Comments on: Expectations… Results or Beautiful Game?

By: matej

matej — Sun, 08 Oct 2006 21:44:18 +0000

i give props to brazil i love them im a 1 croatian fan but love brazil great performance in wc 06 but i was aliitle dissapointed with croatia vs japan they should have won that game easily and alittle disappointed with ronaldinho because he is a great player but did not really play well in wc 06 but exellent performance by brazil

By: brasileiro

brasileiro — Tue, 18 Jul 2006 12:51:01 +0000

the joga bonito ads are quite entertaining.hehe.i say out with parreira.(too bad big phil decided to stay with portugal.bring on wanderley then)i really hope the seleçao can bounce back.i still have faith in the canarinho shirt.

By: Crazy Brazilian

Crazy Brazilian — Wed, 05 Jul 2006 21:19:14 +0000

parre……….rror must go go never to coach brazil again. I mean even my own grandmother as a coach can win the World cup with BRAZIL.!

By: Frank

Frank — Tue, 04 Jul 2006 23:01:23 +0000

I hear everybody complaining of the poor performance by top players and teams just playing “crisis management instead of positive attacking football.” However, please keep things in perspective and realize the intensity and brutal toll the sport has on these athletes. The World Cup is undoubtadly football’s greatest spectacle. It’s also a monthlong grind, and the fatigue starts to sink in.

Games every few days, many playing under a hot, muggy sun. Travel across a country that’s almost as big as California. Pressure that grows with every game. And that’s on top of the nine months – or more – that many players just spent with the top and very demanding clubs accross Europe.

“The World Cup is a special test,” said Portugal goalkeeper Ricardo Pereira.”No matter how hard you try, you can’t completely overcome that tiredness.”

Or the injuries. Or the mental exhaustion.

Some teams manage better than others. Look at Germany, Italy, France and Portugal. They all have outstandin players but they definately do not look like it. But, they managed to outlast the other 28 teams, and it’s not only because of skill, timing and luck.

Italy is probably the strongest team mentally, able to ignore distractions from a corruption scandal that is rocking the domestic league. Despite several grueling games, Portugal has managed to remain in the tournment. France saved its energy and now looks fresher now than a month ago. And Germany is among the fittest teams after coach Juergen Klinsmann overhauled its training program.

“Physical condition is very important, because in soccer these days, 95 percent of the time the team that runs more wins,” Italy defender Gianluca Zambrotta said. “Compared to the past, soccer is much more athletic and the pace is much faster.”

When the tournament began in 1930, there were only 13 teams and it lasted two weeks. Now 32 teams play 64 games over four weeks, and qualifying begins two years out.

So give them a break and enjoy the teams from a perpective that the best crisis management team will win and not necessarily the team with the most lightning strike attack with precission pin point accuracy.

By: momo

momo — Mon, 03 Jul 2006 10:04:58 +0000

I pet you American Countries will never win that world cup when ever it is held in any of those Europe countries.

Never! But i told you, If the world Cup make a mistake by going to one of the African countries, it will be there forever.

By: David

David — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 08:31:06 +0000

England out…No big surprise. They were stale on offense and lacked punch in their attack. To make things worse, they played a man down. Now, how could a player afford to step on another player’s ball without getting thrown out. Talk of irresponsibility. When you play at this level, you’ve got to maintain your poise throughout the game. It’s a shame to let your team mates down.

What will it take to make penalties? 1 out of 4 tries…Come on boys. I’m sick already. Got to fill my glass and soak in France’s victory against Brazil.

By: Henry

Henry — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 01:54:36 +0000

Well, I’m surprised. Argentina out, England out — and nothing really to do with referees in one case, and — I regret — a rather capricious call on Rooney — certainly didn’t deserve to be sent out. I liked this very competent English side, and they took the game to the end, which was the right strategy when you’re a man short and the other team has decent skills.
If there was a problem with Argentina was the refusal to send one more man into the middle to complete the short game. They never broke through. They were overly concerned with the German counterattacks, so there never was enough threat. Now, the Greman team is not particularly skilled, so you can safely give them more in exchange for more offense.
Brazil and France? Are the Brazilians willing to run and disrupt the French flow? It’s the key. Either no balls get to Zidane or he has to play too far back. If Brazil can go up a goal or two, the game will open up to Brazil’s advantage. As to who is scheduled to start, it makes little difference.

By: dan

dan — Sun, 02 Jul 2006 01:51:11 +0000

good luck brazil!

By: brazilian2006

brazilian2006 — Sat, 01 Jul 2006 21:04:33 +0000

Aren’t you guys nervous though. I’m thinking about not watching the game and if they win then I’ll watch the reruns

By: brazilian2006

brazilian2006 — Sat, 01 Jul 2006 20:59:39 +0000

I think Brazil has a chance to win, but I do agree with Pat. It’s like they’re not playing at all. I mean if you’ve seen the game against Japan. If You’ve seen how those young players liki Cicinho have played. It’s like they have the winning spirit and that’s what I think players like Cafu need. However I think there’s a great chance we might be seeing that in this match against France. In my opinion this is the first team Brazil has to watch out for seeing that the previous teams have been either weak or unexperienced comparing to them.
I think they know that they’ve got to play with allot more team spirit to win this. This is gonna be tough and they know it! I think they’re really gonna step up the game. At least they have to.