Dream Fallout

So, there were two things that I felt most strongly about in terms of the Giants' off-season agenda: 1) retaining Aubrey Huff; and 2) retaining Juan Uribe. They seemed at the heart of the magical run. At the very least, let's keep them around for a victory lap, right?

Yes, Edgar Renteria was vital too, but considering his age and fragility, I was okay with letting him ride off into the sunset under the Golden Gate Bridge by way of a richly-deserved yet environmentally-friendly yacht, either into retirement, or a nightcap of a season or two with another team--although capping a career with another World Series-winning hit to go along with his winner in 1997 would be tough to top. And yes, I was thrilled to have Pat Burrell on the team, for the local flavor, the big hits in the season, and the classic baseball nickname of "Pat the Bat", but his lack of mobility meant I would much rather the Giants extend Cody Ross and Andres Torres.

Step 1: Accomplished! We signed Aubrey to a richly deserved contract extension, 2 years with an option for a third, $22 million guaranteed. He can play first base or in the outfield, and he's just a big ball of fun and magic. His versatility will be key, especially if Brandon Belt, ostensibly the next Buster Posey, matriculates to the majors next season.

But, Step 2: Ugh. Um. Huh. Juan Uribe just signed a three year, $21 million deal. With the Dodgers.

What the hell?

Juan, you are related to Jose Uribe. You inherited the OOOOREEEEBAY cheer. How can you wear Dodger Blue?

Well, he has his reasons. Granted, those reasons are in the amount of $21 million, so you can't really blame him. He wanted a multi-year contract, and $7 million a year is, well, $7 million a year. Reports have varied as to what the Giants offered him, so I don't know what to think about that, although the Chronicle reports the Giants offered 3 years for $20 million, which, if true, either means that the Giants were unwilling to pay $1 million more or that Juan ignored the pull of trying to repeat over $1 million. Yes, $1 million seems like an enormous sum, but when you look at it as a percentage of the whole, it doesn't seem so much. Objectively, if he felt that was the best deal for him, then so be it. Baseball is a business, and objectively, there is no reason why a player shouldn't move from the Giants to the Dodgers or vice versa. It's just a matter of one city over another, one business over another. People change jobs all the time.

And it does not negate the magic of this past year in any way. Nor does it mean that Giants fans will have to automatically hate Juan the first time we play Los Angeles.

But there is something about it that just feels wrong. Baseball is not just a business, despite what the cynics say. But such is life; business does play a large role. Although, apparently the Dodgers made an aggressive run at Huff as well, so maybe the rivalry has just been taken to the business side as well.

And then you have the Giants' first response: a one year, $6.5 million contract to Miguel Tejada. Tejada has roots here from the A's and should provide good hitting, but he is older than Uribe by five years, and he was named in the Mitchell Report for steroid-affiliation. This isn't what we need, after Jose Guillen's brief fling with the Giants at the end of the year that was quickly linked to a delivery of HGH, not to mention the looming controversy of Barry Bonds and BALCO.

But the deal seems reasonable in dollars, and there are a few young prospects who could be groomed under Tejada. So we shall see. But it doesn't feel like the perfect coda to a championship symphony of a year.

Let's be sure to extend Cody Ross's contract, okay?

What It Means To Say San Francisco Giants, 2010 World Champion

The San Francisco Giants are World Series Champions. What does that mean in the grand scheme of things, other than the all-important truth that we have now won a World Series more recently than the Yankees and the Dodgers?

I have spent my life hoping that it would happen. Now that it has, it's hard to find the words to express what it means. The Giants won the World Series? Seriously? All this after being predicted to finish fourth in the division? You would think it was a straightforward question, the meaning of a World Series victory, but no.

The first game I ever attended was with Dad and our landlord in Santa Rosa. The Giants beat the Atlanta Braves at Candlestick Park behind Bob Brenly's three errors and two home runs. That was back in 1986. Rob Schneider, of all people, mentioned that exact game on the televised coverage of the celebratory parade (I am allergic to his comedy, generally, but he turned out to be an articulate and devoted Giants fan), which made me feel a link a larger world.

Obviously the Giants have been close before, in 1989 and 2002. That story has been covered many times. And what the victory means to me is probably not the same as it means to other fans, so all I can write about it is what it means to me. And even then, I'll stick to what I would like it to mean, because I'm still too close to it all.

All the pressure is off! Now that we've won a championship, outlasting all comers, we can sit back and enjoy the beauty of baseball qua baseball. Maybe Barry Zito can relax and just let the ball fly now, without the pressure of living up to his mega-inflated salary. And it will certainly make things easier for Marina, as I'll be able to resist yelling and swearing at the TV for a good long time, at least until April.

You Can't Argue With The Great Pumpkin

After decades of frustration in which San Francisco Giants fans have waited for a championship like Linus waiting in a pumpkin patch for the Great Pumpkin, it truly seems like this could be the year. No, not because of the statistical patterns concerning teams that take 2-0 leads in the World Series. I'm talking of the real reasons: the supernatural factors, including the intervention of the Great Pumpkin.

I'm sure Texas is an assembly of decent human beings. For one thing, they are no longer owned by George W. Bush. For another thing, they are no longer owned by Tom Hicks.

But Texas does not have Juan Uribe. He is the second cousin of Jose Uribe, starting shortstop for the Giants when I was a kid, and whose name inspired the "Oooo-reee--bayyy" chant that has now been transferred to Juan. It is a second chance after the Giants lost the 1989 World Series after the world literally shook. Sounds like a mystical connection to me.

In addition, there is the Halloween Factor. Obviously, it has been reported in the media how the Giants' team colors, orange and black, are in sync with Halloween. Plus, the Giants have the scary beard motif, which seems extra appropriate. However, there is a more important Halloween connection that has been overlooked up until now. The most popular animated Halloween TV special is almost certainly "It's The Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown"; Charles Schulz established a home and an ice rink and a museum in Santa Rosa, the town where I lived until I was nine.

Sure, Charlie Brown is known for getting knocked off the mound on pretty much every single pitch he threw in a baseball game, but before Peanuts came to an end, Charlie Brown hit a home run to win a game. Not even Nolan Ryan can argue with that. Plus, we have Cody Ross, our very own bald hero. Coincidence? I think not.

If you want a more logical rationale, let's look at the numbers. The year is 2010, and 10 is my favorite number. Plus, 20 plus 10 equals 30, which is my age. The Giants are my favorite team, and therefore their fate is clearly linked to attributes of my personality.

Spooky, isn't it?

Game 1

Sports are as much about potential as anything else. Yes, I know about winning rings, statistics, the Hall of Fame. But if you ask me, the anticipation before Game 1 of the World Series is as fundamental to our enjoyment of sports as is a win-loss record.

