Paul the psychic octopus died of old age, at 2 1/2. He is probably the first octopus to be given a burial spot and a shrine. They should write on his tombstone: He picked the winner when he ate his dinner."
Showing posts with label World Cup 2010. Show all posts
Showing posts with label World Cup 2010. Show all posts
World Cup thoughts
Spain deserved to win. Completely dominant even in the game they lost. Also, here is my Best XI from the world cup:
The formation has to be 4-2-3-1 since that's what most of the teams played. So:
bench: Keisuke Honda, Wesley Sneijder, Luis Suarez, Jorge Fucile, Diego Godin, Asamoah Gyan
Who'd have thought that a) Ryan Nelson from New Zealand would make my best eleven, or that b) he'd be on the only team to leave South Africa undefeated? And who'd have thought that the best eleven would have an American at central midfield, and no Brazilians anywhere?
My thoughts on Luis Suarez: he's not a 'cheater'. He fouled, was caught and punished appropriately. Gyan should have hit his PK. It's the same as if a defender fouls from behind on a break-away.
We will see either goal-line technology or an extra official behind each goal in the Brazil 2014 World Cup.
The formation has to be 4-2-3-1 since that's what most of the teams played. So:
Diego Forlan
Leonel Messi-Xavi-Thomas Müller
Michael Bradley-Bastian Schweinsteiger
Gio-Simon Kjaer-Ryan Nelson-Sergio Ramos
Vincent Enyeama
Leonel Messi-Xavi-Thomas Müller
Michael Bradley-Bastian Schweinsteiger
Gio-Simon Kjaer-Ryan Nelson-Sergio Ramos
Vincent Enyeama
bench: Keisuke Honda, Wesley Sneijder, Luis Suarez, Jorge Fucile, Diego Godin, Asamoah Gyan
Who'd have thought that a) Ryan Nelson from New Zealand would make my best eleven, or that b) he'd be on the only team to leave South Africa undefeated? And who'd have thought that the best eleven would have an American at central midfield, and no Brazilians anywhere?
My thoughts on Luis Suarez: he's not a 'cheater'. He fouled, was caught and punished appropriately. Gyan should have hit his PK. It's the same as if a defender fouls from behind on a break-away.
We will see either goal-line technology or an extra official behind each goal in the Brazil 2014 World Cup.
USA ties Slovenia 3-2
After defeating England 1-1, the United States ties Slovenia 3-2 after the worst refereeing decision in a World Cup since Maradona's Hand of God. I don't think any referee can be unintentionally that bad, and I think the game should be looked at for match fixing via the referee.
Highlights here.
FIFA has at least given referee Couliabaly an expediated performance review, however what they really should have is an investigation into betting on the USA vs. Slovenia game. I find it hard to believe that any referee could be that bad on accident. Match fixing is a serious problem in world soccer. If I was FIFA:
a) Couliabaly would never work again,
b) I would have an investigation looking at who placed bets on USA vs. Slovenia,
c) I would lock up all World Cup referees in a gilded cage and monitor their phone calls to be 100% sure on all subsequent matches
Highlights here.
FIFA has at least given referee Couliabaly an expediated performance review, however what they really should have is an investigation into betting on the USA vs. Slovenia game. I find it hard to believe that any referee could be that bad on accident. Match fixing is a serious problem in world soccer. If I was FIFA:
a) Couliabaly would never work again,
b) I would have an investigation looking at who placed bets on USA vs. Slovenia,
c) I would lock up all World Cup referees in a gilded cage and monitor their phone calls to be 100% sure on all subsequent matches
Making fun of Stratfor again
The World Cup has inspired me to blog again, so I figured I should get back to one of my blog's specialties: making fun of Stratfor (example A, example B). This time they try their hand at analyzing soccer, a serious mistake.
I bought a temporary Stratfor subscription a few years ago for my thesis - it was a big waste of money. However as a result they still send me emails, including one about the geopolitics of the World Cup:
This doesn't appear to be sarcastic. So now in addition to learning that Obama has no shot at the Presidency because his middle name is Hussein (example A), you can learn that the United States Men's National Team plays a confident and open style of football. Please disregard all evidence (empty bucket formation, or watching USA vs. England) to the contrary.
I bought a temporary Stratfor subscription a few years ago for my thesis - it was a big waste of money. However as a result they still send me emails, including one about the geopolitics of the World Cup:
Isolated from threats, rich in capital and natural resources, the United States is a country where optimistic thinking and risk taking has traditionally been rewarded. Caution is not necessarily prized because threats and natural impediments are few. America's geographic and economic advantages have helped it to develop the first truly dominant global naval force, which has shaped U.S. history in such a way that clear military defeats are extremely rare. It is therefore no surprise that the American team at the World Cup will play a confident and open style of football, regardless of its slim chances of overall success.
This doesn't appear to be sarcastic. So now in addition to learning that Obama has no shot at the Presidency because his middle name is Hussein (example A), you can learn that the United States Men's National Team plays a confident and open style of football. Please disregard all evidence (empty bucket formation, or watching USA vs. England) to the contrary.
USA defeats England 1-1
Wow. I am exhausted after watching that game. A win against Slovenia looks more likely especially given how good Altidore looked today. And then a win against Algeria should be straightforward. First place vs. second place between the US and England will hopefully come down to goal difference.
