so i've given a brief overview of what has happened over the past 4 days of the WC 2006. but i know this isn't the thing you're looking out for. as promised in the tag-board, will provide predictions to some of the world cup matches. tonight's focus: the group A game between germany and poland. venue: dortmund, 15/06/06, 0300 hrs (singapore time) odds: germany 1.38, draw 3.90, poland 7.40. (payouts for S$1) it's easy to notice why poland was stunned 0-2 in their last outing against ecuador. by putting up a 4-5-1 defensive formation, they're simply too conservative! at the end of the day, goals are the most important. if your team can't score, half the battle is already lost, and lost they did. so for tonight's encounter against germany, the polish will probably do a 4-4-2. but i'm sorry to say, no matter how many changes they make, it'll still be useless. the german's attacking force has been strengthened with michael ballack's return, and certainly he'll want to prove his worth. however, two of the german forwards, klose and poldoski, are born in poland. this adds some suspense to how they will fare against their so-called home country. well, in terms of goals, i sense yet another goal feast. germany's defence strategy against costa rica was a flop, to be honest. what makes you so sure this defence will be shored up in time against the hungry poland, who desparately need a victory to harbour any hopes of staying in the tournament? but on the other hand, the poles' defence is also shoddy at times, the way it leaked the 2 goals against ecuador makes me shudder. in conclusion, i believe the st germain's attacking flair will be too strong for poland, suffering from low team morale at this time and unlikely to recover anytime soon. my prediction: germany will emerge 3-1 winners. predictions for other games tonight: -spain 2-1 ukraine (1st half has already ended by the time i finished typing) -tunisia 2-0 saudi arabia