Sat 12 Jun 2010
2010 World Cup
Posted by USA / Jeff under Balkers
[3] Comments
as the final hours ticked down before the 2010 World Cup – length 1:37
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as the final hours ticked down before the 2010 World Cup – length 1:37
Thanks Jeff – looks good.
Americans don’t know jack about football, or is it Futbol? We think it is a game called “soccer”… ;^)
Less facetiously, many attempts and claims of pending success in making the sport popular in USA, have happened over the years. I played organized soccer in youth leagues – millions of American kids do still – back in the ’70’s when Pele was king of the sport.
You’ve had pro leagues come and go, a fluke win here or there against a country with a serious football program, even David Beckham comes over for a big enough contract.
Matters not, we don’t know jack as a nation. We think it is slow, and have no patience for understanding the game’s nuances.
Of course I’ve felt that way about baseball for decades, but somehow that sells here… ;^)
We’d like to think of the 1-1 final Saturday as a fluke indeed. There can be no dispute that England handed USA it’s only goal, yet USA also fended us off and made it’s luck hold up.
Some backstory follows on the goalkeeper who played, and the one who did not:
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David James furious at boss Fabio Capello over World Cup opener snub
By Matt Lawton
14th June 2010
David James is fuming after being overlooked in the battle for the England goalkeeper’s jersey.
Fabio Capello has already expressed concern over Robert Green’s state of mind after his howler against the USA on Saturday night.
But James believes he has been unfairly excluded because of a knee problem he says is not stopping him being fit and ready for action.
Fuming: David James isn’t happy about his non-selection for the game against USA
He was seen blanking England general manager Franco Baldini as he walked off the pitch at the end of the warm-up at the Rustenburg Stadium.
Communication between James, the medical staff and the Italian coaches appears to be part of the problem, although the 39-year-old Portsmouth keeper is also thought to be unhappy with the way selection has been handled.
James has the support of England’s senior players but not, seemingly, the manager.
Capello left it until an hour and 45 minutes before kick-off to select his goalkeeper and the choice backfired when Green’s mistake allowed the Americans to equalise.
All over? Robert Green is facing the World Cup axe
But James was also unhappy at being denied a chance to impress in the final warm-up game, although he chose his words diplomatically on Saturday.
‘I don’t have a problem with the manager’s selection but I am fit and well,’ he said.
The situation could enhance Joe Hart’s chances of a competitive international debut against Algeria on Friday.
Last night Capello had not ruled out the possibility of sticking with Green, who remains the bookies’ favourite, but will assess how the West Ham man has responded to the trauma of his mistake.
‘We have to wait,’ said Capello.
‘We will think about this problem psychologically.’
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/worldcup2010/article-1286386/David-James-furious-boss-Fabio-Capello-World-Cup-opener-snub.html#ixzz0qndpUci6
© Associated Newspapers Ltd
congrats Spain!
Score One for Style as Spain Wins First World Cup
Kerim Okten/European Pressphoto Agency
Andrés Iniesta after the winning goal. His shirt carried a tribute to Dani Jarque, a defender who played with some of the Spanish players on youth national teams. Jarque died last August at age 26.
By JERÉ LONGMAN
Published: July 11, 2010
JOHANNESBURG — Regulation had spilled into overtime of this fractious game Sunday. The clock was nearly exhausted, as were the players. Soon, the World Cup final would be decided by its harshest verdict, penalty kicks, and skill would give way to nerve and caprice.
Andrés Iniesta firing the winning shot between Rafael van der Vaart, left, and Maarten Stekelenburg. All four of Spain’s knockout-round wins were by 1-0 scores.
A record 14 yellow cards and a red would be issued by the English referee Howard Webb. A potentially beautiful game between two elegant teams had turned nasty and destructive.
Finally, Spain prevailed, 1-0, over the Netherlands with great patience and an accustomed sense of drama in the 116th minute by the goal-scoring wing Andrés Iniesta, taking its first World Cup title, even if this one will be remembered more for meanness than splendor.
The Dutch intended to take Spain away from its graceful passing game. And they frequently did, sometimes with brutal intent. Still, Spain showed hardness of its own, becoming unnerved at times but never discouraged.
Finally, it prevailed for a fourth consecutive 1-0 victory, displaying resolve, endurance and a flair for white-knuckled theatrics while completing a remarkable turnaround. Spain, the 2008 European champion, became the first team to win a World Cup after losing its opening match, which La Furia Roja had done in stunning fashion to Switzerland.
“I can’t quite believe it yet,” the diminutive Iniesta said. “It is something absolutely incredible. I simply made a small contribution to a match that was very tough, very rough.”
Essentially, two World Cups ended Sunday, one with Spain winning on the field, the other with South Africa prevailing by most accounts on a referendum about whether it was ready to stage the world’s most popular sporting event.
