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Germany vs USA 
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Our first last-sixteen match bears witness to Germany taking on the USA. Now clearly, we can see who is the favorite here, no one will dispute that fact but just before you completely write off the USA , take note of a few comforting home grown truths.
Take a look at Germany’s preparation so far. Placed in a somewhat easy group, Germany didn’t really have to break a sweat cruising into the next round of our XF NC. With two default loses against Malta and Turkey, even these veterans of the NC scene need some practice matches, especially in the long eventful summer months. With team captain kuraigu having to step in on a number of occasions as well, the stability normally associated with the German side isn’t quite what it usually is, so a well oiled team could really prove a worthy challenge for them.
This is where the US team steps in. With plenty of practice from the group stages, our cousins from over the pond have had more than enough time to gel as a team and get the tactics spot on. After a convincing win over Slovakia and pushing Poland right to the very limit, the US team to put it simply has been getting better and better, there’s no question about it.
The Polish performance impressed me the most, with the names of Quota, ouch and vader standing out from the crowd. Together, Quota and ouch where simply unstoppable on Delivery and with vader playing the role of the mutli-classer in the team, they are a real force to be reckoned with for anyone in this competition. True, they had a slow start against Poland but if they can show at least a fraction of the form they displayed on the last two maps against the impressive Poles, they will give Germany a real run for their money!
pedro’s prediction
For me, this one is simply down to consistency. If Germany can get all their big names playing such as butchji, drago and sNoOp, then the USA will have a torrid time of things. Having said that, like I mentioned above, if they display the same quality shown in the Poland encounter, they could really match the Germans, punch for punch.
A crucial area lies in the rifle department. Axcess had a decent game against Poland but he will really have to find a new gear if he wants to challenge haZer in that department. The same goes for Fragman. With a mediocre game against Poland, he too needs to find some special. We did witness some of his capabilities on Radar but there weren’t enough of those moments to cause a real impact and leave a lasting impression on the match.
I’m going to be controversial and call this 4 – 2 . Wishful thinking you may say and yes, I always love the underdog but I was truly impressed with how the US clawed themselves back against Poland, so I honestly think they have the stones to take this one.
It all depends on who wins the first map. That’s crucial here. The Germans will have to be rattled early on and if that happens, the US guys have the capabilities to profit.
Either way, it promises to be an epic encounter, pings permitting. :P
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Japan vs Russia 
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A somewhat intriguing and surprising match up comes in the form of Japan vs Russia. What can we say here? It’s a really hard match to call and the form sheets don’t offer much of a clue either.
Japan’s road to the last eight involved taking the scalp of a depleted Estonia and pushing another former NC powerhouse Finland down to the wire as well. Advertised as the group of death, no one would have given Japan a hope in hell of progressing from this group and with Greece declaring their non-participation at an early juncture, it really was an uphill battle for our friends from the east.
Still, they did it and with Russia lying in wait, Japan do have a decent chance of making through to the next round. Gabriel and Kirark are the stand out players for Japan but in all honesty, it’s hard to decide how much of Japan’s achievements are based on skill and how much is based on the ping issues that both Finland and Estonia had too cope with. Russia needs to get their heads round this and fast, as it can easily annoy opponents early on.
Looking at Russia, we have somewhat another of a shock. Progressing through Group G via the top qualification spot, Russia have kept a somewhat consistent line-up in all their games so far. With the added bonus of murDa returning to action as well, they really do have the quality and experience advantage over Japan.
pedro’s prediction
Unfortunately, this isn’t really what this game will be about. As I mentioned, it’s all about the latency issues really and how well [Russia can cope with the unusual playing circumstances. As we saw against [ Finland, Japan can come up with some crafty maneuvers, especially with the grenades when the occasion calls for it. Apart from that it’s incredibly hard to see where the Japanese influence will come from, they lacked any sort of “spark” against Finland and really, the rumors of strange instances occurring within the Japanese ranks seem to be somewhat misguided at best.
This game is Russia’s to be lost and as long as they get the right mindset in place, this will be an easy win for them. Having said that I’m going to call this match a 4 – 2 , as I feel with the fiery temperaments of 4live, Jago and huMM3L could hold them back slightly, in their quest to move onto the next round.
If Russia can banish their demons then yes, this one could be a formality. If not, then Japan could cause a real upset and more importantly, if Japan win this match, no other team will really want to play them for various reasons, eliminating the comfort zone of any opposing team.
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Belgium vs Switzerland 
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Another one of our favourites in action and Switzerland have it all to do against the mighty Belgium.
