World Cup

Brazil, Almost Too Easily

Without Michael Essian, Ghana never had a prayer. You can almost always hope that if the favorite plays poorly and the Cinderella overperforms, there is always a chance for an upset. There was never a chance of one in this match. Brazil didn’t come close to getting out of first gear, and […]

Italy Trip Through

Fabio Grosso fell over a scrambling Lucas Neill in the box in the final seconds of stoppage time to earn Italy a penalty, which Francisco Totti knocked home to oust the Australians 1-0.
It was another match of quick cards and an undeserved sending off, but the ref had no choice but to give the […]

Portugal Downs Horrible Ref to Advance

It was bound to happen. In a World Cup of quick yellow cards, and just some shaky officiating overall, a match was finally dominated by an abysmal performance by the man in the middle. the Russian referee completely lost control of this match, sending off two from each side and handing out the […]

England Sweat Through Another One

It is not working Sven. England has managed to get to the quarterfinals with a complete lack of any offensive spark whatsoever. They eked past the weakest team still in the tournamant with a Beckham trick shot. Beating Ecuador 1-0 off a set play is nothing to be proud of.
In fact, if […]

Gracias: Mexico and Argentina

The knock-out stage is off to a flying start now, after Argentina nipped a very game Mexico, 2-1 in extra time.
When Mexico scored first just six minutes in, you had a feeling this was going to be a good one. When Argentina answered just four minutes later, it was game on. Despite several […]

Germany Roll On

I have no idea what it’s going to take. Germany keep winning, as practically everyone expects, but I’m still not sold. Another clean sheet, but I’m still not buying it. Sweden looked more inept offensively (and defensively), particularly Henrik Larsson, than I expected, but is it them or Germany? I still […]

After the Smoke Has Cleared

The Group Stage is over, the dust has settled and now we can see how things are shaping up.
Some dust made it through, as usual, but we’d want it no other way.
There are several teams just lucky to still be in, and a couple good teams that aren’t playing well yet.
I’m looking forward to the […]

Bring on Round 2

There are still a couple matches to be played today, but I’m ready for the real games to begin. The first two matches today were snoozefests. I can barely remember who played. France is yet to go, with a fair chance of being eliminated. That always brightens the day.
But, […]

Brazil only Need a Half, Oz Needed a Miracle

Was there ever any doubt? After sleepwalking for a half, Brazil managed to rouse itself to bury a vastly overmatched Japan side 4-1. Even Big Ron himself managed to get two while he continues to play himself into shape.
But, the match of the day–the match of the tournament, so far–was Australia […]

US Goes 3 and Out

Italy did their part for us, beating the Czech Republic 2-0, but the Americans fell to Ghana 2-1.
Bruce Arena apparently had no ideas as the US offense continued to sputter in a match they had to win to advance. Claudio Reyna gifted Ghana the first goal, losing the ball in the back trying to […]

US Ghana Preview

The United States fought, scratched and clawed their way to a draw against a much better Italian team. After looking utterly horrible for 90 minutes against the Czech Republic, the Americans wisely decided to make the next match a ‘war’ rather than a soccer match. They were in danger of not just getting […]

Germany Clicking

I personally still feel like I was playing the Italians the other night–alone, but I’m slowly getting the bearings back.
Germany still has theirs, obviously, thrashing the overmatched Ecuadoreans 3-0. The match was never in doubt, since they made up the schedules.
For now, the Germans seem to have patched up their […]

Brazil advance, while the French remain frustrated

Everyone is fretting about Ronaldo, but the Brazilians have everything under control. Their 2-0 victory over Australia has assured their place in the second round. Ronaldo didn’t score and he missed badly on an easy chance, but he had a great assist on one of the Brazilian goals.
Meanwhile, France might face another early exit after […]

USA still alive after 1-1 tie with Italy

What a game! After looking like a second-rate squad in their opener against the Czech Republic, the Americans came back strong with a sprited effort against an Italian team that looked fantastic in its opening match.
The Americans were able to frustrate the Italian side by working loading up the midfield and playing very aggressively, constantly […]

Portugal Imitate England

Portugal are through after beating a very average Iran team 2-0. Iran actually hasn’t looked that bad in their two losses, but the promise of millions and their own villas from their dodgy president wasn’t enough incentive to get them out of the group stage.
Portugal, in their best imitation of England–loads of […]