brasil v croatia
—
mexico v cameroon
•
ethpaña v holland
•
shiiiile po’ v aussie aussie aussie (oi oi oi)
brasil v croatia
—
mexico v cameroon
•
ethpaña v holland
•
shiiiile po’ v aussie aussie aussie (oi oi oi)
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tactical cam seems to be ahead of main feed. highlight reel is still showing anthems at 6:00 of game, but it’s definitely cut and edited.
Excellent! I’ve got my Univision stream going at work, sound muted. The festival outside my window includes someone playing Careless Whisper, badly. Very, very badly.
HOLY SHIT
Whoa, Croatia!
:Own goal?
Sadly I missed it, while replying to Mundy about the doves.
marcelo looked a little misty eyed and that was honestly endearing.
A lot of the Brazilian players looked teary and red eyed in the tunnel and during the anthem. I wonder if they needed something to snap them out it.
They’re probably just stoned.
ref might be feeling the crowd a little.
Croatia’s gameplan seems solid: get the ball on Brazil’s feet and see what happens.
gettin’ hot!
That was a hell of a save.
Ooh, cool goal line thingie.
Are we doing water breaks, or is that only in the tropical games?
haven’t heard anything about water. is there a stop on the clock or do players just grab a bottle as they run past the bench?
I thought they were going to stop the clock once each half. Maybe I made that up.
Just said they weren’t needed tonight but they could have them.
stop doubting yourself. goal line tech confirms the goal!
snuck it right in there.
It’s on now.
fuck it. WC over.
Dang it, stop watching for a second to do my job and I miss goals. Clearly I need to quit.
Obligatory DAT ASS in honor of Hulk.
That Croatian player has two separate instances of three consecutive consonants in his name.
Vrsaljko? Technically, the second sequence is only two consonants, as “lj” is one letter, much like Spanish “ll”
Whoa! That’s awesome.
which bit?
The aerosol can stuff.
that was invented in argentina!!
Ian Darke is insufferable. Univision for me any game he does, but sadly I missed the best part of their broadcast when one of their guys says “EN VIIIIIIVVVVVVOOOOOOOO” at the kickoff.
i’m watching the portuguese feed on ESPN because i can’t seem to find the button that embiggens the image in univision and the picture is better in ESPN anyway.
oh wait. i’m talking streaming. you might be on an actual, what were they called again? …tel-uh-veee-shon.
He’s a lot better than what we had before, although I wouldn’t mind the occasional shutting up. And McManamanamanaman’s Liverpudlian lilt is reasonably nice.
Univision…so much shouting.
seems like a foul.
4th ref would get more people to pay attention to that ad if he spun it and did tricks.
when they all put their shoes in line like that it makes me want skittles.
bullshit.
absolute bullshit.
Agreed.
Ridiculous call.
Wow.
Thanks, and go As.
I love how this guy says controversy.
Ian Darke is awesome and I don’t care what anybody else says.
Thanks, and go As.
“Goodness me!” LOL
this crowd, this ref. they seem to have a… yen for each other.
You know.. I like Brazil, but I’d really love for Croatia to get an equalizer here.
Thanks, and go As.
Holy shit.
Thanks, and go As.
Tough game for Croatia, based on my only sporadic watching at work, no sound while doing so, and my very rudimentary understanding of the game to begin with, it seemed like Croatia deserved much better than the final score indicates.
Yeah, it was a rough one. I hope that third goal doesn’t hurt them in the end on goal difference.
They played very well, but to be fair Brazil did score for them.
The PK was clearly not a PK, but we’re also afforded video replay so we can see the dive in slow motion.
Though, they did score a goal that was disallowed because of a shitty call on a challenge against the goalie with the ball in the air still.
Thanks, and go As.
but the own goal was a forced error on play that if he doesn’t make, it’s also a goal, in other words, he didn’t make the play and it was a goal even though he managed to touch it, so not just a fluke OG, at a moment when croatia was creating more chances, if we’re being really fair.
apart from the 2 known score-changing calls, and a couple sympathetic small bends, ref didn’t call a clear foul on a croatian running away with the ball just at the edge of the box too.
this game is believable ending 2–2. and it could honestly have been 2–1 croatia (though that last goal was probably coming for brazil no matter what, since it was the last minute).
i was clearly out of my mind with rage. i downgrade to 1=1 believable. 1–2 brazil likely, with LMB handicapping.
Yeah, Brazil was clearly a better team, and they could have scored on some other occasions in the first half, too. But, here’s the thing – they didn’t. And that is exactly the essence of soccer, you don’t get points for being better, but for actually scoring goals, and it is possible that without the penalty the score stays 1:1.
So, overall, I’m fine with Brazil winning, but I find it a pity that it happened like this.