Spring Training in baseball epitomizes the mythologized notion of a fresh start, amazing potential. Each team is like Schrodinger's Cat: at the start of the year, such are the possibilities that the team both wins the championship and does not win the championship at the same time. It is only when the results play out that one possibility goes away.

If you win or if you lose, there is always another match, always another season. At least until your team disbands or you retire. This may diminish the value of a victory, but it can also mitigate the sting of a defeat. It all depends on your perspective.

This is why, after the Rangers took a 2-0 lead before I got home, it was still possible for the Giants to tie it 2-2 going into the bottom of the fourth inning. Even against Cliff Lee, who is a great pitcher; I will gnash my teeth when he is a Yankee next year, even though it isn't like the Giants need him. Still, it's not like he would be for the Dodgers, so there's that concept that the enemy of the Dodgers is my friend. See? The beauty of possibility.

(Speaking of possibility, I just read that there is a chance Newcastle United will sign Landon Donovan in the January transfer window. It's like when they signed Michael Owen, only better, because Landon Donovan isn't perpetually injured. The alliance of my favorite soccer team with my favorite American player would be outstanding.)

Both pitchers are settling in and getting quick innings. This is fun! Lee versus Lincecum! Two new teams in the World Series, the Giants versus the Rangers, new blood instead of the battle of the Brobdingnagian squads from Philly and NY that everyone expected.

(By the way, a brief aside to eTrade: you should know that I will never use your services; I will specifically go out of my way to avoid using your services, because of your endlessly lame commercials featuring that damn baby.)

So much for worrying about Andres Torres and his appendectomy! A beautiful double down the left field line with one out in the 5th puts a runner in scoring position for the go-ahead run. Let's go, Freddy Sanchez! I love extra base hits, because that eliminates the threat--mostly--of double plays. And Freddy doubles in Torres!

And now, of course, if I finish writing here, it will forever preserve a moment in time when the Giants were ahead and Pat Burrell draws a two out walk. So I think I will do that, and go cook pasta and chicken sausage, and enjoy the rest of the game away from the computer. Let's go, Giants!

But of course, possibilities aside, what really matters is the result. No one ever really loves the journey or moral victories. Those are platitudes for the rationalizing and the contemplative. When it comes to baseball, I wanna win.

Cue Russ Hodges

"Ragtag." "Improbable." "Bizarrely bearded." "These 'bleepin' guys."

These are some of the descriptions of the San Francisco Giants in the media from the east coast. I won't say there's an element of condescension, but that scent of fermented grape is not coming from wine I drank to toast the Giants' clinching of a spot in the World Series. For one thing, I didn't drink wine, but Calvadoon apple brandy, much more satisfying on a rainy, foggy night in San Francisco.

There is a certain element of magic to any playoff run, especially when you are considered the underdog, whether you adopt the underdog role as a chip on your shoulder or as house money to burn. On Wednesday night, I was walking home along Valencia Street, through a damp evening, and a crowd outside the Phoenix pub was being lead in a "Let's Go, Giants" rally chant by a man with a trombone. If that's not a bit of magic, I don't know what is.

But magic is in the eye of the beholder. Or in the voice of the announcer, as was the case of Russ Hodges' famous radio call of "The Giants win the pennant! The Giants win the pennant!" after Bobby Thomson's 'Shot Heard Round The World."

Were the Phillies the better team? Well, the Phillies had the best record in baseball. I won't get into the question of an "on-paper" comparison of the teams, although that too could favor Philadelphia. All notions of the better team are irrelevant in the final analysis. All that matters is who wins the game. And last night in Philadelphia, the Giants won the pennant. The Phillies are going home.

(There is an interesting inverse proportion in San Francisco sports in terms of that reputation-result dichotomy. The Giants were considered rank outsiders to make the playoffs and are now National League champs; the 49ers were considered favorites to win the NFC West and have an abundance of talent, but are 1-6 now, and by measurement of their results, may be the worst football team in the NFL.)

The World Series starts Wednesday in the city by the bay. There is indeed magic in the air; sporting success weaves a new world of distraction and myth, legends and heroic moments, out of something whose stakes are not completely a matter of life and death. Sports stand in for the conflicts that trouble us, and give us comfort for a while.

Let's go, Giants!

The Fickle Size Of Expectation

Watching Manchester United waltz through West Bromwich Albion--2-0 at the 30 minute mark with a Javier Hernandez goal a highlight for my fantasy team--and knowing that Newcastle United are losing 2-0 at home to Wigan, I am confronted again with the question of expectations in sports.

It's hard to say that there is always a David versus Goliath factor, in the sense that 9 times out of 10 Goliath will win. West Brom recently beat Arsenal, after all. But there is a scale of economics that over the course of the season tends to weight the odds. I had hoped that Newcastle would come back up as a top-of-the-table club, that their relegation was a fluke. But it looks like they really have been on a slide, and that their exile in the Championship, even if they did bounce right back up, left them weakened as a club, not in a position to pay for the players they need to challenge the top teams.

This adds nuance to the season, in the sense that relegation battles and position in the standings become metaphors for adapting to one's station in life, and that winning a championship is not the only hallmark of a successful season.

The flip side of lowered expectations for Newcastle is the season that the Giants have had in Major League Baseball. For all the stress I went through in the final weeks of the pennant race, you would think that I had forgotten that the baseball preview magazine I read in April predicted San Francisco would finish second from last in the division, ahead of only San Diego. In fact, the Giants won the division on the final day of the season in a showdown with the Padres, whose second place finish helped underscore the reason why games are played in the field and not in the minds of journalists, who are kind of like meteorologists in that they are occasionally right, but clearly not prescient.

To look at things objectively, the Giants, in the playoffs for the first time since 2003, having beaten the Braves 3 games to 1 in the Divisional Series to advance to the National League Championship Series against the Phillies, are playing with house money. That may be an unfortunate metaphor in light of the Pete Rose story, but I'll go with it. Nevertheless, when the Giants lost game two against the Braves, I was distraught, convinced that every failure of the Giants was a failure of mine. Somewhere, I thought, a racist white conservative Republican fan of Atlanta was experiencing a moment of validation as a human being, which is utterly ridiculous, of course. Such a person could never be validated as a human being.

As I write this, West Brom knocks in a pinball goal, cutting the lead to 2-1. David is limbering up his slingshot arm.

So, with expectation being the fickle, changing, subjectively emotional beast it is, should I be satisfied with the Giants finishing in the top four teams, even if they can't overcome the Phillies, particularly with the Dodgers having suffered a shambles of a season? Probably. Would I be satisfied? Probably not, but watch this space. And more precisely, read what I write when content fills this space again.

And West Brom just tied Manchester United at Old Trafford. Wow. This is why we watch sports. Expectations are meant to be overturned.

