It seems that the trend of upsets and unexpected finishes for European favorites in this year's tournament is far from over. Day 10 of the 2010 FIFA World Cup saw yet another highly favored European squad, this time defending champion Italy, perform way below that which was expected of them.
Facing the lightly regarded New Zealand team, the defending champions settled for a disappointing draw (1:1) in their Group F match. This makes their final group stage match against Slovakia extremely crucial as they may face elimination if things go awry.
The contrasting reactions of both teams after the draw was indicative of the magnitude of the surprise draw.
In a report published in Yahoo! Sports by Andrew Dampf, AP Sports writer, the delight in the New Zealand camp was clearly seen in this quote from its coach:
“I think that stopped the nation,” New Zealand coach Ricki Herbert said. “It’s the most incredible result we’ve had across the board. As a football coach, it’s way above anything we’ve achieved in the history of the game.
“We are always daring to dream. At the World Cup anything is possible— we’ve seen some strange results—but nothing as big as that one.”
On the other hand, the disappointment was extremely evident in the quote of the Azzurri coach, also from the report published in Yahoo! Sports by Andrew Dampf, AP Sports writer:
“We’re just sorry we didn’t win a match we could have,” Italy coach Marcello Lippi said. “If we didn’t win against New Zealand it’s our fault. Once again, the opponent scored on their first chance. We were able to control the game after that, but this was a match we should have won.”
With the way things are going, I wouldn't be all that surprised if the defending champions get ousted from the tournament after only the group matches. How bizarre can that be if that indeed happens...
Source: http://g.sports.yahoo.com/soccer/world-cup/news/italy-held-to-stunning-1-1-draw-by-n-zealand--fbintl_ap-wcup-italy-newzealand.html
Monday, June 21, 2010
Sunday, June 20, 2010
FIFA World Cup 2010 questions from an interested follower...
A lot of controversies surrounding this year's World Cup tournament. I must admit though, it just makes the event even more interesting for casual followers like me.
I do have a few questions in mind though as I am not an expert in the sport.
1. Given the controversial ejection of Brazilian star Kaka, I was wondering, what offenses would warrant a yellow card? How about a red card?
2. Is there any possibility that the red card issued to Kaka would be recalled by the organizers after a review of some sort?
2. How come the great Ronaldhino is not playing for this year's Brazil team?
3. With Kaka probably out of the lineup in Brazil's next group match, how do you think would the team fare versus Cristiano Ronaldo and the entire Portuguese team?
4. What do you think is the reason behind the European team's early struggles in this year's World Cup? How come it seems as though only the South American teams (i.e. Argentina, Brazil) are performing at par with their expectations?
Hope you guys can chime in with your valuable answers and opinions so as to help me further appreciate the sport.
I do have a few questions in mind though as I am not an expert in the sport.
1. Given the controversial ejection of Brazilian star Kaka, I was wondering, what offenses would warrant a yellow card? How about a red card?
2. Is there any possibility that the red card issued to Kaka would be recalled by the organizers after a review of some sort?
2. How come the great Ronaldhino is not playing for this year's Brazil team?
3. With Kaka probably out of the lineup in Brazil's next group match, how do you think would the team fare versus Cristiano Ronaldo and the entire Portuguese team?
4. What do you think is the reason behind the European team's early struggles in this year's World Cup? How come it seems as though only the South American teams (i.e. Argentina, Brazil) are performing at par with their expectations?
Hope you guys can chime in with your valuable answers and opinions so as to help me further appreciate the sport.
Red Card to Brazilian Star Kaka: Another lapse in officiating in the 2010 FIFA World Cup?
Wow! With just less than a week passing by after the reported poor rating given to referee Koman Coulibaly, another referee is under extreme scrutiny for a controversial stint in one of the games' group matches. This time, Stephane Lannoy of France is on the hot seat, apparently due to the unwarranted red card issued to Brazilian star Kaka, and the hand balls not called on Luis Fabiano (which led to a goal that put Brazil up 2-0).