Even with the demise of overload during the summer period, it doesn’t really seem to have hindered the Belgian team at all. With a monumental roster of players to call upon with huge amounts of talent and experience, it’s hard to see any weakness in the Belgian side. Even if the likes of mAus and dAv1d somehow can’t play, with wingmen in the form of Kevin and vila it’s such a daunting line-up of players to make some sort of concerted attack plan against.
The Swiss will have to hope the combination of an extremely depleted Belgian team and along with the fact they have a tight knit squad of players has a winning factor for them, otherwise they could really be blown away by the fast pace of the Belgians. The Swiss can take some comfort from the fact the Czech team did push the Belgian side pretty hard, even in the face of a star-studded line-up.
The key factor that won the Czech side Goldrush in that group stage game, was their spawn-killing coordination and showing absolutely no intimidation against an extremely talented opponent.
teente and mnew were the stand out men for the Czechs that day and if mnew didn’t have to leave the game due to connection issues on the deciding map, god knows what would have happened for the Czech side.
The Swiss in contrast had somewhat of an uneventful progression into the playoffs. After being hammered by a clearly well oiled UK team, the Swiss side only had to overcome Canada and the Ukraine. Not exactly the best test for the Swiss, even if their first match was a clear indication of their sides lack of activity.
pedro’s prediction
Hopefully the Swiss will translate some of the Czech tactics into tangible results and with veteran gifty in the mix yet again, they will need all the experience they can muster for this match.
Switzerland have to gamble on the fact that a lot of the Belgian players are enjoying the summer and could be completely unmotivated/disinterested in the outcome of this game. To me, that seems a little unlikely, as to be honest, I have a feeling that a few of the Belgian players will relish in the aspect of competitive ET again, even if the weather outside has been dominating their summer schedule.
This one has to be a pretty clear cut affair, with a score line of 4 – 0 on the cards. The Swiss team just seems to be far too rusty to have any chance of really competing with the Belgians and with no real chance to rectify their form in the summer months with a busy practice plan, I don’t think Switzerland will have anything up their sleeves apart from a decent tan and a drizzling of man sweat.
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Australia vs Chile 
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A completely non-European encounter comes in the form of Chile vs Australia. With an impressive start to the tournament, Australia are clear favorites for this showdown. Overcoming Latvia in impressive fashion and completely demolishing Ireland, the Aussies have some of the best firepower in this tournament and are clearly the most able team in the event to cope playing with an unusually high ping as well.
haste and HM were simply sublime in the initial stages and the game against Latvia on Radar was simply a joy to watch, even if the map was a full hold for both teams. Australia had the fluid, natural progression that they convincingly showed in their World Cup campaign of recent times and it looked as if they hadn’t missed a beat since then.
Chile could be seen as another team that progressed through to our last-sixteen with latency issues on their side but against the Aussies they will have no such luck. M@x will have to call up on all his experience and knowledge to get them through this one and even still, they now have no real advantage on their side when they have to face a non-European opponent.
pedro’s prediction
No offense to Chile here but oh dear. They could take some comfort from the fact that Hungary did manage to steamroller their opponents in the last group game but in all honesty, I think that will have just motivated the Australian team even more to prove that they are more than just a nation of high pingers and connection abusers.
kad won’t be happy with that final game and with some flame coming in from Hungary during that encounter to boot, the Australian side will need little motivation from their team captain to fire them up.
I don’t see a way through this tie for Chile, the Australians have impeccably high expectations for this tournament and are taking each and every game in a serious and well thought out manner. It could be a damage limitation exercise for Chile, as I feel a 4- 0 pounding could be on the agenda.
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Netherlands vs Hungary 
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Possibly the most exciting game on paper out of our last-sixteen sees Holland taking on Hungary. With Hungary on top form in the group stages and the ever present quality of the Dutch side, this clearly has the makings of a fantastic battle.
Hungary impressively topped their group, winning all of their games. With the likes of Latvia and the hugely impressive Australia being scalped along the way, this team is completely brimming with confidence which some may say borders arrogance.
Why shouldn’t they be arrogant? Back to their former high quality national base, it’s a mixture of new and old school that has taken the Hungarians magnificently to this stage of the tournament. The old names are there with Nonix and logic combining well with the relatively new school talents of sebi and adze, who both impressed in the group stages, especially against Latvia. One player amongst the Hungarian side clearly stands out from the rest and that man is phobeus. His damage output compares along side the likes of mAus and butchji and deserves the title of MVP for his team at this moment in time.
The Hungarians don’t have to change a single thing here, they are on form at the moment and to be honest, rank along side Germany and Netherlands going on recent games. The have to be careful they don’t get too big for their boots but apart from that, all is good in the Hungarian camp.
