World Cup 2014: Match Day 9

The shockwaves keep on coming! Yesterday Luis Suarez did what he does best, be a thorn in his rivals' side. Uruguay beat England 2-1 despite Wayne Rooney's first ever goal in a World Cup match. With two losses to start this tournament, things are looking very grim for the Queen's lads. The Ivory Coast couldn't put back to back wins together and fell to the sharp looking Columbians. Japan and Greece played to a scoreless draw, making Group C a very tight race still.

Today's match day pits the surprising Costa Ricans against Italy in the opening match. Pirlo and Balotelli will be wise not to underestimate Los Ticos, but the Azzurri are heavily favored to win this game. Costa Rica and the rest of the CONCACAF North American nations already have 3 wins, 1 tie, and only 1 loss to begin this World Cup, a strong showing for what many still see as a weaker footballing region. 

The second game of the day will be France against Switzerland in a match up of two UEFA teams. The French have brought one of the youngest squads to this tournament but they showed great unity in their opening win against Honduras. Benzema and Giroud are the focal points of their attack, with veteran Patrice Evra's experience anchoring their defense. It will be interesting to see how the Swiss deal with the many faces of France's attack. 

The final game of match day 9 sees the resilient Ecuadorians take on Honduras. The later had a very poor showing in their opening game, picking up a red card and failing to string together any real possession or show any promising attack. Ecuador is playing for the memory of their fallen brother, Chucho, a player that went to play in the Middle East but suffered a fatal heart attack at the age of 27, only 6 months before this tournament kicked off. Look for El Tri Color to bring the heat with both of the Valencias streaking down the flanks toward goal. 

Today's Games:

Italy vs. Costa Rica, 9:00 PST Recife

France vs. Switzerland, 12:00 PST Salvador

Honduras vs. Ecuador, 15:00 PST Curitiba

My Picks:

Italy

France

Ecuador

My Record:

14 out of 23, 61%