USA! USA! USA!
USA! USA! USA!
2010 World Cup Draw
A quick note on the recent World Cup Qualifying draw. Some good matchups in terms of politics, beyond the North vs. South Korea matchup that is much talked about.
North Korea vs. South Korea, Asia's Group 3 - obviously huge matches, this matchup has already received a lot of publicity.
Chad vs. Sudan in Africa's Group 10 - Hundreds of thousands of Sudanese refugees from Darfur are in camps in Chad, and Sudan's instability has the potential to spill over into Chad. Sudan has a stronger team than Chad and will probably be fighting with Congo for the 2nd qualifying sport behind Mali, so the games between Sudan and Chad will be very tense.
Australia vs. Iraq, Asia's Group 1 - Australia still has troops in Iraq, although with the recent elections its troops might have been withdrawn by the time these teams play. Both Australia and Iraq have good teams, but I'd expect Australia to win, especially if Iraq's players keep defecting and refusing to play for Iraq for security reasons.
Iran vs. United Arab Emirates, Asia's Group 5 - An expansionist Iran frightens UAE, which has recently bought lots of weapons from the US to guard against Iran. Iran has a very good side however, so this likely won't be much of a contest.
USA vs. Cuba, CONCACAF Third Round - No diplomatic relations since 1962 mean that the only ways Cuba and the United States can interact is through illegal immigration and soccer games! I expect a fairly easy victory for the United States though.
Nothing interesting in Europe in terms of politics - their Kantian universe makes for very boring international soccer games, compared to the Hobbesian world the rest of us live in.
Check out the full draw over at The Offside blog.
North Korea vs. South Korea, Asia's Group 3 - obviously huge matches, this matchup has already received a lot of publicity.
Chad vs. Sudan in Africa's Group 10 - Hundreds of thousands of Sudanese refugees from Darfur are in camps in Chad, and Sudan's instability has the potential to spill over into Chad. Sudan has a stronger team than Chad and will probably be fighting with Congo for the 2nd qualifying sport behind Mali, so the games between Sudan and Chad will be very tense.
Australia vs. Iraq, Asia's Group 1 - Australia still has troops in Iraq, although with the recent elections its troops might have been withdrawn by the time these teams play. Both Australia and Iraq have good teams, but I'd expect Australia to win, especially if Iraq's players keep defecting and refusing to play for Iraq for security reasons.
Iran vs. United Arab Emirates, Asia's Group 5 - An expansionist Iran frightens UAE, which has recently bought lots of weapons from the US to guard against Iran. Iran has a very good side however, so this likely won't be much of a contest.
USA vs. Cuba, CONCACAF Third Round - No diplomatic relations since 1962 mean that the only ways Cuba and the United States can interact is through illegal immigration and soccer games! I expect a fairly easy victory for the United States though.
Nothing interesting in Europe in terms of politics - their Kantian universe makes for very boring international soccer games, compared to the Hobbesian world the rest of us live in.
Check out the full draw over at The Offside blog.
Security at World Cup 2010
South Africa is known for its large numbers of (mainly white) mercenaries. South Africa appears to be one of the "big three" in terms of suppliers of mercenaries to Iraq, along with America and Britain.
South Africa is also hosting the World Cup in 2010. Some worries exist due to South Africa's crime rates.
With the United States likely withdrawing the majority of its 150,000 (ish) troops from Iraq before 2010, it's assumed that level of Private Military Company (PMC) involvement will drop proportional to the level of withdrawal of Coalition forces (although Jeremy Scahill has argued the opposite - that the US could just withdraw its soldiers and replace them with more mercenaries). Therefore its likely that there will be a bunch of unemployed South African mercenaries during the time of the World Cup. Some see this as a problem, while some see this as an opportunity!
The only potential problem that I see is that alot of these guys supposedly worked for the apartheid regime - there could be a bad reaction to the hiring of these guys by non-white South Africans. Also, apparently there is a 1998 law against hiring mercenaries by the state - but that could probably be worked around by hiring them as temporary law enforcement officers instead.
South Africa is also hosting the World Cup in 2010. Some worries exist due to South Africa's crime rates.
With the United States likely withdrawing the majority of its 150,000 (ish) troops from Iraq before 2010, it's assumed that level of Private Military Company (PMC) involvement will drop proportional to the level of withdrawal of Coalition forces (although Jeremy Scahill has argued the opposite - that the US could just withdraw its soldiers and replace them with more mercenaries). Therefore its likely that there will be a bunch of unemployed South African mercenaries during the time of the World Cup. Some see this as a problem, while some see this as an opportunity!
With some "retooling", South African "mercenaries" working in hotspots like Iraq and Afghanistan could be used to provide security at the World Cup in 2010.I say it's a win-win situation - employ the mercs so they aren't causing trouble, and achieve a temporary fix to the crime problem so that the World Cup can go off smoothly.
The only potential problem that I see is that alot of these guys supposedly worked for the apartheid regime - there could be a bad reaction to the hiring of these guys by non-white South Africans. Also, apparently there is a 1998 law against hiring mercenaries by the state - but that could probably be worked around by hiring them as temporary law enforcement officers instead.
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