Somehow, England actually had the best passing performance of any team in the first round of group stage matches. Unfortunately, they couldn't turn that into goals, and today they'll face a fellow first-round loser in Uruguay who are going to be really, really mad. I'm not feeling this for England.
Japan were unlucky to run into the Drogba train last time they played, but against Greece they should have an easier time racing forward without having to worry quite as much about getting battered offensively by the other squad. Greece look like the odd man out in this group at the moment after being crushed by Colombia, and Japan should see this as a chance to get right back into the mix — I still think they're the second best team in the group, so they'll have no excuse not to at least have a good showing.
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Matt Pollard 