World Cup

[John Dolva]

I think the final will be Brazil Argentina. Unfortunately I think the latter will win. John said something about star players making poor coaches but that not the case with Marradona. He knows how to get the best out of his players.

I agree, Len, but I'd add Germany as a poss. However after Brazils latest (+a lifelong admiration for Brazil, Pele used to awe me) I think the one to beat is Brazil.

[Len Colby]

Duuhoo!! Damm Brazil played so well in the 1st half then fell apart after the own goal. I was disapointed by Ghana's loss teams shouldn't advance due to cheating.

I could well be proven wrong in aabout 2 hours but think the final will be Netherlands Argentina

[John Dolva]

Duuhoo!! Damm Brazil played so well in the 1st half then fell apart after the own goal. I was disapointed by Ghana's loss teams shouldn't advance due to cheating.

I could well be proven wrong in aabout 2 hours but think the final will be Netherlands Argentina

Anyway, the hat wasn't too bad, a bit spicy perhaps. A good pick, methinks, Len. The Hollanders come so close sometimes, moreso lately. A win at some point is a matter of time. The wierdest upset would be the US (unless I've misread the fixtures) and one in particular that would cast doubt over the cup in general is a real possibility of Germany (again without checking the latest).

edit:typo

Edited July 3, 2010 by John Dolva

[John Dolva]

Well picked, John.

Care to share your insights?

[John Simkin]

The World Cup showed the dominance of European over South American football. Unfortunately, the final showed that the Europeans are also very good at stopping other teams play. Luckily, the Spanish, who play delightful football, ended up as the winners.

In 1963 Alf Ramsay claimed that the Argentina team played like animals. I wonder what he would have said about the performance of the Netherlands last night?

[Mike Tribe]

I agree that Spain was the most skillful team there and that, on the night, they fully deserved to win. The Dutch, who invented total football, tried to substitute total mayhem in order to stop the Spanish. Webb should have been far firmer and brought out red cards much earlier. Holland could easily have been down to 9 men inside the first 45 minutes. The British game is much more physical than it is in Spain, but the referee let so much go unpunished that it just encouraged more of the same.

I must admit, though, that I'm not a fan of the Spanish style of play. It's very skillful. The passing is beautiful. But, when all's said and done, the point of the game is to put the ball in the back of the net, and that's something Spain didn't do very much in South Africa...

A little curiosity pointed out by one of my ex-students: Which was the only team to leave SA with an unbeaten record in this World Cup?

[Mark Haley]

A little curiosity pointed out by one of my ex-students: Which was the only team to leave SA with an unbeaten record in this World Cup?

That'll be New Zealand Mike.

Meanwhile, the Final was quite disappointing really. My feeling was that Howard Webb would probably let the Dutch get away with a bit more physical challenges which would give them half a chance against a Spanish team that has been passing teams off the park for a couple of years now.

When Robben finally got a chance - and missed it, I was sure there would only be the one winner -Spain.

Iniesta duly obliged, though he cut it fine.

Other teams are going to have to come up with a way of nullufying Spain's pass and move game, preferably without resorting to the heavy handed tactics employed by Holland last night, or I can see them winning the European Finals in 2 years time.