With the possible suspension to the Brazilian star, fans all over the web are once again outraged. Here is a glimpse of a few comments from Twitter:
trendingnewsnet: Dunga brands Kaka red card ‘totally unjustified’ – AFP: Globe and Mail Dunga brands Kaka red card 'totally unjusti... http://bit.ly/dk026Q
tanpicasso: go brazil portugal next ronaldo is a problem tho lets see. tht was a bogus call on kaka for givin him a red card that the player sold
davidTrussler: Kaka red card for #bra was ridiculous. But they were guilty of a load of play-acting themselves during the game. #worldcup
Annellybelly: These refs are smoking something...KAKA didn't deserve that red card...ugh
Davis70: Soccer gone wrong the last 5mins. Kaka fine with red card.
kaumudi_b: And kaka gets a red card due to #civ players' drama! get a life losers! :X
yaah_: RT @taytorswift13: Retweet if you think tehy should suspend that referee for giving Kaka the red card!
Apollolink: Kaka getting a red card = bullSHIT.
kimmieenicole: That red card pissed me off. Horrible call..the man dropped down like Kaka tried to kill him
Robertax0: I'm so tite, red card to kaka? WTF.Stupid son of a betch.It was an accident dam mofo wasn't watching were he was goin.bem feito fdp -__-
OzzieR89: But uhh a red card for Kaka=not good.
stephyy92: Are you kidding me!! Kaka did not deserve that red card!!!! >:|
Even users in Youtube have some choice words on the controversial call:
JdMetal
obviously its nothng, kaka just shielding his body, and referee should'nt give cards based on what that ivory coast had told him....should what he sees and his own judgment...
Mucky1little2me3
That card was total Bullshit! If anyone needed sending off it was that twat for pretending he had been elbowed in the face. FIFA need to act on this, this diving and rolling around is really ruining the game.
Balthic
Seriously, do professional soccer players develop extremely sensitive pain sensors or something? Every little nudge has them rolling around on the ground in mock agony, and doing that annoying thing where they cover up their face like they're in excruciating pain.
slipknot
@snaforfun the first one was a card but the second wasn't fucking player just do it just cause their losing the player from ivory brought shame to his team and he didn't even push him the guy ran into him
omgsofierce17
wtf even a frikin blind man could of told you that asshole faked it and the stupid ass referee took it, fuck him either he had a favourite or he was paid off. bullshit.
With the possible suspension to the Brazilian star, fans all over the web are once again outraged. Here is a glimpse of a few comments from Twitter:
trendingnewsnet: Dunga brands Kaka red card ‘totally unjustified’ – AFP: Globe and Mail Dunga brands Kaka red card 'totally unjusti... http://bit.ly/dk026Q
tanpicasso: go brazil portugal next ronaldo is a problem tho lets see. tht was a bogus call on kaka for givin him a red card that the player sold
davidTrussler: Kaka red card for #bra was ridiculous. But they were guilty of a load of play-acting themselves during the game. #worldcup
Annellybelly: These refs are smoking something...KAKA didn't deserve that red card...ugh
Davis70: Soccer gone wrong the last 5mins. Kaka fine with red card.
kaumudi_b: And kaka gets a red card due to #civ players' drama! get a life losers! :X
yaah_: RT @taytorswift13: Retweet if you think tehy should suspend that referee for giving Kaka the red card!
Apollolink: Kaka getting a red card = bullSHIT.
kimmieenicole: That red card pissed me off. Horrible call..the man dropped down like Kaka tried to kill him
Robertax0: I'm so tite, red card to kaka? WTF.Stupid son of a betch.It was an accident dam mofo wasn't watching were he was goin.bem feito fdp -__-
OzzieR89: But uhh a red card for Kaka=not good.
stephyy92: Are you kidding me!! Kaka did not deserve that red card!!!! >:|
Even users in Youtube have some choice words on the controversial call:
JdMetal
obviously its nothng, kaka just shielding his body, and referee should'nt give cards based on what that ivory coast had told him....should what he sees and his own judgment...