Poisonous Barbs

Sports bring out the lunatic in me. If on balance I am a mild-mannered and agreeable person, I must be angelic when not watching sports. When I watch sports, I accuse the Atlanta Falcons of being racist for beating the 49ers, and I fear that every time the Padres beat the Giants--especially when it spoils a chance for the Giants to win the division--it could be taken as a sign that neo-conservative religious Republicans from a patriarchal system--or "Padres"--are superior to, you know, decent human beings.

It has been a frustrating couple of days, as the Giants have blown their first two chances to clinch the division, not even coming close to giving the Padres a contest; the 49ers played much better but still lost through some inexcusable mistakes--and yes, I say inexcusable knowing full well I would do no better, but pointing out that I'm not paid millions of dollars to avoid making those mistakes.

What is it about sports that turns me into a profanity-spewing, irrational madman, looking for second gunmen among the officiating crews?

Let's face it; the Giants were not expected to be in a position to challenge for a division title, so I should be happy they are doing so well. Baseball preview magazines picked them to finish fourth in the division, after all--those prognosticators should be trampled in spring training, not that I take these things personally. And yes, the 49ers were expected to play a competent brand of football, but still, why should I act as if their failures reflect upon my character? Why do we act as if athletes are totems whose success or failure has anything to do with us?

I think that we all want a simple measure of success or failure in life. How can we tell is we are doing well if there is no one to keep score? Hence Wall Street and the stock market. I mean, outside of material things, how do we keep track of how we are doing? Paying attention to our feelings? Come on. Only communists pay attention to their feelings. The rest of us need sports.

Or maybe I'm just a lunatic. A friend of mine said it was gutsy of me to watch the Giants' game today. Two things about that: I'm not watching it, just recording it in case we win; and that would be a rather depressing standard of bravery if watching a baseball game was "gutsy" of me.

Sports set their hooks in us. We want myth, we want heroes, but it is easy to forget there is always another day, another season. We can get too high after a win, too low after a loss, and always come back for more. Is there a strange vitality to that, or are we just crazy?

The existence of fantasy sports proves that both possibilities are correct.

Okay, so I'm tuning in to the Giants game now. Might as well face the inevitable. We are up 2-0, top of the 7th, 3-2 count, two on, two out. Bring on the pain. It's better than thinking of the pain and poverty around the world. Right?

And we just might win.

Ramon Ramirez strikes out Miguel Tejada to end the 7th. Go Giants!

Speaking of Weird Standards . . .

In my last post, I spoke about the weird definition of what can constitute success for smaller market soccer teams abroad. We go from there to the San Jose Earthquakes-LA Galaxy game. The Earthquakes' announcer opens the game by describing Galaxy keeper Donovan Ricketts as one of the best in the league.

Five minutes in, a long cross from the left wing bounces between Ricketts and one of his defenders, loops lazily over them, and falls for Chris Wondolowski to bury it from a tight angle. Sure, there are occasional flukes, but that timing was not very good for Ricketts.

Major League Soccer is getting better, but maybe we need to set higher standards. Too often with MLS, I see defensive lapses that are avoidable, just a bit of sloppiness, a bit more frequently than in the Premiership. For instance, Arturo Alvarez, a talented player for San Jose, got the ball in the penalty area, and took one touch too many, let it get away from him, and a defender cleared it before he got a good shot.

There is an interesting article in the current issue of World Soccer, in which Paul Gardner discusses the relatively low-key arrival of Thierry Henry to New York, and he speculates this is a sign of hope for MLS, that this time it might succeed to a greater extent than David Beckham's Galaxy career has done so far.

I want to see a faster pace, players sharper in possession and in the passing, better camera work from the broadcasters. But it is getting more entertaining every season, so that's good to see.

A Dream Too High

This morning, I'm watching Arsenal versus Blackpool. Blackpool is just up to the Premier League for the first time, not having played in the top flight for many years, and most predict them to descend right back down to the limbo of the lower leagues. Arsenal, of course, is Arsenal.

Then again, Blackpool crushed Wigan last week 4-0 in their debut.

There was a bemusing discussion before the game in which the studio analyst was speculating on Blackpool's future. They will get an infusion of money through the season, for being in the Premiership, and if, as anticipated, they are relegated again, they will get a 'parachute' of extra money, presumably to help stabilize the club through the pains of going to a lower league with less revenue and the implications that has for the wages they can pay to players. Would or should Blackpool spend that money on one or two big name players to try to come right back up, or should they just seek to improve the club overall and settle back into the second division.

It's one of those odd aspects of the relegation/promotion structure, the question of simply consolidating one's position. It seems bizarre to the mind of the American sports fan who is raised to expect his team to go for glory at every opportunity. At first glance, the discussion seemed a little condescending, a little patronizing, as if Blackpool is a child allowed to eat an appetizer at the adults' table before going back to the younger set.

The question seems a little more academic now that Arsenal has scored twice and Blackpool is down to ten men. Blackpool has made a couple chances for themselves, but Arsenal's pace and passing has unlocked Blackpool frequently, and were it not for a couple missed chances, it could be four or five goals at this point. (The highlight is Andrei Arshavin getting an assist and scoring on a penalty kick for my fantasy team.)

Taking the money and settling for second division status: is that an example of sports as a business, or of setting realistic expectations, or a little of both? If you can't compete at the highest level, is this an example of patience, of trying to rebuild from a lower level to improve, or is it cashing in on a windfall from a chance to play with the likes of Arsenal for a year?

3-0 now, and Walcott scores his second. Blackpool's dream start last week is quickly being deflated, and reality has set in for them on their visit to London. Blackpool are no match for Arsenal, who are now able to pass and run through them on the flanks and right down the middle and it's not even halftime yet.

Is it possible there is more value for fans to see their team playing consistently and competitively in a lower league than to see them routinely outclassed at the highest level? There would be a certain exotic thrill at first to see the most famous teams and players, but if you get drubbed by multiple goals every week, you might get a bit tired of that. And with the extra money you get, you can do better in the lower league next season. For instance, Newcastle United went down two seasons ago, which left me feeling forlorn. Then last season, they cruised to the title of the League Championship, which was fun, even if it felt like winning a free pizza, but with sauerkraut instead of mushrooms and olives.

I don't even want to think about what this discussion implies for the broader world. Besides, as Marina and I discussed this morning, sometimes people get jaded of serious talks about life: they need their bread and circuses, which is why, perhaps, or at least in part why, I get more of a response to my food and sports blogs than I do when I write about religion and politics.

