Calling All Soccer Fans!
 

Anybody following Worl Cup Soccer? I am such a fan! Of course I'm a US soccer fan, but my heart belongs to the Mexican team :)

My roommate and I have a huge Mexican flag hanging from our window that everybody stares at. Although I've heard people make some not so nice comments :( I just wish I was back home, it gets pretty wild whenever Mexico qualifies for the following round (No, I'm not in the riot area. Those people just don't know any better!).

Anyway, who are you rooting for?

Team Italia is going to take it home under the wing of Vieri. Your Mexicana team handled Croatia rather well, putting them down nicely. At heart, I would prefer to see either England or the Argentines take home the Cup, but I anticipate it will be the boys in blue. We'll see. There is a lot of good soccer to be played...that's what is my primary concern...


Cory

I was rooting for the French team Les Bleus but then they lost to Senegal over the weekend so they aren't looking too good anymore.

Hopefully Argentina, being in the toughest division is a good way to get the chemistry flowing before the single-elimination games.
It would also give their people something to cheer about.

Staying up late
 

Anybody staying up late to watch these games? Lucky for me, I don't have summer school and I don't go into work until noon, so I've stayed up until 4/5am watching soccer games! Anybody else staying up late to watch their favorite team or any team?

Of course, I'm pulling for the United States to have a good showing; but, I also have a soft spot for England. Now if we could just keep Beckham from kicking anybody this year.....



......Kelly :)

USA USA USA USA USA USA USA USA USA
 

USA upsets Portugal (an anticipatedly possible favorite) !!

Thanks to a brilliant first-half that put the US at a 3-1 advantage...ending in the second half at 3-2. Figo and Pauletta dominated the game with touch after touch, out-performing the US, but that is no matter for this game (with 2 own goals - one per side) was won by the US.

The second half was incredibly poor for the US as they spent all 45 bleeding the clock rather than playing it seemed, giving Portugal countless opportunities, but the defense stood firm and with the exception of a poor decision by Agoos...a completely solid defensive half for the squad.

O'Brien played brilliantly..shining on the field....but McBride's diving header was training video style on what a perfect dive should be. Officiated very well, giving out the tournaments first card for 'diving' to a portugese player....

all in all, an interesting game and worth my having gotten up at 4:30 before work at 7(where I am now)

oh yeah, Portugal was the biggest favorite so far in the cup...thus the biggest upset

The French not looking good?
They lost one game and you count them out?

http://us.news1.yimg.com/us.yimg.com...1544257588.jpg

Is No one excited that all the US now has to do is beat S. Korea and they advance? We need more soccer players on this board!

I got lucky with my work schedule and was able to go to sleep early last night, get up watch the US game and then sleep a couple more hours before I had to be at work, and I'm so glad I did. The game was awesome!!! Youre absolutely right about O'Brien...absolutely fantastic game from him. Same with McBride's header...Beasley and Donovan both played well beyond their years and if they keep it up, I wouldn't be surprised if they were faced with multi-million dollar contracts to choose from abroad (particularly for Beasley...wonderful play up and down the flank).

I don't think that the US played that poorly in the second half. They still looked dangerous at times and was able to force Portugal to remain in the middle third of the field for the most part (far better than I expected). Have to compliment Arena for not going back into the bunker at all. Was definetly impressed with Portugal's speed in the attack, and while their play in the back was at best mediocre, they really didn't give the US any cheap opportunities (own goal excluded).

Overall, the US confidence has to be incredibly high. They played well: smart, creative, attacking, high pressure soccer: something that may well develop into the "American" style in the future...the continuous high defensive pressure seems to be one of the more distinctive attributes of this squad, particularly in the midfield. Whether this pressure is in response to the absence of Chris Armas; I'm not sure.

I don't really think that this should be such a big shock as many people are making it out to be...surprising yes, but biggest upset overall??? I don't know about that. Looking how the US played up to the WC was fairly indicative that success in Korea/Japan was going to come...particularly after that Holland game, which despite the loss was one of the most entertaining games I've ever see the US play.