For the first time in a very long time, Holland go into this game as slight underdogs. You may say that’s unfair considering the raw talent Holland have in the form of perfo, Azatej and teKoa but you’re only as good as your last game as they say and it’s hard to say anything bad about Hungary’s current run of results.
Out of the two teams Hungary have had the better preparations, qualifying from an easily more challenging group than the Dutch. Still, Holland won’t be rusty. Most of the side is currently active, so this game looks to be an amazing one to say the least!
pedro’s prediction
Tough one to call. The fan boys on XF will clearly tout the Dutch as the easy favorites here and that might be true but looking on current form, the Hungarians deserve that title more than their Benelux counterparts.
For Hungary, phobeus has to play, no doubt about that. His confident and forceful style of play is exactly what is needed for his team to win this match and he always leads by example when he plays. The experience brought to the team by Nonix and Logic will help the lesser experienced members of the side, allowing them see past the big occasion and the bright lights of a quarter-final place.
It depends really on what squad Holland put out. I can’t see captain perfo allowing anything apart from his absolutely active, top players and hopefully that will be the case when the match day finally arrives.
As for a result, again, even though Hungary do come across as a big arrogant and immature at times, I think they will pull off a 4 – 2 win, with phobeus being the star of the show yet again. Controversial prediction yet again but it’s up to Holland to prove me wrong, the pressure is on them.
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Poland vs Malta 
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Yet another title contender in action, Poland face Malta in this clash. With Malta progressing through to this stage of the tournament due to France pulling themselves related to cheater issues within the team, Malta may have wished they hadn’t done so once the fixtures had been published.
With spectacular form and a vast squad to source from, Poland rank up along side the best when you talk about the winners of this XF NC. Their impressive long-range shooting ranks among the best in the NC and they’ve simply torn through their opponents from many a grassy knoll. Even changing line-ups doesn’t seem to have put off the Poles from winning all their group stage games. zMk and krisek have been on top form and even wiesek coming into the last game of the group stages looked impressive, as he dominated some of the US players on Radar and Supply.
The only criticism I have about Poland, is the fact they seem to loose concentration at times. I’m not sure if it’s something to do with arrogance or over-confidence but they can switch off at specific moments and as a result, don’t win matches/maps as easily as they could. It’s a minor flaw if one at all but it could play a significant role as we progress through the knock-out stages.
Malta on the other hand, have it all to prove. Scrapping through by the skin of their teeth, the Maltese need to exploit something in the Polish defense which really is the equivalent to converting water into wine. toxic will try his best but even he doesn’t seem to give his team a hope in hell of making any headway against the Poles.
pedro’s prediction
4 – 0 is the only result I can see here, even if killerboy insists on trying to bust every Polish player he’s facing. I guess Poland will love this game, due to the fact they get to consistently abuse killerboy, as if they needed some more added incentive to win the match.
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Sweden vs Finland 
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An epic grudge match next, in the form of Sweden vs Finland! With national pride at stake, the players will surely take this match to heart and show some passion as they look to get one up on their Nordic neighbors.
In terms of familiar line-ups, Finland have the upper hand here, with Sweden for the first time in many an NC not having the usual suspects of players such as NuggaN , crajsor and alexL at their disposal. Finland on the other hand does have hefty NC experience.
Yet again twidi, lettu and Squall are lining up for their national side, along with XF God decem taking up the rear (:XD) . Still, as I’ve reiterated numerous times in recent weeks, current form is everything so let’s have a look at how the teams have faired up until now.
Finland really haven’t been tested so far and their greatest challenge to date came in the unlikely form of Japan. The Finns really struggled playing with such a high latency and dropped a round to the Japs. Estonia promised so much as well but without
Night and r3vers making an appearance, the game struggled to even be played with captain EmeRica having numerous problems within his ranks. So not the best preparation for Finland so far, could this have a deciding factor?
Sweden have had to compete more on their way to the last-sixteen. Having gotten off to a losing start against Portugal, it really didn’t look good for Sweden early doors. A default win again Slovenia allowed for some much needed time to reflect and regroup, which clearly worked wonders for the Swedish side.
Captains tornis and rat managed to entice back former Swedish powerhouse jonas and along with the RTCW legends of askungen and smutzig, they revamped Swedish team and finally looked up to the task at hand, beating the Russians in a thrilling three map encounter. The Swedes have certainly been tested far better than the Finns in recent weeks, which really could give them the upper hand at the start of the match.
pedro’s prediction
A fascinating showdown, mainly due to geographical rivalries, this is yet another hard match to predict. I do believe Finland have the better quality of players, who have all played at a very high level. Don’t get me wrong, the Swedes do have great players in the side as well but the Finnish players have played together so much, they could have the edge here. Let’s not forget though, as I said above, the Swedes are better practiced; they’ve got consistency on their side which is always the crucial factor.