I can’t believe the ref gave a yellow on top of the pk. Was that for the foul, or for dissent? Is this ref the Laz Diaz of Japan or something?
Had to have been for dissent, but that’s because half the team flipped out on him when he called it.
Thanks, and go As.
I didn’t think they flipped out that bad at all considering the circumstances. One guy got in his face pretty good, but that was after the yellow came out.
Not 100% sure then, but ref dude ran away pretty fast and then showed the card.
Thanks, and go As.
computer froze. missed that 2nd croat goal. need replay.
and i thought the croat goalie had been so good. kinda spoils even being able to complain about 2-2 when it’s 3-1.
I never know what the right call is on those plays where the guy going up for the header takes out the keeper. The keeper usually gets the call, but he probably shouldn’t a lot of the time.
i’m not seeing the foul.
https://vine.co/v/MjU1JTuVPDE/embed
Really? His right arm?
ok. saw replay. am fuming.
i waited 4 years for this and one game in, it’s already as tainty as my bike seat.
I’m now picturing your tainted bike seat.
Oh! Tainted bike seat oh oh oh. tainted bike seat..now I know Ive got to CLAP CLAP run away!
One problem with the World Cup is that the non-European and South American reffing crews are just not as good. And when you have a Euro-South America matchup, the ref has to be from outside those continents, right?
they got CONCACAFed.
Thanks, and go As.
Speaking of, the ref for the Argentina game is from El Salvador…
Oh, well, at least I drank tons of beer
This made me laugh.
OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG OMG
Thanks, and go As.
Ronaldo limped out of Portugal’s training session with a possible recurrence of his tendinitis.
Hee
Find more statistics at Statista
now i’m annoyed by the way neymar takes penalties. in baseball terms, he balks until the batter swings, then throws a soft strike.
Strickly considered, it was against the rules
so… again with my clumsy knowledge of TVdom.
i can expect the mexico game to be on regular ESPN TV, yes? like if i go to the gym and turn it on to channel 9 (10?), it’ll be there? not re-runs of NFL pre-draft or something clearly more important than a live competitive event?
Chronicle says ESPN2 (and Univision).
oh duh. they do have uni-v at the Y.
You’re better off with univision for this one. ESPN’s Mexico announcers are so boring.
there’s no ESPN spanish simulcast for the mexico game?
:(
yep, the p•to chant has been exported to brazil…
LET’S GO CAMEROON!
Merry New Year!
So obnoxious. I was intending to root for Mexico today, but their fans…sheesh. It’s so loud that I wonder if some Brazilians aren’t joining in the fun.
oooh. ON-sides.
shall we start counting games that have been goal-affected, or do we just assume it’ll be 100%.
Both of those goals should have counted, right? (I was watching on my phone, so I couldn’t really tell.)
i couldn’t tell if it actually touched a head on the 2nd one. first one for sure.
Last night I had a dream about AV. We were on a prison softball team together.
i feel privileged.
As long as I’m a pitcher and not a catcher…I’m in.
That corner call was remarkably bad.
Marquez and Eto’o. This is like a Barcelona old timers game.
This Cameroun coach is the most dour looking SOB of all time.
He gets that way by watching Raiders game film.
That’s also how I punish my kids when they’re very bad. Nothing else works.
He’s a futbol coach coaching futbol players for a futbol team, after all.
Excellent.
he looked like a wet dog by the end.
Christ, Chicharito. What happened to you?
It’s looking like a Mexico-Croatia showdown for second. Goal difference going into that last one is going to matter unless something weird happens.
I am hoping upon hope that the Croats win
Thanks, and go As.
Mexico always manages to get out of the group, mostly because they always seem get relatively easy groups. What I wouldn’t give to have Cameroon instead of Ghana on our schedule.
Yup.
Thanks, and go As.
Brazil-Mexico is a full day ahead of Croatia-Cameroon, so at least Croatia will know whether it is worth trying for a lot of goals or just securing the win. Then again, they’ll have less rest against Mexico.
And now for our other home team…
Are the Dutch in the World Cup? I need a team to hate.
done and done.
An actual serious soccer question…will the American team be a threat to win the Cup in the next twenty years?
I think so. Certainly not a favorite, but a dark horse, especially the next time we host one.
If the team becomes really good that would help the popularity of the sport here.
i think the continued existence of MLS (or whatever its called) will lead to soccer being viewed as much as baseball.
Soccer is an easy game to understand for kids. Mine want to go see the earthquakes right now. They play soccer. they will grow up appreciating it in a way I never did.
Soccer is a better sport for kids to play than baseball as well. It’s easier to play and you get to run around. I actually think baseball will be like hockey in 50 years. A niche sport. It’s too slow and the game seems to be getting slower.
