[OT] 2002 World Cup

[Doppleganger]

U.S.A!!.... U.S.A!!.... U.S.A!!....

I can't believe we won! What a great game.

The Irish finish against Germany was exciting too.

Too bad I missed another night's sleep by watching soccer all night again (oh dear god when will this madness end!!), time to hit up Starbucks...

Now I can't wait for USA v Korea, that lively Korean crowd will be going absolutely bonkers again. The arena's atmosphere will be incredible.

And then there's Argentina v England coming up Friday.

And, and, and...

I guess I've failed my Fort save vs World Cup Fever.

 

[Black Omega]

Not Good! Poland, my country, hasn`t done very well against Korea, losing 2 to 0! Do you think we have any chances against Portugal? I haven`t seen Portugal vs. USA, was USA that good or Portugal that bad?

USA looked very sharp. Portugal looked a little flat to me and the US just jumped on them early and got the big lead, then hung on for the final 45 minutes. Portugal will be much tougher next game I'm sure. Poland has it's chances, it's just tough to play the home teams and Korea was very fired up.

 

[Quickbeam]

Gotta go find me a Team USA soccer jersey now for sure. I'd asked for one as a Father's Day gift, hoping that we'd advance to the Second Round. Now I've gotta have one today !!

And Doppleganger, I agree, the crowd is gonna be going wild in a few days since the US/Korea game will be for first place in the Group. Who would have guessed that?

 

[Berandor]

Imagine South Korea and USA having a draw!

Portugal (!) could be out in elimination round!

And Korea played excellent soccer yesterday, while I couldn't watch the US today.

Germany will have a decisive match next Tuesday, while tomorrow France will have to beat Uruguay to even get a decisive match vs. Denmark.
Then, there's Argentinia vs. England. My, oh my.

You just skip sleeping. In Germany, games start 8:30 am, to 3:15 pm. I'm skipping work!

Berandor

 

[Corinth]

FWIW the Russia-Tunisia game ended in favor of Russia 2-0. Both teams looked shakey, but Tunisia's attack power wasn't there while Russia's was there in force. Tunisia screwed up big twice, Russia pounded them for it both times and that's how it went throughout the game. Honestly, Russia got away with a big hole in their defense this time around. They can't do that next time. Tunisia had better get it together or they're not getting out of their group.

 

[Gilrion]

I'm rooting for Portugal, as its my home country. This game was such a disappointment I don't believe we will make it past the group phase. US did a good job, but I strongly believe they played what we let them play; which was everything. Had the portuguese team been on an even average (instead of utterly disastrous) day, we would have it. However, football is not about might-have-beens, so congrats to you.

It was not a "flat" performance, as someone put it. It was 90 minutes of something other than football. I swear, if Portugal had put up scarecrows on the field they would have fared better today.
Our players for some reason "forgot" to run. By the second half, we were acting as if we were winning 4-0 and the game was won: passing the ball around idly, hardly trying to overcome adversity. This is not the squad I've come to know, the squad that performed brilliantly in the last Euro Cup. Portugal did not even deserve the two goals it scored. US earned their victory by doing what we allowed them to do.


Personally, I (and almost everyone) blame Portugal's coach. He really is an idiot, who plays favorites with players who should not even be on the squad. The goalkeeper we played (and will undounbtedly keep playing despite his ridiculous performances) is frankly bad. Most everyone agrees he should not be playing, except the man who makes the decisions.

I am truly disappointed with my team. I believe we will win against Poland, but even that is uncertain. Korea will probably wrest a tie (or worst) from us, and we will be out. The only good thing to have come out of the whole thing is the coach will get sacked once he gets back. At least there's that!


As for favorites, I think Germany is a strong contender. I think Italy will win the final vs France. I'm usually wrong about these things, though. Hey, I thought Portugal would at least make it far into the competition, despite our lousy qualification phase...

 

[tleilaxu]

senegal and denmark tie 1-1. if france wins tonight it could be senegal and france going to the 2nd round!

 

[AGGEMAM]

senegal and denmark tie 1-1. if france wins tonight it could be senegal and france going to the 2nd round!

Dream on ! France hasn't got a chance in hell !

 

[reutbing0]

Well goodluck AGEMMAN ! You're gonna need it

 

[Yuan-Ti]

Regarding the USA v. Portugal match... Here in Germany the commentators were so stunned one of them actually seriously suggested that "maybe the Portuguese are not used to the new ball yet" and another implied it was an accidental win because "the US got out to such a large lead so early it was difficult for Portugal to come back." Yeah, right. Maybe that's why Saudi Arabia lost to Germany?

Later on in the evening, the comments were more professional, analyzing the game and pointing out the weaknesses in the Portuguese play and the strengths of the the American play. Much more even-handed coverage.

One thing they suggested on SAT1 Ran (a tv show that recaps the games) was that there was some kind of split in the team and that the other players and possibly the coach were mad at Figo. They showed a lot of scenes where Figo seemed to be annoyed with his teammates, yelled at them, gave up on plays, etc. They also showed some scenes where other players ignored a wide open Figo, or blatantly ignored him when he called for the ball on throw-ins and free kicks.

Any Portuguese fans want to comment? Is there some bad blood on the team?

Well, should be an interesting Cup, though I daresay the final four will probably look like the usual suspects. I just feel sorry for Denmark. Four points, playing well, but if they don't tie France they are likely out of it (since Senegal probably beats or at least ties Uruguay). I think you can call it bad luck -- not that they can't do it!

Germany looks great, but were definitely overconfident against the Irish. They came out, gave up an early chance and then looked like they did against KSA for 20 minutes or so. But after Klose scored, they just packed their half of the field with 8 players and dared the Irish to score. Frankly, if Kahn hadn't come up with some big saves, it could easily have been IRE 2: GER 1. If Ireland plays like that in the next game, they will score 4 against KSA.

Ah, well, fun stuff... though I wish I was watching the Stanley Cup instead. Go Wings!