Anyway I could go on in my analysis, but I'll shut up now. Let's just hope they keep it up...

One last question, in light of a very sound (and for me unexpected) performance by Mastroeni (sp?), if Reyna gets healthy does Arena automatically put him back in the lineup, or come up with some other plan???

The USA game was awesome! I love it when my teams are kicking butt! I think I woke up my neighbors though. Oh well, I can't help cheering, even if it's yelling at the TV :)

Macaroni is a filler. He just took up space, but played well enough to make no errors, but showed nothing either. He did play strong and straight up, but Arena will not alter the line-up for his middle-of-the-road performance. I felt Donovan played better of two 20 yr olds, but wish they'd give Cobi a nice check just to stay at home...I'm tired of seeing his mediocrity on the field.

I can't wait until Reyna recovers...I think he can really do something against this Korea team that plays such a fast paced game by slowing the tempo and forcing them to play his game

I will definately be watching the Monday game. ;)

Nigeria and USA.
I hear Reyna is going to play. Watching the French team right now, and they are playing a man down coz of a red card. Nod good for them, as they are playing Uruguay. Whichever team loses is as good as eliminated.
Thought the US was gonna get stomped, huh? They scared me for a second. When your by 3, you don't allow two goals. They should make it to the 2nd round.
Watch Nigeria's next game, and keep your eye on the captain, Austin "Ja-Jay" Okocha. You'll see soccer at its finest.

lionlove and france.....
 

Thanks to Senegal tying (though unfortunately not beating) the Danes, France still has a chance, provided they beat the danes, to make it to the second round because France now has 1 point after tying Uruguay, the danes have 4, as does Senegal. Had Senegal lost however the next match for France would have not been much more than a friendly.

Re: lionlove and france.....
 

Thanks for letting me know. I just started a new job so I haven't been able to keep up to date with World Cup soccer. Still rooting for les bleus and I'm not giving up hope on them. I was in France when they won in 1998 and it was so crazy and exciting. Losing to Senegal had to hurt their pride.

** Don't read if you don't want a spoiler ***


How 'bout that England vs. Argentina match??

I know I'm in a good mood!!!!

:) :) :)

Can we say 1 - 0 England?? :)

We thought that Argentia played better. I think they had possession for like 67% of the time while England had only 33%. I thought that England's attempts at the goal had much more quality. Man and those last 10 minutes drove me crazy! Where was the defense?? Ay yay yay....
I would have rather Engand had not won on a penalty kick, but hey a win's a win!

I was in the Los Angeles airport in 1998 when the last World Cup match England vs Argentina was on. (I was seeing off a neighbor who was moving back to Germany.) A sports grill restaurant was located in the terminal and *EVERYBODY* was crowed around the TVs which face the walkway. Funny enough, there was a flight to London on one side and a flight to Buenos Aires on the other! So, as one can imagine, it was a crazy sight! When it came down to the shoot-out I think I stopped breathing. None of us were breathing. Unfortunately, England lost that match. I guess that just makes this win even better!!! :)

Well, Nigeria isn't going to advance; so I guess that's good news. England's next fixture is vs Nigeria so I guess that's even better news.

United States' next fixture is against Poland! :)

Of course I'm rooting for United States. But, IF Poland manages the win, I guess the loss won't be as bad. My family is from Poland. :) BUT - I'm still going to holler for the US!!!


......Kelly :)

GO ENGLAND!!!!!
GO IRELAND !!!!

Nigeria has played the worst soccer I have seen them play in years.
Argentina played well, but England did enough to win. As for the US, it's about time they got some respect. Their next game is gonna be a real character test, though.

Did anyone notice that, in the FIFA World rankings, England is ranked #12?


The United States is ranked #13. :)



......Kelly :)

GO USA!!!
 

It's all about the Red, White and Blue!!!

But if for some unfortunate reason USA doesn't go all the way... Then I'm for England.

GO USA!!!

