What did you take away from this world cup?
Where's the recap lads? We always have a natter about what we liked and didn't about the tournament. What did you think?
posted by gooner71 @ 1:17 PM
Lakenheath Old Boys
We are all former students at Lakenheath High School and other public schools in East Anglia. We were in school in the 70s and 80s and drank deeply from the well of British culture of those decades - the pints, the telly, and of course the footie!
Wednesday, July 14, 2010
Where's the recap lads? We always have a natter about what we liked and didn't about the tournament. What did you think?
Lakenheath Old Boys
We are all former students at Lakenheath High School and other public schools in East Anglia. We were in school in the 70s and 80s and drank deeply from the well of British culture of those decades - the pints, the telly, and of course the footie!
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13 Comments:
I'll start because I have loads to get off my chest.
FIFA has again damaged their marquee event with their bungling.
First there was the Jabulani ball. This year's ball takes the biscuit. It's too lightweight for a start, and its technological drawbacks meant that it had to undergo a last minute redesign because the engineers had not understood that the panels of the ball which had been removed were what gave the previous ball spin. Even with the redesign, its lightness meant that remained unpredictable in flight. Neither out field players wanted to shoot for fear of looking idiotic when it missed its mark, nor did goalkeepers want to try to hold on to it for fear of making a terrible error.
Then, the later news that actually, one team, sponsored by Adidas and hailing from the same country where Adidas is based, were quite comfortable with the Jabulani. Yes, the Germans have played with this ball in the Bundesliga since February. Their forwards were belting the ball in the net, and their keeper was sitting back having a cup of tea while the opponents peppered the corner flag and various vuvuleza wielding fans in row z.
Then FIFA's refusal to allow a technological component in the matches robbed teams of legitimate goals, credited teams with illegitimate goals, and left otherwise competent referees twisting in the wind when televised replays showed over and over again that the game has outpaced their capacity to judge fairly.
While I fully support any efforts to include as many nations to qualify to play in the World Cup, including these minnow nation's substandard officials has always seemed like an overly politically correct gesture. And so it was that we had the Saudi official wildly cautioning players for phantom offenses, and stopping the game to make sure the ball was placed exactly on a particular spot, or ruling that throws were foul. And we had the Malian spot a phantom US foul to rule out a US goal amongst 3 blatant Slovenian fouls, any one of which would have been a cast iron penalty. The world also got a glimpse of what US fans have to put up with when the Mexican and Guatemalan officials routinely allowed harrowing examples of brutality, but cracked down on players who complained that they were being slaughtered.
But what struck me most was that referees that we've all seen at the helm of Champions League games made equally terrible mistakes as their inexperienced brethren. And it's that that leads me to believe that the highest level of football has evolved to a point where the human referee can no longer be expected to get the call right. The speed of play and the chicanery of certain players -- yes, you Cristiano -- leaves a referee too exposed to error. And it diminishes our confidence in the referees when within seconds of a blown call, nearly everyone gets to see a crystal clear replay of the erroneous decision.
In 1966, there weren't 18 cameras covering every possible angle on the goal line so when the Russian linesman called it a goal, he was using the best technology that he had available. The Uruguayan didn't credit Lampard's goal this time, but not because the technology to make the correct decision wasn't' available.
FIFA speaks volumes about ridding the game of cheating, but the example of Portugal's progression to the second round without suspension of at least 6 of their players was an example of how gutless this intent to clean up the game is. Diving, moaning, shirt-pulling, kicking, injurious tackling, spitting..., that team is a disgrace and I couldn't wait for their exit.
Let's also talk about Robert Green's mistake. Let's just say for a moment that it was Green's error and that the Jabulani ball had nothing to do with it. Dropping him afterwards in favor of David James who admittedly played well, has put the future of England's keepers in a real pickle. James is finished at 40 years old. Green's a young man and before having the ground taken out from under him, would have been a keeper that could have gone from strength to strength if for the occasional lapse that EVERY keeper suffers. He pulled off a terrific save after his error that prevented the loss. Don Fabio has fatally undermined the confidence of the only remaining experienced English keeper. Now he's got to put all of his chips on the table in the form of Joe Hart and reap the consequences of such an abrupt decision. There's no youngster other than Hart within sight.
I agree with you totally about FIFA's bungling when it came to the Jabulani and the refereeing. The only aspect that you neglected (presumably because you supported their decision) was the Vuvuzela, which may well have added to the atmosphere in the stadia, but just about ruined the televised experience because the mosquito buzz obscured any real fan culture. FIFA knew that they had a problem with it last summer and merely caved to the absurd argument about indigenous footie culture.
Let's be honest - there is little or no indigenous South African footie culture because of their years as a pariah state. They're starting from infancy and it showed. The SA supporters were probably the worst in World Cup history, thoroughly unschooled about the game and hysterically enthusiastic for no apparent reason. Even the US fans in 94 knew when to stop being excited after their side lost in the Round to 16 against Brazil. The SA fans just kept blowing their horns - and probably still are for all we know.
