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World Cup Third-Place Match Crib Notes: Brazil vs. Netherlands

It isn’t nearly as important or anticipated as the final, but Saturday’s third-place match is good enough to be a World Cup final. It pits pre-tournament favorite Brazil against the Netherlands, which put up one of the two most impressive performances of the World Cup in routing defending champion Spain, 5-1, in the group stage. […]

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World Cup Third-Place Match Crib Notes: Brazil vs. Netherlands

It isn’t nearly as important or anticipated as the final, but Saturday’s third-place match is good enough to be a World Cup final. It pits pre-tournament favorite Brazil against the Netherlands, which put up one of the two most impressive performances of the World Cup in routing defending champion Spain, 5-1, in the group stage. […]

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World Cup Shooters Keep Misfiring From Long-Range

Scoring is up at the World Cup, but it would be even higher if more players could shoot straight. Teams have taken 221 shots on direct free kicks or off shots set up by direct free kicks. TruMedia, a soccer stats supplier to ESPN, has developed a model, based on club soccer data from Opta, […]

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World Cup Shooters Keep Misfiring From Long-Range

Scoring is up at the World Cup, but it would be even higher if more players could shoot straight. Teams have taken 221 shots on direct free kicks or off shots set up by direct free kicks. TruMedia, a soccer stats supplier to ESPN, has developed a model, based on club soccer data from Opta, […]

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Could the World Cup Champion Beat the Best Club Team in the World?

Update (July 13, 5:46 p.m.): Germany won the World Cup on Sunday, defeating Argentina 1-0 in extra time. In basketball, it’s a safe bet that the United States men’s national team would defeat even the best NBA teams more often than not. Likewise, it’s hard to imagine any single NHL squad being favored against the […]

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