Mucky1little2me3
That card was total Bullshit! If anyone needed sending off it was that twat for pretending he had been elbowed in the face. FIFA need to act on this, this diving and rolling around is really ruining the game.
Balthic
Seriously, do professional soccer players develop extremely sensitive pain sensors or something? Every little nudge has them rolling around on the ground in mock agony, and doing that annoying thing where they cover up their face like they're in excruciating pain.
slipknot
@snaforfun the first one was a card but the second wasn't fucking player just do it just cause their losing the player from ivory brought shame to his team and he didn't even push him the guy ran into him
omgsofierce17
wtf even a frikin blind man could of told you that asshole faked it and the stupid ass referee took it, fuck him either he had a favourite or he was paid off. bullshit.
Brazil saves World Cup 2010 favorites in its entry to the knockout stages
Finally, a familiar sight...
Amidst the topsy turvy in this year's World Cup meet, with highly touted teams (mostly from Europe) falling short of early expectations, we finally see one development that all of us are familiar with -- Brazil making waves in the games... Or, should I make it BRAZIL STAMPING ITS CLASS OVER ITS COMPETITION?!
In its earlier match, the five time champions beat out Ivory Coast 3-1 to advance to the round of 16.
The match was a highly physical and of course, controversial one, with hand balls by Luis Fabiano, and an ejecton to Brazilian star Kaka for getting 2 yellow cards.
With the 2 yellow cards, Kaka is expected to be suspended for Brazil's next match, against the Cristiano Ronaldo-led Portugal team.
In a report by Tales Azzoni of the Associated Press, both coaches showed disappointment in the officiating, with the Ivory Coast coach Sven-Goran Eriksson expressing dismay at the hand balls:
“It shouldn’t have been allowed,” Eriksson said. “They got a goal free. That’s a 2-nil goal—that changed everything.
“It’s even more difficult if he’s allowed to use his hands. Of course it’s a hand ball. It’s not once, it’s twice.”
Brazilian coach Dunga on his part, had this to say regarding the ejection of his star player:
“The red card was completely unfair,” Brazil coach Dunga said.
Source: http://g.sports.yahoo.com/soccer/world-cup/news/brazil-beats-ivory-coast-3-1-to-reach-2nd-round--fbintl_ap-wcup-brazil-icoast.html
Amidst the topsy turvy in this year's World Cup meet, with highly touted teams (mostly from Europe) falling short of early expectations, we finally see one development that all of us are familiar with -- Brazil making waves in the games... Or, should I make it BRAZIL STAMPING ITS CLASS OVER ITS COMPETITION?!
In its earlier match, the five time champions beat out Ivory Coast 3-1 to advance to the round of 16.
The match was a highly physical and of course, controversial one, with hand balls by Luis Fabiano, and an ejecton to Brazilian star Kaka for getting 2 yellow cards.
With the 2 yellow cards, Kaka is expected to be suspended for Brazil's next match, against the Cristiano Ronaldo-led Portugal team.
In a report by Tales Azzoni of the Associated Press, both coaches showed disappointment in the officiating, with the Ivory Coast coach Sven-Goran Eriksson expressing dismay at the hand balls:
“It shouldn’t have been allowed,” Eriksson said. “They got a goal free. That’s a 2-nil goal—that changed everything.
“It’s even more difficult if he’s allowed to use his hands. Of course it’s a hand ball. It’s not once, it’s twice.”
Brazilian coach Dunga on his part, had this to say regarding the ejection of his star player:
“The red card was completely unfair,” Brazil coach Dunga said.
Source: http://g.sports.yahoo.com/soccer/world-cup/news/brazil-beats-ivory-coast-3-1-to-reach-2nd-round--fbintl_ap-wcup-brazil-icoast.html
FIFA World Cup 2010 Schedule: Month long festivities for the whole world
More than half of the group matches have already been played; and we have all been treated to a number of unexpected developments. Upsets here and there marked the first half of World Cup 2010 with France, Spain and Germany falling prey to their lesser favored opponents.
