im lolling at some of the comments that sergio ramos is a great defender...

he is a great brazilian prototype wing-back, not a great defender. he plays just like a cafu or a roberto carlos or alves. loves to attack, very vulnerable in the back.

pienaar is great on the ball half the time he gets it. he usually dribbles way too much. hes done that ever since i first saw him when he played for ajax years back in a champs league match or uefa or whatever it was.


im really glad that brazil won today, which means im in a win/win situation in teams i pull for. plus, id rather us get the experience in playing against a top 3 club again. playing south africa wouldnt have helped us at all. thats a lose/lose game. we are better than them talent/skillswise so it will look bad if we lost. also, i think it would be really hard to take down that fast of a team riding behind their home crowd. they could really mess things up if they get bunched into a group of death next year.

basically, i rank south africa as a costa rica. we get to see teams of that caliber all the time. we dont play brazil or spain very often. i will not mind the usa losing this sunday as long as they are out there trying to win.

6/26/2009 12:17:25 AM

Agreed. Honestly, winning this tournament means NOTHING. Sure it's nice to say they win their first FIFA tournament but the biggest part is getting the added experience versus top teams. Confidence is a great thing in this sport and the win over the A Spain team and being competitive against the A Brazil team would be huge...

I really hope they get Freddy in Sunday personally, but it probably won't happen.

6/26/2009 12:20:29 AM

you will prob see the exact same squad against spain, except feilhaber in for coachs boy

6/26/2009 12:23:07 AM

Quote :

" he is a great brazilian prototype wing-back, not a great defender. he plays just like a cafu or a roberto carlos or alves. loves to attack, very vulnerable in the back. "

so the fact that he's often the most dangerous player on set pieces and has the conditioning to play both sides of the field makes him a bad defender? is a forward who comes back to help on d a vulnerable attacker? i don't know why a versatile player would be labeled as vulnerable just because they choose to play a more dynamic role.

either way, the point being made is that the last goal could have been avoided had he just cleared the ball instead of being cheeky in his own box.

[Edited on June 26, 2009 at 12:34 AM. Reason : ]

6/26/2009 12:31:51 AM

I stand by my comment that that goal is as much Pique's fault(if not more) as it is Sergio Ramos'.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8kqpLd-dX0

6/26/2009 8:54:05 AM

No way. He was running towards the goal and the ball was played behind him. As a defender you're simply trying to get anything on the ball you can. There wasn't a whole lot else he could do with that. You can maybe question his positioning but he was trying to do what he could. That goal is pretty much all on Ramos because he didn't clear the ball from inside the 6 yard box with his first touch. Not playing with the ball in the back is some Day 1 shit.

6/26/2009 9:45:27 AM

If Pique does not touch it, it goes right to Casillas, but instead he sends a retarded back heeled flick right into danger.

6/26/2009 10:02:11 AM

Quote :

"Not playing with the ball in the back is some Day 1 shit."

6/26/2009 10:08:54 AM

i think pique messed up just as much as ramos on that play. he made a real half assed attempt to clear it with his heal and let it go right through his legs. he could've slid and tried to block it or something. ramos does suck as a defender though, theres no arguing that.

6/26/2009 10:42:11 AM

Pique's momentum going away from the cross means the absolute best thing he could have done is just not stuck his foot out at all. I don't know how he could have possibly contorted his body to somehow slide in front of it. He was running full bore with his man and the cross was behind him. Sure, that was a mistake, but he barely touched the ball with his heel. Ramos, on the other hand, had a very basic and easy clearance right at his feet but he decided to dick around with the ball in the six yard box. You just don't do that.

6/26/2009 10:48:34 AM

im saying he should've been sliding anyways to try to block the shot or get in the way of a pass. he could've done a lot better than that, it hit off the heal of his front foot, he could've blocked it or cleared it with his other foot, but he messed up. it was a difficult play for sure cuz i doubt he was expecting the pass but he definitely messed up.