4 – 2 and I think the Swedes will take the first map, as it will take at least one map for the Finns to get back in the swing of things.
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United Kingdom vs Czech Republic [/center] ]
Our final last-sixteen game is between the UK and the winner of Austria vs Czech Republic. Obviously, it’s hard to comment on the UK’s opponent, as it’s not decided yet, so let’s take a look at what the winner of that match has to look forward too.
The UK so far has had an impressive showing, with again consistency being the key attribute of UK side which is usually all over the place in terms of squad consistency. With little appearance of the captain Mztik, the team hasn’t exactly had the best preparation coming into this competition. Still, with w3st, griim and former favorite syK in the team along with former RTCW pros kye and crumbs, this team has the makings of the former UK team captained by rG, of bettering their 
place finish.
Again, like Hungary, Finland and other NC teams, a consistent line-up has been the great philosophy of this current UK side. Dominating their group in the qualification stage, whoever the UK have to face in the last-sixteen will clearly go into the match as an underdog. The UK team doesn’t have the shear quality in terms of individual aim in the outfit compared to the likes of Poland or Holland but they are such a hard working, grafting team, who won’t stop plodding on any step of the way.
Finally we know who the UK are playing and I have really warmed to the Czech side. With a valiant performance against the Belgians and overcoming an awkward Austrian side, they have earned their spot in the last-sixteen.
As I've mentioned above, the Czechs have a few key men in the absence of players like butch and marv. A nice surprise package has come in the form of mnew as well. Against Belgium he played exceptionally, having to be replaced just when he was looking like he was getting fully into the swing of things. The Czechs have a great overall squad, no one can deny that and coming off the back of some decent results, the could cause the UK problems in certain areas.
pedro’s prediction
If the Czechs can get out their best team and if you were to compare each player man for man, the teams seem evenly matched in a number of departments. That's about it though really and with the UK team heavily practiced as I went over earlier in the article, it's hard to see how the Czechs will cope. Still, it depends really. They do have enough experience within the side ti cause an upset but going on current form the UK have the wind on their side.
I'll call this game 4 - 2 as I really don't see how the Czech side can get passed the fact that the UK team are probably one of the most active nations in this competition if not the most active NC team at this present time. I think the UK will win the first map, fall asleep on the second and pick up the win in the third.
Germany vs USA [/center]]Our first last-sixteen match bears witness to
Germany taking on the USA. Now clearly, we can see who is the favorite here, no one will dispute that fact but just before you completely write off the USA , take note of a few comforting home grown truths.Take a look at Germany’s preparation so far. Placed in a somewhat easy group, Germany didn’t really have to break a sweat cruising into the next round of our XF NC. With two default loses against Malta and Turkey, even these veterans of the NC scene need some practice matches, especially in the long eventful summer months. With team captain
kuraigu having to step in on a number of occasions as well, the stability normally associated with the German side isn’t quite what it usually is, so a well oiled team could really prove a worthy challenge for them.This is where the US team steps in. With plenty of practice from the group stages, our cousins from over the pond have had more than enough time to gel as a team and get the tactics spot on. After a convincing win over Slovakia and pushing Poland right to the very limit, the US team to put it simply has been getting better and better, there’s no question about it.
The Polish performance impressed me the most, with the names of
Quota, ouch and vader standing out from the crowd. Together, Quota and ouch where simply unstoppable on Delivery and with vader playing the role of the mutli-classer in the team, they are a real force to be reckoned with for anyone in this competition. True, they had a slow start against Poland but if they can show at least a fraction of the form they displayed on the last two maps against the impressive Poles, they will give Germany a real run for their money! pedro’s predictionFor me, this one is simply down to consistency. If Germany can get all their big names playing such as
butchji, drago and sNoOp, then the USA will have a torrid time of things. Having said that, like I mentioned above, if they display the same quality shown in the Poland encounter, they could really match the Germans, punch for punch.A crucial area lies in the rifle department.
Axcess had a decent game against Poland but he will really have to find a new gear if he wants to challenge haZer in that department. The same goes for Fragman. With a mediocre game against Poland, he too needs to find some special. We did witness some of his capabilities on Radar but there weren’t enough of those moments to cause a real impact and leave a lasting impression on the match.I’m going to be controversial and call this
4 – 2 . Wishful thinking you may say and yes, I always love the underdog but I was truly impressed with how the US clawed themselves back against Poland, so I honestly think they have the stones to take this one.It all depends on who wins the first map. That’s crucial here. The Germans will have to be rattled early on and if that happens, the US guys have the capabilities to profit.
