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Who Are The "Making Up The Numbers" Sides This Century?

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    Who Are The "Making Up The Numbers" Sides This Century?

    Teams who qualify frequently for tournaments but nearly always fail, even to progress from weakish groups. In Europe, I'd say the best examples, reinforced this month, are Russia, Ukraine, Sweden and Turkey. You could add England but they've been a bit better, at least in 2002-2006 and 2018 (dire in-between). Switzerland are borderline but have just gone through in 3rd thanks to the 24 team format.

    In World Cups, Saudi Arabia is the obvious one.
    Last edited by Satchmo Distel; 21-06-2021, 21:26.

    #2
    Sweden spring to mind - will give most teams a good game, usually progress through the group, but never threaten to go further and fold once they meet a good side. Which also describes England, 2018 being a blip. Switzerland a level below them along with Russia and Ukraine.
    In World Cups it's Mexico, always storm through the group and always fail in R16.

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      #3
      Sweden are top of their group and playing the bottom team in their final game, already pretty much assured of getting through to the knockout round, and got to the World Cup quarter finals three years ago (plus two knockout rounds in the World Cup in 2002 and 2006, and a Euros QF in 2004). A lot of European countries would take that level of "failure"?

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        #4
        Not sure they've qualified for enough recent tournaments, but the first team that came to mind is Ireland. Mostly because they also tend to play really tedious football

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          #5
          2012 was the only time Ireland failed to qualify from their group, and they certainly didn't play tedious football in 2002.

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            #6
            Got to be Poland, surely. (When they qualify.)

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              #7
              Yes on Poland. I omitted them from the OP by mistake.

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                #8
                Originally posted by Discordant Resonance View Post
                2012 was the only time Ireland failed to qualify from their group, and they certainly didn't play tedious football in 2002.
                They made my eyes bleed in 2016 though. I'd forgotten they qualified to the last 16, mercy killing by France.

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                  #9
                  Yeah in fairness I had also forgotten they'd got out of the group in 2016

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                    #10
                    They gave France a bit of a scare in the first half and were 1-0 up until the 58th minute.

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                      #11
                      Russia really are the team for this although I was surprised to see that they actually got out of the group in 2008.

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