It has to be said there is a certain pleasure to see a team as skilled as Arsenal play with crystal-smooth precision to burst through Blackpool again for a 4-0 lead. At this rate, I would say Blackpool needs more than one or two big names to reach the upper echelons of the Premier League, so maybe that will dictate their future path. I guess Blackpool's position--or the position of any smaller team that does not have a realistic chance of winning the championship in a given year--is a balance of business needs and competitive needs, and, with rare exceptions--such as the Chicago Cubs--if a team does not give the fans what they want in terms of sporting experience, the fans will let them know, and that could have an impact on the business aspect of the club.

Arsenal now leads 5-0, and there is nothing more to say.

United We . . . Rise?

49 seconds in to the recorded match, Newcastle United versus Manchester United, and I'm worried I've blundered. I'm drinking Anchor Steam instead of Newcastle Brown Ale. Has my thoughtless choice of beer condemned the Toon already????

If so, I should be ashamed.

Andy Carroll for Newcastle has really long hair. He must get follicular advice from Jonas Gutierrez. I didn't picture Andy Carroll with long hair.

There is something about the pristine nature of a soccer pitch that is soothing, the striped pattern of how the grass is cut, thick, alternating bands of light and dark, the white chalk or paint of the lines sharp against the green.

Newcastle is playing Manchester away at Old Trafford, so this is a big match, but it won't be considered a disaster to lose. A loss would be expected, if not the ideal start to the campaign.

I love watching the back and forth flow of soccer, the ball being knocked around, triangle passes leading to the long raking balls down the wings. Manchester look dangerous and nearly break down Newcastle's defense a couple of times here in the first ten minutes.

Andy Carroll so nearly heads it in to the net from a corner, but puts it wide! So close!

Paul Scholes draws a foul from Alan Smith in a dangerous spot by accelerating like the Scholes of old, not the old Scholes of recent vintage. Maybe Smith wasn't expecting that pace. I would be enjoying the skills of United more if it weren't against Newcastle, which is the downside of having a favorite team playing in the game.

I just hope Newcastle doesn't stay bunkered back all game, though that seems a likely strategy in the circumstances.

But there is some nice passing, and Andy Carroll fires in a good solid shot from 25 yards out, forcing a good save from Van Der Sar. I like it. I would have liked it more if it had gone in, of course.

Wayne Rooney's first shot, with a little bit of space, is jerked tamely wide. A bit of an anti-climax, much like his World Cup.

A deserved free kick in the 23rd minute for United, as James Perch picks up Newcastle's second card, but the free kick smacks harmlessly into the wall. There have been a few signs of nerves at the back for Newcastle, as sometimes they have made some mistakes in their own third of the field.

Too many giveaways, and Manchester gets the first goal in the 34th minute from Dimitar Berbatov. Always on the cards. Newcastle has allowed them too much space and too much possession, and made too many mistakes on defense.

Now the game will have to open up, which should be entertaining.

Andy Carroll is tall, but he doesn't seem all that fast, so a counter-attack may not be Newcastle's best weapon.

Gutierrez has shown some speed down the flanks. Newcastle has had a couple chances, but often a careless touch or stumble has let them down. Maybe some nerves is undermining their poise here at Old Trafford in front of goal.

2-0 Manchester United. Sigh. An easy goal to Darren Fletcher.

This could get ugly.

Newcastle lacks the quality of Manchester United. It hurts to admit it, much like it hurts to admit that San Francisco Giants are not as good a team as San Diego this year.

It's very odd, the question of rooting for Newcastle United. I have no connection to the city. The closest I've been was traveling past Newcastle on a train from London en route to Edinburgh. The only reason to cheer for them is because when I first started watching the occasional Premier League match, I idolized Alan Shearer, then playing for Blackburn, and so I affixed my allegiance to Newcastle when Shearer signed for his hometown team.

So there is no rational reason for me to be depressed by their performance against Manchester United in the first half. Not only do sports teams in general have no objective reflection on my worth as a human being--not even the Giants--but Newcastle has no direct connection to me, so they can't be said to represent me.

But when have sports ever been about rationality?

One thought is that I've always wanted to feel like I'm different. Playing and following soccer, instead of American football, that was a way to feel special when I was young. It certainly gave me a little bit of identity, a hint of Anglophilia. It made me think I could impress people in Wales by being an American conversant in football.

Combining that with a genuine fascination with the play of Alan Shearer, and I guess it was inevitable that I would end up like this.

Therefore, I will watch to the end, bitter as it might be, some adherence to an intangible claim of loyalty to a team and a city playing a game that happened nine hours ago, noon Pacific time. It's the sort of melancholy joy one finds in sports, a safe sense of martyrdom, perhaps, balanced on the scales with hope for something amazing.

Of course, for me, I couldn't resist checking the result at halftime, so alas, I know there will be no spark of happiness from this game. It ended 3-0 to Manchester.

It serves me right for buying Anchor Steam instead of Newcastle Brown Ale.

It Begins Again . . .

Today is a beautiful day. The Giants win on a walk-off single by Juan Uribe to beat the Padres and pull within 2 1/2 games in the division--baseball is a game of inches, every day marking an adjustment in the scheme of things. Little things make such a difference, like Buster Posey's hustle turning a ball trickling slowly into left-center field into a double, and from which Posey came home to score on Uribe's soft single looped into right field.

And also, today is the first day of the Premier League in England. Football's back, and not the soap opera world of American football, where two San Francisco 49ers have basically walked away from football this week.

Twenty minutes in to Tottenham versus Manchester City, and Man City's Joe Hart has already pulled off three of the type of spectacular saves that allow low-scoring games to be much more exciting than the scoreline leads Americans to believe.

And he just pulled off another one. Love this game!

This is an intriguing match to start the season, and you know it was planned this way. These two teams, who for seasons have been just outside of the Big Four--Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool--battled down to the wire last season for the fourth and final European Champions League spot for this season, supplanting Liverpool, who slid into the less-prestigious Europa League. Tottenham just nipped City to the post--to mix a horse-racing metaphor into things--despite Manchester City spending big money on big names, a policy they continued this off-season, which means that these two teams could be shaping up for a rivalry somewhat akin to Barcelona-Real Madrid last year, where Real Madrid spent millions upon millions but could not catch Barcelona. The difference being that these two teams might be rivals for a Champions League spot only, not the championship of the Premier League. I'll be interested to see how that develops.

Here are the other topics I'll be thinking about this year:

Will Newcastle struggle to stay up?

Newcastle has not spent huge sums reinforcing their squad now that they are back in the top flight. Two young talents in James Perch and Dan Gosling, and an old famous name in Sol Campbell. I once had Newcastle sign Sol Campbell, but that was only on FIFA '99 for the computer. We'll see how it works out. I would love to see the Toon challenge for a Champions League spot, of course, but should I be satisfied to see them consolidate their position as a Premiership team? The result will tell a lot as to whether their relegation two years ago was a fluke, or whether they are a club in need of rebuilding. I'll be able to tell right away, as they play on ESPN2 on Monday against Manchester United, which will be a severe test to start the season.

