' there's enough chance for them to get it done. And the thing that they have, and we'll talk about this with with Bolivia in a minute, they can get a point from any game, right? like um what They have the recipe to go and grind out a point and and the teams that they're playing against particularly Venezuela But or Bolivia excuse me Bolivia can't do that as well as we'll get to in a second as for Venezuela Go ahead. Yeah, I'm Paraguay Oh the other thing on Paraguay getting the points that they need ah the The further we get along the Columbia's Argentina's Uruguay's Ecuador's are happy to give you points if you run around hard enough serious like
00:09:42
Speaker
Like, they'll they'll beat you if you don't show up, but, like, yeah you could find a you could find a point ah easier. You can outwork those teams and get a point in the right sort of circumstance. I think that's ah that's a very good point, and that's something to keep an eye on, is, you know, when you get to, I don't know, next March, and these teams are in these huge moments of the European club season, those big teams that are very comfortable, there might be guys who just say, yeah, I'll see you guys in June. Like, we're good, and and you'll see some some rotated sides there. All right, on Venezuela quickly here a bit,
00:10:11
Speaker
Back to back below average, windows for them. Again, the point against Argentina is good, but
South American Giants: Brazil and Argentina's Dominance
00:10:15
Speaker
points are are not good enough. They're going to need to get a little bit more. I think the biggest concern is this was a very same old Venezuela result. And I think they have to somehow try and keep that sentiment from creeping in. ah In November, they played Brazil at home in Chile away. They have to get positive results, with but they probably are going to need three points for the next window to kind of turn the momentum back around. Yeah, two tough games. and Chile, you've you've got to try to beat unless you're going to beat Brazil. And I, you know, even as as we'll talk about Brazil in a sec, I don't think that's likely. yeah um But I'm with you. It's about the belief and the manager has been good. I don't think they they underperformed this window. I just didn't think they they had quite enough. They played up to level. They brought they brought their game. They played Paraguay the way you need to play Paraguay. And they got the early lead.
00:11:06
Speaker
It doesn't work out sometimes. And again, it's a tough one on the road. I think, you know, as much as I want them to be better than Paraguay and Chile, and we think they're better than Chile, you've got to be real. Like, seventh still works here. Like, yeah you've got to you've you've got to finish this thing out, try to, you know, whether it's Paraguay or Bolivia, and the math would suggest the way Bolivia pick a point, it's probably Bolivia, you could still out, you know, out doodle into the finish. Someone's going to be in seventh. So like, it's 100% about, you know, staying in this thing, not being discouraged. And let's see, I think Chile to end the year is is, you know, as much as this is a vibes thing, there's a lot certainly writing on that, especially given the way that this game went.
00:11:54
Speaker
And also to close up on Venezuela, everything is still in front of them, right? Like I think we kind of change our opinion on them a bit because of how well they started. But the fact of the matter is everything is still in front of them. They still have a plenty good opportunity. They're only a point back, but only two points back of the teams on 13. So everything's still in front of them. They just have to, they have to get the buy-in for that to be able to happen. All right, the next game, Amit, that was important in this window in Conable. El Alto rides again, Bolivia one, Colombia nil.
00:12:24
Speaker
Ah, this was just good. Pure old-fashioned altitude football, baby. That penalty ball is flying around. I made this point on ah on a radio hit that I did this week. The ball that Bolivia play with is, I think, is made by penalty as the company. I've literally never seen that ball used anywhere else ever in the history of the sport of football. Yet it shows up every time it altitudeed. It probably just flies differently. This game was pure altitude football. Bolivia ripped off like five dangerous shots from 25-plus yards in the opening 20 minutes. They hit the post.
00:12:54
Speaker
They hit the crossbar. They forced ah Vargas into some tough saves. They could have pounced on rebounds. It was a miracle they weren't 1-0 up. And then they went down to 10 men after ah a last-man challenge from Cuellar that was probably necessary and was probably a red card. And then they just got smashed for 70 minutes of this match by Colombia. But Colombia couldn't find the back of the net. ah John Cordova, the Colombian 9, did not have a good day. He had very good chances that he could not put in the back of the net. It was very Romelu Lukaku-esque, if I had to say so myself.
00:13:22
Speaker
And then Bolivia is really their only moment of danger that they had for the final 70 minutes of this match was Miguel Ito Terceros cutting onto his left foot and just ripping a 25-yard shot into the top corner through the thin air. Bolivia admit they were gassed by the end of this game. They were working hard for it. They were playing with 10. This was, I think, the game that they needed to get three points from because it was a game that they didn't quite outplay Colombia, but they used the altitude of their advantage. They took advantage in a massive, massive three points that has them right in the fight.
00:13:49
Speaker
I think multiple things can be true here. One is that going down to 10 against Columbia, scoring a goal from distance, seeing three points, and giving up as much as many chances, high quality chances as they did at Columbia. Not repeatable at all. Not at all. What could also be true is that this is this is how Bolivia do this thing, is the they take you up to places you don't want to go, and they just run you ragged and played like ah video game soccer like they're aiming for twos like they're holding these shots outside the box I mean like but they both can be true like this is their strategy this was
00:14:27
Speaker
that This is how they they, this is the biggest, I mean, tell me, this is this not their biggest result? Yes. As far as they've ever been this long into a World Cup qualification cycle in their history?
Uruguay's Struggles: What's Going Wrong?
