Power Ranking The World Cup Sweet 16

Yesterday, the group stages came to a close, with Senegal being punished for actually playing futbol, and Japan and England making a farce out of what the World Cup should be. I'm not bitter.

In all seriousness, it was one of the wildest first rounds in World Cup history. The group stages saw the most goals, most penalties, most own goals, and most time stopped to consult video replays, in recent memory. It also saw the exit of defending champions and World #1 Germany, as well as the near-exit of heavyweights Argentina and Colombia.

As the knockout stages begin tomorrow, here are the field of 16, ranked by their performance in group play. This is not, mind you, a statement on the teams' overall quality or their chances at winning the World Cup; rather, just a reflection on how good they looked in the opening stage. Without further ado:

1. Croatia (9 points, +6 goal differential)

The checkered men looked all out of sorts, both in attack and in defense, in the first half against Argentina. Fortunately for them, their opponents looked every bit as frazzled. Other than that aberration, Croatia has completely dominated their peers. They demoralized the hapless Argentines in the 2nd half, and played their game to tactical perfection against upstarts Nigeria and Iceland. Given that they played in what many considered the Group of Death, the fact that they won all 3 matches while conceding 0 goals from open play is something to take note of.

2. Belgium (9 points, +7 goal differential)

The Red Devils struggled to get going in the first half of their opening match against overmatched Panama, but since then, they outscored opponents 9-2 in the remaining five halves of play. They certainly put together the most complete performance of the first round, and would be in the top spot, if they had faced the same level of competition that Croatia did.

3. England (6 points, +5 goal differential)

The Three Lions' fans fluctuate between doomsday and delight, but most of what we've seen England in the first round, they have reason to believe #ItsComingHome. Despite needing a late goal, they controlled proceedings against Tunisia, and then completely outclassed Panama. Their loss to Belgium shouldn't panic anyone, considering they swapped out 9 of their 11 starters; in fact, many believe England were not all too sad about the loss, considering they fell into the seemingly more open part of the bracket.

4. Uruguay (9 points, +5 goal differential)

Uruguay looked extremely pedestrian in two close victories against opponents they should have handled easily. Then, in the most pivotal group match, they finally showed up, romping 3-0 over hosts Russia to claim the top spot in Group A. Uruguay have not conceded a goal yet, and may be hitting their creative stride at the perfect time.

5. Brazil (7 points, +4 goal differential)

The pre-tournament favorites have not consistently looked the part, but have still been one of the better sides in the field. After a disappointing draw with Switzerland, and what appeared to be an ugly draw with Costa Rica, the Brazilians hit their stride with two late goals to defeat the Costa Ricans and continued their solid form in an important 2-0 victory over Serbia. They'll have to be sharper than they were to progress in the knockout stages, though.

6. France (7 points, +2 goal differential)

For a team that topped their group by winning 2 matches and drawing the other, it feels weird to label them a disappointment. Still, that's how many feel about the extremely talented France side who had to sludge their way to two close victories over Australia and Peru before a listless 0-0 draw with Denmark. Nevertheless, 7 points is a solid group stage outing, and when you throw in the fact that they may have actually been playing in the true Group of Death, perhaps they deserve a little more credit.

7. Sweden (6 points, +3 goal differential)

What a roller-coaster Group F was, and arguably no team epitomized that more than Sweden. A tight 1-0 win in their opener, coupled with Mexico's upset of Germany, seemed to have the Swedes in decent position to advance. That seemed even more the case when they led the Germans 1-0 at halftime. But, as you've likely seen replayed many times by now, Germany rallied to win, thanks to a mindblowing last-second goal from Toni Kroos. That had Sweden on the outside looking in, likely needing a win over first-place Mexico to have a shot at advancing. They got that win, and then some, routing Mexico and taking advantage of South Korea's stunner over Germany to vault themselves from 3rd place to group champions. They may not have the big names, but Sweden will be a tough out.

8. Mexico (6 points, -1 goal differential)

Speaking of Group F...Sweden's last foes Mexico were the trendy team of the tournament before Matchday 3. Visions of winning their group and poising themselves for perhaps their first ever semifinal run were aplenty after two exhilarating wins over Germany and South Korea. Then, with a second-half capitulation against the Swedes, it all came crashing back to earth. In fact, Mexico needed the Germany loss to even advance, thanks to how tilted their own scoreline was. Don't let that one match color your impressions of this side, though; unreliable as they may be, they're capable of some real magic moments.

