2006 Soccer Football World Cup in Germany

[UK Skins Fan]

I am curious about one thing - why is "trouble looming" this morning after violence involving English "fans", but not earlier in the competition after violence involving German and Polish fans?

4,000 arrests across all nationalities to date, but only the "English" trouble gets reported?

That will be the last I say about hooligans in this thread.

[UK Skins Fan]

I take my hat off to Mexico - the first half was a pulsating contest, and they were the first team to try to take it to the Argentinians. In the second half, Argentina gained the upper hand and controlled the tempo of the game far better, possibly as the Mexicans tired. It was a wonderful winning goal from Rodriguez, and the quarter final against Germany should be a cracker. Yes, Heinze should have been sent off for Argentina. But players of course don't make it easy for referees, with their constant diving around the pitch. Most of the Argentinian team are guilty of this, and Mexico's esteemed captain is also a master of the art of falling over "like a sack of potatoes".

Personally, I think a yellow card is adequate, but that's not what the rules say, and he should have been dismissed. If it was an Englishman that had been fouled, I know I'd be screaming for the red card to be shown.

As for the Swedes, did they actually turn up to play? Really disappointing stuff, from a team that usually leaves the field with nothing left in the tank.

[UK Skins Fan]

As for today's games? No English fan has any idea what is going on in the coach's mind, and it seems that the team will be sent out to play in searing heat, in a formation and with personnel that has barely seen the training pitch during the week. The mind boggles...

England should win, and win comfortably, but the Mexicans showed yesterday that even the best teams are not untouchable (and England have not shown themselves to be one of the best teams). The heat, combined with the coach's incompetence, will level the playing field. My prediction? England to win 3-1, or Ecuador to win 2-1, with the winner being scored in the last five minutes. But this result really does depend on whether the real England team turns up.

I suspect that Portugal v Holland should be a much better game for the neutrals to watch. Two fine footballing teams will hopefully put on a show for us tonight. It is possible however that it will be a very cautious affair, with both teams nullifying the other's strengths to the extent that it becomes a stalemate. Key players will be Ronaldo for Portugal, and Robben for Holland. Either player has the ability to lift their team to victory. I have no idea which way it will go really, but have already hognosticated a Portugese victory on the basis of the toss of a coin.

[Redskin in Canada]

I suspect that Portugal v Holland should be a much better game for the neutrals to watch. Two fine footballing teams will hopefully put on a show for us tonight. It is possible however that it will be a very cautious affair, with both teams nullifying the other's strengths to the extent that it becomes a stalemate...

This is -not- Netherlands play. they will come hard. They will attck. They will win.

Portugal hopefully will play as valiantly as Mexico did against Argentina but in the end the Dutch should prevail. I hope the Portuguese come to play and fight hard for the ball.

[Redskin in Canada]

4,000 arrests across all nationalities to date, but only the "English" trouble gets reported?

Because ...

England is playing -today- and these actions, as you well know, have been well planned in advance in other instances.

I am sure the German police will be on the look for trouble makers from Germany and England. But if I had one game to watch for trouble, it would be this one. I hope I am wrong.

[welch]

Just preparing to watch England. No Michael Owen, but, hey, you win with who you have. All teams have injuries, as Joe Gibbs always says. The winners are the teams that hold together when everyone is exhausted, the teams that give one extra ounce of effort when both sides are emptied and ready to give up.

That's why Gibbs teams win the 4th quarter, which they win December.

*

NL/Portugal should be splendid, even match. Watch the difference it makes to have Arjen Robben on the field, and the young kid Kuyt replacing Van Nistelroij. And watch my favorite, young Van der Vaart.

*

NY news: everyone is an American with roots someplace else. (Except for me...my family dropped into Virginia an North Carolina between 1630 and 1750, and just stayed.). Everybody roots for the US first, and Italy or Mexico or Germany or <you-name-it> second.

[JansenFan]

My roots are in Scottish and Norse (odd combination, I know). Can't root for either one of them.

[JansenFan]

Why did Ecuador not begin playing with any aggression until the 88th minute. It seemed the were happy with making it to the round of 16, and had no interest in going any further.