00:14:39
Speaker
So they, in 2022, they got pretty deep into the cycle with chances, but they needed to pick up points. And I remember they they smashed Uruguay at home in a game that that forced Uruguay to change managers. And then their next game, they had to go to Venezuela and it was like, all right, if they could pick up something here, And then they did. So this, way yes, I think this, I don't know that this is as far as they've gotten in a cycle, but I think this is as well as they have played consistently at home in in in recent years. And they got the three points away from home, which really helped them against Chile. Betas or Bolivia, excuse me, are now on 12 points with eight to play. I think if you look at the math, it's difficult because I don't know which numbers we should use for Paraguay, right? like
00:15:21
Speaker
If Paraguay are on their Gustavo Alfaro pace permanently, they're gonna run and hide. They're gonna be consistently better than Bolivia. If Paraguay kind of regress a little bit, if Ecuador maybe don't play to their level, I think Bolivia can average, I think if they can get 10 points for their final eight matches, obviously four of those are gonna be at home, four of those are gonna be away, they get to 22 points and I think they have a good shout at making the playoff. Quickly on their second match in this window, they got beat 6-0 by Argentina last night in Buenos Aires.
00:15:49
Speaker
Uh, that was always going to happen. What a night for, you know, messy three goals to assist. He was fantastic. Believe it or not. We did our job. We got the three points. We're going to Buenos Aires. It's not going to work out for us. and it And it didn't. And that's the thing. It doesn't matter. Like they've already pointed goal differential. They're not going to have a good goal differential. So if you can tie them, you're probably going to beat them. Um,
00:16:08
Speaker
but 10 points for those final eight a minute, I think might be enough for a playoff. That said, I think Bolivia should probably try and get the job done here in Conable Qualifying because guess what? That playoff, that theoretical playoff, it's not gonna be enough to, it's gonna be at sea level. So I think Bolivia should really try and finish in sixth because I don't think I would back them in a playoff. What do you make of Bolivia's chances?
00:16:31
Speaker
I think that's a really key distinction um in that Venezuela and seventh, I would say, yeah, you've got to hold out hope. You can get the job done. I think on squad construction talent, Venezuela have, a you know, clear difference makers at more positions. Bolivia do not have difference makers. They have grit and hustle um and, you know, and the lack of air. Yeah, this insane home field advantage. So I'm with you, I think, you know, for at home.
00:17:00
Speaker
And that's a tough four. I don't think you're getting 12, but if you can get nine at home and then steal. Yep. ah wait Somewhere. ah Yeah. Three or two somewhere. Even one. OK. Yeah. I'm with you that they should definitely finish six. I i don't know if they can.
00:17:20
Speaker
if they can catch Paraguay, Venezuela in six. i would I would bet against it. I would say it's probably going to their best chances here are going through seventh. I don't you mean like to actually get into the World Cup? Yeah. Yeah.
Asia's Battle: Japan's Rise and Others' Struggles
00:17:31
Speaker
Their best chances are to go in six. But it's hard to to kind of suss out exactly the point we're going to see Venezuela and Paraguay pick up the rest of the way. I think we need a little more just to tell.
00:17:44
Speaker
um Yeah, I mean, here's here's the four left. Paraguay, Uruguay, Chile, and Brazil at home. gotta beat parkwayy You got You got to beat Chile. The good news is Brazil is the last one. And yeah Brazil wants nothing to do with this qualification cycle. They are so ready to be done with it.
00:18:03
Speaker
You could talk me to 12. I mean, you you can, but and all it takes is for one of those teams to hit the goal first. Yes. yeahp And also their away matches aren't remarkably difficult. Like I can, you can talk yourself.
00:18:18
Speaker
Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, Colombia. They're not winning in Colombia. They're not getting a point against Colombia, but Ecuador, Peru, Venezuela, I think there's a chance for them to snatch something from at least one, maybe two of those matches. So again, just like Venezuela, just like we talked about with them, the opportunity is in front of Bolivia and they have momentum on their side. They're in the ascendancy. They have this insane home field advantage. That match with Paraguay in November of it is is going to be massive. I think we know it. That's going to be a huge one because you've got the Alfaro dark arts and the yellow Alto dark arts. Something's got to give in that one.
00:18:47
Speaker
So honest that's going to be some incredible scenes. We're going to find out. And that's that's as must win as it gets for Bolivia, as must win as it gets. So it'll be really fun. And as big of the advantages they have, I mean, it's one thing to just be ripping shots and crazy games. It's another to be.
00:19:06
Speaker
doing it against Alfaro's defense, which is going to, and one more thing on Paraguay, like their defense was always good structurally, but he's improved it even more. yeah They're really, really, really strong. So yeah that's gonna be a really tough game, fun game.
00:19:18
Speaker
Another result here that matter, I think the third most important game of this window, Chile won Brazil two in the first set of matches in this window in Santiago. Chile, they gave Brazil a chance to fold, right? They said, all right, we're going to put some pressure on you. They found the back of the net 90 seconds. They did Eduardo Vargas with the looping header that he wished that he had been able to score against Bolivia a couple of windows back. ah Put the pressure on Brazil, and I think Brazil responded. look It wasn't a vintage Brazilian performance. It wasn't the the scenes of old. This wasn't, you know, Pele or whoever dancing around the Chilean defense scoring six, but this was a hard-earned 2-1 win with a pair of guys from both the FOGO. What year is it? 1958? A pair of guys from both the FOGO starting for Brazil. ah Igor Jesus right on halftime and then Luis Enrique late on after Chile had had really come forward trying to push for a winner that they really desperately needed.
