Wow, now that was an upset. Never seen that coming. I knew that the Swiss would frustrate them, but never thought they would win. Spain just could not finish, nor created many clear cut chances. Torres was very poor, clearly not fully fit. Xavi was fantastic in midfield, but didn't mean anything. Well done Switzerland. Best game of the tournament though.
Same ol' Spain. Arsene needs to buy Inler. I know he's watched him before but seriously, throw some money at the guy. He's not world class but very solid IMO.
And before today you would have said they would have done comfortably. Got a huge fight on their hands now.
I missed 40'-64' but caught the rest. They were 80/20 in possesion and were really dominating the Swiss IMO. They hit post a couple times. They were very patient and must have had a streak of multiple passes put together. Seemed like minutes gone by and they had possession. Aforementioned Swiss mid Inler I thought did a quality job in the middle and the back four of the Swiss was outstanding. Very disciplined. I'm not really sure how they managed to blow this but result is typical Spain.
Thanks for the synopsis. LOL. One Euro Cup and everyone starts getting ideas. They are still a quality team and I do give them a ton of respect. They can strike at any time, and in numbers as well. However, they can be contained, as the Swiss showed.
He's no Viera. He does not have the strength and defensive ability like Vieira IMO. They try to talk up Diaby because he had a quality year in which he showed flashes but then started racking up injuries. He's very inconsistent IMO and will never reach his potential. Arsene has stuck with him because of the flashes. Nasri's been dinged up some. I think he would provide them with more of a spark attacking up the middle than Gourcoff at the moment though. Gourcoff is not the future, no, but he does have some talent. Still a young lad but he does have the skillset to be quality in the near future IMO. He needs someone to polish him, someone like Arsene. Btw, they need to get Sakho as a centre back on the team. Agreed here. Never understood the green light for Green in the first place. Agree again. I don't thikn of Rooney as highly yourself but I do think that he's head and shoulders above Altidore. I've said this the last two years and maybe I'm wrong but its just a personal opinion, Altidore does not have the work rate. He's lacking significantly in that department IMO. Slovenia can get sloppy in the back IMO. They need to be careful. I think they allowed very few goals in qualifying but that team is prone to mental mistakes. I don't see how. This is the second time in the last two World Cups that a Serbian idiot has put out his fist and hit the ball. Last time, the guy cost them the game and its the same result this year. Serbia may have talent but their passion and intelligence (doesn't apply to all players) is not the same level that it used to be. They play for the money nowadays, not for the country and that's a major disappointment considering in truth, that's all the Balkans are about. In the Bosna national team, it has changed a bit. We're always going to have a guy who plays for the money, that's expected, but we've got quite a few guys on the squad who play for their country and whilst we haven't made the World Cup yet or any significant tournament, they work hard and play with passion. They are running hard on the pitch for 90+ every time they are out there. Ciro, the Bosnian coach as we call him, has done a good job ridding of the guys who don't want to be there. Don't sleep on Asamoah Gyan (sp?). He is quality IMO. I liked how they knocked Ronaldo off the ball. Sure they got some yellows for it but they didn't let him have his way and it's a major reason why I think they were the better team in that game, they just didn't net a goal to prove it on the stat sheet.
I agree they are of quality and I respect them. I just don't have the respect for them that I have for Brazil and Germany. You've got to do something to earn respect and honestly, the Euro Cup is not enough for me.
Even crazier, doesn't 2H face off against the winner of the group of death? That could potentially set up Brazil vs. Spain in the round of 16. I really don't know about Spain, though. I mean, although it was against Honduras, Chile (especially Sanchez) looked very impressive to me as well. Spain could be in a world of trouble, and honestly, I hope they are... they should get an automatic 3 points against Honduras, but that game against Chile will be key. If Chile beats Switzerland, and Switzerland beats Honduras... then Spain will HAVE to beat Chile.