Nice goal by Beckham. I figured I should give him credit, since I've been slagging him throughout the tournament for not playing to his abilities.

Oh, and is it me, or does anyone else thing Rooney would be out in the beer garden brawling with German fans if he wasn't on the team. Every time they showed his face, he had that "hooligan" look on his face.

[Redskin in Canada]

Lousy game from every perspective. Certainly the worst match of this round. Ecuador came out to watch England play. Too tentative during their first ever game in the last 16 round in a FIFA World Cup. But ...


... What was England's excuse? A single individual brilliantly executed shot made the difference. Otherwise, getting yellow cards for true delay of game? Affraid to have the game tied by Ecuador? This is not the England I once knew.

England does not deserve to go much further in this championship. There are far worthier teams. With similar play by England, Portugal or the Netherlands will eliminate England in the next round for sure.

Do you think I am harsh against England? Oh! This is -nothing- . Wait until the UK printed media destroys them tomorrow morning. Read all about it.

[UK Skins Fan]

Well now, Ecuador were playing for penalties, and still looked at least as good as England for 60 minutes. The England performance went from brightish start, to poor, to desperate, to acceptable for the last 30 minutes or so. In short, my reaction could be summarised as follows:


David Beckham should have been substituted before he had the chance to take the free kick that he scored with, but it was a brilliant free kick. Carrick did OK in his first start of the tournament. Hargreaves did well at right back, and Cole had a good game at left back. Stevie Gerrard was tireless (England's true captain), but I would like to see him in the opponents' area more than this.

Wayne Rooney was simply astounding, when considering his lack of match training over the last two months. He actually seemed to get fitter as the game went on, and made the Ecuador defenders look very foolish more than once. He's getting fitter, he's getting better - there is still hope.

As for the negatives: Frank Lampard is unable to hit a cow's backside with a banjo, let alone the back of the opposition net. His overall contribution makes his inclusion in the team questionable for the next game. Beckham was again lousy except for the last 30 minutes, when the whole team seemed to lift it's performance somewhat. Paul Robinson has just been shocking as goalkeeper in this tournament. If he gets any worse, he may even be replaced by David "Calamity" James. John Terry has gone from Mr Reliable to Mr Extremely Wobbly.

The two bookings for timewasting were bull, in my opinion, and I couldn't really understand the bookings for the Ecuador players either.

We still haven't seen a true performance from England, but no other team will have got to the quarter finals by playing so far below their best. Heck, this is almost like watching Germany (except Germany have decided to entertain people this time around). Were England to actually field a team that played to the sum of the capabilities of the individuals, then they would be frightening. But right now, they are simply shocking.

The press had already written their pieces for tomorrow's papers. We love to knock our national team over here, and they are giving us every opportunity at this tournament.

Like I said earlier, tonight's game should be far better for the neutrals to watch..

[TincoSkin]

im half irish and half welch and i still root for england! somthing must be wrong with me

[welch]

- Wonderful shot by Beckham. I was in the "real" Cambridge for '98, and I remember Beckham, the Arrgentine, the foul, and that crazy leg-whip. Up, down, and lower than down...

- Not a very organized game by England. They had better get better fast, or Germany will sweep them off the field.

- I'll be cheering for England, on grounds of language

- Bad officiating again. Is it an issue that European teams plus Brazil and Argentina are given a different sewt of rules?

[UK Skins Fan]

I've just finished watching the Portugal - Holland game. What do you say after a game like that? The referee lost control very early on by handing out yellow cards for every tackle. After that, the cheats on both sides (and there were plenty) were operating in the knowledge that a good dive or an agonised placing of hands to face would result in a yellow card being shown to the opponent. I have certainly seen the Portugese resort to this kind of thing before, but I was very disappointed in the Dutch.

It started off as a wonderful game of football, and remained thrilling to the end, but in all honesty, it turned into something of a pantomime.

For England, the sending off of Deco and Costinha was great news, as they will be missed by the Portugese in next week's quarter final. The Portugese celebrated as if they had won the Cup, and perhaps we saw the limit of their ambitions achieved tonight?