00:20:07
Speaker
Big result for Brazil. Again, they're not going to break any records for this being the best Brazilian performance we've ever seen, but it was a much needed performance. They put the momentum in the right way. They followed this up with a comprehensive 4-0 win against Peru. This was the win that they needed. This was the performance they needed.
00:20:22
Speaker
That's the best way to put it. This was very professional, very gutsy. um And you know they there was a lot of pressure on them. And they were down to a lot of you know not-star players, unglamorous players. And we had said before this ah these two games, you know this isn't going to be easy stuff. They're going to really have to grind these results out. And you know Peru wasn't that. But to go down against Chile, even a team that's not very good, um they really had to work for it.
00:20:51
Speaker
You give credit where credit's due. We're not going to do the whole Brazil thing. We've done it all the time before. But the good news is that they can you know they can push this conversation. They've bought themselves some some breathing room. Yeah. They bought themselves some time. you know they're not I think you look at the point situation, Ecuador, Paraguay, Bolivia, Venezuela are going to not going to catch them. They just got to keep you know Doing the job and we'll see they've they've got a lot of stuff to figure out but that's not the issue right now Yeah, this was the most pressing issue. They took care of ah took care of business that's that's at least Brazil still have that in them and and that's the pride in Brazil for sure because if you had taken away the years of history and you had just looked at the vibes and and and where this team has been doing what this seems to doing how they've been doing it for the past year and
00:21:47
Speaker
This could have been a really like five alarm fire. I've used that phrase before. And to to not let it do that, um yeah. you You get a hearty golf clap.
00:21:59
Speaker
might get Neymar back in November. I have no idea what Neymar is going to look like when he does get back, but that will be big because if he's anything resembling what he can be, he is good for Brazil. So there's no doubt about that. Chile, the of these two teams, right? Like this was the the key moment in the campaign for both of these teams. Brazil won this match and then win one and won the next match 4-0. Chile lost this match and then went on and and lost the next match 4-0 against Colombia and Barranquilla. They were nowhere close in that match.
00:22:25
Speaker
I think Chile are probably cooked. I think Ricardo Garica is definitely cooked. There's some really nice beaches in Colombia. I hope that Garica just said to the guys, yeah, you guys take the flight back to Santiago. I'm going to San Andreas. and but I'm done. like Very clearly not gonna be the Chilean manager anymore. They're gonna have to get really hot down the stretch. They have proven his way to the next window in November. I'm willing to say anything but six points and I'm i'm ready to call Chile down.
00:22:50
Speaker
Yeah, I think that's fair. I mean, if they can get six, they're alive. And certainly those are the two two of the ah easiest games to get three points in. But nothing here has showed us anything. They even got the goal from Vargas, who is a very unreliable nine as they come. And they couldn't hold on. um Yeah, I think Chile has been putting a lot of stuff on. We're not going to do their post-mortem now. but This wasn't a team built for this cycle. They were going to get worse as this cycle went on. and They tried manager. They'll try another. It's pretty futile. And that's unfortunate, but there had to be teams, three teams here that aren't even going to get to the top seven. And I think we both felt reasonable about Chile being one of those three at the start of this. And yeah, they're they're almost 90% written off here.
00:23:40
Speaker
Yep, Ecuador's two, Nila Nila draws two more results that mattered here in Conable. I think there's two ways of looking at it. The glass half full is obviously this is two more points. They're relatively comfortable in the table, even if they're maybe not on points. Their form is, because again, remember Ecuador are playing with a three point penalty here.
00:23:56
Speaker
So if you give them those three points, their form suggests that they're on 16 points, which is a lot more comfortable in the table. So, you know, you run that form out for the rest and they they should be fine. The glass half empty here is they've scored one goal in their last four. They're only one point up on Bolivia, two on Venezuela. ah I think you and I admit we're in an agreement that we think Ecuador is a level above Paraguay, Bolivia and Venezuela.
00:24:16
Speaker
Um, but they've let that gap get closer and that means their margin of error is less. They, they probably kind of need to make sure they get all three points against Bolivia at home in November. Cause the away match against Columbia is going to be hard. And the last thing you want to do is give these teams an open door to, to walk through, right? Like on current form right now, par Y R would project to, to pass Ecuador at some point. And if they do that, then there's nobody in between them and and that cut line. So.
00:24:43
Speaker
Just keep picking up the points. I'm not sounding the alarm. I'm not concerned, but they're going to need to start finding goals. I think what you just ended with is the big thing, because the structure of this team is good. The managing is solid. I know they brought in a new manager, and there hasn't really been the encouraging signs that you want when that happens. But let's see if they could just get some goals in, because we know that they're there. These aren't terrible results either, right? It's that. It's like, they're fine.
00:25:13
Speaker
they're They're fine. And I agree with you. we We agree they're ahead of those teams you talked about. um Yeah, they just need, you know, a little bit of breathing room like Brazil got against Chile. And I think at home against Bolivia, Bolivia will probably come into that match thinking. Altitude. That's altitude. We got our chain. Like Ecuador playing Quito. It's not the L-Alto altitude, but it's like a Bolivia's most home feeling away match, right?
00:25:37
Speaker
Yeah, but I was gonna eat. That's a very good point. Honestly, I was just gonna say that Bolivia is going in like, listen, we're not expecting to get our point away point at Ecuador, but we might as well try and play really hard. And if you're struggling to score goals, like, yeah, that can be a game where you you you labor for a point. But That's one where, you know, if if they can take care of it, they'll be feeling just fine. Even if they don't, there's enough games here for Ecuador to separate themselves but I'm with you, it comes down to, let's see some goal scoring, you know, Inter Valencia is not yeah getting any younger, so we need to find something here in this squad.
