Well, first some good news. The World Cup stickers have been found in reasonably good quantities and I purchased a healthy number of packs to get my book rolling. The bad news is that they are pretty tedious to peel and place squarely on the pages. The good news is that it helps fill time at 5:00 when you are trying to keep your eyes open in a less-than-entertaining matchup. Apparently I should seek out a Shrek SP to fill out the Wayne Rooney slot.
Algeria vs Slovenia
Group C continued this morning. As I eluded to, this matchup crated a potential dangerous scenario for the US team (as well as England, for that matter). Thanks to a "power play" goal later in the game, Slovenia ran out of the Polokwane stadium as the leaders of Group C. The good news is that there is a clear 4th place team in the division, but both the US and England are now going to be required to step up their games if they are to advance.
However, by the looks of things, that should not be too difficult. Watching these two teams play was like watching myself play FIFA on PS3...pass,pass,pass....intercepted....pass,pass,pass...intercepted. Neither team really mounted a serious attack the entire game, and while I don't really feel that the red card for Algeria late in the game really created the scoring change for Slovenia's Robert Koren, it definitely changed the pacing of the final 20 minutes of the game and resulted in a 1-0 Slovenia win.
In a game full of tight bowl-cuts and cranky goalies, this game was mostly rubbish. I am clearly going to need to set the coffee pot on automatic if I am going to be starting my day with games like this.
Ooh, Ghana is taking the field! More later.
Ghana Vs Serbia
Much to say about this match, one that I believe is the best match of the tournament thus far. I sensed something special when they were showing the shots of the crowd that gathered for the match...
A scene like this is what I love about the World Cup. The best players are playing, the fans are partying, and are absolutely crazy-enthusiastic for their teams. The Ghana fans showed up in high spirits and were treated to an absolutely amazing match.
As I settled in to watch match #2 of the day with while sipping a cup of coffee, my wife woke up, came out into the living room, took a look at the game and declared the match...
...the giant grape
VS
...Abba Zabba.
"You just made the blog" I declared as I settled in for the next two hours.
As it turns out, Abba Zabba and the Giant Grape had their work cut out for them as both Serbia and Ghana were just relentless with scoring opportunities. Both teams extended the field, launched great crosses and fought tooth and nail to the finish. Even more interesting, after Serbia went a man down to a red card around the 70th minute, Serbia actually went on the ATTACK and had many, many scoring opportunities turned away by the brilliant Giant Grape. After a few chances of their own, Ghana was rewarded a penalty kick on a ridiculous hand ball in the box and took full advantage as the crowd went nuts. But it was not over yet and right up until the last seconds, and I mean the last seconds, Serbia kept pounding the Giant Grape, but Ghana held on for the huge upset and victory for the continent of Africa. Absolutely great game to watch. Congrats to Ghana!
Germany vs Australia
not much really to say about this match. This happens practically every World Cup. You are watching what you think are pretty decent football squads...and then Germany shows up and blows somebody out of the water. In this instance it was the Australians who took it in the keister 4-0. It's always interesting because there are still teams yet to come that are going to be playing at exactly the same level as Germany and it really puts things in perspective on World Cup powerhouses. It's cool though, I will still root for the underdog because it is fun, but the real contenders are just now starting to start their Cup.
As it turns out, Abba Zabba and the Giant Grape had their work cut out for them as both Serbia and Ghana were just relentless with scoring opportunities. Both teams extended the field, launched great crosses and fought tooth and nail to the finish. Even more interesting, after Serbia went a man down to a red card around the 70th minute, Serbia actually went on the ATTACK and had many, many scoring opportunities turned away by the brilliant Giant Grape. After a few chances of their own, Ghana was rewarded a penalty kick on a ridiculous hand ball in the box and took full advantage as the crowd went nuts. But it was not over yet and right up until the last seconds, and I mean the last seconds, Serbia kept pounding the Giant Grape, but Ghana held on for the huge upset and victory for the continent of Africa. Absolutely great game to watch. Congrats to Ghana!
Germany vs Australia
AKA "Cylons vs Socceroos"
not much really to say about this match. This happens practically every World Cup. You are watching what you think are pretty decent football squads...and then Germany shows up and blows somebody out of the water. In this instance it was the Australians who took it in the keister 4-0. It's always interesting because there are still teams yet to come that are going to be playing at exactly the same level as Germany and it really puts things in perspective on World Cup powerhouses. It's cool though, I will still root for the underdog because it is fun, but the real contenders are just now starting to start their Cup.
The Good: Ghana!
The Bad: Australia!
The...opportunity? I am pretty sure that I don't have fingerprints left from peeling so many stickers, which could render potential evidence invisible in criminal activity....just saying.
As Gary Lineker said "Football is a simple game,22 men chase a ball for 90 minutes,and at the end the Germans always win"
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