Posted on 06/14/2006 5:46:34 AM PDT by soccer_maniac
The first cycle of group play in the FIFA World Cup comes to a close on Wednesday with all four Group H teams in action, Spain taking on Ukraine at 8:55 a.m. ET (ESPN2) and Saudi Arabia facing Tunisia three hours later (also on ESPN2). Then Cup hosts Germany start the second series of matches in the groups when they face neighbors Poland in Dortmund.
Spain finally get a chance to get the ball rolling in Leipzig, facing a Ukraine team looking for a result in its first-ever World Cup match. But just because the Eastern Europeans are new on the world stage doesn't mean they don't have the talent to make an impact. In fact, they were the first team apart from the hosts to secure passage to the World Cup, topping a difficult Group 2 that also included Denmark, European champions Greece and a Turkey team that finished third in the World Cup four years ago.
Ukraine also boasts one of the most deadly strikers in the world in Andrei Shevchenko, a new arrival to London's Chelsea FC after a stunning career at AC Milan. However, "Sheva," as he is known, has been battling a knee injury and it remains to be seen if he will be in the starting 11.
Shevchenko isn't the only lethal striker that will be on the field; Spain has several of their own, as well, including Real Madrid legend Raul. Arsenal striker Jose Antonio Reyes is also a danger and could start, especially since Spain coach Luis Aragones often lines his side up in a 4-3-3 formation. Spain is looking to break their World Cup curse in Germany, having never advanced to the final in the competition.
(Excerpt) Read more at mlsnet.com ...
YEAH!!
I want Saudi Arabia to LOSE.
I'll be avoiding this thread once the Germany/Poland match starts... TiVo's picking that one up for me and I don't want any spoilers. :)
How the heck is one supposed to scout for foreign players? Especially at D2 and D3 levels?
Every time I listen to O'Brien I get the impression that he thinks he's calling some dull, meaningless June baseball game. Awful, lethargic, uninspired announcing.
If we could do something about that super annoying crawl at the bottom of the ESPN2 games that would be great too.
Hey ESPN - wake up.... THIS IS NOT THE X GAMES for crying out loud.
"Thank you Ukraine for supplanting the US as the worst performance in the tournament so far."
To be fair to Ukraine, they were badly let down by the officials. The penalty was very harsh and of about 5 offside calls, only one was correct.
Worst officiating at the tournament so far.
Spain did look good though.
"Meanwhile, Kevin Pietersen knew how good he was (good enough to get an English cap) and that it was a much more high profile spot than the South African team, which is why he made his move."
Just to go off on a cricket tangent for a moment - Pietersen thought he was finding it unduly tough to get in the South Africa side because of the 'positive' descrimination towards black players. So he upped sticks and came to England. Good for us.
The English announcer is worth listening to, and Tommy Smyth can be funny at times. Other than those two, the announcers are terrible. They should just have the game without the announcers...
Four years ago, Poland had Emmanuel Olisadebe, who was born in Nigeria, but they made a Polish citizen so he could be on the team.
The US has done similar things. As long as a player has never representated another national team, you can in fact, "recruit" players.
I just hope nobody issues a Fatwa on those Tunisian chicks.
Remember when Bob Ley and Seamus Mallin did the games at USA '94? They need to bring those two back post haste.
I thought the pair that did the Saudi - Tunisia game today actually wasn't that bad. It helps when you're a diehard soccer fan too which Shep Messing obiously is. O'Brien is just there to pick up a paycheck.
That too. Although with the way he has been playing, I'm amazed that anyone would turn him down, "affirmative action" or not.
But it is true, many white South African cricketers are exploring other options due to the program currently in place. It is nothing like what Zimbabwe is doing, though. I'm convinced that if Zimbabwe were able to field all their best players, they wouldn't be the laughingstock of test cricket.
What a great game that was! Bravo to the Saudi's, they showed more energy and kept running at the Tunisian players throughout the entire second half. And what an ending! In extended play time no less!! Looking forward to the Germany/Poland match coming up. But when will I get any work done around here???? So much soccer, so little time. Oh well, it is THE World Cup.
Si!
That was a great example of playing until the whistle blows. The last goal was a beauty.
Looking forward to the Germany-Poland game.
Second round, and the drama increases. The Poles are desperate to get a win after their loss in the first game.
Bring it on.
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