00:26:12
Speaker
but The center backs are good. The center defensive mids are good. This is a very you know tough team that projects well to tournament formats, in my opinion. But they they just you know they keep doing exactly what you said. They've been solid. Let's just see one one or two good performances.
00:26:28
Speaker
Yeah. And there's also like none of the results in a vacuum are terrible recently, right? Like, okay, the one nil loss away to Brazil wasn't great given the way Brazil played, but like, look, you're losing a away to Brazil. There's nothing to to be bad about. They beat Peru and the results here, like, okay, park wise, it's tough not to crack nil nil. You just kind of play to a par.
00:26:48
Speaker
And then nil, nil away against Uruguay is probably on balance. ah a good rec result like oh yeah So again, I'm not sounding the alarm, but we do have to keep an eye on Ecuador because I think they are pretty clearly fifth and in this.
00:26:59
Speaker
in this this equation here. All right, the last result I wanted to talk about admit was Peru's 1-0 win over Uruguay on Friday night. The Marcelo Villosa vibes are not good. ah The Villosa cycle generally always reaches this point. This is just way sooner than I thought we were going to get there. And it's not good for Uruguay. This is Peru's first win in this World Cup qualification cycle. It wasn't because they played particularly well. But Uruguay and it have no goals since the Copa America. That's not good.
00:27:26
Speaker
There's this smoke around the manager. Let's see if there's fire empty seats in the scenario in the home match. They've got Columbia at home in Brazil away in November. ah They can't afford to do the Marcelo Bielsa thing where you just lose your final six matches because that will put them into difficult. um Are they going to move on from Marcelo Bielsa?
00:27:46
Speaker
No, they shouldn't. The only thing here is if the players are like done with him. And again, once the locker room's gone, but a lot of things are gone. Yeah. yeah um And you know we had we had spent some time talking about this on the preview podcast of this window, about the noise, the rumblings, and This is assuming not a way to quiet it, right? like that's that's a good That's the best way of putting it. like I don't think he's the issue. I think we know he's good. But if things are smelly, you can't come out and lose the Peru. a hundred like There's no way around that. and so And they were pretty toothless against Ecuador as well in that home act.
00:28:23
Speaker
Yeah, you can write off in a way result here or there, but just everything on balance is not great. And it's not like they're ridiculously comfortable here in the table, right? They are only four points clear. but And again, look, on the balance, Uruguay are going to be better than Bolivia and Venezuela down the stretch. But if things go really far south and look, they pick up zero points in November and let's say, you know, Venezuela and Bolivia can pick up two or three, then your lead is down to a game, right?
00:28:52
Speaker
and you're
Iran's Strength vs. Qatar's Challenges
00:28:53
Speaker
going to have to play those teams at some point. So yeah they're probably fine, but they can't be falling off a cliff. 100%. They can't. And to me, that's if the team is done with him, the players are done with him, you might see some some concerning results, yeah right? They just might want nothing to do with him. But another point we always say is that this whole thing, the BLC experiment depends on buy-in. We've seen his lifetime run at other places, but I just don't understand why you bring this guy in to to give you that chance of getting to a World Cup quarterfinal and maybe more. And then getting rid of it after a pretty good Copa America performance. And i I went back and I thought, you know, one thing we talked about is would you rather be Uruguay or Colombia? And we kind of settled like you know you'd rather be Colombia for the formula they have. And then when it comes to Uruguay, there's, you know, they're sure there's variance, but it's all a little harder. It's when we're demanding, the players aren't comfortable.
00:29:52
Speaker
I get it. Is Bielsa more suited to go manage like the Austrians of the world? Maybe. I think these guys, like they're not having fun. it's with for the yeah teams These teams that are good and these players that are in Europe, this this qualification in South America is tough and and very difficult.
00:30:14
Speaker
yeah And I think to come in and to play ah teams that are fighting for their lives and are throwing you at weird altitudes and but hostile atmospheres, certainly more hostile than they're seeing in Europe. I don't think that's up for debate. like It's a tough ask. so yeah i'm i'm just i would say I think we are on the same page. but I would just say, like You just got to get through this period and get this team happy and and ready to compete with Bilsa. And if they don't really want him, that's on them, but I think that'd be a mistake. I don't think you're going to have a manager that's going to give you your best chance at 26 other than this guy, especially because when healthy, when committed, he fits the ethos well. Yeah. i yeah Perfectly well said. On Peru, they're still not very good. I think they're still mostly cooked.
00:31:04
Speaker
They have to beat Chile at home in November, particularly because ah their other match in November is away against Argentina. They got to beat Chile at home and then they're going to have to get hot in 2025. I don't like their chances of doing that, but they got on the board with three points. So good for them.
00:31:18
Speaker
Quickly here to close out on kind of a little bit. I kind of wanted to update our tears here that we had talked about when we started this qualification cycle. I think Argentina and Colombia are the good teams. I think Uruguay and Brazil are the good teams with questions. I think Ecuador is right in fifth and your mileage may vary. I think you can have varying opinions on Ecuador. Then from there, the thick of the fight is Paraguay, Bolivia, Venezuela, most likely for one World Cup spot, one playoff spot, and one spot out.