I've got to be honest...I love the English squad, and ideally I'd like them to go home with the trophy, but I can't believe they beat the Argentinians....Eat that Maradona in your reports bragging how the English shouldn't even show up for the game.

I am glad too that Beckham tucked it since last cups fiasco.

Oh yeah....the US tied today for another point which means both they should definitely advance alongside the Ports because I'd say the Ports will destroy S.Korea simpoly because they have to, they've got no other choice.

Thanks for the post. I didn't get a chance to watch the game and didn't know the outcome.

Anyone plan on watching the Mexico vs Italia game? I have the pleasure of seeing it live... at 4am!

gotta luv soccer!
 

it took me a while to get online to chat about this and i finally remembered to do so...well now about this world cup all i can say is that most of the games i've seen have been good! i'm a huge soccer fan and since my team unfortunatly didn't qualify this year i'm hoping for a better chance for them in Germany 06....(i still love you team colombia)...well my 3 top teams would have to be......1)England 2)Germany 3)Croatia
now i should be cheering on some latin team but the only one i really like that might have the chance to move on is brazil...but that might change...but we'll see the games are getting better and well i just hope argentina loses....(don't like them very much, sorry u fans of theirs!) but theres still some time left to see who will be on top....

What an embarassment......
 

France loses 2:0 to the Danes finishing the first round at the lowest standing of the group with a mere point in 3 games! They were the pre-Cup favorites and they've been elliminated. What a disgrace? Senegal leaves the round with Denmark and the too notoriously better teams France and Uruguay are sent packing their bags for home. An unbelievable twist.....

Cory

Re: What an embarassment......
 

Ouch, my poor team... I guess I should be used to disappointment, I am a Red Sox fan, but it still hurts when such a good team does so poorly

Another favorite...Argentina is now eliminated after tying Sweden today 1:1......some unfortunate turns in the soccer world.

Unlucky.

Paraguay and S.Africa had the same number of points, but it is Paraguay that advances as the African team needed one goal more or to have allowed one goal less in the triad of games.

In the clear now are
Senegal,
Denmark,
Paraguay,
Spain,
Brazil,
Germany,
Ireland,
England,
Sweden,
Mexico, and
Japan


It is far too close to judge now between:
Turkey/China
Portugal/S.Korea
Italy/Croatia - Could it be the Year of Upsets?
Belgium/Russia

The US depends on the S.Korea game...If S.Korea ties and US ties...S.Korea advances. So everyone cheer for the Ports. As long as the US wins, there is no concern, but we cannot tie S.Korea in points because we'll be eliminated...Hope everyone watches those games...they're aired simultaneously.

....football is spreading!

Actually...Not true, a draw by both teams would place S.Korea first in the group on goal differential, but both the US and Korea would advance. In all actuality the S.Korea game is irrelevant if the US ties. The US definetly controlls it's own destiny at this point, although if they were to lose, there still would be a chance they could advance. Follow the link for all the possible roads through in Group D .

Oops...you're right
I was thinking that we'd be tied with the Ports, but we wouldn't be. I've got a feeling that the US will win, and Portugal will travel alongside us. As long as we tie or better though we're definitely in

yeah! my teams are still in (England and Ireland). Of course between the 2 my household cheering for England - my dad was up at 4:30 am one day and didn't go to bed last night till 2am so he could watch England play live...

Not quite a guarantee...
 

Actually, Mexico needs to tie to secure a spot in the next round. IF Mexico loses:
-Croatia loses (not likely)= Mexico qualifies
-Croatia wins (most likely)= It will boil down to the goal differential
Of course, that's only IF Mexico loses, which according to the history behind Mexico vs Italy, usually seems to happen. Oh well, I'll be rooting for my Mexican team.

My concern is that if they qualify for the next round, they might have to go up against the U.S.! Torn between to loves! :)

Oh well, I have to go to sleep now because it's 11:50pm where I'm at and the Mexico vs Italy game will be airing live at 4am! I need a nap before watching the game :)

Chi qui ti boom a la bim bom ba!
Chi qui ti boom a la bim bom ba!
A la vio,
A la vao,
A la bim bom ba!
Mexico! Mexico!
Rra! Rra! Rrrrraaaaa!

