Twenty years on from his breakout efforts at Italia ’90, Paul “Gazza” Gascoigne continues his tragic, downward spiral as he was admitted to hospital after a car accident in his home town of Newcastle upon Tyne.
Vuvuzela: Call It This Cup’s Atmospherics
Succeroos
Sorry, but no: despite an over-zealous red-card of Cahill (versus two well-deserved yellows for Teutonic dives), Australia was more conspicuous in stinking the Durban joint out tonight than Germany was in winning. Yes, four Gs are impressive. But Germany scored that many in their maiden match in 2006 against Costa Rica–who, frankly, …
Efficient
Lukas Podolski and Miroslav Klose only managed three goals apiece during the entire Bundesliga campaign last season. Within 30 minutes of Germany’s opening fixture against Australia, they’ve both scored. Just what is it about the World Cup and the Germans coming good?
Argentina Almost Thwarted by the Hands of God
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCaL82Au1wU&feature=related]
On a weekend that will be remembered for goalkeeping howlers, it’d be remiss to not applaud the efforts of Nigerian goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama, who was named man of the match on Saturday despite his side losing 1-0 to Argentina. Enyeama pulled off a string of …
Forget “les Bleus”; Allez les Verts!
Just how out of touch are the French pols who–led by President Nicolas Sarkozy and his government–continue to stigmatize immigrants and “foreign” forces undermining French national identity? Just six months after French politicians angrily denounced the supposed treason of French ethnic Arab youths celebrating the Fennecs securing …
England’s Coach Must Share the Blame With its Goalkeeper
Robert Green’s U-8 howler will go down in history as the reason England failed to beat the USA in their opening World Cup encounter on Saturday, but for me the problems lay in coach Fabio Capello’s selections, and his substitutions.
Miss of the Day
Probably best to leave post-match analysis of last night’s England vs U.S. game to the others (I don’t want to hog all the England chat just because I’m English) but simply had to share this with you all.
Keeping ScoreWorld Cup
At the Barstool, Measuring Argentina’s Angst
No country entered this World Cup more stressed out than two-time champ Argentina, home to arguably the best player on the planet, Lionel Messi. The team failed to impress during the qualifying season, and many Argentinians have questioned the qualifications of their coach, Diego Maradona, a national hero, and headache. Maradona, whose …
England Hands the U.S. a Tie
The scoreboard at the Royal Bafokeng Stadium in Rustenburg was inoperative tonight. So was England’s goalkeeping.
World Cup: US vs England – The Martians Have Landed
One of the lasting images of the first World Cup in Africa has to be the sight of 500 England fans turning a tin-roof township shack into a pub outside the stadium in Phokeng where their team plays the US in exactly an hour.
The U.S. and England Go To War
Dispensing with the customary platitudes that swirl around the World Cup — of how it unites and knits together disparate peoples — the famous Dutch coach Rinus Michels once likened football with “something like war,” a challenge that required thinking of your opponent as the consummate enemy. The English and Americans have a longer …
Day 2 World Cup Predictions
South Korea vs. Greece
Probably not destined to be a classic, these are two sides with the resources to cancel one another out, both having learned to prioritize a disciplined, defensive work ethic to compensate for their limited attacking power. In that respect, though, without having watched either team lately, I’m inclined to give …