00:31:46
Speaker
and then closing in uncooked our Peru and Chile. i I don't think there's much debate about those tears. No, no debates for me. I think perfect. um yeah that Yeah, we have a good idea of these teams. So like, yeah. yeah All right, let's shift gears and move across to Asia and talk about Asian qualifying. On the preview show last week, we we posed some questions for teams. So let's let's tackle Asia by looking at the questions that we maybe got answers to in this window. And I think let's start with what was our number one question in Asia going into this window. And that was, will Australia respond? And I think the answer to that is yes. They went behind early against China. China have a habit of doing that, where they score first and then lose. They did that in this game. They scored first and then they lost.
00:32:28
Speaker
ar Australia, excuse me, rallied for a relatively comfortable 3-1 win. They scrapped out a 1-1 draw against Japan. i owe you There's not many teams that are going to say that this cycle, the way that Japan have played. They're the first team to score against Japan in the entirety of qualification. It was a very, very unlucky own goal, whereas just ah a low cross and the Japanese defender just kind of stuck out a leg at it and he put it in the back of his own net. Japan's goal was also an own goal coming back the other way, so dueling own goals in this match. is um This was what Australia needed to have happened. It's what they had happen. There's not many matches that are going to be harder than playing away against Japan. Yeah, I thought that was a really impressive point. I mean, the result that they got against China was the one they needed. yeah um But I think the the point and the way they defended against Japan, ah Japan are really good at breaking you down and really testing your organization, your one-on-one defending, your ability to track them runners in the box. And yeah, they gave up an own goal. but
00:33:26
Speaker
I mean, to hold off Japan for that long. And then also for the last 15 minutes to to stay solid at 1-1, you know, was this the most most like killer instinct Japan team? No, but this ah this was good. And like, I don't think Australia are any different than September.
00:33:44
Speaker
But yeah this is the this is why you bring in a manager to get them to work hard to commit and just drill down like, we just got to do this job to to to try to to try to not be in third or fourth. And this was a good response for them.
00:33:58
Speaker
Yeah. And the results that the bounces that they didn't get in September, right? A one nil home loss at home to Bahrain and and the nil, like the bounce they didn't get kind of evened out and they're in decent shape. They're by no means safe. They've they have got work to do, but this was the the response that they needed. The sub questions that I think from the rest of group C, it starts with Saudi Arabia who who were outclassed in that two nil home loss to Japan. Japan are so good. They just shredded Saudi Arabia in that match. It didn't give them any air to breathe. And then they really struggled to create in a 0-0 home draw with Bahrain. They had two home matches in this window. They picked up one point. Not a great result. Roberto Mancini, who we didn't really even know why he was doing this job to begin with, is now just not having a good time doing this job. He's hot and sweaty taking off his suit jacket on the sideline. The fans are booing him. ah Not great for Saudi Arabia here.
00:34:47
Speaker
Yes, someone's going to be in trouble between Saudi Arabia and Australia. And you know I was thinking it might be Australia after the last window. And now I'm thinking it could be Saudi Arabia. But it's kind of silly to swing so much. They play each other to start November. So you're good we're going to get our answer, right? So we'll get an answer. And so I think that's a big game. And I don't want to say Saudi Arabia are more likely than not are not like whatever like I think it's it's about neck and neck but this was certainly not impressive I do think the game against Bahrain they really struggled and Bahrain are fine but they did they they looked out of ideas we know what they want to do with the ball but Bahrain was just kind of like go ahead and and beat us there isn't that
00:35:35
Speaker
Even compared to the other teams that play this style in Asia, there aren't those difference makers to yeah to just give you that one-on-one dribble or great cross or a great finish. like you need You need two or two of those things, generally, ah to to break down Bahrain, the Bahrains ah of this confederation. They didn't have it. And um on another day, could they have brute force one in? Sure. but they i mean It's a tough result. And the camera kept going to Manchini and he was just having a horrible time. Just so sweaty, so sweaty. Why am I here? yeah right And the and the the point to that is Saudi Arabia don't have those difference makers in attack and they also are just not organizationally strong enough in defense to make up for it, right? so
00:36:23
Speaker
Bahrain don't have those difference makers in attack either, but they're structured, they're organized, and they just make your life really, really tough. And they are an interesting team to keep an eye on here because they are now level on points with Australia and Saudi Arabia on five. Japan is going to run roughshod over this group, and then I think it's going to be a pretty interesting fight between all of those teams to to see who finishes in second and then third and fourth.
00:36:42
Speaker
Are there group C questions coming in? Can Indonesia stay hot? Unfortunately, the answer is not really. They were beating very, very late on 5R8 after scoring a couple of amazing goals to go to. It looked like it was going to be so good for Indonesia. And then it wasn't. They were so close. They were so close to getting this. Can I do my Asian stoppage time rant? Can I do my Asian stoppage time rant? Go ahead. We can't be letting goals happen at 8.30 of six minutes of stoppage time. Nobody asked for this, especially now when it's going to cost our boys. It's tough for the players. I mean, mentally to.
00:37:16
Speaker
to extend past when you think is done. um I was just going to say, you know we talked about Saudi Arabia struggling to score in Bahrain. Indonesia i mean played the game of the cycle for them. They kept reaching new heights. This was their chance ah to to keep riding that fortune. They were up late. And that's a pretty heartbreaking goal for them. They've come so far. And they're not done. but that that was maybe the high watermark. Yeah. So that happens in the first game. And then the second game they go play away against China and they lose, which is not good because you just shouldn't lose to China with how bad China are at this point. Um, so that leaves this group, I think pretty much kind of where we expected it. Japan are a level above everybody else in this group. I don't think there's really any doubts about that. And then behind them are
00:38:03
Speaker
interesting teams right in in Australia, Saudi Arabia and Bahrain. And then you've got Indonesia and China who are now off the pace and having to chase back on, which is going to be difficult for them. But it's going to be big because you want to finish in second because it's looking like that next round, the team where the teams who finished in third and fourth going to is going to be a bit more difficult than maybe we had expected as as we talk about some of these other teams. So another question we had coming into Asian qualifying was can Uzbekistan consolidate their strong start?