But beyond FIFA's responsibility, there is also some responsibility to be placed on the sides. It was a poor spectacle all-round and that can't entirely be blamed on the Jabulani. A lot of players seemed to be voting with their feet that they no longer accept the notion that the WC is the "highest stage." You saw the worst of it on Sunday - defensive play, ridiculous fouling, diving, cheating, gamesmanship and the like. I agree with Dave that retroactive action should be taken by FIFA based on video evidence. But I would also like some more public shaming of individual players. For example, Thierry Henry has just about been run out of the game (well, to the Red Balls at least) as a result of "that handball."
That's enough rambling from me. I don't have the stomach to think about Rob Green and the England goalkeeping dilemma just yet.
Boy, the Dahlgren Bros. certainly prefer to view their pint glass as half empty. As for me, this rivals 1978 (my virgin experience -- I recall the 74 final but that's it) and 1994 (cause I was there) for my own footie enjoyment.
This year's drama rivaled anything I can recall seeing. The US v. Algeria match! The final minute of that epic match is the tipping point for masses of US Soccer Moms and Dads into US national team fans. It put the lie to the statement that nil nil is, by definition, boring, because that match was nil nil until the 92nd minute and there was no one leaving their telly.
But the US v. Algeria match was just one example among many.
You must admit that fifa's crackdown on simulation has greatly reduced the incidents of it. Eight years ago the players writhed in agony from phantom fouls for minutes. Not nearly so prevalant now.
Having played with it, I got to say the ball is fine. It requires a greater degree of touch, but all of these players have it.
Use of technology, of course, is desperately needed. We will have it in four years is my prediction.
But I am resolved to take the family to Brasil in 2014. I hope you will join us! (On your dime of course)
I have watched every World Cup tournament since Argentina 1978. I will talk about the tournament in general, then I will conclude with my thoughts on England's performance in this tournament and what they need to do to improve. This was the worst tournament since 1990 and the second lowest goals per game ratio in the history of the tournament.I believe that the Jabulani ball is partially to blame for this, but many highly rated stars performed poorly. I was looking forward to being entertained and excited by Rooney, Ronaldo, the Brazilians, Messi,and others. I felt let down by the lack of effort and preoccupation with their need to harass officials.However, this opened the door for Wesley Schneider, Thomas Mueller,Diego Forlan, Luis Suarez,and Landon Donovan to showcase their talents on what otherwise was an uninspired tournament.
I was really upset by the simulation and players feigning injury. I have observed that there really is not a system in place to address this an until there is, the players will continue to do this. They know that they will be able to get away with this. A yellow for the first offense and we all know what happens when a second yellow is issued. Are you listening Graham Poll.
I will discuss the officiating. The Dahlgren's are spot on. In an effort to be politically correct officials from obscure nations were picked. I agree with their statements regarding the referee from Mali, Lampard's goal that wasn't, and Tevez's goal against Mexico that should not have been. These referees were sent home and rightly so.I do agree that video technology must be implemented.It is available. Let's use it.
This tournament highlighted the importance of playing as a team and not individuals.Some teams were overrated such as France, England, Brazil, and Italy. They were guilty of the above offenses. The pleasant surprises were New Zealand, Uruguay, and Holland. On paper, they are far less talented than the other teams, but they showed what can be achieved when team work,effort ,and pride in one's national team is a priority.I have a problem with people criticizing Spain for their lack of goals. They played with the intention of attacking and winning. Is it really their fault that every opponent played with the intent of getting a 0-0 score? They played the game in the proper way. They deserved to win the World Cup. They are currently the best national team in the world. Their matches did show that there are few teams that can take this crown away. This may change in a few years.
I will conclude by talking about England. Their performance at the World Cup was unacceptable. They should have walked away with this group. In fact, if Robert Green had not committed the error against the U.S. or if Rooney had not missed that opportunity against Slovenia then they would have won the group. They would have played Ghana in the round of 16 and Uruguay in the quarters. They should defeat these teams even if they are playing far below their potential. So how does Capello get England to improve?
I believe he needs to clean house and start rebuilding NOW. It is a massive challenge, but that is why he gets paid that massive salary. He needs to put Joe Hart in goal and say that is my keeper. I would drop Rio and John Terry. Both have lost a step.I would pick Michael Dawson. I realize that there are not many quality central defenders, but Capello is paid to deal with these types of situations.This is his responsibility. Peter Crouch got little playing time despite his outstanding scoring record.He needs to be a regular starter up front with Dafoe. Capello was never really able to find consistent starters in midfield with Gerard and Lampard. Will Stevie G and Lamps be in the England squad after Euro 2012? This needs to be addressed. I think that is enough from me
We can, of course, agree to disagree, WHR but I have to side with Gooner and MUR on this one. I think you must be about the only one agreeing with Sepp Blatter that this was a good World Cup - but I'm glad you enjoyed it.
