Dont forget the Czech
A few people asked me why I had not reviewed day 3 to my surprise. So, despite time contraints, I will try to review as many days of the World Cup as I can from now on even though the posts might be a bit delayed.
With Croatia and Brazil the other two teams in the group, the team which lost this match could say the world cup good bye. So when Japan scored that goal, which most Aussie supporters won’t even call a goal (as it wasn’t), Australians were enraged. It has taken many years for the Socceroos to qualify and it would have been a shame if they went out this way. So, I felt delighted when Australia pulled back the game with three quick goals in eight minutes. The game saw short passes and plenty of opportunities for both teams. It was quite hot but I wasn’t impressed be either team to be honest. The Australian date with destiny in the match versus Croatia is set though.
When asked who will win the world cup, most people would say Brazil including me. Some would opt for Argentina, Holland, France or even Italy. How many people will give Czech Republic a chance? Despite the FIFA rankings being a joke (proven by the thrashing USA got), you have to stand up at take notice of the Czech Republic. They have a solid mid field and excellent attacking options. Apart from Nedved, they now have the young star - Rosicky!
Maybe the defense isn’t as strong but if you score more goals than your opponent, you are going to win the matches. For USA, a lot of people said that the tournament is crossroads for US soccer history. A lot of people are taking interest in the tournament and it will be a shame if they look away from the game just because the US fared badly in terms of results in the tournament - progress in a world game like football isn’t a joy ride and the Americans would need to understand this.
Italy vs Ghana 2-0
Italy won the game 2-0 but it could easily have been 1-0 for Ghana. These guys lost out because of not having enough experience. They had Michael Essien in their ranks of course - one of the best players there is. Even apart from him, the guys played fast paced and looked like scoring goals. Ghana should have at least drawn this game if they wanted to qualify. It will be quite tough versus the Czech though they can easily win versus the US. The Italians did not look like the shrewd Italy we know them as usually. This is reflective of the world game football truly is now. We have African teams, Asian teams, USA, Australia apart from the Europeans - the world cup.
Today’s Predictions:
South Korea 0 Togo 1
South Korea, a big story from 2002, find themselves in a fairly easy group and have a realistic chance of qualifying. Or do they? We haven’t seen an African nation cause an upset yet and I am banking on this to be the first.
France 1 Switzerland 0
A lot of people have faith in France despite age catching on for a few players. Zidane is looking good and France has the experience to make easy work of the Swiss challenge.
Brazil 2 Croatia 0
Despite the good side that Croatia is, can they face up to the Brazilian challenge? Not really. Kaka will score a goal and hopefully Ronaldinho will score another one. The world cup will truly come alive then. :)
Tags: Czech Football, FIFA World Cup 2006, Ghana, Italian Football, Japan, Socceroos.
June 13th, 2006 at 10:34 pm
Really, even though I don’t like USA and that I love to see them loose, I never expected them to be thrashed that bad. USA is a good team, what happened?
June 14th, 2006 at 4:54 am
One interesting aspect of the Aus-Japan game was the way Hiddink used his substitutes. I have often seen that managers are unwilling to sub their best players, in spite of the fact that they would have put in that extra effort and may have tired out mid-way. A lot of fans might have been furious when one of the better Aussie players Bresciano was subbed as early as the 52nd minute… but that proved to be the winning stroke… though the level of football was not great, the Aussies seemed to have more stamina and energy towards the end
June 14th, 2006 at 7:28 am
Mario, they met with a much better side. That’s all. :)
Nirav, you are spot on, as you always are! I thought he was quite brave with the substitutions as well.
June 23rd, 2006 at 2:34 pm
[…] They defeated a more fancied Czech team and shut out the US. Well deserved and a proud moment in Ghana sport history. The Czech have nothing to do except rue the loss against Ghana. They were a very good team whom I rated pretty highly. Player injuries meant their downfall? Isn’t sport about striding through adversaties. Czech Republic failed the tough test right there. […]