9. Colombia (6 points, +3 goal differential)

Los Cafeteros also had an extremely bizarre group stage, winning Group H despite objectively being the poorer side in 2 of their 3 matches. In the end, one brilliant match against Poland, and one match where they benefitted from several lucky bounces of the ball against Senegal were enough to compensate for their shocking opening loss to Japan. If Colombia play like they did in the 2nd half vs. Poland, they very well could go the distance. Otherwise, they'll just be yet another high-quality side that underachieves at this tournament.

10. Russia (6 points, +4 goal differential)

To be fair, though much ado was made of how poor the 2018 hosts were, most expected them to advance out of a group that consisted lowly Saudi Arabia and inexperienced Egypt. Still, I don't think anyone was ready for the creative dominance the Russians displayed in their two victories. Both in their scorching 5-0 opening victory over Arabia, and their 3-goals-in-10-minutes show vs. Egypt, they produced much more attractive play than anyone would have expected. The 3-0 loss to Uruguay, however, serves as a reminder of the limits of this team's talent, especially when juxtaposed with some of the World's best. Speaking of their next opponents...

11. Spain (5 points, +1 goal differential)

Spain came into the tournament as one of the 3 favorites to win, and spent many minutes of action looking the part. They also finished atop a very competitive group. So why are they so low? Because of the enigma they have been, in their inability to put together a complete half of play. In the group opener against Portugal, easily the match of the tournament to date, solo brilliance from Diego Costa and Nacho were counteracted by silly fouls and a goalkeeping howler that allowed Cristiano Ronaldo an equalizing hat trick. Against Iran, a winning goal that had been a long time coming was close to being immediately nullified, but Iran's equalizer was wiped out for being barely offsides. And then against already-eliminated Morocco, with everything to play for, the Spaniards fell behind twice, and for a brief moment, actually looked to be in trouble of being eliminated. Do they still have the pieces to win the title? Certainly. Do they have the consistency? It remains to be seen.

12. Portugal (5 points, +1 goal differential)

Spain's rivals and groupmates were just a touch behind them. Literally; Portugal finished runners-up in the group by virtue of scoring a single less goal than España. To be fair, the gap in quality may have been a little larger. Portugal were unlucky to see Iran steal a point, but they had been outplayed by both Spain and Morocco in previous matches, and in both cases, relied on Ronaldo bailouts and desperate defending to hold on to the points they got.

13. Switzerland (5 points, +1 goal differential)

It was business as usual for the Swiss: advancing (and not dropping a single match) without ever looking all that impressive. Somehow they managed to steal a point of Brazil, in a match where they appeared totally outclassed. Somehow, they managed to drop two points to an eliminated Costa Rica side, despite not having their advancement secured at that time. In between, they got the crucial 3 points over Serbia that ultimately saw them through, and it was on the back of hard-nosed persistence and theatrical goals. That glimpse of the Swiss potential may be enough to give their fans hope for a run to the quarterfinals or beyond, but it wasn't sustained enough to warrant a higher ranking here.

14. Denmark (5 points, +1 goal differential)

The Danes' writeup will be about as entertaining as the football they've played to date.

15. Argentina (4 points, -2 goal differential)

That Argentina would be in trouble of not reaching the knockout stages seems like an absurd thought. Now, after watching their 3 matches, that Argentina is in the knockout stages seems like an absurd reality. Let's lay it down straight: despite what the names on the team sheet might suggest, this is just not a good team right now. Fortunately, despite an unimpressive draw with Iceland and an awful capsizing against Croatia, they remained in contention for a spot in the last 16. On the brightest lights, their talisman Messi shone, as did new national hero Marcos Rojo, whose 86th-minute blast dramatically sent a probably undeserving Argentina into the knockout stages at the expense of Nigeria. We'll see what the tournament holds for this side, which has worlds of potential, but, until very very recently, hasn't had a care at all to put it together.

16. Japan (4 points, 0 goal differential)

Japan played some effective football in their takedown of heavily favored Colombia, then had moments of scintillating football in a 2-2 draw with Senegal. Their manner of progression could not have been more dubious, however; losing to an already-eliminated Poland, they got news from their bench that Senegal were also losing by the same scoreline in a simultaneous match, and effectively shut down the match for the last half hour, knowing the tiebreaker would send them through. It was atrocious football, but it ultimately worked out: Senegal did end up losing 1-0 as well, and Japan went through thanks to the worst tiebreaker metric ever, the total number of yellow cards received. They have their notably less-assertive, less-attacking style of play to thank for their progression, and though they are certainly capable of springing a few surprised on Belgium, it can't really be argued that they aren't the weakest side at this stage of the competition.