World Cup Semifinal and final predictions and 1st semi final result

I have really enjoyed the World Cup this year. I have watched more televised soccer in English than I ever have before. I have still watched more televised soccer in Russian and Spanish than in English, but my English is much better than the other 2 languages. Be that as it may,I have developed some thoughts going into the semifinals. I made these predictions on Sunday but did not post them. I also went against conventional wisdom on both picks. I did pick Spain to beat France but frankly I was pretty sure I was wrong. I was very surprised when I tuned into the game yesterday after running errands and saw that Spain was ahead 1-0. I was astounded when they went up 2-0 and stifled France at every turn. If you didn't see the game here is a recap:

 

 

 

In today's game I have picked England over Argentina which is very much a case of going with my friends heart over my own head.  I have a dear friend who has dual citizenship in the U.S. and England.  After Argentinas miracle over Egypt it seems strange to pick against them.  However, I think England can beat Argentina I'm just not sure if they will.  I then picked England over Spain but now I am not so sure as I wasn't prepared for Spain's total domiance over the French.  Either way the next 2 games should be an amazing finish to a very eventful World Cup.