Friday, June 25, 2010

World Cup 2010 - Day 15


Funny sport, football. Nine days ago Spain played extraordinary football and lost to Switzerland. Today they were not at their best, but won against a team much better than the Swiss. They were helped along the way by an easy red card for Estrada and a huge goalkeeping error from the Chilean captain Claudio Bravo. But a win is a win, and first place in the group assures them of an Iberic derby against neighbors Portugal.

Chile were outstanding with 10 men against the "Passing Machine" and fully deserve qualification. The Swiss, on the other hand, have only themselves to blame for not advancing. All they had to do is beat Honduras. Honduras! (yes, excuse my lack of diplomacy, but...Honduras??). So, poetic justice was done in the end. The Swiss are going home with the only satisfaction that they beat Spain [although they still are not sure how it happened]

In the earlier games, the two Portuguese-speaking teams played a dull, yet at times hard-fought 0-0 tie, assuring they both progressed to the next stage [Ivory Coast was 6 goals short of the goal-difference required in case Portugal lost]. It took a half-time break to cool off the spirits, as Mexican referee Archundia dished off 7 yellows (none in the second half). What is it with Mexican referees and yellow cards? The one in the Spain-Chile game was handing them out quite freely as well...

So that's it. Group stage is over and we have the pairings for the Round of 16. Plenty of surprises, as mentioned before, but I'll spare you any mawkish soliloquies this evening...

OK, well, maybe a quick one: of all the eliminated teams, there isn't ONE that did not deserve to go home. Over the 3 group games the best two teams from each group managed to qualify. But if you recall, I mentioned in one of the earlier posts that FIFA should consider some ‘alternative point’ systems in order to make the games more exciting (especially in the early stages) and reward attacking football. Would never happen, I know, but humor me as I go through these “what if” scenarios.

Group A

Uruguay 7 (4-0)
Mexico 4 (3-2)
South Africa 4 (3-5)
France 1 (1-4)

Alternative 1 - No points for 0-0 draw; extra point for more than 4 goals scored: same standings, only Uruguay only 6 points and France a big goose-egg!
Alternative 2 - One point per goal scored: identical standings, with Mexico still through on goals difference

Group B

Argentina 9 (7-1)
South Korea 4 (5-6)
Greece 3 (2-5)
Nigeria 1 (3-5)

Alternative 1 - No points for 0-0 draw; extra point for more than 4 goals scored: same standings, only Argentina with 10 points
Alternative 2 - One point per goal scored: similar at the top of the group, only Nigeria last (with 2 goals scored)

Group C

USA 5 (4-3)
England 5 (2-1)
Slovenia 4 (3-3)
Algeria 1 (0-2)

Alternative 1 - No points for 0-0 draw; extra point for more than 4 goals scored: same standings, only England on 4 points (still better goal difference) and Algeria 0 points
Alternative 2 - One point per goal scored: US still top, but Slovenia going through instead of England!

Group D

Germany 6 (5-1)
Ghana 4 (2-2)
Australia 4 (3-6)
Serbia 3 (2-3)

Alternative 1 - No points for 0-0 draw; extra point for more than 4 goals scored: same standings, only Germany on 7 points
Alternative 2 - One point per goal scored: Germany still top, but Australia going through instead of Ghana!

Group E

Netherlands 9 (5-1)
Japan 6 (4-2)
Denmark 3 (3-6)
Cameroon 0 (2-5)

Alternative 1 - No points for 0-0 draw; extra point for more than 4 goals scored: same standings
Alternative 2 - One point per goal scored: still same standings!

Group F

Paraguay 5 (3-1)
Slovakia 4 (4-5)
New Zealand 3 (2-2)
Italy 2 (4-5)

Alternative 1 - No points for 0-0 draw; extra point for more than 4 goals scored: same standings, only Paraguay and New Zealand one point less each
Alternative 2 - One point per goal scored: Italy through instead of Paraguay! (there goes my argument)

Group G

Brazil 7 (5-2)
Portugal 5 (7-0)
Ivory Coast 4 (4-3)
North Korea 0 (1-12)

Alternative 1 - No points for 0-0 draw; extra point for more than 4 goals scored: same standings (although Portugal and Ivory Coast equal on points)
Alternative 2 - One point per goal scored: same two qualified, but Portugal first.

Group H

Spain 6 (4-2)
Chile 6 (3-2)
Switzerland 4 (1-1)
Honduras 1 (0-3)

Alternative 1 - No points for 0-0 draw; extra point for more than 4 goals scored: same standings
Alternative 2 - One point per goal scored: still same standings!

So, what does all this tell us [aside from the obvious fact that I have way too much time on my hands and I'm undoubtedly a football junkie]?

Fundamentally, not a big difference in final standings, if you look at the way the tables line up [small exceptions here and there], but ...we’d see more goals, perhaps, as they carry more weight. We’d see teams not giving up and still trying to score even if they’re down 3-0 in the 80th minute. Every team would have a better chance even if they lost the first two games [as it was the case with Cameroon or North Korea, for example]. In the end, they should be “judged” on all 3 performances, regardless of how bad they performed in the first two…

But it’s all circumstantial. No matter the mechanics, the last round of group games will always be exciting and provide the drama that we’re all so used to, while the first round will continue to be clouded by the fear of not losing the first game… Then, 16 teams are left and the true competition begins. More drama, more surprises, more excitement, more heartache, more of what we love about this beautiful game!

Stay tuned [and glued to the TVs] for more drama as the Round of 16 kicks off!

In the early game, Uruguay will probably overcome the South Koreans, but it will not be easy; US is looking to avenge their 2-1 loss to Ghana 4 years ago in Germany. At least one [if not both] of these games could head for extra time, as all teams are evenly matched.

Enjoy!

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