What's up with Liverpool?

It looks like Steven Gerrard and Fernando Torres are not leaving, which is good, because that was a possibility with the absence of Champions League football. Their talents will be needed for Liverpool to reassert themselves with a new manager.

How will Javier Hernandez do?

I picked Javier Hernandez for my World Cup fantasy team, a selection that left me feeling quite smug, as he had an excellent tournament. He has already scored for Manchester United, in the FA Community Shield match against Chelsea, so he could be poised to have a dazzling debut season, and he could be a spark to drive United back past Chelsea for the first time in three seasons.

Halftime in the Tottenham-Manchester City game, and the score is level at 0-0, but Tottenham has been by far the dominant team on their home pitch. But the thing is, if they don't get a goal, their dominance is for nothing. Time to fast-forward to the second half, and to continue to enjoy the new season.

Turning Of The Seasons

So, yes, I stopped writing part way through the World Cup. It was too distracting, but I enjoyed the tournament, though I wish the US had mustered more resistance against Ghana, and that Holland had not played such an ugly game in the final against Spain. The kick to the chest that Nigel De Jong administered to a Spanish player lost the Dutch any sympathy I had for them, and they were deserving losers of the final.

I watched the final in the Civic Center Plaza with 15,000 other soccer fans, and the atmosphere was wonderful. Everyone was in good spirits, but they were there to watch soccer, so the crowd was paying close attention to the large screens, so there were no distracting elements.

The Spanish team was Barcelona at its' heart, in style of play and in the roster, as a majority of the starters were from the team from Catalonia. But word has it--from Marina's cousin who lives in Spain--that Catalans were rooting for the Dutch, presumably for the same anti-Spain reasons that caused the region to recently outlaw bullfighting. Fascinating how sports and politics interweave like that.

The Giants are surging into August, in the playoff hunt, ahead of the Dodgers, behind the Padres, fighting off the Reds and Phillies for the wild card spot. But I'm not going to write about that. I'm going to write about the business of basketball.

So, LeBron James and the move to Miami from his hometown of Cleveland. There was a lot of heavy rhetoric about his signing with the Heat. Cleveland has been portrayed as completely angry and betrayed; the owner was fined for calling LeBron a coward; another story of a homegrown superstar comes to a close with a whimper.

That's not what I have a problem with, LeBron leaving. The truth is that he is a basketball player who wanted to play in Miami; a free agent. He had completed a contract with Cleveland and was free to play anywhere he wanted, just like any worker in our society. Even though the decision by LeBron and ESPN to stage the announcement in a one-hour prime time special called "The Decision" was tacky, silly, cheesy, insensitive to the Cleveland fans, and just plain vain, that's not enough to work up a good hatred for LeBron and Miami.

What is enough to work up hatred for Miami is the fact that they fired 30 people from their ticket sales staff yesterday, after they sold out all the season tickets for the upcoming year. After spending millions upon millions of dollars to assemble a triumvirate of James, Dwyane Wade, and Chris Bosh, and after selling out the season already, ensuring a huge revenue stream in a tough economy, they cut loose 30 people who helped get them that sellout.

Granted, if you look at it objectively, if there are no more tickets to be sold, then what would these 30 people do all year? And also granted, the Heat say they have hired a placement service to find jobs for the fired workers. This is the business side of sports. But here's the thing: if each of those 30 people were kept on and paid a $50000 salary, that would come to $1.5 million. That doesn't look like much when you look at what a single player earns in a year.

It just looks callous and New York Yankee-like. And that's why I can now hate the Heat, even though I don't really care about the NBA that much in general.

Now it is time to forget about the NBA and the false drama stirred up by pretending like LeBron James means something in the larger world--outside of Cleveland, a troubled economy where having a homegrown icon was of real value. It's time to get ready for the new English Premier League season, with Newcastle United coming back up, looking to consolidate its position and avoid being relegated again.

Did You Miss Me?

A brief, idyllic hiatus bloomed in the middle of my World Cup viewing and blogging. Marina and I had our two year anniversary, and we rented a cottage in Santa Cruz, drove south to Monterey Bay, a slice of summer compared to San Francisco. We were literally around the corner from the ocean, a dead-end road leading to a promontory from which I saw five otters and a dolphin. That was only part of the magic of the weekend which will merit a blog of its own, but to make a long story short, I did not miss seeing the games. I've watched some of the recorded games since I've been back, and I've seen the clips of Sloveniagate--more on that in a bit. To catch up, I will do a quick summary of my thoughts on the action between Thursday and tonight.

THURSDAY, JUNE 17TH

FRANCE VERSUS MEXICO (Mexico 2-0)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: I was perfectly right, Mexico won by two goals, and better yet, one was scored by Javier Hernandez for my fantasy team. I'm hoping he starts tomorrow. He has earned it.

This loss has completely unraveled France. Nicolas Anelka has been sent home; the trainer and another bureaucrat have resigned. To their credit, though, the French represented their country perfectly--perhaps too perfectly--by going on strike from practice. I see no way through to the next round for France.

ARGENTINA VERSUS SOUTH KOREA (Argentina 4-1`)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION (ARGENTINA 3-0)

South Korea's industry, so effective against Greece, did not work against the Argentines. Alas, neither Carlos Tevez nor Park Ji-Sung scored for me.

GREECE VERSUS NIGERIA (GREECE 2-1)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: NIGERIA 1-0

Greece got their first ever win, and have a chance to go through. More importantly, Nigeria becomes one more African team that has failed to produce and succeed at the first World Cup on the continent. Some people say this is a disappointing thing, which is probably true, subjectively. Objectively, though, there is simply results, with nothing inherent to have indicated that Nigeria should have done better.

FRIDAY, JUNE 18TH

GERMANY VERSUS SERBIA (SERBIA 1-0)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: 2-2 DRAW

With Miroslav Klose drawing two yellow cards, and thus a red, Serbia managed a surprise 1-0 win. I have heard criticism of the referee in this game, as with many other games; but that is always the case, and generally it is sound and fury signifying an overreaction. The defeat for Germany changes the outlook of the group, for sure.

The question of the quality of the referees leads us to:

US VERSUS SLOVENIA (2-2 DRAW)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: US 2-1

The two stories of this game: the American's terrific rally to tie the game after a weak first half, and the winning goal that wasn't, a foul that has not been clearly identified that canceled Maurice Edu's goal in the 86th minute. I have not seen the full game yet. The clips I have seen have been inconclusive; I did not see a foul. It does look bad that there was no explanation. However, in the modern game, there is always tugging and grabbing and wrestling in the box on both sides, and as soon as the referee spots an infraction, the play is dead.