I'll say it again - the only thing that made it tolerable was sharing it with the LOB faithful, whether it was the opening weekend in Glenville, the quarterfinals with Gooner and WHR, Skyping Chelskilad about the Azzurri or chattering away on-line during the group stages.
Added to that were all the blogs, podcasts, guides and magazines that were spawned by SA 2010. It's got to the point where the culture that we've created around these tournaments is actually richer than the tournament itself.
I agree.Despite the World Cup, LOB made this an enjoyable experience. My only regret is that I was not able to join anyone from LOB during the World Cup, but chatting online with everyone is great.
Will LOB be available for Manchester United vs Celtic on Friday? It will be on ESPN at 7 PM EDT.
Absolutely - I'll be here and I imagine that UWS will on board as well. I'll leave the thread posting tasks up to the true United supporters in the crowd.
Ditto the sentiment Bob. I look forward every four years to the world cup. I'm not expecting such awful stewards of the game to give me what I want, but I thought this time was particularly bad stewardship.
That said, going to England and watching the games with Dad, going to Lucky Bar to watch Spain Portugal, jumping into cabs to get to a TV for the US Ghana, Marx Cafe for Germany Argentina, and driving up to you in Dunkirk will be my best memories of South Africa 2010.
Just so you know, I did enjoy parts of this tournament. Some of the most moving and my favorite memories include:
The podcasts and the ESPN and Fox coverage. I loved the Frank Skinner crack about the Adidas advert with Cronaldo’s statue about how it would have been funny to show someone pulling it down Saddam style, and then watch the statue come to life, roll around, and then angrily get up and cuss out a ref. Also, I loved how Baddiel kept on coming up with surreptitious slights against Rooney – how him kissing the Queen might be a piss take about his granny crushes for instance.
Did anyone else notice that in the introduction to the games, the ESPN graphics had that Zulu warrior standing on a hill blowing into an animal horn and then the very next photo was of some bewildered looking elderly woman looking out her door and up? That made me crack up every time.
Tshabalala's goal and South Africa's celebration in their game against Mexico made me happy.
Mick McCarthy's surprise when he looked at the Argentine team-sheet and saw J.S. Veron's name. "Is that THE Veron, is it?"
The USA, time after time coming back to tie up the match in the dieing moments and the rush of relief I felt when I saw the ball go in. Our boys did us proud and but for a guaranteed goal-scorer and more competent refereeing, we’d easily have progressed further
Did anyone else notice the scene on the Ghanaian sub's bench when Germany scored and one player was shown explaining the concept goal-difference to one of his concerned team-mates. The team-mate just wasn’t getting it and I thought that the player explaining was going to have to ask for a pen and paper before the other one got it.
The aftermath of Fabiano's hand-ball when the ref seemed to be joking around with him and asking, "did that come off your arm?" "No guvnor, strictly me chest." Riiiiiigt.
That muppet Harry Kewell arguing about his hand-ball sending off, admittedly harsh, and asking the ref to just look at the replay on the big screen. Sure enough, the replay came up, and it confirmed even more that Harry handled the ball. The penalty was probably punishment enough, but it was a fair cop Harry. Hilarious too.
Didier Drogba's goal. I don't like him, but come on, it wouldn't be right if in the first African World Cup he didn't get at least one goal. Name a more important African player than him in his generation.
The North Koreans. Their Japanese-born forward who's so proud of his country, he breaks down in tears when their anthem is played. The Chinese actors brought in to wear North Korean colors and cavort in the stands. And their gritty sportmanship. Never a complaint about a call, back up on their feet quickly and without ado when they got fouled, and a hand and an apology for their opponant when they fouled. The Dear Leader's boys were a credit to that very, very weird country.
On the glass is half empty tip, there were several highlights:
* The spectacle of watching France implode, particularly the stories of Gourcuff being ostracized by his teammates for not going out on the piss with them and the footage of player's training strike.
* The few players who rose to the occasion, including my player of the tournament - Diego Forlan - who seemed to adjust to the Jabulani and even use it to his advantage more quickly than anyone else. I also enjoyed watching Thomas Mueller, Angel DiMaria, and Alexis Sanchez play.
* The plucky performance by the US team. Their realistic goal was escaping the group stage before exiting in the Round of 16. They won the group and pushed Ghana to extra-time, much of that due to team spirit.
* Podcast moments: Frank Skinner talking about how, if he were forced into a huddle, he'd end with "By the way, I have nits." Alan Davies and co. interviewing Emmanuel Eboue and singing the White Stripes at him.
Players I liked included Portugal's Fabio Coentrao, Germany's Sami Khedira, Japan's Keisuke Honda, and Maarten Stekelenburg. All would be welcome at the Emirates.
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