All in all, quite remarkable...

[UK Skins Fan]

- Wonderful shot by Beckham. I was in the "real" Cambridge for '98, and I remember Beckham, the Arrgentine, the foul, and that crazy leg-whip. Up, down, and lower than down...

- Not a very organized game by England. They had better get better fast, or Germany will sweep them off the field.

- I'll be cheering for England, on grounds of language

- Bad officiating again. Is it an issue that European teams plus Brazil and Argentina are given a different sewt of rules?

That game against Argentina, plus the cheating "Hand of God" from Maradona in 1986, are scars that are hard to heal. Only a defeat of Argentina in the World Cup final could do it, in my opinion.

As for the Germans sweeping England off the field, that could only happen now if the two teams met in the final. If Germany manage to get to the final, then they'll probably sweep anybody off their feet. But my money is on Germany falling to Argentina in a fiery quarter final next week.

[Sir_Monk]

It started off as a wonderful game of football, and remained thrilling to the end, but in all honesty, it turned into something of a pantomime.

I was astonished that Robben? Was not given a PK after getting kicked square in the chest. Awful game, awful calls.

[welch]

As for the Germans sweeping England off the field, that could only happen now if the two teams met in the final

Ooops. Not reading my schedule!

Meanwhile, in NL - Port: how about that WWF-certified flying drop kick against Robben? Right about on "the spot"? It took me back to the days of Antonino Roccca and "Haystacks" Calhoun (two professional "wrestlers" from the early '60's).

Question re soccer as a sport: if the referee has this much influence, don't the referees control a game to the point where we might as well say that they -- rather than the players -- actually play it?


The AP report says it well:

Portugal 1, Netherlands 0

By RAF CASERT
The Associated Press
Monday, June 26, 2006; E1



NUREMBERG, Germany -- Portugal survived a brutal foul-fest with the Netherlands, one of the dirtiest matches in World Cup history. Cleats bashed into thighs and shoulders, heads butted and elbows flew.

Players faked injuries, complained and brawled.

Every bit as ugly: the blaming and finger-pointing that came after Portugal's 1-0 win Sunday, a victory that cost the Portuguese two key starters for their upcoming quarterfinal match with England.

"FIFA talks about fair play," Portugal coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said. "There was no fair play."

The Dutch coach, Marco Van Basten, shot back:

"If you talk about fair play, you should watch yourself first," adding that the Portuguese needed the shenanigans to beat his young team.

"They were a bit more experienced with all these tricks and all this time wasting," he said.

But when it came to expulsions, the sides were level at 2-2. The four red cards were a World Cup first and raised the number in this tournament _ whose motto is "A time to make friends" _ to 23, already a World Cup record after 52 matches with 12 to go.

It also means the Portuguese face England minus Deco and Costinha, who were ejected amid the pushing, shoving and theatrics that left both teams with nine men by the end.

Portugal also lost Cristiano Ronaldo, a creative attacker, who came off with a leg injury from a second harsh foul. His status was still uncertain.

"Cristiano has five, six days to recover. We hope he will recover," said Scolari, who extended his World Cup record mark to 11 straight victories amid the chaos. The Brazilian led his home country to the 2002 title.

The 16 yellow cards Sunday tied a World Cup match record, with nine for Portugal and seven for the Netherlands.

But the difference in the game was a beautiful goal by Maniche in the 23rd minute that came off a quick threat on the edge of the area. Pauleta touched the ball to Maniche, who skipped inside a defender and shot right-footed past goalkeeper Edwin van der Sar from 16 yards.

After that, the bile began to rise, and the best the Dutch could do in reply was send cross after cross. Veteran midfielder Phillip Cocu sent a volley crashing on the bar and out again in the 48th minute.

"It is sad there was so little soccer played in the second half," said Van Basten.

With star striker Ruud Van Nistelrooy sidelined for tactical reasons, his replacement Dirk Kuyt came close twice, but not close enough.

"We didn't have the luck to score goals," said Van Basten, who lost his first competitive game since taking the job after the Netherlands lost to a Maniche goal in the semifinals of Euro 2004.

