2006 FIFA World Cup

[timothy1997 0]

UPSET OF THE WORLD CUP!!

GHANA BEATS CZECH REPUBLIC 2-0!!! UNBELIEVABLE!!!

Edited June 17, 2006 by timothy1997

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

Man.....McBride took a helluva elbow to the head there about 30 minutes into the game. Took quite a dent and got bloodied up.

Good for the home team though cause we're 1-up now in manpower.

[SouthernWingsFan 854]

The refereeing in this game is absolute bulls***.

Mastroeni and Pope got shafted. Definitely fouls on them but they were not red-card worthy. Now the U.S. are a man short when not too long ago they were a man ahead.

Just crappy-ass officiating.

The referee for this game basically killed any chance for the U.S. to advance to the 2nd round.

[timothy1997 0]

that ref will never call another world cup game ever...that is how bad he called the game.

The referee for this game basically killed any chance for the U.S. to advance to the 2nd round.

with a tie, US has to hope they beat Ghana and Italy beats Czech....then the US will advance.

[Guvnor1983 0]

You Yanks should be proud after that! What an effort by the Americans. Referee was terrible; De Rossi's elbow was a disgrace. That's now 2 nasty elbows against US players in the world cup in the last 8 years! (The other being Leonardo's in 1994)

If Italy beat Czech and USA beat Ghana, then America go through. Amazing considering they looked so poor vs the Czech....

Czech Republic were poor today. Petr Cech was fantastic in goal though. However, they were without both of their main strikers and their 3rd choice, Lokvenc, looked poor, plus he got his 2nd booking of the Cup therefore he misses the crucial game vs Italy.

[Cruiser008 37]

Gutsy effort by the Americans today to earn a draw. Not the most talented team but it's hard not to cheer their plucky determination.

[German Red Wing 0]

The refereeing in this game is absolute bulls***.

Mastroeni and Pope got shafted. Definitely fouls on them but they were not red-card worthy. Now the U.S. are a man short when not too long ago they were a man ahead.

Just crappy-ass officiating.

The referee for this game basically killed any chance for the U.S. to advance to the 2nd round.

As a referee, I have to say that you're wrong. All three ejections were absolutely right.

De Rossi's elbow was a lose of temper. You don't move your arms like that unless you don't care for an injury. The red card was the right reward for him.

Mastroeni's sliding tackle came with 15 yards of run-up and from behind, he had never ever the chance to reach the ball. If Pirlo does not jump, his ankles are busted to pieces. Plus the ref was standing just beside it. You can't get any clearer red card than this.

The foul Pope got his second booking for was quite a copy of Mastroeni's hit, except that he did it without the run-up, which minimized the possible damage. Nevertheless he also was not able to reach the ball. As I saw that, my first thought was "He will get booked for that". Since he had already received a caution in mid-1st half, he was rightfully set to go.

By the way, the U.S. have a fairly decent chance of advancing. All the need to do is beat Ghana and hope that Italy does not allow the Czechs to earn a point. The latter is highly likely to happen.

Hm. France just earned only a draw against Korea (1-1). If Switzerland wins against Togo tomorrow, the French will most likely have to pack their bags after group stage again. Croatia and Japan played a mostly boring scoreless draw, Brazil advances to 2nd round after beating the Aussies, 2-0.

I have a gut feeling about "our" game against Ecuador on Tuesday... :-/

I don't want us to play England in the 2nd round... :-(

Edited June 18, 2006 by German Red Wing

[betterREDthandead 58]

The nice thing about the result is that now Italy is up against it.

For us, the knockout stages of the tournament start with the next game against the Czech Republic.

That's from Buffon, their goaltender. We need to beat Ghana, and we need Italy to beat the Czechs. Italy knows they can't afford to lose - they'd be eliminated with a Ghana victory, or tie if the goal differential is right. They have to go out and beat the Czechs, and what's better, they're probably pissed and a little bit embarrassed about the tie. In order to advance, we need Italy to win their next match, and I think that part will be taken care of - we just have to take care of business against Ghana without Pope or Mastroeni. Not easy.

[betterREDthandead 58]

The foul Pope got his second booking for was quite a copy of Mastroeni's hit, except that he did it without the run-up, which minimized the possible damage. Nevertheless he also was not able to reach the ball. As I saw that, my first thought was "He will get booked for that". Since he had already received a caution in mid-1st half, he was rightfully set to go.

Pope did get the ball though. He clearly, at least on replay, knocked the ball away before any contact was made. Correct me if I'm wrong (you're the referee, I'm the guy who looks at a soccer game once every four years), but if the defender gets the ball, isn't any foul nullified, no matter how bad the appearance of the contact?

[German Red Wing 0]

Pope did get the ball though. He clearly, at least on replay, knocked the ball away before any contact was made. Correct me if I'm wrong (you're the referee, I'm the guy who looks at a soccer game once every four years), but if the defender gets the ball, isn't any foul nullified, no matter how bad the appearance of the contact?

Errr.... No. If there is any danger to the health of the player attacked given, the ref has to stop play if no advantage develops.

