World Cup Today -- Day 20

So we arrive at the BIG moment. The USA will take the field against the "Red Devils" of Belgium at 4pm today. As more than one analyst has said though, has this World Cup come one year too late for Belgium?

First off though we have the Argentina vs. Switzerland match at noon. Both France and Germany got by yesterday but not by much, especially in Germany's case. Could Switzerland, who upset champs-to-be Spain in their first 2010 World Cup game. The Swiss know the routine, they know how to lock teams down. It is one of their stronger aspects to their game. Can Argentina score without have to wait for Messi to save them? Will someone other than Messi score for the Argentines? If the South Americans get a goal from Higuain or DiMaria or anyone else to take the pressure off of Messi they sand a good chance. If they get a lead and force Switzerland to open up a bit they should be fine. If Switzerland should score first, look out. Johnny sees this as a 2-1 Argentine victory. 

Which brings us to the biggest US soccer game probably not in 1950. Belgium, tactically excellent, and even more devastating on set pieces, ire free kicks and corner kicks. However the Belgians were playing at a much higher level at this time last year, in fact beating team USA 2-0. If the USA can keep Belgium off the scoreboard on set pieces their chances improve markedly. Jozy Altidore who stretched his hamstring 20 minutes in the USA's first game against Ghana has been declared "available" today. Johnny doesn't see Altidore starting but he could come on with his great speed and size and power late in the match when Belgian legs are tired and go all out for 15-20 minutes and maybe make a difference. The USA will most likely have to attack from the wide spaces as Belgium may pack it in tightly on defense with the many injuries their central defense have. Manchester City's Vincent Kompany has a groin pull, Anthony Vanden Borre with a broken fibula and an abductor strain for Laurent Ciman. Americans may also thank whatever god you pray to that the best ball header on earth, Christian Benteke who plays for Aston Villa, is not playing for Belgium today either. The USA will want more possession in this match to slow down the Red Devils attack so players like Graham Zusi and or Justin Bedoya must be sharp in service in the middle of the park. Cheap giveaways and poor possession will send wave after wave of Belgians forward. Slow and steady wins the race today. So, again, if the Belgians don't score on set pieces good things can happen. The USA cannot keep a clean sheet to save their lives (ie get a shutout) so we're going to say moxie and conditioning win the day. Nobody better at that than the USA. Belgium wins their games late. Today the USA will turn that trick back on them. 2-1 USA with a goal by Michael Bradley late in extra time.

Argentina vs Switzerland noon

USA vs Belgium 4pm

World Cup Today -- Day 14

Two weeks in and things are starting to shake out. Enjoy today, tomorrow things get nutty all over again.

The early games give you one really watchable choice. You CAN watch already eliminated Bosnia-Herzgovina play one point Iran OR you can watch Lionel Messi and Argentina try to close out group play with a perfect record over Nigeria, still in shape to make it out of the group as well. Your choice. It's your house.

The later matches bring some intrigue as chances are Ecuador is going to need some kind of result over one of the tournament's brighter teams, France. You'll remember back at the beginning Johnny said France was a dark horse to keep an eye on. They have been superb. Switzerland is playing on three points, same as Ecuador. Switzerland has a playdate with the little CONCACAF team that couldn't get over the hump, Honduras. The Hondurans will play hard and they are a big strong team that can maybe knock Martina Hingis into next week but we see Switzerland winning. Keep an eye on the Ecuador vs. France game, that'll be a firecracker.

OK, the bite yesterday. What a classless guy Luis Suarez is. He may seriously have some kind of mental issue to not just fight back by biting but to use it to GAIN the advantage. That is seriously messed up. Plus, look at him, he has giant horse teeth. Those things have to hurt. Like Johnny mentioned yesterday on the Twitter, Milton Bradley could come out with an updated version of Hungry Hungry Hippos and instead of hippos use Luis Suarez heads. He's gotta go. Liverpool is trying to desperately unload Suarez to either Real Madrid or Barcelona it is said and probably feel a lot like Duke and Duke at the end of Trading Places watching their price drop knowing he might not be playing in quite a few World Cup and Champions League games.

Argentina vs Nigeria noon
Bosnia-Herzgovina vs Iran noon

Ecuador vs France 4pm
Switzerland vs Honduras 4pm

World Cup Today -- Day 9

England, LOL.

Lunchtime brings a wonderful David vs Goliath contest with suddenly hot Costa Rica matching up with World Cup powers Italy, both victorious in their openers. Can the imaginative Los Ticos attack break the Azzurre defense, as legendary as "The Wall" in Game of Thrones. As much as Johnny wants to hope the CONCACAF magic can continue you get the feeling Italy got to be Italy on the world stage by winning matches like this. The 3pm match features the timeless battle of chocolate vs. wine so settle back with a box of wine and a Hershey bar, play both ends against the middle, and watch France try and crack the tough Switzerland defense. After that box of wine and THREE Hershey bars maybe you'd like to order some dinner? Well spice it up as the nightcap at 6pm features a loser beats the postcards home game between Honduras and Ecuador. Johnny would cheer for Ecuador after seeing a human interest piece on their side last night but, well, CONCACAF!

Italy vs Costa Rica noon
Switzerland vs France 3pm
Honduras vs Ecuador 6pm

Wold Cup Today -- Day 4

An upset, referee controversy and a comeback that took all of 100 seconds yesterday, not bad! Costa Rica (As Johnny warned on these very pages) isn't a typical bad CONCACAF (The USA/Mexico/Caribbean grouping for FIFA) team and showed it. England did what England usually does which is what makes them a little dog who thinks they're a big dog. How about the Ivory Coast's 100 second two-goal comeback? Very exciting.

Today brings three games, none of which have a lot of buzz about them. The Argentinians get going today at 6pm and that might be the highlight. Your games today:

Switzerland vs Ecuador noon
France vs Honduras at 3pm
Argentina va Bosnia-Herzegovina at 6pm

As always, feel free to share your thoughts and or disgust with us in comments.