"Our missed opportunities, that made the difference," said Van der Sar.

The Netherlands also lost two players to red cards from Russian referee Valentin Ivanov _ Khalid Boulahrouz and Giovanni van Bronckhorst. In the end, the one thing both sides could agree on was blaming Ivanov.

"It is a pity the referee made a mess of this game," van Basten said.

Even FIFA president Sepp Blatter was unimpressed with how the game was handled.

"The refereeing wasn't up to the level of the teams," Blatter told Portugal TV on Sunday night. "Today certainly wasn't a fair-play day."

Amid the expulsions, the Portuguese held together better than the Dutch.

"From the start of the tournament our great strength has resided in our unity and the great support of the whole country," said Figo.

In two minutes before halftime, the game could have turned.

First, Van der Sar produced a stunning save on a point-blank shot from Pauleta in the goalmouth. Moments later, Costinha inexplicably handled a simple through pass for his second yellow card.

By that time, Ronaldo was already in tears on the bench after he left the field injured following an ugly, high tackle into his groin from Boulahrouz.

It set up a thrilling second half, with an outmanned Portugal facing a Dutch team still looking for its touch.

In the 63rd, however, Boulahrouz elbowed the irrepressible Figo on another run, earning his second yellow card.

Deco later lost his poise and first made a wild tackle on defender John Heitinga and followed it up with childish timewasting in the 76th minute to be sent off by referee Valentin Ivanov.

In injury time, Van Bronckhorst was sent off for a second yellow card, making it nine-on-nine for the final seconds. The Barcelona teammates sat together in the dugout to watch the finale.

"By that time, Ronaldo was already in tears on the bench..."

About that time, my daughter turned off the Yankees game and quoted Tom Hanks: "Crying? Crying? There's no crying in baseball!! I guess soccer is different."

Quite a day. Lucky that I can easily find out when training camp starts.

[Redskin in Canada]

I have a rule in my line of work: Never speak in anger.

It took me almost 24 hours to recover from the Netherlands v. Portugal game. What a farce! When -even- the President of FIFA goes as far as saying that the referee was not up to the quality of the teams, it speaks volumes about this disgrace. But -HE-, Blatter, should take responsibility for this mess.

The first 45 minutes had promising plays. It was a highly disputed game. But even then you could see the game slide out of control in a downward spiral into the abyss.

UK Skins Fan has been saying that the refs job has been "overall" good. I disagree. You never know from game to game from ref to ref what you are going to get. They are even inconsistent -within- the very same game. Calls that receive yellow cards in one play, go unnoticed in the next.

Something must be done. Beckenbauer was right from the beginning. This Cup is plagued with yellow (card) fever. It is FIDA's fault. It is only human nature to exaggerate a fault if you know that the other side is doing it successfully and it is costing you yellow cards.

In the end, Portugal and Netherlands aimed to make a Greek tragedy of this match, in the end it was a bad taste comedy. Who has the greater fault: Everybody (starting with the stupid Russian ref).

When I see a disaster of these proportions, I get to appreciate even more the teams that truly came to play and not to act (notwithstanding the temptations presented by the refs). That game Argentina v. Mexico still has great echoes in my mind as the better match of this championship. I hope other teams still play that way before the end of the tournament.

[JansenFan]

Apparently, before the match started, the ref was heard saying, "There are two things I can't stand in this world: people who are intolerant of other people's cultures, and the Dutch."

[Redskin in Canada]

I take my hat off to the Socceroos. What an unfortunate finish. I did not see a penalty fault but the Candian broadcasters said that it was impossible for the ref not to call it. They said the Aussie obstructed the path of the attacker. It could have gone either way and I would not have called it. I hate when a game is decided like that.

Italy showed grit and experience -again-. They will not go much further but one has to respect their pride. Well done Australia and Italy.

[UK Skins Fan]

Redskin in Canada wrote:

UK Skins Fan has been saying that the refs job has been "overall" good. I disagree. You never know from game to game from ref to ref what you are going to get. They are even inconsistent -within- the very same game. Calls that receive yellow cards in one play, go unnoticed in the next.