There is a new order by the FIFA which aims to protect the player with the ball and therefore penalizing every contact with stretched legs from the sides or behind with at least a yellow card. Since the ball was not clearly hit and Pope's attack was rather uncoordinated, the ref had to put this order as a basis to his decision, leaving the booking as the only option left. Plus: the Italian had to be treated by medical staff if I remember correctly.

IF Pope hit the ball and only the ball clearly, it would have been considered a fair tackling.

Imagine the following:

A player successfully tries a sliding tackle to his opponent. He hits the ball clearly, but due to some earlier incidents, he is a little angry on his opponent and therefore hits his legs in the same movement. Ain't that dangerous play either? Therefore it has to be penalized with a yellow card. If the purpose is clearly viewable, the player is sent off, of course.

[Guvnor1983 0]

I disagree with the Pope sending off, that's never a second booking to get a player sent off.

In the letter of the law of this world cup, the first American one was a red. I don't agree with it though. In the Premiership neither American would have been sent off......

Also German, it shouldn't make a difference whether a player is stretchered off/needs medical attention as there is so much "play acting" these days. For example, in the US Italy game, Cannavaro went down like he had been shot, needed to be stretchered off, but as soon as he reached the touchline he's back on his feet and waiting to come back on. It's the one aspect of football I really hate.....

[betterREDthandead 58]

Also German, it shouldn't make a difference whether a player is stretchered off/needs medical attention as there is so much "play acting" these days. For example, in the US Italy game, Cannavaro went down like he had been shot, needed to be stretchered off, but as soon as he reached the touchline he's back on his feet and waiting to come back on. It's the one aspect of football I really hate.....

You said it. Man I cannot stand it when some of these pansy whiny soccer players go down like they got machine-gunned in the shins, all whining and screaming like they'll never walk again and they're perfectly fine, they just want to get that yellow card. Forgive the American snobbiness here, but you won't see the US team jaking it like that. It wouldn't fly in any league here. Definitely not hockey - you'd get run by someone big. Baseball has an unwritten code: "don't rub it", after you're hit by a pitch, that is. Jake it and you'll probably see a fastball in your eye. Football, don't even think about it. Fans hate it, players hate it.

[Guvnor1983 0]

You said it. Man I cannot stand it when some of these pansy whiny soccer players go down like they got machine-gunned in the shins, all whining and screaming like they'll never walk again and they're perfectly fine, they just want to get that yellow card. Forgive the American snobbiness here, but you won't see the US team jaking it like that. It wouldn't fly in any league here. Definitely not hockey - you'd get run by someone big. Baseball has an unwritten code: "don't rub it", after you're hit by a pitch, that is. Jake it and you'll probably see a fastball in your eye. Football, don't even think about it. Fans hate it, players hate it.

I can't really comment on Team America or MLS as we don't get any coverage here in the UK. Diving is getting big in the NHL though, players getting alittle hook to the arm and then flailing around looking at the ref for a penalty, but that's another topic! lol

A few football experts have come up with a technique to get rid of diving which I totally agree with. A panel of officials watch replays of games, and if it's clear that a player has play acted then he gets a yellow added to his name.

Getting back to the World Cup, we have the final group stage games starting today. First place in group A is determined by Ecuador vs Germany (both are through, however Germany must win to top the group) and the other game is Poland vs Costa Rica. The later games are England vs Sweden (if England avoid defeat then they will top the group) and T&T vs Paraguay (T&T must win and hope Sweden lose to advance).

[gowingsgo 3]

I'm looking forward to the US match on Thursday. Hopefully they can overcome missing their two players with reds from the previous game and Italy can beat the Czechs. Should be interesting to say the least

[betterREDthandead 58]

I can't really comment on Team America or MLS as we don't get any coverage here in the UK. Diving is getting big in the NHL though, players getting alittle hook to the arm and then flailing around looking at the ref for a penalty, but that's another topic! lol

A few football experts have come up with a technique to get rid of diving which I totally agree with. A panel of officials watch replays of games, and if it's clear that a player has play acted then he gets a yellow added to his name.

Getting back to the World Cup, we have the final group stage games starting today. First place in group A is determined by Ecuador vs Germany (both are through, however Germany must win to top the group) and the other game is Poland vs Costa Rica. The later games are England vs Sweden (if England avoid defeat then they will top the group) and T&T vs Paraguay (T&T must win and hope Sweden lose to advance).

It's not the diving - you see that all the time in hockey, and in basketball too as players will flop to take a charge. It's the faking of injury that I hate from soccer players. Diving is annoying, but sometimes you'll see fouls not called (basketball, football, hockey, wherever) because the fouled player kept his balance, so sometimes "going down easy" gives the refs a little visual aid. Faking injury though....if a hockey player or a football player pretended to be hurt for whatever reason, maybe stall the game or try and add penalty time, I wouldn't be surprised if someone on the other team made sure he wasn't faking next time.