Either way, it promises to be an epic encounter, pings permitting. :P
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Japan vs Russia [/center] ]A somewhat intriguing and surprising match up comes in the form of
Japan vs Russia. What can we say here? It’s a really hard match to call and the form sheets don’t offer much of a clue either.Japan’s road to the last eight involved taking the scalp of a depleted Estonia and pushing another former NC powerhouse Finland down to the wire as well. Advertised as the group of death, no one would have given Japan a hope in hell of progressing from this group and with Greece declaring their non-participation at an early juncture, it really was an uphill battle for our friends from the east.
Still, they did it and with Russia lying in wait, Japan do have a decent chance of making through to the next round.
Gabriel and Kirark are the stand out players for Japan but in all honesty, it’s hard to decide how much of Japan’s achievements are based on skill and how much is based on the ping issues that both Finland and Estonia had too cope with. Russia needs to get their heads round this and fast, as it can easily annoy opponents early on.Looking at Russia, we have somewhat another of a shock. Progressing through Group G via the top qualification spot, Russia have kept a somewhat consistent line-up in all their games so far. With the added bonus of
murDa returning to action as well, they really do have the quality and experience advantage over Japan. pedro’s predictionUnfortunately, this isn’t really what this game will be about. As I mentioned, it’s all about the latency issues really and how well [Russia can cope with the unusual playing circumstances. As we saw against [ Finland, Japan can come up with some crafty maneuvers, especially with the grenades when the occasion calls for it. Apart from that it’s incredibly hard to see where the Japanese influence will come from, they lacked any sort of “spark” against Finland and really, the rumors of strange instances occurring within the Japanese ranks seem to be somewhat misguided at best.
This game is Russia’s to be lost and as long as they get the right mindset in place, this will be an easy win for them. Having said that I’m going to call this match a
4 – 2 , as I feel with the fiery temperaments of 4live, Jago and huMM3L could hold them back slightly, in their quest to move onto the next round.If Russia can banish their demons then yes, this one could be a formality. If not, then Japan could cause a real upset and more importantly, if Japan win this match, no other team will really want to play them for various reasons, eliminating the comfort zone of any opposing team.
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Belgium vs Switzerland [/center] ]Another one of our favourites in action and
Switzerland have it all to do against the mighty Belgium.Even with the demise of
overload during the summer period, it doesn’t really seem to have hindered the Belgian team at all. With a monumental roster of players to call upon with huge amounts of talent and experience, it’s hard to see any weakness in the Belgian side. Even if the likes of mAus and dAv1d somehow can’t play, with wingmen in the form of Kevin and vila it’s such a daunting line-up of players to make some sort of concerted attack plan against.The Swiss will have to hope the combination of an extremely depleted Belgian team and along with the fact they have a tight knit squad of players has a winning factor for them, otherwise they could really be blown away by the fast pace of the Belgians. The Swiss can take some comfort from the fact the Czech team did push the Belgian side pretty hard, even in the face of a star-studded line-up.
The key factor that won the Czech side Goldrush in that group stage game, was their spawn-killing coordination and showing absolutely no intimidation against an extremely talented opponent.
teente and mnew were the stand out men for the Czechs that day and if mnew didn’t have to leave the game due to connection issues on the deciding map, god knows what would have happened for the Czech side.The Swiss in contrast had somewhat of an uneventful progression into the playoffs. After being hammered by a clearly well oiled UK team, the Swiss side only had to overcome Canada and the Ukraine. Not exactly the best test for the Swiss, even if their first match was a clear indication of their sides lack of activity.
pedro’s predictionHopefully the Swiss will translate some of the Czech tactics into tangible results and with veteran
gifty in the mix yet again, they will need all the experience they can muster for this match. Switzerland have to gamble on the fact that a lot of the Belgian players are enjoying the summer and could be completely unmotivated/disinterested in the outcome of this game. To me, that seems a little unlikely, as to be honest, I have a feeling that a few of the Belgian players will relish in the aspect of competitive ET again, even if the weather outside has been dominating their summer schedule.