00:38:31
Speaker
And admit it wasn't easy, but I think the answer is yes. They got a grimy nil-nil home draw with 10 in a round. That is now three games between these three between these two teams in the qualification cycle. We've had three draws. That's a good point for Uzbekistan. And then they've also both won every other game that they've played, which is good.
00:38:49
Speaker
I think they got a 1-0 home win against the UAE. UAE came out guns blazing in that match and couldn't find the back of the net. Uzbekistan kind of just started to reel them in. UAE went down to 10 men. And how about the winning penalty from Shukurov, or Uzbekistan a bit? Did not look like he was confident at all. The camera was on him for the entirety of the VAR review, and he was just talking to himself. He was just like, no, not good. And then he goes up, and he calls bank, apparently, and he puts his penalty off the post.
00:39:17
Speaker
in, which just never happens on penalties. Those are the breaks you need in World Cup qualification, right? And the margins are so fine, so thin. And that's so fun for Uzbekistan. um Yeah, they they look exactly like the team that's going to you know benefit from this format. And they kept themselves some some breathing room from Qatar. Huge breathing room. And I think the the result against Iran going down to 10, you would have liked to try to to get three there. But I want to say on Iran,
00:39:53
Speaker
very good, very good team. And where Japan is the clear class of Asia and South Korea, they're doing a lot of, we'll talk about them, a lot of weird things. They still so probably second best. Iran are very good without the ball. They are just such a physical team and yeah they have ah they have a lot of talent to hurt you the other way. I know like you can't be clapping yourselves on on the the back for a point against a 10 men team, but Uzbekistan went physical toe-to-toe with Iran, and it's kind of, they've played three times and we've seen the same result. yeah And it shows you Uzbekistan's plan. They're not really a ton of difference makers, but they're just really solid. And the team they're trying to beat here, Qatar, who we're about to talk about, they're like the opposite end of of the spectrum of identity. And that's not to say to talent, we could investigate that maybe in a second, but that's what Uzbekistan is relying on. And they really wore UAE down, like you said,
00:40:52
Speaker
these are the recipes for success in this format yeah and and you missed it it was mix that they don't have the top level difference makers but their best players have been good here right like shomarrodov who plays at roma has been among their best players mahiarra pa has been good shukro has been good like
Middle East Teams: Who Will Advance?
00:41:11
Speaker
The guys that they've needed to give them the 5% more so far in this round have given them the 5% more, and that, Amit, has given them a six-point gap to third because our question going into this was, are Qatar in real trouble? And I think the answer is yes. They did get a straightforward 3-1 home win against Kurgi Stan, but that wasn't really our concern with them. We expected them to be able to do that against Kurgi Stan and credit to them for doing it. The issue is that they then went for a
00:41:39
Speaker
boss to Iran, a match played in Dubai on a neutral pitch that should have heavily favored Qatar because they didn't have to play Iran away, and most of the other teams in this group are going to have to play Iran away, and a admit they just got played off the pitch in this match. It was not particularly close. Qatar actually took the lead, and then they had to defend the lead, and they just got sliced and diced for basically 70 minutes here. Sartar Asimov had an incredible game for Iran with a couple of goals, a couple of really nice passes.
00:42:08
Speaker
This finished 4-1, but it could have been 6 or 7. It's really hard to overstate the level of difference that we saw between Iran and Qatar this match. 100%, I'm with you, and just to loop back into Uzbekistan, that's why I said you know you don't want to put yourself in the back, but you have to really... Look at what they did to the other team. Yeah, that's my exactly. That's my point. and I think you just have to respect Iran's talent going forward. and doesn't mean you have to match them in ugliness 100%. And this even goes back to that USA Iran game in Qatar in 2022. That's tough to play this team. And you you give them you know an acre, a yard of space, and you're just going to get carved, especially when you're Qatar. Qatar's defense was so bad, horrible in this game. And we were just we were both just kind of um
00:42:58
Speaker
and in disbelief at how bad it was, but like look, Katar had to try to play. Which was your favorite Katar error goal? I think it's it's a tough one, because on the second, the defender literally takes out his own goalkeeper, right? That one was comical. Larson comes off his line and has no idea that his defender is just laying in the six yard box and just runs over him and falls down, and also is just like,
00:43:20
Speaker
All right. That's the open goal. I'll head that in. That one was bad. But what I liked is what like for the fourth time, they didn't realize that their high line was was bad. And Osman is just just like jogging in past these guys for like these guys. They're stepping up into the midfield abyss and there's leaving this gap. And it's like, dude, you can't let Teremi and Osman run behind you like that. They're going to make you pay guitar are so unorganized. And look, they have attacking talent. Right. Afith Ali. Those are good players. Ali scored the opening goal here. But man, they just don't have anything organizationally. And so if you hit them with an and ounce in iota of talent, they're going to just get burnt and Iran. Look, we know what they are. They are generally a very defensive physical team. They don't get a lot of opportunities to play, but man, they played in this match and he looked good playing. It almost is like, Hey, go play a little bit more. Cause you got guys who can, who can string together passes and and sequences and everything here. and They looked really good.