However, what matters, as Bob Bradley said, is that we are still alive. We rallied well, Landon Donovan scored a fantasy goal for me, and we can move on with a win over Algeria on Wednesday.

The reason why we control our own destiny is:

ENGLAND VERSUS ALGERIA (0-0 DRAW)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION (ENGLAND 3-1)

Nothing to say about this. At least, not for me. The English fans have plenty to say, I'm sure.

JUNE 19, 2010

GHANA VERSUS AUSTRALIA (1-1)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION (GHANA 1-0)

A bit of a letdown for Ghana, I have to say, especially with Australia reduced to ten men for the second game in a row.

HOLLAND VERSUS JAPAN (1-0)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION (HOLLAND 3-0)

Holland does just enough to secure their passage to the knockout stages. And more importantly, Wesley Sneijder scores for my fantasy team.

DENMARK VERSUS CAMEROON (2-1)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION (DENMARK 1-0)

Cameroon can't get vital points. Nothing else to say from an expected result.

JUNE 20, 2010

ITALY VERSUS NEW ZEALAND (1-1)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: Are you kidding? Italy 2-0.

Apparently, before the game, the Italian media was highly disdainful of the Kiwis, saying they had no technical ability at all. I would hate to think what that implies about the Italians, who have now earned two draws from their first two games, the same results as New Zealand has earned.

PARAGUAY VERSUS SLOVAKIA (2-0)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: I was right on, saying Paraguay would be confident after tying Italy, and I called a 2-1 win, so I guess I gave Slovakia just too much credit.

BRAZIL VERSUS IVORY COAST (3-1)

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: BRAZIL 3-2

Luis Fabiano scored two attractive goals, although he was guilty of a handball at least on the second one. The big story is Kaka getting dismissed for two yellow cards at the end of the match, the second one, unfortunately, tied to a shameful, shameless act by Keita of the Ivory Coast who reacted to an elbow to the chest by dropping to the ground and clutching his face. I really hope Keita is disciplined by FIFA. And now I am torn; I had wanted Ivory Coast to beat Portugal, but Keita's act makes him as despicable to me as Cristiano Ronaldo at his petulant, simulating worst.

I'm thinking that Ivory Coast doesn't have to worry about the next round, because Portugal just destroyed North Korea, 7-0. There is no mercy in Portuguese hearts.

The Overlapping Run of World Cup Group Play

Today the first round of games concludes and leads right into the second round, an unbroken loop. Honduras versus Chile, Spain versus Switzerland, and then Group A returns with South Africa versus Uruguay.

HONDURAS VERSUS CHILE

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: CHILE 2-0

FANTASY PLAYER UPDATE: PABLO CONTRERAS IS NOT STARTING FOR CHILE.

There is something soothing about the sound of British accents discussing the game, but this is the second time the announcer has used the expression "circling the wagons" to refer to the team that is dominant and on the attack. Apparently he didn't quite understand the expression. Oh wait. That might have been John Harkes.

On second thought, I could certainly see how "circling the wagon" could be interpreted to refer to either the besieged or the besieger.

Speaking of attacking, Chile certainly attacked with flair and creativity, and Honduras was pinned back for large stretches of the game, although they did present a stronger threat in the second half.

Beausejour gets the expected first goal for Chile in the 35th minute as the end product of some elegant passing in close spaces that led to a slanted ball for a winger to break around the Honduras defense and center the ball back to the forward. It was excellent to watch, and Chile are more than a match for Honduras. It begins to look like my predicted scoreline might have been too conservative.

Chile has two really good young players, Matias Fernandez and Alexi Sanchez. I will definitely have to look into adding them to my fantasy team. The Honduran keeper, Noel Valladares, made a couple outstanding saves. Speaking of my fantasy team, Pablo Contreras entered the game as a substitute in the 81st minute.

Speaking of soccer fans, wouldn't the World Cup be a perfect chance to combine food and drink in obvious but delicious ways? For instance, I could drink Spanish wine with Swiss cheese for the Spain-Switzerland game, if I had Swiss cheese that is. For tomorrow's France-Mexico game, I could eat a burrito and buy some Guinness in honor of Ireland. For the US-England game, I could have eaten fish and chips with a bottle of Anchor Steam. Maybe I'll try to do this going forward. Not exactly original, but tasty.

Much like Chile's 1-0 win over Honduras. Not exactly original--the 1-0 scoreline, that is--but tasty, and full of attractive soccer.

SPAIN VERSUS SWITZERLAND

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: SPAIN WINS 3-0.

FANTASY NOTE: IKER CASILLAS STARTS IN GOAL FOR SPAIN.

FOOD NOTE: NO SWISS CHEESE. HENCE NO SPANISH WINE--SWISS CHEESE COMBO. INSTEAD, LEFTOVER INDIAN FOOD, PLUS BRANDY FOR DESSERT.

Woah. I just found out that Barcelona signed David Villa. My avoidance of sports news during the day has paid off with a sudden tidbit of soccer gossip during the World Cup watching. But now I want to go read more about the signing, but that would spoil the other two games for me. D'oh!

You would think that in the World Cup, teams would want to take the chance to poke holes in the stereotypes people hold about their country. Switzerland's approach in the first 28 minutes does nothing to make you think of them as other than neutral; they do not attack, but only try to slow down Spain's progress, like the Alps that surround their country. On the other hand, if one were to compare their defense to cheese, one would find few holes in the Swiss.

And speaking of holes, Spain gave up a sloppy goal to fall behind, and even worse, to lose the clean sheet for my fantasy team. And then they lost the game, 1-0. Few could have predicted that. Spain will be less than happy.

START OF THE SECOND ROUND OF GAMES

SOUTH AFRICA VERSUS URUGUAY

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: 1-1 DRAW

FANTASY NOTES: NO PLAYERS PLAYING. NICOLAS LODEIRO'S RED CARD AGAINST FRANCE MEANS HE IS SUSPENDED FOR THIS GAME, SO I TRADED HIM FOR MILAN JOVANOVIC OF SERBIA.

Diego Forlan scored one of the best goals I've seen so far, in terms of being well-struck and dramatic. And then he scored again, in the 80th minute, on the penalty kick incurred by South Africa's keeper when he took down Luis Suarez in the box and was ejected with a red card. That red card and penalty kick probably marks the end of South Africa's hopes for advancing out of the group.

Uruguay helps their own cause no end with a 3-0 win.

And The Pace Picks Up: Driving Through The Group Stages

You have to give Marina credit: it wasn't until the fifth day of the World Cup that my evening marathon of three soccer games back to back to back drove her out into the streets, seeking shelter and cocktails among her friends. We won't mention the fact that she actually actually fled the country before the start of the Cup and was gone for the first two days.