6/26/2009 11:15:21 AM

pique did nothing wrong here, if anyone is to blame its donovan and ramos. who traps the ball basically on your goalline? thats retarded. and donovan has been doing this all tournament, that shouldve been a shot. instead it was a pretty crappy cross that turned out to be lucky as hell. ill take it, but i wish donovan would shoot these more often. i can think of at least 2 other times this tournament he has decided to pass in that area rather than shoot.


and to mls09. a wingback is basically a midfielder. sergio ramos is a winger converted to fullback. and a forward who comes back to help on d means he is more versatile and hardworking. he is going out of his way and helping out the d. if he doesnt do anything on offense than yes he sucks as a forward. but ramos is generally out of position attacking and usually doesnt have to worry about it because he plays for the powerhouses that are spain and real madrid who can either: a) get away with it cause they have central defenders to back him up or b) just score more goals to make up for any errors on his side

[Edited on June 26, 2009 at 1:25 PM. Reason : defense first. offense second]

6/26/2009 1:22:18 PM

ramos is majorly at fault, being that nonchalant ten feet from goal

with that said, pique making random stabs at the ball when he's in full flight the wrong way is downright stupid

6/26/2009 1:23:55 PM

i dont see how you can fault pique for making an attempt at it. would you rather him just run by the ball and watch it go by him and have him not try and make a play on it? that would look rather pointless. if were gonna put blame on people stabbing i think there were 2 guys before donovan even got the ball who made half ass stab attempts at feilhaber

6/26/2009 1:27:44 PM

watch the video of it, pique's attempt at the ball was lame as hell. he didn't do anything, he tried to heel it away. he should be trying to slide to block the shot or take away the pass but he did neither.

6/26/2009 1:35:21 PM

block it or get out of the way

you have to trust your marking

same reason you don't want guys trying to block shots with their sticks in a hockey game

block it or get out of the way

you have to trust your goaltender

6/26/2009 1:37:47 PM

Hey look a goaltender telling everyone you need to trust him.

You can put the one play under the microscope, but the big picture is more important.

6/26/2009 2:21:37 PM

http://www.fifa.com/mm/document/tournament/competition/01/07/62/39/13_0624_esp-usa_playersheatmap.pdf

look at how much ground Donovan covered

6/26/2009 2:41:08 PM

Wow. Donovan, Dempsey, Bocanegra, Clark, and Bradley ran their asses off. We really do have some of the best conditioning in the world.

6/26/2009 2:48:51 PM

JT, it seems like we're just going to have to agree to disagree when in rome.


I watch a lot of la liga, and i think ramos is one of the best conditioned athletes in the league. he hustles, and rarely makes a poorly timed tackle. my gut tells me that you see players like terry and ferdinand as "ideal" defenders, and possibly even puyol. it's probably more just a matter of style preference. I prefer players who can contribute on every part of the field, and i think teams that limit their players to specific roles and micro-manage a players total potential on the field tend to have a slower, and overall more boring brand of soccer to display. ramos would probably make a good winger, but to me he does just fine at d, and i've rarely seen him give up on a play because he was too far up the field. again, i think this is just a matter of preference. if anything, i think his error against the US was an exception, not the rule.


a little ramos tape for anyone interested: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=45VNxd7Dm4o

6/26/2009 7:04:29 PM

^That save he makes after the attacker beats the keeper is just sick.

6/26/2009 7:53:25 PM

USA v Spain will be on ESPN/ESPNHD at 2pm instead of ESPN2/ESPN2HD like originally announced. I guess ESPN changed their minds after USA made it to the finals.

Also, where would be the best place in Raleigh to watch this game??

6/27/2009 8:28:23 PM

Argh. Of course I gotta work during this one too. I assume they'll be showing a replay tomorrow night?

