[whereagles]

the saint, on Jul 1 2006, 06:36 PM, said:

The Portuguese were a complete disgrace, diving and cheating all over the place - notably Ronaldo, Figo and latterly Maniche's disgraceful attempt to get Gary Neville sent off when he went down clutching his face after no contact whatsoever.

three letters, dude:

LOL

[hotShot]

Brazil is out ....

France
Germany
Italy
Portugal

European in the end

[whereagles]

Yup.

Vive La France!

cya, im off celebrating

[P_Marlowe]

whereagles, on Jul 1 2006, 04:00 PM, said:

Vive La France!

see you in berlin ...

[Codo]

I will never understand all the blame the English make about their captain.
Some facts: He scored you to the quarter final. He gave the final pass to the first three goals in this tourney. After his team lost, he was the guy, who went to his fellow players and tried to help them.

I dislike a lot of his habbits outside the field, but he is one of the best english players since years.

Di you see Lampert or Gerrard? Sorry, but if they always as bad as they had been in this WC, they are very much overrated.

And whooever believes, that the ref had not shown the red card without Ronaldos comments, must be quite silly. I did never see a ref in the better leagues, who changed his opinion because some player was talking. This happens sometimes in my sons league, when the referees are 15 year old children.

[cherdano]

the saint, on Jun 22 2006, 06:53 PM, said:

Re: Germany. They did OK in 2002 precisely becuase they had terrible injury problems which forced them to build a team around the one good player they have - Ballack. The luck of the draw did the rest. However, judging by his reputation, if someone else tells me that Ballack is playng with his heart, my sides will probably split from all the laughter.

This is waaaaay old, but I feel the urgent need to make a reply now.

I think Ballack deserves more credit for this world cup than he is getting, at least internationally. Let me explain. Before the world cup, everyone (except Hannie) was pessimistic about Germany's chances, since their defense didn't excel in any of the recent test matches. Actually, it wasn't so much the defense (their individual skills are up to snuff), but the combination of gaps in the midfield and flat defense line made it easy for opponents to reach their strikers. If you have seen Costa Rica's goals in the opening match, you know what I mean.

Ballack himself managed to convince the coaches to put himself in a more defensive position in midfield, and he and Frings certainly made an excellent job there; Germany hasn't conceded a goal in the world cup with Ballack playing except after corner kicks. He even went public with his criticism before the world cup; what looked like lack of loyalty and confidence in his team, was probably an honest try to convince Klinsman and Loew.
On the other hand, it's not a position where Ballack can show his own brilliancy as much, he is most spectacular right behind the strikers.

Now he has missed one world cup final because of a 2nd yellow card (where he may have saved his team with a foul), and another by 2 minutes. I think it's more tough for him than for anyone else in the team.

Re: "playing with his heart": Some players need the emotions to play at their best level. Ballack isn't one of them I think, he plays at his best by always knowing what he is doing. He might be the only one in the German team who would have played at the same level if the World Cup had been somewhere else.

Arend

[Sigi_BC84]

Spot-on, Arend.

[the saint]

Crap end to a crap tournament.

[mgoetze]

the saint, on Jul 9 2006, 10:41 PM, said:

Crap end to a crap tournament.

So, what was all the fuss about? Maybe we could not bother in 2010?

[Sigi_BC84]

the saint, on Jul 9 2006, 11:41 PM, said:

Crap end to a crap tournament.

Gay end to a magnificent tournament. If you are German.

I'm sorry for the French whose hopes got shattered while one of their biggest players proved to be an incredible moron (surpassing Rooney, Bouhlarouz and de Rossi quite easily).

I'm sorry for the English that the WAGs drew more attention than the performance of their actual team.

I'm sorry for the Brazilians that their team was a complete disgrace.

For us (Germans) this World Cup was enjoyable beyond all hopes and expectations. Match for third place was another magnificent party. Athmosphere couldn't have been better. Every single one of the 23 players (except for the third goalie) got their chance, finally. Kahn got his honourable discharge. The next day the team got celebrated as if they had just taken the title. It was simply awesome.

Where soccer as a sport is concerned, the tournament surely was a letdown. I think it is not the fault of the hosts, the organization, the referees or even the FIFA.
In my eyes the problem lies in the coaches' tactical decisions how to play important games.

Only two teams played consistently attractive football: Argentina and -- yes -- Germany (we would not have believed that either before the World Cup). I hope the Germans manage to continue to play like this for quite a while.

The upcoming tournaments will turn out to be similar in this regard if the attitude of the people in charge of tactical and strategic decisions does not change.

--Sigi

[whereagles]

modern football is defensive, guys

if you don't like it, watch tennis

[hotShot]

Well the 4-3-2-1 system is pretty defensive. It was introduced in the "Champions League" and is european top club standard. It was used by all half finalists (Germany played an "offensive" 4-3-1.5-1.5 version) and the success will bring others to play it too. Each worldcup has brought something new to the worlds attention and this year it is this.
Analysis of lots of games have shown that the midfield is the source of most dangerous actions, having a majoraty of players there helps to suppress opponents attacks and can support own activities.
We will see more of it.

[Gerben42]

Quote

if you don't like it, watch tennis

Thanks for the tip. I am puzzled how football can be the most popular game in the world.

[whereagles]

Gerben42, on Jul 10 2006, 02:55 PM, said:

Thanks for the tip. I am puzzled how football can be the most popular game in the world.

Desmond Morris, "The Soccer Tribe".

[Sigi_BC84]

Gerben42, on Jul 10 2006, 04:55 PM, said:

Quote

if you don't like it, watch tennis

Thanks for the tip. I am puzzled how football can be the most popular game in the world.

Find a group of people to share the experience with. Then watch big games (European Championship or World Cup).

Maybe visit a modern stadium (eg. in Stuttgart you could watch the first qualification match GER vs. IRE) to get a feel for how it's like to watch a match live.

Just to watch it (the soccer phenomenon) from the outside, possibly with a strong aversion/bias against some of its elements will not help you understand the game.

It gets more interesting as soon as you get a feel for it and get a sense of the community. Actually you've just missed a good opportunity with the World Cup in Germany...

--Sigi

[Rain]

I didn't get one prediction correct. Either here in BBF or in private when I make wagers (non monetary, whew) with pals.

Not one. That must be anti% somehow.

[jikl]

It might be illegal for me to post this according to BBF rules, I shall soon find out:

http://www.theregister.co.uk/2006/07/13/zi...adbutt_outrage/

Hope you enjoy.

Sean

[the saint]

Who cares if its illegal or not, its pi$$ funny!

[gwnn]

jdonn, on Jun 19 2006, 07:19 AM, said:

, it is miles from a red card. It is so far from red that I can't for the life of me even believe anyone is disputing that.

agree w jdonn

[jdonn]

Um lol at thread revival? I so didn't remember this until I went back and read it again just now. If only I could remember the play!