So you made that determination when exactly? Before he played in his first world cup and before his 18th birthday? He has been GOOD for USA Soccer. PERIOD. He is 20 years old. The book is in chapter 1 for Altidore.
potatoe..potato. Either the Nork's were great or Brazil was terrible. Here in the states you had to lay 130 to take Brazil -3. 180 to take brazil -2.5. That made them (brazil) the biggest favorites in a opening round game in WC betting history. We shall see how N. Korea does vs. the rest of the group. I tend to think it was a poor Brazilian effort combined with a gutsy N. Korean effort. Anyway..my complaint were those first 30 minutes. That was wretched.
Agreed, that being said, time to prove something....score a goal or 2.....He gets the start every game, and is a striker, I dont care how old he is....he touches the ball doesnt he?? Podoloski was 21 when he scored 3 goals in 06.....if you are that good you'll score no matter what... The US cant live on goals from Dempsey and Donovan, and expect to win this thing.....
Relax there, killer. In the last year, not two, that was my mistake. I didn't say he wasn't good for the US. I said his work rate is not high in my opinion. I didn't say he was absolute ****. No need to sabotage my post simply because I disagree with you.
Well, for me Altidore is a good prospect simply because he can attack down the flank and there are few players fast enough to keep up with his run, against England Altidore or Dempsey speeding down the sideline was at times the only offense the US had in the second period. I happily defer to those such as yourself and Boom ( )who watch more soccer than I'd ever dream, but it is just my opinion on Altidore.
I am not sabotaging anything. I am challenging your assertion. You went out of your way to take a dump on Altidore. I am asking you what evidence other than "just opinion" you have to point to him not having a high work rate which is the nice way to call him lazy.
I didn't take a dump on him. He has talent, I agreed with you that he's good for the country but I didn't agree with the high praise of him. As for evidence, I'm not sure how I can provide that when it's just watching him on the pitch. I don't feel that his work rate is high. If you disagree with me, that's fine, feel free to agree to disagree.
Switzerland should have won 2-0, #19 Derdiyok got unlucky, great shot, too bad it didn't roll over a little more. Although Spain hit the bar as well, but it was high which happens more often. Spain's two most recent losses are against the USA last year and Switzerland now[right?], both in South Africa. And yeah Alexei Lalas is annoying at times. Julie Foudy whose on occasionally is better, at least she won something!
"High Praise" is not coming from me. I just said he doesn't suck and that we just DON'T KNOW how good he will be. Agree to disagree is fine. My opinion is simple. I have none ....except that I think he has talent and alot of promise.
Lalas bothers me at times as well....but I do like that he challenges the conventional wisdom. If everybody just sits around and agrees all day...it makes for boring TV.
If his talent and promise were as high as you make he wouldn't have been a cast off at Hull, Xerez, and Villareal. The bottom line is that in soccer, 18-20 year old promising prospects are not let go easily. They sell for high prices. Jozy Altidore has not garnered much attention or anywhere close to a high price tag, and the fact that he's getting shipped around these clubs for low loan and transfer fees doesn't say a lot about what scouts and european clubs think of his talent and promise. But who knows, maybe he's a late bloomer like Iaquinta, Amauri, or Luca Toni. You never know. I, for one, hope he is
No not William too!!!!!!!!!!!! Kill those horns!!!! http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/new...p-2010-Prince-William-plays-the-vuvuzela.html
spain had a billion chances. they are so skilled. the swiss just believed in themselves and their gameplan. forget possession. pack it in and pick your spots to counter spain may have left a goal or two on the field but the swiss left one as well
thats true. my point earlier is that this type of thing will turn off american viewers. they dont have any tolerance for it and view of the soccer athlete (although its wrong). ep mentioned the premiere league. you can tell the english ref's attitude in the spain-swiss match, motioning for the players to get up
exactly, my non-soccer playing buddies who I make sit down and watch, hate that.....I had 15 people at my house for the Redcoat game, and they were getting into it.....they loved the US spirit of it all, but all they kept talking about was about how in general soccer players are p**sys cuz they cant stay up, and fake too much.......luckly they were ALL Celtics fans, and all I had to say was Paul Pierce