But she might have a point in that the utter dedication to every detail, boring or not, might have bogged some of my recent blogs--and therefore, some of my evenings--down a bit.

So from today, I'm making a slight modification to my description of the games. My attempts at live blogging were unsatisfying, and were in fact distracting me a little from watching the games with my full attention. So now, I won't try to devote an entire entry to each game, and I will be more relaxed about the content. This is also a result of the fact that I might not get to see every game, having to record them in the morning and then try to watch at night. So far, I have only seen parts of Ghana-Serbia and Italy-Paraguay.

On to the summaries the other two games from yesterday:

CAMEROON VERSUS JAPAN

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: CAMEROON 1-0

This was totally flipped on its head. Japan looked more creative and more enterprising throughout the first half, and deservedly took the lead when Keisuke Honda snuck to the back post and made a great first touch from a strong cross from Matsui before driving it past the keeper.

I had high hopes for Cameroon. Well, not to advance from this group, but to look better than they did. They came out totally flat, without any sort of creative idea for moving the ball through the midfield and up to the strikers. Japan did pack the center of the pitch with five midfielders, but if Cameroon wanted to challenge for the group, they needed this win, and they didn't show the spark needed to do so. Far too often they appeared to be relying on their physical advantages.

In the second half, Cameroon came out with a lot more fire, but it was not enough. They never took advantage of the wings until Geremi came on as a substitute. A well-struck shot by Mbia rattled the crossbar, but they succumbed, and Japan thoroughly earned their first World Cup victory away from home soil (in 2002).

Cameroon will need a couple of shocks against Holland and Denmark in order to advance. They look doomed to disappointment.

ITALY VERSUS PARAGUAY

It was almost midnight by the time I sat down to watch this one, and I just didn't have the interest. No Pirlo--injured for this game--and no Giuseppe Rossi--not selected for the team. For some reason, this made me less interested in Italy. They are still my third favorite team, due to genetics, but I can't say I'm too worried.

I do have to feel proud for picking a draw with Paraguay, even if my original prediction of 0-0 was a little too pessimistic. It finished 1-1 instead, which was a great result for Paraguay.

Also worrisome for Italy is the injury to Buffon, the star goalie. It makes my prediction of Slovakia and Paraguay to advance from the group to seem not as far-fetched.

And now for the summaries from today:

NEW ZEALAND VERSUS SLOVAKIA

New Zealand has been in the World Cup once before, in 1982, but Slovakia is debuting as an independent nation. A battle of minnows, it has been called. I really don't think New Zealand has a shot, but that's why you play the games on the pitch and not on paper, to succumb to a motivational cliche for a moment.

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: SLOVAKIA 2-0

Before the game, there was a brilliant bit on the Daily Show between Jon Stewart and John Oliver regarding the US-England draw.

The first half is interesting, but not much to separate the two teams. New Zealand actually has had the best of the chances. Both teams have been a bit clumsy at times, poor touches on the ball causing problems and killing chances. A 0-0 draw seems accurate for the feel of the first half, that feels more like a friendly.

AND SLOVAKIA FINALLY FINDS THE GO-AHEAD GOAL IN THE 50TH MINUTE, A WELL-TAKEN HEADER BY ROBERT VITTEK AT THE END OF A GRACEFUL CROSS THAT GETS PAST THE NEW ZEALAND BACK END! Replays hint that it might have been offside, but the flag stayed down.

I have to root for Slovakia, if for no other reason than for that of my bracket. I predicted Slovakia to pull off the upset and make it to the round of 16 at the expense of Italy.

The pace of this game has been maybe a third of the pace that Germany maintained in thrashing Australia. This does not bode well for either team; Slovakia should be able to take control. Maybe they are complacent; maybe they play down to the level of their opposition. Either excuse does not exactly stir hot embers of hope.

AND THEN, OUT OF NOWHERE IN STOPPAGE TIME, NEW ZEALAND SNAGS A TYING GOAL OFF A HEADER BY WINSTON REID!

That is an incredible result, and New Zealand has already done much more than they were expected to do. It kind of undercuts the whole upset prediction of mine, with another upset, ironically enough. Their first point in the World Cup, ever! Good job, Kiwis!

This is a great start to the day, and now we are on to:

PORTUGAL VERSUS IVORY COAST.

Didier Drogba is starting on the bench, apparently. It will be tough for Ivory Coast to get the result I picked, a 3-2 win, without him. However, their nickname: the Elephants; my shirt at the moment: depicting an elephant. I'm going to assume that is an omen.

Give Cristiano Ronaldo credit for maturing. It is a full 7 minutes into the game before he blatantly dives to embellish a collision. It was certainly a rash challenge by the defender, but still. It's as if someone decided to do a remake of "John Tucker Must Die" called "Cristiano Ronaldo Must Dive." I never saw the first movie, but you can just tell it is an abomination against nature. So is Ronaldo's diving.

And then, no sooner do I write about that than Ronaldo displays a bit of magic, driving the ball against the post from 35 yards out in what was almost a goal of the tournament for sure. Is it any wonder I feel so conflicted about him?

He picked up a yellow card after an Ivorian defender took exception to what he thought was a dive, and a heated confrontation ensued. I'm not sure that was the right call by the referee, not on that incident. Ronaldo, as you can see, is a lightning rod for my opinions. That's how he earns the big money, I suppose.

Ivory Coast looked more attack-minded in the first half than Portugal, which is a bit surprising to me. And this was without Didier Drogba.

I think Didier Drogba will make an appearance today, ala Willis Reed. The game just seems to be setting itself up for that sort of drama.

Let it be known that I typed that a couple minutes before Drogba began warming up. This is not a case of revisionist insight. Of course, if Drogba scores to win the game, you have to start questioning whether it is paranoid to think that everything in life is scripted a bit. And then you would have to wonder if that would be such a bad thing. Life seemed pretty nice in The Truman Show, for instance.

But life is never really that interesting. 0-0 draw. Not what I predicted, not what I wanted. Oh well. Neither team was consistently dangerous going forward. Maybe it was first game jitters.

BRAZIL VERSUS NORTH KOREA

I'm kind of hoping for a solid Brazilian win, because I want nothing that could be taken as propaganda for the crazy North Korean dictatorship.

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: BRAZIL 4-0.

FANTASY PLAYER UPDATE: LUCIO, BRAZIL'S CAPTAIN, STARTS ON DEFENSE.

Thoughts on the first ten minutes? Brazil looks bigger, faster, stronger than North Korea. Plus, they are Brazil. They made a couple of half-chances, but nothing of the sort of invincible magic that is one's first expectation of the men in yellow.