You also don’t have a bunch of kids with fucked up elbows from trying to throw 100mph
Thanks, and go As.
Soccer just needs to get rid of headers.
No.
Quite possibly. They’ve been doing a really good job getting players to commit to the US instead of other countries, there are 5 guys on the team now who are all in their early 20s and are Germans, plus one from Iceland and one from the Netherlands. Plus, MLS is getting better and starting to attract talent that’s not completely over the hill.
The US will always lose athletes to football/baseball/basketball though, so it will take longer for us to compete with other countries.
Thanks, and go As.
I like how the WC has actual stars, unlike that shit show MLB tries to put on.
Playing in (and winning) the World Cup is something people cherish for life, and makes legends.
The All Star Game is a weekend break for baseball players.
Thanks, and go As.
I’m talking about the WBC.
Gosh, I had actually forgotten the World Baseball Classic existed. I’d rather watch paint dry.
These bastards must go down and they must go down hard.
I share a haircut with one of those bastards…I’ll let you figure out which one.
he saw your haircut and said, i’m robben it.
Typical Dutch move right there.
so, streaming at work? is where?
http://futbol.univision.com/fifa-copa-mundial/
I’m old enough to think streaming has something to do with trout fishing.
Mexico and Netherlands are the two teams I root for apart from the U.S. Doesn’t seem to be common here…
I’m cool with the Netherlands as long as De Jong and Van Bommel aren’t out there trying to end people.
They played clean/normal every game except the final last time. And constant fouls is maybe a more enjoyable underdog approach than playing 10 back.
That’s not my recollection at all. They were very rough in the Brazil game at least. Anyway, I’m still bitter about De Jong pretty much ruining Stuart Holden’s career with a two-footer from behind in a damn friendly.
Constant fouls maybe…. Constant brutal fouls, not even remotely
Hard for me to tell the difference given that both catgories require fainting couches for half the team while they nurse their ankles until the compressed air cures them.
How ’bout this?
Which reminds me, this business of the ref saying he didn’t have a clear view…huh?
It was below the shoulders, clearly not enough for the red card
he couldn’t see the cleats, whether they actually penetrated the skin or just the jersey.
That looks dangerous – he could sprain his ankle.
I’ll root for Mexico…that just seems neighborly.
Mexico has great food, which is how I decide if a country is any good or not, so I’m Team Mexico.
I mean what do the Dutch eat? Besides the tears of orphans.
Hollandaise sauce. Straight from the bottle.
I’ll just assume the bottle is made out of wood.
Giant balls of cheese mostly.
When I eat with my Swedish relatives it’s mostly stuff that looks like bait.
Space cakes.
Tough one. I traditionally sided with the Dutch, but lately they have a few players that I just don’t find that likeable (add a coach to that), and I hate how they ruined what could have been one of the best finals ever. On the other hand, they do have the most likeable fans there are
See: Robben, Arjen
he’d certainly be more likable if he was just a fan.
National Anthem Power Rankings:
1. Italy
2. Germany
3. Canada
4. …..
Does Hasselhoff sing the German anthem?
Surprisingly I never did a Top 10 National Anthems list on AN.
I just assumed you would list the USSR 10 times and be done with it.
Only if Nikolai Volkoff is singing it.
With the Iron Sheik holding the flag.
can’t really leave out the marsaillaise. maybe even put it up top.
ours is so long they only play the instrumental preamble at these things. doing the fans that favor has got to count for something. it’s nicely dynamic piece of classical-romantic music though. as far as anthems go, i kinda like it.
I miss Spain’s red kits.
When the A’s wear red they call it Ruby.
“If he smiles, it’s usually by accident. ” LOL
damn
Wow. Walks away from a contract because they couldn’t spell his name correctly?
Yeah, I think we need more information on that story.
o’mma Gibbons (or someone with a siminar name, I don’t really remember) was a back out center at UCLA in the mid 90s. part of the reason he chose UCLA was that they spelled his name correctly on recruiting material.
Maybe they spelled it f-u-c-k-y-o-u
Lot of banana peels out there.
That was very soft.
XABI!
Tolosarra! :)
He comes from the same village/town as Edurne Pasaban, possibly the world’s greatest female climber
This announcer is annoying the shit out of me.
So, the Spanish dudes in dresses…what’s going on there?
Tremendous goal
vp’s header? amazing. been wondering if it was presence of mind to be able to head it in a lob over casillas while fully extended in the air, or just luck.
Yep. Tough to say, because he didn’t seem to look at Casillas. I’m giving him credit for it because I want it to be on purpose.
cute if slightly edited to make the euro-5 look more american.
These British announcers always act like the Premier League angle is of more interest than the actual game. STFU with that.