This one has to be a pretty clear cut affair, with a score line of
4 – 0 on the cards. The Swiss team just seems to be far too rusty to have any chance of really competing with the Belgians and with no real chance to rectify their form in the summer months with a busy practice plan, I don’t think Switzerland will have anything up their sleeves apart from a decent tan and a drizzling of man sweat. [center
Australia vs Chile [/center] ]A completely non-European encounter comes in the form of
Chile vs Australia. With an impressive start to the tournament, Australia are clear favorites for this showdown. Overcoming Latvia in impressive fashion and completely demolishing Ireland, the Aussies have some of the best firepower in this tournament and are clearly the most able team in the event to cope playing with an unusually high ping as well. haste and HM were simply sublime in the initial stages and the game against Latvia on Radar was simply a joy to watch, even if the map was a full hold for both teams. Australia had the fluid, natural progression that they convincingly showed in their World Cup campaign of recent times and it looked as if they hadn’t missed a beat since then.Chile could be seen as another team that progressed through to our last-sixteen with latency issues on their side but against the Aussies they will have no such luck.
M@x will have to call up on all his experience and knowledge to get them through this one and even still, they now have no real advantage on their side when they have to face a non-European opponent. pedro’s predictionNo offense to Chile here but oh dear. They could take some comfort from the fact that Hungary did manage to steamroller their opponents in the last group game but in all honesty, I think that will have just motivated the Australian team even more to prove that they are more than just a nation of high pingers and connection abusers.
kad won’t be happy with that final game and with some flame coming in from Hungary during that encounter to boot, the Australian side will need little motivation from their team captain to fire them up.I don’t see a way through this tie for Chile, the Australians have impeccably high expectations for this tournament and are taking each and every game in a serious and well thought out manner. It could be a damage limitation exercise for Chile, as I feel a
4- 0 pounding could be on the agenda. [center
Netherlands vs Hungary [/center] ]Possibly the most exciting game on paper out of our last-sixteen sees
Holland taking on Hungary. With Hungary on top form in the group stages and the ever present quality of the Dutch side, this clearly has the makings of a fantastic battle.Hungary impressively topped their group, winning all of their games. With the likes of Latvia and the hugely impressive Australia being scalped along the way, this team is completely brimming with confidence which some may say borders arrogance.
Why shouldn’t they be arrogant? Back to their former high quality national base, it’s a mixture of new and old school that has taken the Hungarians magnificently to this stage of the tournament. The old names are there with
Nonix and logic combining well with the relatively new school talents of sebi and adze, who both impressed in the group stages, especially against Latvia. One player amongst the Hungarian side clearly stands out from the rest and that man is phobeus. His damage output compares along side the likes of mAus and butchji and deserves the title of MVP for his team at this moment in time.The Hungarians don’t have to change a single thing here, they are on form at the moment and to be honest, rank along side Germany and Netherlands going on recent games. The have to be careful they don’t get too big for their boots but apart from that, all is good in the Hungarian camp.
For the first time in a very long time, Holland go into this game as slight underdogs. You may say that’s unfair considering the raw talent Holland have in the form of
perfo, Azatej and teKoa but you’re only as good as your last game as they say and it’s hard to say anything bad about Hungary’s current run of results.Out of the two teams Hungary have had the better preparations, qualifying from an easily more challenging group than the Dutch. Still, Holland won’t be rusty. Most of the side is currently active, so this game looks to be an amazing one to say the least!
pedro’s predictionTough one to call. The fan boys on XF will clearly tout the Dutch as the easy favorites here and that might be true but looking on current form, the Hungarians deserve that title more than their Benelux counterparts.
For Hungary, phobeus has to play, no doubt about that. His confident and forceful style of play is exactly what is needed for his team to win this match and he always leads by example when he plays. The experience brought to the team by Nonix and Logic will help the lesser experienced members of the side, allowing them see past the big occasion and the bright lights of a quarter-final place.
It depends really on what squad Holland put out. I can’t see captain perfo allowing anything apart from his absolutely active, top players and hopefully that will be the case when the match day finally arrives.
As for a result, again, even though Hungary do come across as a big arrogant and immature at times, I think they will pull off a
4 – 2 win, with phobeus being the star of the show yet again. Controversial prediction yet again but it’s up to Holland to prove me wrong, the pressure is on them. [center
Poland vs Malta [/center] ]Yet another title contender in action,
Poland face Malta in this clash. With Malta progressing through to this stage of the tournament due to France pulling themselves related to cheater issues within the team, Malta may have wished they hadn’t done so once the fixtures had been published.With spectacular form and a vast squad to source from, Poland rank up along side the best when you talk about the winners of this XF NC. Their impressive long-range shooting ranks among the best in the NC and they’ve simply torn through their opponents from many a grassy knoll. Even changing line-ups doesn’t seem to have put off the Poles from winning all their group stage games.
zMk and krisek have been on top form and even wiesek coming into the last game of the group stages looked impressive, as he dominated some of the US players on Radar and Supply.The only criticism I have about Poland, is the fact they seem to loose concentration at times. I’m not sure if it’s something to do with arrogance or over-confidence but they can switch off at specific moments and as a result, don’t win matches/maps as easily as they could. It’s a minor flaw if one at all but it could play a significant role as we progress through the knock-out stages.
