Brad

I couldn't disagree more and the fact that you say you weren't expecting anything is revealing. Even though the players are a little tired, it's great theater and for me, as a Spain fan, the WC didn't disappoint in the least. From that perspective, it was one of the best ever If I had to think back to some of the other WCs I've seen they didn't disappoint either: Brasil winning their third cup in 1970; Maradona's "hand of god" in 1986; France in 1998; and Brasil again in 2002. This WC had some great moments also: the Kiwis holding off Italy, Landon Donovan getting the goal that sent the US into the Round of 16, the Netherlands ousting Brasil and Iniesta scoring the goal that won it for Spain. Probably no unknown players but Forlan's performance was wonderful to watch.

Feliz cumpleanos EKE BBB!

Regarding Steinbrenner, I wouldn't say he abused the system, he just used what was available to him. I don't see anything wrong with that. He's also a mixed bag. As I noted in Chris A's thread, not a person I would have wanted to work for -- just remember what he did to Dick Howser, which was pretty shameful. On the other hand, he apparently did some good public works. What is somewhat objectionable is forgetting how he behaved and deifying him. He engineered trading away young talent (like Doug Drabek) for washed up talent. Lastly, let's not forget that the Yankees did not get good until he was out of the picture because of the Spira matter and Gene Michael was allowed to put the team together without interference. It was his work that led to four titles.

My recollection, which could be wrong, was that both new NY stadiums were privately financed although some city participation in permits, etc. and so forth was obviously necessary.

I just returned from China and the weather was terrible. In Shanghai every day was high 90s and humid. You'd walk out at 800am and it was like walking into a furnace. Very oppressive. Beijing was the same but not humid. You have to walk around with cold water or you won't survive.

Thierry Henry has moved to the Red Bulls of the MLS. Not sure how much he has left. He is scheduled to play next week when they face Tottenham at an exhibition in NJ.

Maybe they were crap but NZ deserved the three in that match, and that match was one of the more exciting ones I saw in the WC as Italy was desperate for a win and NZ held them off.

Only a poor officiating decision (more diving) prevented them from beating Italy and moving to the group of 16.

Chris, You and I agree on this one. He terrorized his employees and abused his managers. Moreover, he pled guilty to a campaign violation and tried to blackmail one of his players. The team only got better in the 90s when he was serving his suspension. On the baseball front, he made terrible trades, giving away young talent for washed up vets. The coverage got so bad today I had to turn off the radio.

At least JJ is consistent. Has Al Sharpton weighed in yet?

I'm no Laker fan but I'm glad he's not joining any team with that jerk LeIdiot.

No, you are not the only one, at least not in spirit I lived in Spain during the latter part of the 1960s and early 1970s and Spain is my team. The suffering is over! I have been away but the Dutch decided that couldn't play with Spain (although they have some gifted players) and decided they would do whatever they could, by hook or by crook (mostly crook it seems) to disrupt the Spanish. What they did was not much different than they did against Brasil and should have been expected. However, in the end, we had the right result so that is all that matters although it was not a match worthy of a final.

Under those conditions, 30 max. That's a pretty ridiculous wait.

Been traveling over in China (it's bloody hot here) so have only been to capture the early games, which start at 10 pm here.Anyway, I couldn't recall when I had seen such a physical game and I thought that the Dutch got the Brasilians to try to play the Dutch game, which is not what Brasil is all about. They're not as big as the Dutch or that physical. Brasil seem to be moaning about everything and the Dutch just got them out of their game. I don't think Dunga did them any favors, acting very immaturely or like a player. The Dutch psyched them out and they played their game and the Dutch did not.I assume we've seen the last of Dunga as a coach for he coldn't get them to play from behind; that's the true mettle of a team, when you're playing from behind. Felipe Melo, he's probably person non grata in Brasil today also.I'm sure Argentina and Spain are clapping their hands(for the moment as they could play each other). However, I think Spain's road to the semis is easier than Argentina's.From what I gather Uruguay's match was a big disappointment. I assume their ride is probably over although one can never tell. I assume you'd have to make the Dutch the favorite.Maybe Hans can answer this but how badly will they will miss the two defenders who must know sit out the next match?