Jesus Christ you British wankers nobody cares about Manchester United right now and he didn’t even jump in his arms, he awkwardly flubbed a high five with him.
euro-5.
and they were only talking about the EPL because jeter isn’t on either team.
Later it was “off comes Manchester City’s David Villa, on comes Chelsea’s latest signing Cesc Fabregas.” Has no one told this moron that he’s broadcasting for Americans, not English?
are there stars who are not playing because their country is not playing?
The two big ones are Zlatan Ibrahimovic of Sweden and Gareth Bale of Wales.
Yup
I totally read and understood everything in that
grillparrillayou’re gonna make GM cry. (zlatan ibrahimovic. top 5 type player worldwide, but sweden didn’t qualify.)
chech (chezch), bale (wales), and others whose last name don’t rhyme with their countries’ names too.
I have the sudden urge to head to Brazil.
White kits and rain? (swoon)
WET T-SHIRT CONTEST!
We definitely got to see Iker’s ass.
oh! and there was a moment when one of the spanish players’ pants were halfway down his bum, and his undies were wet and transparently showing crack… when the hand on the brazil WC logo seemed to zoom in and make a grope for it. i chuckled.
Da susjedu crkne krava…
Life wisdom from Zagorje, a place where wisdom is especially cherished – “The important thing in life is that the neighbor’s cow dies”, applied to this joint celebration of Netherlands’ equalizer..
(The guy in blue is holding a pamphlet demanding that Basque prisoners serve there sentences in the Basque country)
i don’t know why south american dictator hats are the rage in holland, but i do know i laughed my ass off when this guy started a conga line near the 4–1, 5–1 part of the game.
Both those goals were amazing.
Hello, Spanish center backs? Have you ever seen Robben play before? Did no one tell you he always, always, always shoots with his left?
Yeah, that was like sitting on a Mariano Rivera’s curveball
He was going for the ball, not guarding, just didn’t get there in time.
He should not have gambled but stayed on Robben’s left side. He ws getting help from the other side, the angle was worse, and he is really extremely more likely to finish with left.
Fair enough.
See, 5:1
Every. Single. Time.
DA FUCK WAS THAT?
This is awesome.
SHUT UP ABOUT MANCHESTER UNITED YOU ASS
If it’s any consolation, the commentary in England was half-decent and not nearly as EPL-obssessed as it sounds like you all suffered.
Can’t escape vince, can you?
Van Persie says, “I’m so happy you are going to be coaching me at Manchester United,” and Van Gaal says “for us to be successful together in England, which is a situation in which we have to turn that ship around after a season with less success than the people of Manchester are used to, it will help if you have the confidence to trust in yourself to do the things you are capable of, which is what you just did.” And the reality is, Wayne Rooney is watching this and wondering whether he will get off the bench next season.
hahahahahaaha
If I had to bet which half of my household would have worse goal differential after Game 1, I would have probably been wrong
I guess Spain doesn’t like playing in Brasil. They already lost 6:1 here once
Casillas…….
i don’t know how he made those last two consecutive saves. he looked like a boxer in the 11th round of split decision.
I was thinking the same thing. The save on Robben was pretty good considering what he had just been through.
Does he start against Chile? I might consider Reina.
the clockworkick spanking of cup babies.
geez. chile’s gonna make australia look like complete amateurs and run this up as high as 5–1 or something.
Gonna be a long couple of weeks, Aussies.
good jump. ‘roos aren’t out yet.
love daytime international soccer.
are you getting a regresaremos pronto message on the univision stream?
is the Uruguay national anthem part of the opening credits to a college romp comedy movie?
We’re finally gonna get that crusty old
deangeneralissimo.Wait, you are not allowed to hug the other team?
wait, so you are allowed to hug the other team?
I think that’s the first “I’m pregnant” goal celebration I’ve see.
Hoooooooooooooooooly shit
a shocking turn!
Suarez time
Oh wow. C’mon Costa Rica, play better defense please.
This is a fun match.
I assume Costa Rica was the underdog in this one?
in name brand yes, but costa rica rose through qualifications to come in second in the final round of their qualifiers while uruguay declined steadily over the last 2 years and was forced to play off against new zeland for the 5th and last spot.
Uruguay gonna Uruguay there.
I didn’t know Manny Machado was Uruguayan.
FIFA considering review system
I’m watching what’s supposed to be the eng-ita per match show on ESPN3 and it’s just a live feed of a helicopter cam sweeping over Manaus. Pretty cool, actually.
Quality spray paint job on the field. Looks very green from the helicopter at least.
With a name like Immobile this guy was born to play for Italy.
I only picked up this game at 65:00, has England been this ineffectual on offense the whole way?
not completely. they did manage to out-dive italy…
Two goals just a few minutes apart by Ivory Coast to go on top of Japan 2-1.