For years, rumors persisted that FIFA, soccer’s world governing body, would move the World Cup, concerned that South Africa was not equipped to handle matters of security and logistics 16 years after the dismantling of apartheid.
But those concerns proved largely unfounded. The stadiums were built, nearly full and free of violence. Outside, crime did not become a major headline-grabbing factor.
“Organizationally, it has been a great success,” said Sunil Gulati, the president of the United States Soccer Federation and an economist at Columbia University. “All the concerns people had about Africa were dispelled.”
Jacob Zuma, South Africa’s president, said on Saturday, “The world has seen this country in a different light.”
Danny Jordaan, the chief World Cup organizer, said that the tournament had brought pride, unity, self-assurance and the sharing of a vision to South Africa, adding, “The nation has crossed a huge psychological barrier.”
Yet it remains unclear just how thoroughly South Africa was able to project itself internationally as a modern, technologically advanced, democratic and tourist-welcoming nation, said Peter Alegi, a visiting Fulbright scholar at the University of KwaZulu-Natal in Durban and an associate professor of history at Michigan State University.
In some places, anecdotal evidence indicated that the country was portrayed as just another soccer host or in the stereotypical African safari image, he said.
“South Africa saw this as very much a political project, even more so than an economic one,” Alegi said. “The verdict is still out on whether brand South Africa sold around the world.”
Even as the World Cup ended, debate continued about whether it was worth spending about $5.4 billion to put on a soccer tournament when some of the stadiums were likely to become white elephants and there was hardly any system in place for youth development in sports.
“It was a waste of money,” said Marcus Solomon, who spent 10 years as a political prisoner on Robben Island during apartheid and who later founded a youth center in Cape Town.
A kind of hangover is expected in South Africa on Monday now that the World Cup is over. And an urgent question is already being raised: what happens next in a country where millions do not have adequate housing, electricity or running water, and half of the population lives at or below the poverty line?
Some fear a return of the xenophobia that led to violent attacks on foreigners two years ago. The plight of the poor must be addressed, The Times of Johannesburg wrote in an editorial Sunday, saying, “Freedom will forever remain elusive as long as they continue to witness the rich getting richer while their situation is rapidly deteriorating.”
Sunday night began rousingly as Nelson Mandela, the former South African president who will be 92 in a week and whose moral authority was responsible for the World Cup’s coming here, made a brief appearance before the start of the match. A throbbing vuvuzela serenade greeted him as he circled the Soccer City field on a golf cart.
Mandela was said to prefer to watch the game at home. If so, what he saw was ill tempered, drained of its expected attractiveness.
The Dutch midfielders Nigel de Jong and Mark van Bommel often strangled Spain’s stylish passing attack by whatever force was necessary. In the 28th minute, de Jong kicked the Spanish midfielder Xabi Alonso in the chest and was lucky not to be ejected.
“It was still our intention to play beautiful football, but we were also facing a very good opponent,” said Bert van Marwijk, the Netherlands coach. “Spain is the best football country the past few years. I think both sides committed fouls. It may be regrettable this happened in a final. That’s not our style. But you do play to win.”
The Dutch had their chances to prevail in regulation, but Iker Casillas, the Spanish goalkeeper, repelled two inviting shots from forward Arjen Robben, one on a kick save, the other by rushing off his line to smother the ball. Finally, the rough fouling took its toll on the Netherlands.
In the 109th minute, central defender John Heitinga took Iniesta down and drew his second yellow card, leaving the Netherlands a man short for the final 11-plus minutes.
In the 116th minute, Fernando Torres sent a cross to the top of the penalty area for Spain. The Dutch midfielder Rafael van der Vaart failed to clear the ball. It fell to Cesc Fàbregas, who found his teammate Iniesta seven yards from the goal. Iniesta had scored a famous late goal for Barcelona against Chelsea in the 2009 European Champions League semifinals. Now he had another chance for a last-minute rescue.
“It just had to go in,” Iniesta said of his shot, and it did, glancing off the right hand of goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg and into the net.
Iniesta took off his jersey, revealing a T-shirt that contained words of remembrance for Daniel Jarque, a friend and Spanish soccer player who died of a heart attack last year. This brought an automatic yellow card for Iniesta, but he did not seem to care as he blew kisses and was mobbed by his teammates.
When the final whistle sounded, the Netherlands had lost for a third time in the World Cup final, and Spain had dispelled its reputation as a team whose achievement rarely matched its talent. Iniesta went to his knees and pumped his fists and toppled over, as tired as he was ecstatic.
“I think Spain deserved to win this World Cup,” he said. “This is something we have to feel very proud of.”
Copyright 2010 The New York Times Company