I just hope the remaining matches could at least equal, if not surpass, the entertainment value and unpredictability provided by the games from the first half.
Here is an outline of the remaining group stage matches taken from wikipedia.org:
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_FIFA_World_Cup_schedule
I just hope the remaining matches could at least equal, if not surpass, the entertainment value and unpredictability provided by the games from the first half.
Here is an outline of the remaining group stage matches taken from wikipedia.org:
Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_FIFA_World_Cup_schedule
FIFA World Cup 2010 Update: Controversial Refereee gets poor rating
The drama continues in this year's FIFA world cup as controversial referee Koman Coulibaly gets a poor rating following an expedited review of his performance Saturday. This was reported by Yahoo! Sports' Martin Rogers in the subsequent article:
"JOHANNESBURG – The referee who disallowed a potential game-winning goal for the U.S. against Slovenia was given a poor rating following an expedited review of his performance Saturday, according to a FIFA source.
FIFA’s referee committee reviewed the video of Team USA’s 2-2 draw with Slovenia in which Mali referee Koman Coulibaly denied Maurice Edu’s 85th-minute strike. Coulibaly appeared to rule that an American attacker had impeded a Slovenian defender, even though video replays showed no definitive infringement..."
With the said rating, Coulibaly seems to be headed for an early vacation in as far as refereeing for this year's World Cup is concerned. This was reported by Yahoo! Sports quoting a FIFA source as saying: "If he is found to have made a serious mistake, especially one that affected the outcome, then he would be highly unlikely to play any further part in the tournament,”.
There's still the possibility of him being used as a fourth official though. This could be good news as Coulibaly is a part of a three-man crew, also featuring Redouane Achik of Morocco and Inacio Candido of Angola as his assistants. A Coulibaly rule out from future matches would also prevent his colleagues from taking part.
Source: http://g.sports.yahoo.com/soccer/world-cup/news/source-u-s-slovenia-ref-gets-poor-rating--fbintl_ro-referee061910.html
"JOHANNESBURG – The referee who disallowed a potential game-winning goal for the U.S. against Slovenia was given a poor rating following an expedited review of his performance Saturday, according to a FIFA source.
FIFA’s referee committee reviewed the video of Team USA’s 2-2 draw with Slovenia in which Mali referee Koman Coulibaly denied Maurice Edu’s 85th-minute strike. Coulibaly appeared to rule that an American attacker had impeded a Slovenian defender, even though video replays showed no definitive infringement..."
With the said rating, Coulibaly seems to be headed for an early vacation in as far as refereeing for this year's World Cup is concerned. This was reported by Yahoo! Sports quoting a FIFA source as saying: "If he is found to have made a serious mistake, especially one that affected the outcome, then he would be highly unlikely to play any further part in the tournament,”.
There's still the possibility of him being used as a fourth official though. This could be good news as Coulibaly is a part of a three-man crew, also featuring Redouane Achik of Morocco and Inacio Candido of Angola as his assistants. A Coulibaly rule out from future matches would also prevent his colleagues from taking part.
Source: http://g.sports.yahoo.com/soccer/world-cup/news/source-u-s-slovenia-ref-gets-poor-rating--fbintl_ro-referee061910.html
Malian referee under extreme heat for controversial call
It appears that the referees are once again getting the blame for a game's undesirable outcome.
Just like in other sports (i.e. basketball, MMA, boxing, etc.), the referees are taking the heat from the fans as a controversial call leads to a 2-2 draw between world cup teams USA and Slovenia in their June 18 match.
Malian Referee Koman Coulibaly made the controversial call at the 86th minute of the match, when American Maurice Edu scored another goal that could have given team USA the lead at 3:2. Coulibaly disallowed the goal due to offside.