I think what I've been saying, RiC, is that the officiating has actually not been as bad as previous tournaments. I don't see inconsistency - I see consistently paradoxical decisions, brought about by the stupid edicts issued by FIFA and Mr Sepp Blatter before the start of the tournament.

I've said it more than once in this thread - the fault lies with FIFA, and it lies specifically at the foot of Sepp Blatter, a man whose bloated ego is only matched by the vast space between his ears. The referees are officiating matches with only one thing in their mind: "what does Sepp want me to do?" The referees are no longer being asked to apply common sense. The great Pierluigi Collina showed how to referee, and he often did it by applying sense to situations. Not the letter of the law, or the latest instruction from Sepp, but the spirit of the law. For the spirit of the game to be triumphant, then the spirit of it's laws needs to be applied.

This means simple things like:

1) Use more than one official on the pitch.
2) Punish divers and cheats - the best way to do that is to use TV evidence and hang them out to dry after the event. Hold them up to ridicule, and ban them.
3) Don't try to outlaw tackling. It is actually part of the game, and some of the greatest players have been robust defenders - we don't just want to watch ballerinas dancing on the pitch. True football fans get as much pleasure from a crunching tackle as they do from a wonderful piece of attacking skill.
4) Put the onus on managers - they are responsible for the conduct of their players. It simply isn't good enough for Scolari and Van Basten to say what they did today. Both of them should have come out and said "You know what, I'm sick to the stomach. Both sides were a disgrace today, and I'm not going to select players who bring that attitude into my team."
5) Last one for now - Sepp Blatter: shut the hell up. You know nothing about football or football fans. Why not actually listen to what fans want to see on the pitch, and think about how your pronouncements impact on the way this game is played.

Football still is the greatest game in the world, and it is still run by clowns. It's hardly any wonder that it resembles a circus on nights like last night.

[UK Skins Fan]

I didn't see the Australia / Italy game, but listened to the second half on the radio on the way home from work. The overriding impression that I got from the commentators was disappointment in Australia's performance. From plucky, up and at 'em underdogs, they became timid and cautious - seemingly afraid to actually go out and win a game in which they had been given a golden chance by what sounded like a stupid red card from the referee (no, really?!).

Italy were never in danger even after the sending off, and it was a classic win from them. Rather than dwell on the failings of Australia, I prefer to appreciate the wonderful defending of Canavarro for Italy. He is a prince among defenders.

For all the outsiders and surprises earlier in the tournament, it is shaping up to be a battle of the superpowers for this tournament. Italy, Argentina, Germany, Portugal, England. France or Spain will follow. Surely they'll be joined by Brazil. Switzerland and Ukraine are battling for the right to play one more game only after tonight.

[JansenFan]

the fault lies with FFA

What did he do?

Don't you hate it when you make a long well-thought-out post, and some wanker picks a piece out, changes it, and completely ignores the content of the post?

[UK Skins Fan]

Come on now - if you're not going to play properly, then I'm taking my ball home.

And what on earth made you think it was a well thought out post?

[Redskin in Canada]

Ukraine wins in the most even game of this round. I feel for the Swiss and their fans. What a way to go. I should become a therapist for losing sides and their fans in the World cup. I have a lot of sympathy for them.

The -only- good thing about this result (other than I get another much needed point in the Hognostications) is that Sepp Blatter does not get to cheer for anybody anymore. The ref was fine but you could have had a different official and the outcome could have been 12 yellow and 3 or 4 red cards.

[Redskin in Canada]

I don't see inconsistency - I see consistently paradoxical decisions, brought about by ...

Wow!

Too much for a simple minded country-man like me.

1) Is this a learned way to say I see consistent inconsistency?

2) Is this a way to say I agree to agree?

3) Is this a way to agree to disagree?

4) Is this a way to agree but not to concede to it?

5) Is this a way to throw out a fully-worded statement in the hope that nobody picks it up?

6) Is it all of the above?

7) No RiC,you'll never get it.

Sorry, I could not help it.