Japan running out of steam
They were in complete control in the first half. Not so much now.
that was a pretty choice day. all fun games, a bunch of drama (not too much involving bad calls), and goals! goals! goooooals!
Watch out Swiss, Ecuador have come to play. They’re my new dark horse semi-finals contender.
anybody else hear a p•to-like chant during the CIV-JPN game? directed at both goalies. my first thought was that they were mexico fans at someone else’s game, but this game wasn’t at the stadiums mexico played last / plays next. (though it’s admittedly not that far from those.) so i think it’s not just mexico fans anymore. and now watching SUI-ECU, there’s an as-of-yet unconvincing but still noticeable chant coming from brasilia.
i think it’s too late. it will be a thing for this cup.
i didn’t notice. All I hear is white noise
maybe it’s me… i tend to hear latino noise.
that’s raices
I heard it. I assumed it was something else in Japanese though.
the swiss aren’t much for break aways, huh.
“bliss for the swiss.” ian wrote that one on a cocktail napkin like a week ago and couldn’t wait to use it.
that’s nothing, I’ve been sitting on the raices for a year since Theo was leaning about trees.
that’s funny.
Deloreans for the Ecuadoreans was too forced.
Refs blow it again.
wonder if there’s a place on the internet tracing the alternate reality of what would happen if all calls were correct just to see the repercussions down the line from seemingly small reffy-boops. this one’s not small. there’s a 6-point swing at play if ecuador scores late.
That was a really horrendous call. Worse than either of the Mexico ones, to me. I don’t understand why the linesman doesn’t tell the ref “offside, but only if it touched the Swiss player.”
Ecuador looked great for the first 30 minutes, playing well as a squad, but since then they’ve played like desperate individuals.
I respect Switzerland. They have some talented players and they punch above their weight. But I always feel like the tournament improves after they leave.
I take it all back. That was awesome.
justice.
Well that was something.
Wow, that’s a crushing end for Ecuador.
Good games so far.
now that i’ve heard ian pronounce benzema i can’t remember which is the correct way to say eczema.
I like that all these generic British commentators are “Ian” to you.
But it could be either Eee-an or Eye-an, it’s not like they all sound the same to him.
Or Iain (eye-ain?)
I have a friend “Ean”
It’s pronounced Gor-dawn.
i noticed that too and didn’t know which one i was wrong on, so just blindly continued on. and i pronounce it i-ÃN, all spanish like.
(this is official-ian on the france game, yes?)
This isn’t Darke. He’s in Natal for USA-Ghana tomorrow. Could very well be a different Ian.
i swear it sounds the same to me.
I haven’t understood a word of the world cup so far.
I mean, i think I know what “tranquilo” means, but I can’t really place the context
Sseeee Laaaaaaaa Perrrrrrrrdiooooooooo
i can’t stand the guy who says gol gol gol gol gol gol gol gol gol gol gol. and i heard what you wrote in his voice.
it means they just showed the coach doing the two-handed palms to the ground gesture.
the crowd noise loop during univision’s commercial breaks is fairly annoying.
and is their logo supposed to be one of colombus’ caravels? i might be reading too much into it.
uniwatching… honduras-france is the preppiest match so far.
cote-japan had the prettiest color combo. brazil-croatia was really good in the old-school way, but the slightly unusual shades (japan a little electric, cote a little papaya) in yesterday’s game put it ahead even if it was uni-colored unis.
am mad at greece’s all blue for forcing colombia to wear white shorts and socks. same-color shorts and socks (without the same color jersey) is probably the worst thing you can do in soccer kits. same socks and jersey looks OK. same jersey and shorts looks OK. but same socks and shorts (especially lighter than the jersey) makes the players look like they’re running on stilts.
Yes, those French jerseys don’t do anything to dull my instinct to not like them.
Man, that was dumb.
wait. now we’re gonna have controversy on wether GLT works in the first place?
I’m not sure about that one.
actually, from the camera about 15 feet from the goal line on the same side as the main camera, i kinda believe it and may have even seen some green between line and ball but they only showed that one once.
from the overhead (live feed cam) and from the reverse goal line angle i don’t believe it’s a goal but i have no conclusive evidence either.
I saw some screen caps somewhere from a better angle. Looks like it cleared the line by an inch or so. Yay technology.
That’s funny.
Those Hondurans have a hard edge about them, and reckless. France are making them pay for it too.
gulp. that moment when you look to see who’s next and realize YOU’RE next.
n~e~r~v~o~u~s!
Good luck!
crap the fuck! my home feed is blocked in the US.
Are the words to the Arg anthem just “Ohhhhhhhhh”?
http://freekraut.net/?p=14379#comment-416772
Disappointing shortage of longhairs in the Argentine team. Doesn’t seem right.