Malta on the other hand, have it all to prove. Scrapping through by the skin of their teeth, the Maltese need to exploit something in the Polish defense which really is the equivalent to converting water into wine.
toxic will try his best but even he doesn’t seem to give his team a hope in hell of making any headway against the Poles. pedro’s prediction 4 – 0 is the only result I can see here, even if killerboy insists on trying to bust every Polish player he’s facing. I guess Poland will love this game, due to the fact they get to consistently abuse killerboy, as if they needed some more added incentive to win the match. [center
Sweden vs Finland [/center] ]An epic grudge match next, in the form of
Sweden vs Finland! With national pride at stake, the players will surely take this match to heart and show some passion as they look to get one up on their Nordic neighbors.In terms of familiar line-ups, Finland have the upper hand here, with Sweden for the first time in many an NC not having the usual suspects of players such as
NuggaN , crajsor and alexL at their disposal. Finland on the other hand does have hefty NC experience.Yet again
twidi, lettu and Squall are lining up for their national side, along with XF God decem taking up the rear (:XD) . Still, as I’ve reiterated numerous times in recent weeks, current form is everything so let’s have a look at how the teams have faired up until now.Finland really haven’t been tested so far and their greatest challenge to date came in the unlikely form of Japan. The Finns really struggled playing with such a high latency and dropped a round to the Japs. Estonia promised so much as well but without
Night and r3vers making an appearance, the game struggled to even be played with captain EmeRica having numerous problems within his ranks. So not the best preparation for Finland so far, could this have a deciding factor?Sweden have had to compete more on their way to the last-sixteen. Having gotten off to a losing start against Portugal, it really didn’t look good for Sweden early doors. A default win again Slovenia allowed for some much needed time to reflect and regroup, which clearly worked wonders for the Swedish side.
Captains
tornis and rat managed to entice back former Swedish powerhouse jonas and along with the RTCW legends of askungen and smutzig, they revamped Swedish team and finally looked up to the task at hand, beating the Russians in a thrilling three map encounter. The Swedes have certainly been tested far better than the Finns in recent weeks, which really could give them the upper hand at the start of the match. pedro’s predictionA fascinating showdown, mainly due to geographical rivalries, this is yet another hard match to predict. I do believe Finland have the better quality of players, who have all played at a very high level. Don’t get me wrong, the Swedes do have great players in the side as well but the Finnish players have played together so much, they could have the edge here. Let’s not forget though, as I said above, the Swedes are better practiced; they’ve got consistency on their side which is always the crucial factor.
4 – 2 and I think the Swedes will take the first map, as it will take at least one map for the Finns to get back in the swing of things. [center
United Kingdom vs Czech Republic [/center] ]Our final last-sixteen game is between the UK and the winner of Austria vs Czech Republic. Obviously, it’s hard to comment on the UK’s opponent, as it’s not decided yet, so let’s take a look at what the winner of that match has to look forward too.
The UK so far has had an impressive showing, with again consistency being the key attribute of UK side which is usually all over the place in terms of squad consistency. With little appearance of the captain
Mztik, the team hasn’t exactly had the best preparation coming into this competition. Still, with w3st, griim and former favorite syK in the team along with former RTCW pros kye and crumbs, this team has the makings of the former UK team captained by rG, of bettering their place finish. Again, like Hungary, Finland and other NC teams, a consistent line-up has been the great philosophy of this current UK side. Dominating their group in the qualification stage, whoever the UK have to face in the last-sixteen will clearly go into the match as an underdog. The UK team doesn’t have the shear quality in terms of individual aim in the outfit compared to the likes of Poland or Holland but they are such a hard working, grafting team, who won’t stop plodding on any step of the way.
Finally we know who the UK are playing and I have really warmed to the Czech side. With a valiant performance against the Belgians and overcoming an awkward Austrian side, they have earned their spot in the last-sixteen.
As I've mentioned above, the Czechs have a few key men in the absence of players like
butch and marv. A nice surprise package has come in the form of mnew as well. Against Belgium he played exceptionally, having to be replaced just when he was looking like he was getting fully into the swing of things. The Czechs have a great overall squad, no one can deny that and coming off the back of some decent results, the could cause the UK problems in certain areas. pedro’s predictionIf the Czechs can get out their best team and if you were to compare each player man for man, the teams seem evenly matched in a number of departments. That's about it though really and with the UK team heavily practiced as I went over earlier in the article, it's hard to see how the Czechs will cope. Still, it depends really. They do have enough experience within the side ti cause an upset but going on current form the UK have the wind on their side.