00:44:19
Speaker
I'm with you. That's why I want to put Iran up with the best teams in this region. um We're going to talk more about them. It might be a little bit. I think they've, you know, solidify themselves on the top team in this group. They're going to, they're on their way to a ticket. um They're guys in their prime here. This is a good team. So credit to them.
00:44:41
Speaker
All right, let's talk about Qatar here. so now So there's six back of qualification with six matches now to play. ah They are in a spot to to make the playoff. They still do have two games and against Uzbekistan, but I think, Amit, they really don't have much margin of error because they still have to play the UAE who has troubled them already and can continue to trouble them. And they're gonna have to probably get something at home against Iran. And I think this is the key point as we're kind of seeing this develop and watching these teams play. I don't think the fourth round is gonna be a cakewalk If a Qatar, if Saudi Arabia, if an Australia falls there, because you look at the teams who would be in that fourth round right now, it would be Qatar, Bahrain, UAE, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and then whoever you want to talk about from Group B. I don't think that team's going to make too much noise. It's going to be the petro state invitational, as it would be right now. Like, you probably back Qatar in that, but if Qatar have to play, you know, like Bahrain and UAE. It's one team though, right?
00:45:36
Speaker
So it's two teams. So it's two groups of three. So they're going to get stuck in a group of three, most likely with like Yuri and Bahrain. Like, yeah, I'm back in Qatar, but I'm not feeling super great about it. And the level that they've shown just hasn't been good. There's work to do here. Yeah. And you just don't want to be in those high stakes matches yeah more than you have to, because as you said, things can happen.
00:45:59
Speaker
Yeah, it kind of goes back to the Venezuela point, where like the job's not finished until it's finished. you can I would still back them to get through that group. But given what we've seen from Qatar, I'd feel a lot better about Saudi Arabia in this kind of format than Qatar. Qatar have really not impressed. And even the Kyrgyzstan result was was fine. They played well for them.
00:46:23
Speaker
It's not easy sailing. They're just outside of there are a few attacking difference makers. They're really unorganized. They can give any team a chance. right leg out yeah Every team they play against can create going back the other way because they're just so bad organizationally. um Are you writing Qatar off for making the World Cup in this phase? Do you think Uzbekistan are good with this six point gap? No. No, there's still time. um Six points is a lot.
00:46:48
Speaker
but Uzbekistan don't walk into three points. That's not their MO. There's enough here. um and They're going to play again, too. So that could be three points that you could swing back the other way, right? Yeah.
00:47:02
Speaker
So yeah again, they have like I said, they still play twice by themselves. Qatar hosts Uzbekistan in November. That's gonna be a very, very big match because Qatar are gonna have to get something from that or else they're gonna be in really, really bad shape. ah Quickly on the other matches in this group here, group A, UAE led a big opportunity to slip up against North Korea. They got pegged back for a one-one draw from a winning position. That puts them level with Qatar and probably out of it as far as chasing Uzbekistan in Iran down the stretch. North Korea then took UAE's missed opportunity and then one-upped them by losing ah pretty winnable match against Kyrgyzstan 1-0 in Bishkek. I think this group is pretty much set. I think Uzbekistan and Iran are going to be chased by Qatar in the UAE, and I think Kyrgyzstan and North Korea are going to be left to to playing to be playing spoilers here. Yeah,
Future Matches: New Dynamics and Preparations
00:47:46
Speaker
I think Kyrgyzstan and North Korea are pretty good as fifth and sixth teams go, but they're not enough to catch those those two. So that's tough, but um yeah, that's the way this goes.
00:47:56
Speaker
All right. The last group here in the last couple of answers that we got in Asian qualifying, we asked how South Korea would respond to kind of a slow start and it's quite well. It turns out they got a comprehensive two, no win away against Jordan. They got a three, two home win against Iraq that I think was, was better than maybe that scoreline suggests Iraq got a late goal to pull that back. They look comfortable for qualification. Now this was kind of like Brazil's performance without a ton of the the overarching angst it had been there but it wasn't quite at the level of Brazil these were the six points that they needed and they're in a good shape now it wasn't great it wasn't the best you'll ever see South Korea play but you're not gonna you're not gonna shake your head at at six points at this stage of World Cup qualifying they didn't have Sun Han Min they can be happy with what they did here
00:48:38
Speaker
100% with you. This was a really impressive performance. I was concerned. I think, yeah, I was concerned and they answer them with with good attacking displays. There is a lot of talent elsewhere. There's some young talent too.
00:48:52
Speaker
um I think defensively will be their questions down the road, but when they could get their their attacking players going and their patterns of of passing and crossing going, they've got talent across the the front line. Lee Jae-sung is really good, right? yeah I think Lee Jae-sung looked really good in this window for them. And again, they didn't have their best player, which is Sun Han Min.
00:49:14
Speaker
They were under a bit of pressure. Six points is is six points. You're going to take that. So our other questions here from, from group B it's pretty simple, right? It's a rock or Jordan. That's our first question. A rock one nil home win against Palestine, Jordan four nil home win against Oman. They both lost to South Korea. There's a big one between these two teams to kick off November. They will play again at the backend of qualification.
00:49:34
Speaker
That's the battle right for the second qualification spot. And it's a huge battle because it's not just a, it's a spot in the world cup. Those teams are going to be fighting it out for. It's going to be really interesting. I don't think you can really pick a favorite between the two right now. Maybe a rock. I was just going to say, I see this pretty even. Um, it's crazy that that's a, that's for a spot in 26 between these two teams. I mean,
00:49:57
Speaker
ah One of those teams are probably one of the worst, worst teams, not worst, but one of the worst teams in the field. It doesn't matter. um It's going to be a really fun game. I couldn't tell you anything other than you have to see it. I'm with you. I think Iraq's a little bit better, but um I mean, yeah, it's not so so, I mean, what? I'd give it 55, 45 at most. it It means what we're saying is both is you got to watch that game in November and I'm sure we'll preview. It's going to be a good one.