Well that was quick.
then slowed the hell down.
more chances for BiH. am very pleased not to be predictably disappointed with romero. i don’t want long balls, but my guys need to be more vertical instead of continuously running into the wall. defensively, i wasn’t pulling my hair every time the ball went to the left as is the custom, but one offside trap gone wrong and/or one unguarded man romero doesn’t somehow spiderman and maybe they’re up 2-1.
* vertical with passes: threaded, diagonal, et al.
señores y señoras, he has arrived.
I like how he got one Bosnian to tackle the other Bosnian for him.
theeeere’s the romero i’m dreading. i was falling in love too early with fernandez too for a while.
but way better 2nd half. was it really adding higuaÃn that opened the space up, or was the game also changing into stretching the teams? still, that D will need 5 at some moment and it’d be so great if the team could communicate rear to front playing that way.
i’m also taking away that they played so clean that the refs had to make stuff up to be able to call anything. next to BiH tackles, they looked like total saints. went with the haircuts.
and nice singing. we made a good spectacle.
Got to test out the acoustics for the final
nani
kaká
18 (jordi alba)
7 (ronaldo)
ibrahimovic
the names and numbers on the backs of the bodies bring so much “there but for the grace of” to the massacre photos. and putting together these two demonstrations of where we are in human development just blows my mind.
TODAY IS THE FUCKING DAY. HOLY SHIT.
Thanks, and go As.
must win. then shock portugal. 6 pts and through.
Unless Portugal can turn around this goal difference a bit, 3 points today and 1 on Sunday should put us in good shape. And If Germany can replicate this against Ghana they may play their second team against us.
JUST GOT EASIER THANK YOU PEPE
Thanks, and go As.
now they’re pulling their groins for your sake.
I’m ok with that.
Thanks, and go As.
How’s YOUR leg?
swollen again after playing yesterday.
Thanks, and go As.
1st round of groups isn’t even done and we already have the 2nd headbutt of the cup!
Pepe is such an idiot. Can’t say I’m not happy not to have deal with him on Sunday, especially the way Alves is playing.
I wish he’d at least have gotten his money’s worth, maybe make other would be floppers think…
This. Mueller should be ashamed of himself.
Also, calling this a headbutt is total bs. NFL players do 10x that after about 50% of all plays. Pepe got in Floppy McFloppenstein’s face, and talked shit. That’s it.
and in the NFL it’s acceptable to touch the ball with your hands, but soccer is a different sport and has different rules.
to clarify, even the talking shit part is a bookable offense. and the degree of force has nothing to do with calling this a headbutt or not, it’s the unsportsmanlike contact that is bookable.
Rules aside, chickenshit cheating is much more unsportsmanlike than getting in someone’s face about chickenshit cheating.
Right. I’m not saying he didn’t deserve a red card according to the rules. I’m saying that exchange is one of the many reasons I have a hard time watching soccer, and I’m surprised that people who do have the near-universal “Pepe is an idiot and Mueller did nothing wrong” reaction they do.
see? another difference. the NFL doesn’t have gods.
Luckily if you want your sport to feature that kind of stuff, there’s one out there for you.
As above, I’m just reacting to what I’m seeing. Maybe I’m spoiled because I also don’t watch much NBA, but I identified with the Pepe side of that interaction and if I were god of the sport I would consider the shameless flopping/injury-simulating a much bigger integrity problem than the fact that the target of that injury-simulating getting mad about it. The fact that that isn’t how soccer works is one of the reasons I have trouble seeing beauty in it.
Related
I agree that Mueller was shameful. Pepe is an idiot because under the norms of soccer you just can’t go head to head like that. There are no helmets in this sport, and the referee is understandably not tasked with trying to determine whether it was done with sufficient force to warrant sending off. The line is drawn where it’s drawn to keep things from getting out of control. It’s unfortunate that guys like Mueller try to take advantage of that to get a reaction out of notorious hotheads like Pepe, but it’s also unfortunate that Pepe can’t keep his shit together.
I guess. It’s just the same feeling I get when basketball went through its “step one toe on the court and all hell breaks loose” enforcement phase, or when Justin Smith was tossed for elbowing a ref who came up behind him in a scrum.
I’m not saying every sport needs to be hockey, just saying moments like that stick in my craw.
I also understand shit happens in the moment, but I don’t get the sense that Mueller is going to get punished in any way based on post-game review (and as I understand it there is no option to reduce Pepe’s penalty). Which means his crap is FIFA-endorsed. Which troubles me.
I hear you. That Suns-Spurs playoff series where half of Phoenix was suspended for leaving the bench still makes me mad. But I also get it, given the Malice in the Palace risk. And now players never, ever leave the bench and fights are much less crazy.
