Austria-Germany 11.45 a.m. PST ESPN
Scenarios: Germany earn the 2nd place qualifying spot with a draw. Austria earn the 2nd place qualifying spot with a win, as long as Poland do not beat Croatia by 2 more goals than they beat Germany {if Poland beat Croatia by 1 more goal than Austria beat Germany, then it will come down to the tiebreakers between those two, and it would likely come down to (e) number of goals scored or (f) UEFA co-efficient, where Poland is ahead}
This match will be going on at the same time at the US Open 18 hole playoff between Tiger Woods and Rocco Mediate; if Austria beat Germany then it will be an even bigger upset than if Rocco beats Tiger over 18 holes. If Germany play like they did in their first match, they will cruise. If they play like they did against Croatia, then anything can happen. I'm betting that they sort themselves out and do the job. Germany's Schweinsteiger got a silly, albeit harsh, red card and misses the match through suspension. Striker Mario Gomez has been awful up front, and don't be surprised if he starts on the bench. Note that win or lose for Austria, there is still a lifetime supply of beer on offer for anyone who scores a goal.
Austria 0-1 Germany. Final.
Hard for me to offer any real insight on this one, as I was switching back and forth constantly between this match and the riveting US Open playoff between Tiger Woods & Rocco Mediate on the Slingbox, all while pretending to work. It's always really difficult to get a true feel for a soccer match if you don't watch the whole thing or at least long continuous stretches. I did see Ballack's rocket shot of a free kick live, and it was a worthy first free kick goal of the tournament. Austria didn't look too threatening from open play from what I saw, but it seemed like they put in a respectable effort but were just outmatched.
So Germany and Portugal in the first semifinal on Thursday should be awesome. Germany stereotypical discipline against Portugal's stereotypical flair.
Poland-Croatia 11.45 a.m. ESPN Classic
Scenarios: Croatia are through as group winners and will face Turkey in the quarterfinals on Friday; for them this is little more than a practice match. Poland must beat Croatia, and must have Austria beat Germany, and they must beat Croatia by 2 more goals than Austria beat Germany {if Poland beat Croatia by 1 more goal than Austria beat Germany, then it will come down to the tiebreakers between those two, and it would likely come down to (e) number of goals scored or (f) UEFA co-efficient, where Poland is ahead}
Croatia have absolutely nothing to play for and may rest several key players. In that respect you could say that Poland have a decent chance to win, but even so everything will hinge on the other match. They really need a perfect storm- something like a 2-0 win and a miracle Austrian 1-0 I think would get them there on tiebreakers {see above}. It's possible, but not probable- we shall see.
Poland 0-1 Croatia. Final.
Didn't even watch it, as the golf had me split between Austria-Germany and Tiger-Rocco, and I can't get ESPN Classic on the slingbox and never made it over to the pub. So I can't tell you a single thing about it other than the score.
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