As I’m watching each match of the World Cup, I can’t help but notice that the South American teams are on a collision course with the European nations participating in the World Cup. With contrasting styles, the Europeans the pretty players and the South Americans the gritty, hard-nosed bunch, the two continents have nations that are squaring up against each other in the quarterfinals of the FIFA World Cup: Paraguay vs. Spain, Argentina vs. Germany and Brazil vs. Netherlands.

The Paraguayan National Team

All of these games should provide the best action in the newest Europe-South America rivalry, but the game that shouldn’t be overlooked is Paraguay vs. Spain. Paraguay is a tough defensive team that looks to counter, while Spain looks to spread the field and keep possession.

These two clashing styles will most likely result in a penalty shootout, where I believe Paraguay will continue their historic run. Argentina and Germany will be an offensive shootout, and will come down to which goalkeeper can make more saves. The Germans have that advantage, so I believe it is Germany that will continue onto the semifinals to face Paraguay.

For the third and final South America-Europe matchup, I believe Brazil will overwhelm the Netherlands defense like they did the Chilean defense with their prolific attack, allowing them to advance to face Ghana, who will outrun the Uruguayans to move to the semifinals.