The result? Huge outcry from the fans as evidenced by this sampling from twitter:
elkabong: I am absolutely, positively fucking apalled by the actions of the Slovenian team, and those of Koman Coulibaly. People should be rioting.
rt_mundial2010: Sudafrica 2010: 10 Catastrophes Blamed on Koman Coulibaly, the Awful Ref http://trim.su/X7TS (by Digger) #Sudafrica2010, #Mundial
chris_leung: The #USA #Worldcup team "got jobbed by Malian referee Koman Coulibaly" - Sports Illustrated: http://bit.ly/aGRDJu
leeunidas: Dear Koman Coulibaly: - We know you fucked up our goal. You know you fucked up our goal. Its over now, so... http://tumblr.com/xjhbv9vmr
MrSportsBlog: U.S. soccer team reels from bad call on Edu goal by Koman Coulibaly http://bit.ly/civSjs
MrSportsBlog: Many Americans still mad about lame World Cup ref Koman Coulibaly http://mrsportsblog.wordpress.com/2010/06/19/soccer-call-equals-robbery/
cvilleminer70: I DONT CARE WHAT ANY ONE SAYS USA WON 3-2. Koman Coulibaly NEEDS TO FUCKING GO.:
luketadams: Friday was an awful day for USA Soccer, the World Cup & Koman Coulibaly but it was a great day for Jim Joyce & Don Denkinger.
reemsaied: The Thief From Mali, referee Koman Coulibaly robs #USA from 3-2 win over #Slovenia. http://ow.ly/20N6I #worldcup2010
ryanrees1: @GoalUSA I do not think that referee, Koman Coulibaly will ever get a Visa or Green card to the United States after that pathetic display.
I definitely can't blame the fans for feeling this way, given the degree of difficulty in scoring in the sport. But I can't help but feel for the referee. Indeed, hard would be an understatement if you are to describe the task of officiating matches, especially at a stage as big as this.
Just like in other sports (i.e. basketball, MMA, boxing, etc.), the referees are taking the heat from the fans as a controversial call leads to a 2-2 draw between world cup teams USA and Slovenia in their June 18 match.
Malian Referee Koman Coulibaly made the controversial call at the 86th minute of the match, when American Maurice Edu scored another goal that could have given team USA the lead at 3:2. Coulibaly disallowed the goal due to offside.
The result? Huge outcry from the fans as evidenced by this sampling from twitter:
elkabong: I am absolutely, positively fucking apalled by the actions of the Slovenian team, and those of Koman Coulibaly. People should be rioting.
rt_mundial2010: Sudafrica 2010: 10 Catastrophes Blamed on Koman Coulibaly, the Awful Ref http://trim.su/X7TS (by Digger) #Sudafrica2010, #Mundial
chris_leung: The #USA #Worldcup team "got jobbed by Malian referee Koman Coulibaly" - Sports Illustrated: http://bit.ly/aGRDJu
leeunidas: Dear Koman Coulibaly: - We know you fucked up our goal. You know you fucked up our goal. Its over now, so... http://tumblr.com/xjhbv9vmr
MrSportsBlog: U.S. soccer team reels from bad call on Edu goal by Koman Coulibaly http://bit.ly/civSjs
MrSportsBlog: Many Americans still mad about lame World Cup ref Koman Coulibaly http://mrsportsblog.wordpress.com/2010/06/19/soccer-call-equals-robbery/
cvilleminer70: I DONT CARE WHAT ANY ONE SAYS USA WON 3-2. Koman Coulibaly NEEDS TO FUCKING GO.:
luketadams: Friday was an awful day for USA Soccer, the World Cup & Koman Coulibaly but it was a great day for Jim Joyce & Don Denkinger.
reemsaied: The Thief From Mali, referee Koman Coulibaly robs #USA from 3-2 win over #Slovenia. http://ow.ly/20N6I #worldcup2010
ryanrees1: @GoalUSA I do not think that referee, Koman Coulibaly will ever get a Visa or Green card to the United States after that pathetic display.
I definitely can't blame the fans for feeling this way, given the degree of difficulty in scoring in the sport. But I can't help but feel for the referee. Indeed, hard would be an understatement if you are to describe the task of officiating matches, especially at a stage as big as this.
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