00:50:22
Speaker
Yeah. Uh, Hussein has been really good for, for Iraq. I mean, Hussein, he was really good at the Asian cup. He's continued to score for them. The other question in this group of may is Oman, Kuwait or Palestine. and And the answer is, is that it actually probably doesn't matter because I think whoever gets that fourth spot in this group and goes into the route into the the next round is probably going to be the worst team there.
00:50:41
Speaker
Yeah, the what matters is that the Saudi Arabia or... um Yeah, you want that team in your group. ...want this team in their group. Yeah. Yeah. um The results for those teams, Oman smashed Kuwait, 4-0, and Muscat, and then Palestine scored late to to get a 2-2 draw against Kuwait at a match play at an intro site. There's a gap in the level between these teams, the other teams in this group. It's an interesting fight for fourth, right? And it it's again, it's going to be really hard, but... I don't know. I guess the next round it's two matches, and so maybe you can lock your way into defending and scoring. I don't know. There's a gap in the in in the quality of these two teams, and the other teams that we've talked about. I think it's fair to say. ah You want to talk bumper cars? Oceanic bumper cars?
00:51:22
Speaker
Sure, let's do it. All right. New Caledonian Fiji got wins in group A in Oceania. Roy Krishna, who has just been at it forever for Fiji. Basically, the one oceanic player who's playing outside of Oceania, playing in India, scored the winner for Fiji in this match. In group B, New Zealand and Vanuatu were both comfortable winners. I watched a little bit of New Zealand against Tahiti. It was the only game that was on before my bedtime.
00:51:44
Speaker
ah ah The second spot and in the group ah probably comes down to Tahiti and Vanuatu on the last day. ah Let's see what what Tahiti can can do coming up. New Caledonia and Fiji I think are looking good from the Group A, and I haven't seen anything to change my opinion that New Zealand are probably going to win this qualification going away. Yeah, I mean, what do what do you think? I think Fiji is going to face them in the final. Maybe New Caledonia,
00:52:10
Speaker
Yeah, let's see. Let's see. Again, these two they're just so hard to to pick against. I think of the results that we saw in this window, I think the Fiji result was the most impressive result because it was the hardest fought of the results, which I think generally means something. like I think Solomon Islands were a pretty good team on ranking coming into this, so for Fiji to have won that match is good. I think Papua New Guinea are probably a level below New Caledonia, and I think some of our assuredly a level below Vanuatu. So I think Vanuatu against Tahiti and the other group is going to be interesting because I don't think we've seen those teams against level competition. That's only going to happen when they play each other. So again, it's the oceanic bumper cars. They're going to run into each other and somebody's going to go to the intercontinental playoff at the end. So it'll be fun.
00:52:53
Speaker
Alright, that is it for us on this edition of the World Cup After Dark Podcast. Don't worry, there's more coming up from us because later this week we're going to record a show on some of the new manager's international football, particularly on the teams that we haven't gotten to talk a lot about here as we've been focused on World Cup qualifying. We're going to talk Mauricio Pochettino. We're going to talk Thomas Tuchel in England.
00:53:13
Speaker
ah We'll have that reaction show later this week. That will be for our Patreon subscribers. If you would like to become one of our Patreon subscribers, you can use it at patreon dot.com slash WCAD, $3 a month. And you get access to exclusive shows like that show that we're going to record, like some of our previous shows that we put out. And you also get the World Cup Qualification spreadsheet, which shows all of the matches across all the confederations and how to watch them in both the US and Argentina.
00:53:39
Speaker
ah on our World Cup Qualification spreadsheet. Again, you can get that by becoming a patron. That makes World Cup Qualification days a whole heck of a lot easier, right? You're not looking around for for where you're going, what to watch for. I mean, you' you're talking to the two of us, Austin. This is the two of us. But ah yeah, if you're if you're watching World Cup Qualification, there is no better asset. Seriously, you could be trawling through web pages to try to find this stuff. No, no, no. Just save yourself all the time.
00:54:07
Speaker
Find the sheet. It's what you're looking for. And then again, in November, we're right back at it. We've got the third of the three back to back to back windows here. We'll have more kind of action, more action from Asia, and more action from Oceana. We touched on some of the matches that are going to be really interesting in November. I'm looking forward to the November preview show because we'll get to dig into some of that. And man, it's going to be big games, and they're really starting to to depend here, right?
00:54:27
Speaker
I mean, and we started off the show with this. The closer we get, the more the stakes go up. And I think the the whole soccer world is slowly going to get increasingly fixated on some of this international stuff, um which which is which is super fun for everyone. So yeah we're getting we're getting there.
00:54:46
Speaker
Yeah, and that's the thing to to close us out. It's like, man, we're going to get to a point, especially I think when European qualification kicks off, when South American qualification comes down the stretch, and you're going to ask yourself, man, how are these things happening? It's like, man, you're late. We've been watching this for years. So ah we've we've been here. We're looking forward to it. So we'll see you guys in November. We'll see you guys for that show on the Patreon show. Thank you, as always, for listening. If you like what we do, you can rate, subscribe, like, review all the fun stuff. And that, and we will talk to you guys soon. Cheers.