Mets continue to roll at home. Where would they without the knuckleballer Dickey. He's really cemented things.

I think most national teams are all star teams since all the players are in different leagues. Can't answer the other questions. However, before the WC started, they lost to China and that should have been a signal that things weren't right. I also think it was a mistake for the French Federatoin to say that Domenech wasn't being rehired and then keep him as a coach. It's one thing when a manager or coach is told at the end of a season, as happens in many sports, that he will not be rehired but quite another when the fired coach is heading into the WC. Any authority he had was gone. They should have sent the new coach, Laurent Blanc. You can lay the blame for some of the antics that we witnessed on the Federation.

Burnett seems to prove the adage that when he's good, he's very good but when he's bad, he's very bad

I have the feeling that it somehow got changed but Brownie then changed it back.

That would be equivalent to a number 16 seed in the NCAA basketball tourney knocking off a number 1!

Here are some of refereeing decisions indicative of anti-americanism. Oh, darn, I forgot the USA wasn't involved in these. Oh, well, on with the show: In a group stage match between Croatia and Australia in 2006, referee Graham Poll failed to properly record a yellow card for Croatia's Josip Simunic. So when Simunic later received a second yellow card, Poll did not send him off, since he had inadvertently given Simunic's first yellow to an Australian player. It took a third yellow card later in the match (for dissent) for Poll to send off Simunic. The match ended 2-2. As a result of the blunder, Poll, a highly respected referee, never again officiated a World Cup match. In the Round of 16 in 2002, the South Koreans scored an astounding upset against Italy ... thanks to the help of Ecuadorian referee Byron Moreno. Moreno controversially sent off Italian striker Francesco Totti after giving him a second yellow card for diving (replays later showed there was contact on the foul). Then, Moreno disallowed an Italian goal in extra time with a bogus offside whistle. The South Koreans would go on to win 2-1 in the extra period, and Moreno would later encounter numerous other charges of match-fixing. Not a refereeing decision but those new fans who may wonder why the final group stage matches are played at the same time, here's the answer: In 1982 a draw or an Austrian win would eliminate West Germany. A German win by three or more goals would eliminate Austria. But a German victory by one or two goals would eliminate Algeria. After the West Germans scored 10 minutes into the match, the two sides basically kicked the ball around, doing very little, almost intentionally trying not to score. When the final 1-0 score line eliminated Algeria, the African side lodged a complaint with FIFA. The result was allowed to stand, but it was clear to everyone what had happened.

Unfortunately, ref screwups are legion in WC. For instance, the ref screwed up in the Brasil match today by not calling a hand ball on Brasil. I guess he hates the Ivory Coast. But wait, he kicked out a Brasilian player. So I guess he's biased against both of them. If you read my prior post, you'd see FIFA rated his performance as poor. I recommend that you watch a few matches and not just WC before making inane pronouncements.

Clarification: in my last post in the last sentence, I meant to say the US Slovenia match Mali ref, in case anyone wonders what I meant. I also heard somehwhere that some match was going to use a ref from the Seychelles. That's another head shaker.

I don't really want to get too involved in this whole sportsmanship argument but I am an American who loves football and I just don't agree. To me, it's just part of the fabric of the game. People here, that is those who only watch the game mostly at WC time, don't realize what a physical game and because goals at any level are at a premium players are always looking for an edge. I also think these kind of comments from people who don't watch the game year round. I would encourage you to get Fox Soccer Channel and watch the English Premier League from August to May and you'll take in what a great game this is. I think that's what steroids are all about in baseball or spitballs, etc. I'm not saying I like what I see sometimes but it happens and FIFA has tried a little bit to eliminate the dives. I'm sure they will look at the Kaka expulsion and overturn that. Fortunately, that had no effect on the game. Yes, refs make mistakes but you can blame FIFA for having refs from countries not used to coaching big games. I watch the Premier League in England quite a bit and generally the refs get it right. By the way FIFA has rated the US mail ref "poor" for what it's worth; hopefully he won't work another match in this tournament.

From what we are seeing so far, there are no easy matches. The so called minnows are fighting hard.

Can we get somebody to delete that stupid post and while he's at it maybe the poster can....oh, never mind, why sink to his level.