I’m with you on post-match discipline for flopping. That should have happened years ago.
how do germans not have a diving rep in soccer again?
Raycessness
Raul Meireles is a tin of shoe polish and a set of crazy eyes from being Brian Wilson.
This is some Keystone Kops shit from Portugal.
Maybe time to get Ronaldo out of this game? Not that I mind them wearing him out in a futile effort.
No, no, he needs to keep running. A lot.
Thanks, and go As.
Oh boy. Losing Coentrao would be very, very bad for Portugal.
Coentrao, Almeida, and Pepe (obv) are all out against USA on Sunday.
Have to assume Altidore is out for USA. Supposedly Besler is fine, they just subbed him off because his hamstring tightened up and they couldn’t get it loose for the second half so it was a precautionary thing.
I’m actually wondering if they won’t push Dempsey up top and play Mix at the attacking mid so Bradley can stay farther back like he likes.
Thanks, and go As.
Mix would have helped a lot yesterday. I’m sure Klinsi would have gotten him in the game, maybe for Dempsey, to try to grab hold of the ball a bit more if he hadn’t needed to use a sub on Besler.
I definitely wouldn’t mind a formation with Beckerman central and deep, Jones and Bedoya wide to deal with Ronaldo and Nani, Bradley and Mix central, and Dempsey alone up top. I would also want Fabian Johnson to be told to attack like crazy with Coentrao out. That will at least give Ronaldo something to think about, and Bedoya can do most of the chasing.
I don’t want Beasley playing, either.
Every time he tried to push forward he wasn’t fit enough to track back and defend. I was screaming for him to be subbed off before all the injury subs.
Thanks, and go As.
I thought he did alright in the part I saw (I missed a lot of the first half). Chandler offers some things Beasley can’t at this stage of his career, but I’m OK with picking Beasley for his smarts and experience. He might get overmatched physically at times, but he’s usually not going to do something dumb that exposes the centerbacks.
I may be slightly biased because of one of the first few Ghana attacks when the winger took Beasley 1 on 1 and juked him so hard that he ended up falling to the ground.
He did get better as the game went on, but he looked slow.
Thanks, and go As.
Yeah that was a bit embarrassing
it’s not a perfect team but germany sure looks like a finalist.
Yeah, but that’s what I thought the last time they beat the team featuring the world’s greatest player 4-0 in a World Cup.
yeah, but score lines can be deceptive. just because it was 4–0 again doesn’t mean TWGPâ„¢ was anywhere near this game.
Of course he wasn’t. Jeter is in NYC today.
and i thought we were talking about the notorious B.I.G.
damn you.
so far the blonde halftime commentator mostly likes to say so far.
apparently Michael Essien and Kevin Prince Boateng are both out for Ghana today
HOLY FUCKING SHIT WE CAN DO THIS.
Thanks, and go As.
irish guy on the radio had nothing but bad things to say abour Boataeng
from what I understand he’s a pretty dirty player
Thanks, and go As.
I don’t know about dirty, but he’s very flaky at least where Ghana is concerned. He played for them in the last World Cup, then “retired from international football” until magnanimously deciding to un-retire just in time for this World Cup. This was something like his 12th game ever for Ghana despite being a star in the Bundesliga for 5 or six years now.
Good player though. Ghana got way scarier once he came on.
also his (half) brother plays for Germany
Family dinners must be interesting.
Thanks, and go As.
I went to run some errands and was not expecting Irish guy on the radio. Could.Not.Stop.Laughing. I kept expecting him to say something like “They hafta to stop kicking it right in the shillelagh me laddy”.
right?
hey, even the first boring 0–0 can be a novelty.
does general patton there realize AC/DC is from australia?
Well how about that!
Holy shit…
aaaaaaaaiiighghghghghg!!
:O
I like these Washington Bullets unis.
oh mamma mamma mamma look there,
the children are playing in that street again…
Defense looks shaky, as usual…
Booming kicks up the field: 28
Passes: 3
18:15. altidore softly passes it to bradley and it’s 2-0. decides to whale it into 2 defenders while falling to the ground instead.
oh shit.
ok, no. you can’t do a high kick when you’re already in the air.
dempsey looked woozy right after. now he looks pissed.
Hell, Dempsey probably kicks himself in the head a few times in the locker room before games, just to get fired up.
They looked pretty terrible for 95% of that…
anybody catch the temp at field level?
Nice of Tim Howard to wear A’s colors today.
i’m hearing some kind of uto-sounding anti-goalie chant here. this is the stadium mexico played cameroon.
shit
i don’t know what that is but i’m guessing my feed is delayed…
whoa, i’m very delayed. i thought ESPN was a live feed.
