The group stages have concluded in one of the most exciting and high-scoring World Cups ever held, and today's round of knockout games is underway.
Was FIFA 14's Prediction Of France vs Nigeria Accurate?
As has been the case through the tournament, I have been simulating the fixtures using FIFA 14's World Cup mode, which is updated to reflect the form and performances of each squad.
Yesterday saw the favorites of each match advance, though both took extremely late in the match to do so. The Dutch grabbed a controversial winner in stoppage time, while Costa Rica defeated Greece on penalties.
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The match between France and Nigeria just concluded, a result FIFA 14 correctly predicted (with a slightly different scoreline). Germany takes on Algeria soon and EA's game has again predicted, perhaps unsurprisingly, that the European side will defeat the African squad.
Müller scored first, putting himself right back in the race for the golden boot despite James Rodriguez' masterful performance over the weekend. The German scored in his usual unorthodox fashion, putting the ball in after a series of rebounds 24 minutes in.
The Algerians did what they could to get forward, but were punished by the Germans in the second half with two goals. Ozil struck with a simple finish before Klose came on to seek the World Cup all-time scoring record, which he achieved in the 76th minute. Algeria could not get the better of the opposition, and were knocked out with a 3-0 loss.
As good as its run has been, Algeria can unfortunately expect a similar result in the real game--but the potential for a surprise is always there. The Germans struggled to score more than one against the U.S. and have been somewhat inconsistent, though its opposition later today is weaker than that it faced in the group stage.
My simulation featured two AI-controlled sides on Legendary difficulty facing off against one another, using the squads expected to start the game. Tune in at 4 p.m. ET to see if FIFA 14's prediction is accurate, and whether or not Algeria can pull off a massive upset.