6/27/2009 10:00:34 PM

^^ Brain fart.. i meant USA v Brazil

^ Replay is 12:00am midnight on ESPN2/ESPN2HD

[Edited on June 27, 2009 at 10:45 PM. Reason : ]

6/27/2009 10:43:47 PM

I'm guessing the BEST place to watch would probably be like Hibernian Pub or something. Player's Retreat wouldn't be bad either probably.

6/28/2009 1:37:34 AM

i'll be at the times

6/28/2009 4:17:16 AM

wwwwwwwooooooooooooooooooowwwwwwwwwwwwwww

what a finish to the Spain - South Africa game

6/28/2009 10:52:53 AM

This is an amazing game!!

South Africa goes up 1-0 around 70' mark
Spain rattles off 2 goals by the time 90' hits
South Africa ties it back up in bonus time

It's about to go to 1st OT

6/28/2009 10:53:17 AM

Tell me someone is watching the 3rd place game right now. Unbelievable last 20 min.

That strike to tie it was fantastic

6/28/2009 10:53:22 AM

Yeah, I can't believe that guy hit that shot with basically no time left. That's got to be incredible pressure. He's got fucking ice in his veins.

6/28/2009 10:54:57 AM

The last goal was awesome. Spain really should have started the 11 players with the least playing time up to this point because they would have tried a little harder and probably won in regulation.

6/28/2009 10:57:05 AM

^^no kidding. the precision it takes to hit a shot like that at any time is unreal and to hit it at that juncture in the game... wooowww. I was jumping around in my living room.

^I'm not convinced they were loafing. They looked pretty sharp to me. Give S. Africa credit where credit is due. Frankly, if it hadn't been for the luck shot by Guiza, they would have lost in regulation.




[Edited on June 28, 2009 at 11:15 AM. Reason : I bet those South African fans who left early to beat traffic are kicking themself in the ass now.]

6/28/2009 10:57:45 AM

Spain back up 3-2... S. Africa seems exhausted.

6/28/2009 11:22:49 AM

FINAL
Spain (3 : 2) South Africa

Great game. It's worth replaying the last 25' of regulation. Great fury or goals back and forth. South Africa had a good showing all tournament.

6/28/2009 11:30:45 AM

Quote :

"I bet those South African fans who left early to beat traffic are kicking themself in the ass now."

LOL! I had that same thought. I'm just glad Spain held on to win. Now hopefully they have another long unbeaten streak, so it looks like the USA beat a good team. It would have sucked if Spain lost today and then lost 1, or 2 qualifiers after that.

6/28/2009 11:35:11 AM

Anyone know a website that is streaming the game?

6/28/2009 2:08:20 PM

it begins..

6/28/2009 2:33:39 PM

GOOOOOOOOOOOOAAAAAAAAAAALLLLLLLLLLLL

6/28/2009 2:43:20 PM

GOAL.

The brazilian announcer sounded so confused.

6/28/2009 2:43:24 PM

wooooooooooo

6/28/2009 2:43:33 PM

woooooooooooooooooooooooo

6/28/2009 2:43:48 PM

HELL YES HIT'EM EARLY HIT'EM HARD

6/28/2009 2:43:50 PM

[Edited on June 28, 2009 at 2:45 PM. Reason : ]

6/28/2009 2:44:43 PM

That was a great cross by Spector.

6/28/2009 2:45:05 PM

Landed right on dempsey's foot



Nice save by howard



We are putting a ton of pressure on them right now, keep it up

[Edited on June 28, 2009 at 2:47 PM. Reason : pressure]

6/28/2009 2:45:38 PM

stream anyone?

6/28/2009 2:49:07 PM

try justin.tv

6/28/2009 2:49:56 PM

the brazilian announcers keep mentioning the 3-0 game awhile back.

6/28/2009 2:51:06 PM

bullshit is that a yellow card offense, wtf

6/28/2009 2:52:04 PM

futball, not football

yeah i think so...dude was basically tackling him to keep him from advancing the ball

[Edited on June 28, 2009 at 2:52 PM. Reason : .]

6/28/2009 2:52:25 PM