the sad thing is that the US-england game was played pretty straight up. that should have helped sway them a bit. but then if they tune in to see one of the great players of the world and find that he plays like a 12 year old, its a bad witness for the sport. of course there are the scoring issues that americans will probably never get over. what i have heard from friends is interesting. a lot of them think that a 1-0 result is inherently unfair. penalty kick overtimes are pretty contentious too. playing 90 minutes to have something settled that seems sort of arbitrary and not really related to the normal ways of scoring. it think it also comes down to who has played it. i dont mean youth leagues. kids play in there because their parents think they will get hurt playing other sports. there is a certain players appreciation that is unique imo. its not just about the scoring
For americans..it is different. VERY different. Very hard for a 20 year old to cross the atlantic and be effective. Look at Brandon Jennings in the NBA...he was terrible in Italy. Is Italian basketball better than the NBA? It is just hard for a 20 year old to go into that type of football on a team like Hull City (of all places) and play well on a relegated team. If the roles were reversed and the best leagues were in the US...young stars from europe would probably come over here and suck as well.
No doubt about it. You have no idea how much Dunga is hated by the brazilians. The media is all over him 100% of the time. less than 20% of the brazilians believe he can win this WC. I agree it's a ugly style, specially for brazil's squad which used to be aggressive, but I have to admit it's efficient and might be enough to take this championship, this team remembers me of 94', though we don't have Romário now, who was SUPER that WC. For now my bets (in no specific order) are: 1st tier Argentina Brazil England Germany Netherlands US 2nd tier Ghana Italy Nigeria Portugal I was never fond of Spain, and after today I still believe they can't make it. For the first time I like all the other South American's squads though, Uruguay, Paraguay, Chile I think all of them will make strong pushes to the second stage.
Young South American players cross the Atlantic in their teens all the time and succeed. I think you're using geography as an excuse in this discussion and, IMO, it doesn't really apply. Altidore has now had 3 years to adjust and make an impression and he apparently hasn't done so. The 3 teams in 3 years is evidence of that.
Altidore signed on in 2008 and played in 2008-10. he has played in what is less than one full season as a professional overseas. Villareal payed 11 million to store him on the bench. it is evident that he had maturity issues. So it is not 3 teams in "3 years". and again...Americans are different. Young South Americans making it is again apples and oranges. Americans are different animals.
Ah, the World Cup in 1994, I have great memories of that tournament. That Brazilian team was loaded with talent, Romario, Bebeto, Aldair, Leanardo and of course the current manager Dunga. Even the Italians had great talent in the Baggio brothers, Donadoni, Baresi and Maldini. How the current Italian team could do with a striker of Roberto Baggio's quality.
You're calling my analogy apples and oranges, but you made an analogy using an NBA basketball player playing in Italy....And you never really explained why it's apples and oranges with South Americans and Americans Is it because the culture differences? I'll assume so. Anyway, I don't feel like arguing on about it. We'll just have to agree to disagree. For the record I do hope you're right and I'm wrong. I'd have no problem with that. Time will tell.
This year he may just be right about Italy The rest of his list however is a headscratcher. Ghana, Nigeria, US, and Portugal ahead of Spain? Today's Swiss game was a fluke, nothing else
Exactly. Americans are the slowest to mature. Especially in sports. Americans are born lazy. Too many options. Kids from the third world are ten times more hungry than the average american. Especially the prodigy athlete in The US that is pushed through "academy's" taught with personal coaches..have every advantage as far as leagues to join...etc...
sure they're on my 2nd tier of favorites,but yet I still have Italy as one of them, despite the mess that squad is right now IMO. The Azzurra needs Pirlo back ASAP, but I won't scratch them from off my list because Italy is always Italy....as I did in 2006 and they made me eat crow, but for now they doesn't inspire me much.