I'll call this game
4 - 2 as I really don't see how the Czech side can get passed the fact that the UK team are probably one of the most active nations in this competition if not the most active NC team at this present time. I think the UK will win the first map, fall asleep on the second and pick up the win in the third.
gj
What? I didn't play.
Btw we defeat Hungary easily in the last NC 4-0 so im very confident for this match :) !
lets go Team Chile ^^ !!
haste and hanz* (sublime ^_^)
if riCo plays nozz will be a passenger ./end bj (hf m@x though!)
!
who is pedro?
he play et?
he has seen some match of us?
why u say m4x if our player is M@x? ma xis the captain but he dont have experience like nozz o korriban ... thats it... ur comments sux :)
RUS 4 - 2 JAP
BEL 4 - 0 SWI
AUS 4 - 0 CHI
NED 4 - 2 HUN
POL 4 - 0 MAL
FIN 4 - 0 SWE
UK 4 - 2 CZE
RUS 2 - 4 JAP
BEL 4 - 0 SWI
AUS 4 - 0 CHI
NED 4 - 2 HUN
POL 4 - 0 MAL
FIN 4 - 2 SWE
UK 0 - 4 CZE
Gonna start reading now.
Was testing if he knew.
same with the joof case, influencing people's opinions just a bit too much x)
oh and I was cap together with kevin yes
the fintards have played together for years in different teams and in team Finland, so i wldnt bet on us...
our plan is simple, win our homemap and go for decider, once there we will rely on our only star player
and about hungary.. pedro, come on :P
it's supposed to be who you think will win, so I'm guessing when people say "shit opinions" they actually mean "lol pedro, all your predictions are going to turn out wrong because MY TEAM IS FUCKING AWESOME"
RUS 2 - 4 JAP
BEL 4 - 0 SWI
AUS 2 - 4 CHI
NED 4 - 0 HUN
POL 4 - 2 MAL
FIN 4 - 0 SWE
UK 2 - 4 CZE
hahaha crajsor :DDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDDD
Despite signing himself up to Tosspot's youtube empire over a year ago, nobody actually knows who KiLl3rBoY is, nor why he choses to write his name in such a way. Having said this, rumours have been overheard concerning that "everybody in my village calls me that". Since KiLl3rBoY is such a silly name to have on the normality of the internets, henceforth for the purpose of this educational article we shall refer to him simply as KILLERBOY. However since this entry was written, KILLERBOY has decided to change gender and now emulate a 16-year-old girl by call himself laika (although this is not restricted to the internets).
KILLERBOY spends approximately 8 nights every week sat at his computer screen diligently trying to pursuade anyone who will listen that he is either Tosspot's or Bulldog's prodigal son, although he cannot decide which. Of late the latter would seem to be gaining favour, aided by a series of earthquake-registering 'epicbusts' concerning figures in the community that nobody has actually heard of. In this way, KILLERBOY is able to relate to those who he finds cheating, which is a source of enormous relief to himself, having failed to find a member of the opposite sex in 16 years of roaming Al Gore's tubes.
Another favourite tactic of sol's left testicle is the making of website-collating screen captures which declare to prove the end of the world. Happily, people who actually know how to spam, such as the infamous terrorist Kendle, view such paint skills as further evidence that half-formed websites with illegible, bald-Scot provided drivel as content still have a future in the eyes of the internets. The world holds its collective breath for the day that KILLERBOY discovers gamersnation. Unfortunately, Tosspot struggled to flood the aforementioned portal with youtubes due to a nervous condition that flares up when near wild kamzs, and after failing to pursuade an admin to ban him, proceeded to find himself an opium binge, which worked very nicely thank you very much.
RUS 2 - 4 JAP
BEL 4 - 0 SWI
AUS 0 - 4 CHI EASYYYYYY :D:D:D:D:D
NED 4 - 0 HUN
POL 4 - 2 MAL
FIN 4 - 0 SWE
UK 2 - 4 CZE
Hm alexL played like one 6on6 nc.
its like back in the good ol' times :p
rethink it :o
nice effort anyway
rG abandoned that team.
Ste picked up the pieces and led the team to bronze. Credit where credit is due.
btw
pedro you are awesome !
btw i cant play the match vs australia damn >.< gl Chile will be easy for u ...