I bailed on the computer feed and went to my phone, which seemed to be a few minutes ahead.
between you guys and the bar around the corner, i had zero surprises.
Soccer has arrived in the USA!
it’s just so hard getting people do drink during the workday in this puritanical society!
I’m with you
BlutoAV!phone’s only 15 seconds ahead right now.
everybody count 15 mississippis before posting!
WOOT
U-S-A! U-S-A!
Twellman pulled a Fosse yelp.
yep.
and [checks] ian momentarily lost the power of narrative and just said “USA!”
I’m following a live blog, not watching a feed. Is 5 minutes of stoppage time justifiable for this game?
i felt they didn’t give enough stoppage in the first half for altidore’s medevac.
‘MERICA FK YEAH
!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Wow.
This tournament is so good.
no lalas. not beautiful. redemptive, cathartic and memorable, but not beautiful.
Gahhhh Dempsey’s nose.
omg
Thanks, and go As.
“big man. big stage. big hair. big goal.”
oh “ian.”
Fellaini, I presume?
yep.
Thank you everyone for keeping stuff in this thread. I’m sure it helps with spoilers as well, but for someone who basically knows nothing about soccer it is great to have all the commentary in an easy spot to get read the wisdom. By the end of the cup I may be able to fake my way through comments in a bar for a couple of minutes..
having a real tough time choosing sides here.
i mean, as soon as i realized that wasn’t belgium against brazil. those colors are confusing.
Right? Mexico shouldn’t look like that.
Mexico’s coach is so lovable.
i can’t help but think of one of those taxidermied dressed frogs.
This game is great so far.
wow. ochoa vs 3 (4?) and wins (so far).
That was nuts. Were all those dudes onside?
yeah, looked like. it was a chest pass too.
From a centerback.
Brazil getting every call both the first two games…
only the uncalled corner made me mad. that’s 15% of a goal right there (or nothing at all).
this seems like bullshit.
I dont know from nothing though
which part?
free kick (?) to brazil when the mexican guy didn’t seem to touch the brazilian
I like the way the univision guy says “Jew lio Ceaser”
there. i said vamos mexico just now. it kinda just happened. but it happened.
man, the hivemind/groupthink on the internet sure is anti-brazil.
Thanks, and go As.
hivemind? i thought that was called democracy. and a valid way of deciding who’s right.
but i’m pretty sure i came to that decision all on my own, thankyouverymuch.
though you can’t really be surprised if
mob mentalitya majority will both favor the underdog and turn away from anybody perceived as receiving outside assistance.Just in general, not you you sensitive thing you!
Thanks, and go As.
I’M SENSITIVE? I’M SENSITIVE?? I’M MOTHFKCHAFPPOHDS SEN-SI-TEEEEEEV?????
oh wait. just noticed my diaper rash. carry on then.
Seriously. I don’t know where this came from exactly. I guess it’s that they have several players who look like d-bags (Neymar, Marcelo, Alves). Also this isn’t lovable artist Brazil. It’s gritty, grind out results Brazil.
what sites are you guys reading? i haven’t actually seen any evidence of people rooting against brazil. and i’ve seen way more yellow jerseys around town than any other country other than the US.
I always root against them. I’ve been sick of the relentless asskissing since 1994, and the implication/suggestion from everyone on TV that I should be rooting for them because they’re great and isn’t it “glorious” and samba and stfu. (Actually they usually just take it for granted that I’m rooting for them.)
Puuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuurtfecty understandable
Ochoa is completely saving Mexico. Holy crap.
Thanks, and go As.
Really awesome game, best of the tournament so far.
0-0 can be awesome.
8A was A-1.
and he’s already immortalized in a corrido.
best thing about this result is that i can continue going to my brazilian-owned, mexican-worked pizza place every day and still play the neutral hand.
I love how for the nightcap ESPN moves the studio gang to some sort of wooden beach cabana set with a bowl of limes in the middle. Maybe Gilberto Silva will make caipirinhas for everyone.
I like the latest of the evolving titles of this post. A fresh post tomorrow seems like a good idea, if Capt. AV can make it so.
that’s what i was thinking.
Man, I wouldn’t want to meet any of those Russian players in a dark alley, they look mean.
Interesting, every player in the Russian squad plays for a Russian club. I think it’s the only country in this tournament with all 23 playing in the home league.
Putin made them offers they couldn’t refuse.
england has 22, with forster playing all the way in glasgow for celtic.
italy 20, germany 17, mexico 15.
ghana, IVC, uruguay, BiH: 1.
this russian goalie plays with a lot of hart.
—
worst part of watching thsi on the phone is that you can’t control when people call you. and i got a phone call right during the russian goal. did they show the offside graphics for that? seems there might have been a chance of offsides.
I think he’s just a bit Green.