[German Red Wing 0]

It's not the diving - you see that all the time in hockey, and in basketball too as players will flop to take a charge. It's the faking of injury that I hate from soccer players. Diving is annoying, but sometimes you'll see fouls not called (basketball, football, hockey, wherever) because the fouled player kept his balance, so sometimes "going down easy" gives the refs a little visual aid. Faking injury though....if a hockey player or a football player pretended to be hurt for whatever reason, maybe stall the game or try and add penalty time, I wouldn't be surprised if someone on the other team made sure he wasn't faking next time.

The injury faking and diving is also what makes me angry. This is was is getting more and more a problem even in the minor leagues. And why? Just because people see it in TV, sometimes with a commentary how clever this player was. That's not cleverness, that's just a fraud on the game and the other players. The problem is that it's very hard to distinguish between faked and real injuries or fouls if the acting is convincing enough. I would like to see a ban for that in the major leagues. Keep the faking player out for two games, and this bull**** will almost vanish after a couple of months.

[German Red Wing 0]

Nice effort by Germany. It was a little shaky with the Swedes, though. I would still be cursing if they managed another goal. Although - revenge for a certain 5:1 in Munich would have been nice... ^^

[Guvnor1983 0]

Nice effort by Germany. It was a little shaky with the Swedes, though. I would still be cursing if they managed another goal. Although - revenge for a certain 5:1 in Munich would have been nice... ^^

Well we topped our group with a 2 all draw with Sweden, but in the process we lost Owen for the tournament and possibly Rio for the next game. Joe Cole scored one of, if not the goal of the WC!

I wouldn't have minded playing you Germans. Obviously, on paper, Ecuador are a weaker team, but Germany don't scare alot of teams. The one thing they have going for them is that they're the home team, and the home team typically goes quite far. Germany will get tested by a decent Swedish side............

Today we'll find out who has the pleasure of playing Argentina in the 2nd round!

If you guys can, get a-hold of the Holland Argentina game, should be a cracker!!

[mattkientz 0]

Well we topped our group with a 2 all draw with Sweden, but in the process we lost Owen for the tournament and possibly Rio for the next game. Joe Cole scored one of, if not the goal of the WC!

I wouldn't have minded playing you Germans. Obviously, on paper, Ecuador are a weaker team, but Germany don't scare alot of teams. The one thing they have going for them is that they're the home team, and the home team typically goes quite far. Germany will get tested by a decent Swedish side............

Today we'll find out who has the pleasure of playing Argentina in the 2nd round!

If you guys can, get a-hold of the Holland Argentina game, should be a cracker!!

Being from The Netherlands I'm really looking forward to this game... Only problem is that both sides won't use the players who picked up a yellow card during the previous games (to avoid that they will be suspended in the knock-out stage). In the case of the Dutch team that means that Mathijsen, Robben, Van Bommel, Gio and Heitinga won't play. Although I'm hoping for a good result, I expect the Argentinian bench(players) to be stronger than the Dutch... But we'll see...

[German Red Wing 0]

Boooring game yesterday night.

2nd round pairings so far:

Germany vs Sweden - August 24th, 5pm CEST

Argentina vs Mexico - August 24th, 9pm CEST

England vs Ecuador - August 25th, 5pm CEST

Portugal vs Netherlands - August 25th, 9pm CEST

[timothy1997 0]

looking forward to the early games today. despite only having 1 pt, USA still has an excellent shot at advancing. They need two things to happen and they can realisticly happen. USA needs to beat Ghana and Italy needs to beat Czech. That happens and the Americans advance. Most likely will advance and play Brazil but that can be discussed later on.

U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A! U-S-A!

Edited June 22, 2006 by timothy1997

[timothy1997 0]

well, USA is out. Big disappointment for the Americans. They showed little or no emotion throughout the whole world cup. So many mistakes made by Bruce Arena in poor management of players. Landon Donovan and Brian McBride never showed up.

ONE GOAL IN THE WORLD CUP!!

oh well, I am not alone in echoing that this is why no one watches soccer in the US. Way to go USA! Set soccer back in the USA a good 8 years at least. Tell me why again the US soccer team made the cover of SI instead of the Tigers. :nonono:

Edited June 22, 2006 by timothy1997

[Happy Pancake 6]

An embarassing World Cup for the Americans. They looked as if they didn't want to play very hard. It's a shame they played much of their best game with only 9 players. They could've killed Italy the way they were playing, those two red cards were uncalled for. I've reffed for years and I agree with the commentators for that game that you pull the player aside letting them know they are on a zero tolerance policy from this moment on.

Not like any of that matters now. Good luck to Ghana though, I hope they get to represent the African countries into the later rounds.

[timothy1997 0]

Not like any of that matters now. Good luck to Ghana though, I hope they get to represent the African countries into the later rounds.

Not likely. They play Brazil next.

[norrisnick 1]

Not likely. They play Brazil next.

Speaking of which... I'm glad Fat Bastard ( ) had a great game to shut up all the incessant whining about his fitness. He's had quite a few chances in the first three games and cashed in on two of his many today. The way some of the announcers/analysts (Lalas, Balboa, Wynalda, etc...) carried on you'd think they were anything compared to what Ronalda has done, and still IS doing.

I want an '02 Finals rematch (is it possible?), though with the good guys prevailing this time.