Wud up Hermanita!
 

hey mija i just wanted to say congrats for team Mexico to be moving on....i'm just glad that there are some latinos representing like paraguay-mexico-and brasil...well girl i'll be watching more games now so maybe u can come over or i go over your pad and watch some Futbol!!!!!!!!!!!! hay chica...i'm bummed that croacia didn't win but hey it's all good i still got team england-germany- and paraguay to keep motivated...but u know that once the ending comes closer i'll be more focused on one team...well chica sabes te dejo for now....talkto ya later SIS!!!!!!!!

:p "You don't Scare Me":p YEAH BABY!!!!!!!!! HEHEHEHEHEHHH laters
chao's....

What is this? Did all the soccer fans go to sleep or something?? :P


Sorry, NoShame_Gamma, but we have we to say ah buh-bye to team Mexico. But I'm sure there will be some nice parting gifts at the door. :) I'm just teasin' :)


At any rate, boo yyyeeaaahhh!!!!! Team USA wins their first-ever World Cup knock-out match! I dunno about Germany though - that'll be a tough match. I'm still hoping for a US vs. England final...

...with the U.S. trouncing England. :)

......Kelly :)

Yeah
it was an interesting match today split 70/30 in favor of team Mexico, but I was very disappointed in their sportmanship...while a great talent, Cuauhtemoc Blanco is a disgrace to the sport and should have been issued a Red Card along with Vidiro whose foul was amongst the ugliest I've seen thus far. Blanco does not deserve to play amongst more classy, smortmanlike players.

I don't mean to offend the Mexican team fans, but I detest Mexican soccer...very dirty, and very cheap, which is sad becasue they are very talented. It's been that way traditionally, and will continue that way as seen today.

What a brilliant ball by Wolf to set-up the first goal, and Donovan should have come with a diving header on his 2nd effort which he sailed high in the final quarter. How lucky was the US that the official missed O'Brien's keeper punch in the box?

Good game overall...hope you caught it.....

here's to the top 8 teams in the world in which the US is now included!

Way to go USA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! They shut out Mexico last night. Woo hoo!!!!!!!!! Way to go Stars and Stripes! :) :) :) :) :)

almost there!
 

hey there everyone..just wanted to say holas to all the soccer fans out there...and well about the usa vs mexico game well i just got to see the first half but from there i saw only one goal...sorry no_shame..but hey we get to cheer for brasil if they make it right...cause they're latinos!
but anyways...usa won a good game...now i'm just worried about the game against germany...since my paraguay team is out..the only ones left in my favor are sengal, england, and brasil...there u have it folks....hehehehehehe...well i'll be for sure watching the games this week if i can stay up that late...well laters soccer fans....bye bye no_shame...hablame laters....mua!


*************MGLA*********** :D

I'd like to see a strong game out of USA against Germany and Arena rested most of the great strikers like Mathis and Beasley...saving them for the next game I presume...but Germany would be a tough beat....their strikers are unparallelled right now and have been compared to Beckenbauer (nice compliment!), hope that Friedel can play like he's been playing...he's going to need a BIG game

:( :( :( :( :(
 

Not entirely... Yes, they started playing extremely dirty once they lost hope (which is something they need to work on!). However, before then, it was a really good game! I just wish they were able to control their anger / frustrations.

As a Mexican, Mexico was my favorite team, now that they're out, I guess I'll be cheering for the US ( eventhough they eliminated Mex :( ). However, I'll also be cheering for Brasil and Italia:D

At this point, I'm just looking for a night of decent sleep! This schedule is killing me!

I will like to remind everyone that it's football. ;)

Go England.

For King David and Country!!!!!!!

Good game for the US, though the fist of god seems to reap it's ugly head again. ;) Anyhow, good look with the Germans. You're going to need some pills to stay awake. They will bore you to defeat.