We pick all 16 Round of 32 games as the knockout stage kicks off at the World Cup.

Which favorites will coast? Which will be upset? Find out here!

Plus, we look ahead to some possible matchups in future rounds.

Cheers!

We're back to talk about the last round of the group stage! Teams advanced. Teams went home. We have thoughts.

First, we acknowledge Canada advancing past South Africa in their first ever knockout appearance, before moving on to the ways in which FIFA has detracted from the drama of the group stage, including the new head-to-head tiebreaker and the expanded format.

Next, we discuss some of the positive developments, including Ecuador and Bosnia and Herzegovina getting through, and the strength evident in the African contingent. Did we underestimate the depth from the continent's nations? How far Ivory Coast go?

Uruguay, Scotland, and South Korea were all dumped out unceremoniously, and we spend some time on what went wrong for each, including why Bielsa and Uruguay never meshed. We close the segment with a power ranking of all the eliminated teams.

Finally, we check in on the tournament favorites as they enter the knockouts, including considering new entries to the exclusive club. Does Colombia officially belong?

Cheers to Didier Deschamps, Lionel Scaloni, and Javier Aguirre!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

01:08 – Canada-South Africa

03:07 – FIFA frustrations

13:09 – Saturday's games

17:07 – African succes

27:10 – more nice stories

31:25 – Scotland

37:34 – Uruguay

46:09 – South Korea

51:29 – power ranking eliminated teams

01:01:44 – favorites check-in

Another highly entertaining round of group stage football is behind us, and we're having deja vu!

That's thanks to Capo Verde, who once again held a former World Cup champion to a draw – this time Biela's Uruguay. Who did the African islanders put together such a high-octane performance in the Miami heat?

Fellow debutants Curaçao also shocked a South American dark horse favorite in Ecuador with a 0-0 draw. We praise Eloy Room's historic 15-save performance, as well as Dick Advocaat's resolute outfield players.

Then we move on to discuss the tournament disappointments so far. Uruguay and Ecuador are on the brink of elimination, Turkey's been dumped out already, and Senegal and Belgium have much work to do. What's gone wrong for these talented groups?

Next, we touch on some tournament big boys, including much-needed responses from Portugal and Spain, a come-from-behind win for Germany over Ivory Coast, and a comedown draw for England against a resolute Ghana. We also luxuriate in another world-class Messi performance and wax poetic about Argentina's excellence.

Finally, we do our superlatives, a check-in on our James Rodriguez Award contenders, and look ahead to a spicy slate of games in the upcoming days.

Cheers to Dick Advocaat and Bubista!

Chapters:

00:00 – the start

02:05 – Cabo Verde + Curaçao

09:35 – disappointments (Uruguay, Ecuador, Senegal, Belgium)

25:25 – Portugal

30:25 – Spain

32:10 – Germany

38:00 – England

41:15 – Argentina

45:45 – CONCACAF

46:45 – superlatives

56:10 – James Rodriguez Award