24 Passes, 976 Minutes and a 6th World Cup
Argentina scored 6 (should have been 7) against a shocked Serbia and Montenegro - the same Serbia and Montenegro which conceded just 1 goal in 10 games of qualifying in a group which had Spain. Amazing?
The goal which had in all 24 passes was another amazing aspect of this game - one of the greatest goals ever. You can watch that goal a 1,000 times and still it will not cease to amaze you.
Argentina were early favourites among many fans ages back for this world cup. They have an easy passage once they top the group of death till the semis. It can be argued that topping such a tough group should give the team topping it some advantage.
Brazil took centre stage after the early Argentina favourites tag though. They have a team full of talent and as more and more people saw that, Brazil became the team with the favourites tag for the world cup. I am banking on them to win it. Being a huge Brazilian fan since 1994, I have never been more confident. This is a dream team. They have tough matches early on in round 2 and it can prove the end if Brazil slip up.
I don’t see any one else challenging Brazil and Argentina. They are great teams and are destined to meet in the finals. At least I hope that they do meet in the final. Who are the dark horses? Not England. Please. It is almost laughable as far as I am concerned that many people think that England are serious contenders to reach the finals, let alone win the world cup. They look hyped to me. I would rate quite a few teams above them but let’s not go into that.
Coming back to the question, who are the dark horses? Czech Republic and Holland for me. These two teams can defeat any team on their day with a little bit of luck.
A staggering stat:
Edvin van der Sar has not conceded a goal in 976 minutes of competitive international football (before the Holland-Ivory Coast game). The last player to score off him in a non-friendly intenational was Finland’s Teemu Tainio in a World Cup qualifier in October 2004. [Via BBC]
Stats mean little when it comes down to the business on a given day. However, you cannot ignore 976 minutes, or 24 passes, or that Brazil will win it’s 6th world cup, as a matter of fact. ;)
Tags: FIFA World Cup 2006.
June 17th, 2006 at 3:38 am
Your wrong. England will win.
Brazil may have old donkey teeth, but do they have Lampard, Terry, Gerrad, Beckham, Terry or Rooney?
June 17th, 2006 at 5:32 am
Missed the live action on the Aregentine game….just saw videos on youtube….and boy…is my team great or what! Their passing was simply divine. Or did S&M make it look better than it really was?
Either way….am not going to miss any of Argentine action now..
June 17th, 2006 at 8:14 am
One thing which we can learn from the English is optimism! Though I have been a traditional England backer, it does feel sad to see the likes of England and Germany cruising through to the next stage, while the likes of Ivory Coast pack their bags.
But back to the topic, the 24-pass goal was awesome. Given Brazil’s opening game, Argentina clearly looks like the best team on the block
June 17th, 2006 at 7:29 pm
Tom, Brazil has more talented players than England. I will take the donkey teeth along with that any day. ;)
Manish, you should have heard the news. Argentina has boycotted any one who calls himself an Argentinean supporter and hasn’t seen that goal live. So your attempts to reclaim being an Argentine fan are futile now.
Nirav, too early to judge which team is the best right now. Also, it is not fair on Brazil - they have only played 1 while Argentina have played 2. Who is to say Brazil can’t score 10 in the next game?
*runs away*
June 18th, 2006 at 6:30 pm
Tom, games arent won on paper. we indian cricket fans have learnt the hard way over time. in an ideal world england should be swatting out teams like paraguay and T&T. but then they have one man working against them, and ironically thats sven goran eriksson.
June 21st, 2006 at 7:14 pm
Hi ,
Pratyush, I suppose you are the one who favoured aussies on sakshis blog, in response to my comment.
Ok, here goes, The dark horse according to me would be Portugal. No czech and no england. Watch out for them, they are having a good run and are in form. Just hoping they dont lose steam. But of course, I favour Brazil and ARgentina.
June 21st, 2006 at 7:20 pm
Hi shadows. I didn’t actually favour the aussies. Just defended their strategy. ;)
I don’t think Portugal has what it takes… Would place teams like Spain, Italy ahead of them..
June 21st, 2006 at 7:25 pm
Ok :)
I came here via a link on confused’s blog actually. That guy has got good taste in blogs, I must say ;)
>>I don’t think Portugal has what it takes… Would place teams like Spain, Italy ahead of them..
Thats what makes them a dark horse.
But then , I think even Aussies are dark horse. Just that their playing style actually left me a bit disappointed. They are similar to the African teams, not really a joy to watch on field. (Exception - Ivory Coast).
June 25th, 2006 at 3:06 am
[…] What separates an immensely talented team from a possibly great team? Coming out of tough situations with genius which is impossible to counter. It was written all over the 24 pass goal. It was also written over the Maxi Rodriguez goal. BBC Live commentary described it thus moments after it happened: What a goal! Maxi Rodriguez chests down Juan Pablo Sorin’s cross-field pass and lashes in a left-foot shot on the volley that arrows into the top corner. […]
June 28th, 2006 at 9:56 am
Brazil just scored a 25-pass goal against Ghana … Brazil showed that others like Argentina can be very good teams but Brazil (4 years ago and until now –at least) are just that much better than every1 else.
June 28th, 2006 at 7:46 pm
Yeah. Me hoping and seeing a Brazil win as well.
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July 12th, 2007 at 6:55 pm
Srbija je najbolja.Steta sto Francuzi nisu pobedili.Zidan Legenda
July 12th, 2007 at 6:57 pm
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