North Korea is organized. Brazil is not running rampant, and certainly doesn't have the entertaining rhythm that we saw from Germany. It's 11:22 p.m. and I'm tired. That's when I remember that I'm not contractually obliged to watch every single game to the conclusion.

Apparently Brazil only won 2-1. So now that insane lunatic in North Korea is going to feel justified torpedoing more ships and daring the world to punish him for it. Oh, and even worse, Lucio conceded a goal, so only got 1 point for me today. Boo.

Silver Skating Over A Lake Of Danishes

First game of the day is a match-up of northern Europeans, a world away from home. Neighbors, rivals, and it should be absolutely fun. Holland versus Denmark. I've looked forward to this game. I'm hoping the title I crafted is not what entertains me the most.

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: HOLLAND, 2-1.

FANTASY PLAYER UPDATE: WESLEY SNEIJDER IS STARTING FOR HOLLAND, THE NUMBER 10 ATTACKING MIDFIELDER.

Holland is sporting their classic radioactive orange jerseys. Will this be the year they power their way to glory? The Magic 8-Ball of my mind says no, but they should look good in this group.

Wesley Sneijder takes a free kick and sends it well over the bar. So far there has been back and forth play, with no real chances created yet.

The Danish keeper bobbles a shot from Dirk Kujt and has to scramble to hold on to it. It looks like some of the complaints about the new ball might be justified.

There were reports yesterday that the vuvuzelas might be banned. Alas, it had not yet happened by this game, apparently. Imagine a particularly monotonal--or possibly atonal in a minor key--swarm of robot bees, all buzzing off key, right in your ear.

Holland has been able to string together some nice passes here and there, and look to have a better chance of scoring.

A couple sudden, sharp, shocking passes give Holland a great shot, and a deflection off a defender leads to a corner in the 20th minute, but Denmark clears. Holland is continuing to keep Denmark pinned back on their side of the field. There is not yet a sense of inevitability about a goal, but it certainly seems likely to happen soon.

And just as I say that, Bendtner nearly scores against the run of play.

Holland is coming closer and closer to finding that first goal.

Or maybe not. 39 minutes in, no goals yet, and Denmark has shown some threats on the counter attack.

Nothing in the first half. Here is the second half.

OWN GOAL AGAINST DENMARK! THE DUTCH TAKE A 1-0 LEAD!

I'm kind of losing my thrill with this sort of live blogging. There isn't much point without the sort of twitter effect of posting immediately and then updating, but that seems too much work. Perhaps I have attempted too much detail.

The game continued apace, and Dirk Kuyt finally gets the second goal that was expected. Holland takes command of the group with the 2-0 win.

Beer And The Outback: The Battle Of Germany-Australia

First of all, my first missed game of the World Cup is Ghana versus Serbia. I didn't have a chance to watch it yesterday, and found out the score, so I am only watching the last twenty minutes of it today before digging in to today's matches. This won't let me get enough of a taste to write about it. All that needs to be said is that I was spot on with my initial prediction, a 1-0 win for Ghana, which sparked all sorts of happiness across Africa, the first win for the continent in the cup; and also, I had no fantasy players in this game, so that took the edge of my need to catch up.

The best game of the day--as defined as the game I most anticipated--is Germany versus Australia. I would love to see an upset here, but I think Germany will be too strong, so I'm sticking with my ORIGINAL PREDICTION: GERMANY 3, AUSTRALIA 1

FANTASY UPDATE: PHILIPP LAHM STARTS ON DEFENSE FOR GERMANY.

Time for an 11:30 beer.

Australia kicks off, works in for a shot right away, but no real danger. No Harry Kewell starting for Australia, as he is recovering from injury.

And oh so nearly, Australia again nearly scores, two chances in the first four minutes. The German defense got lost on a corner kick.

And a lapse on defense nearly puts Miroslav Klose through on goal. Australia recovers to concede a corner kick.

AND PODOLSKI SCORES OFF A FINE PASS FROM THOMAS MUELLER. THE AUSTRALIANS THOUGHT MUELLER WAS OFFSIDES, BUT IT WAS A PERFECTLY TIMED RUN.

And an excellent yellow card on Germany's Oezil for a blatant dive. Good stuff so far from the refs in all games. The British commentator in the Algeria-Slovenia game called them exemplary. I love to hear the refs praised in a British accent with multiple syllables. It just seems so dignified that way.

Germany looks crisp and efficient so far, with lots of clever and well-timed runs. So far, they look a serious contender for the cup. And yes, this is fifteen minutes into the game.

Australia with a run and cross against the run of play, but the header is not on target. Australia needs to hold it together and not concede again too soon.

And another great chance for the Socceroos, nice passing and touches, but the shot is over the bar and wide.

Mueller makes another dangerous cross. They seem to have Australia's defense overmatched.

Podolski breaks past the defense, crosses briliantly, and Klose misses horribly wide with the goal at his mercy. Craig Moore gets a yellow card for dissent. Australia are looking for offsides a lot, and Germany has been flagged for offsides on several occasions, but they really are fast enough and timing their runs well enough that Australia can't count on that flag.

AND THIS TIME, KLOSE BEATS SCHWARZER TO A DANGEROUS CROSS AND HEADS IT INTO THE NET. MORE IMPORTANTLY, THE CROSS WAS FROM LAHM, SO FANTASY POINTS FOR ME.

Australia is in serious trouble now. Their defense is not fast enough to cope with the German forwards.

Lucas Neill saves off the line to prevent it being 3-0. Oezil beats the offside trap again and beats the keeper, but Neill is there to save the day, or at least to delay the inevitable third goal.

So far, Germany has played by far the best soccer of the tournament, ahead of South Korea. I'm a fan.

Mueller again dances past the defense down the right flank, earning a corner kick.

And more elegant interplay, Lahm bursts into the box, crosses well, and Khedira heads over the bar.

And so close to three-nil again: Oezil gets a great pass that sliced past the defense, but his first touch lets him down.

Great first half for Germany. Worst nightmare for Australia. Well, not the worst possible nightmare, as Germany could easily have two or three more goals.

HALFTIME.

Does Australia have help for their defense off the bench? They need faster defenders to keep up with the German wingplay, particularly Mueller.

Australia replaces Grella, a midfielder, with Brett Holman, another midfielder. As Germany kicks off, Lucas Neill picks up a yellow card for a challenge from behind on Klose.

Holman creates space nicely for himself and shoots just wide of the far post. Australia needs more of that. They also need to move more off the ball.

Great play, great dummy by Khedira, but Mueller shoots just high. Beautiful soccer.

Ouch. Tim Cahill gets a red card on a challenge that deserved maybe only a yellow. That ends Australia's challenge in this game, and hurts them going forward.

And now a yellow card on Australia, to Carl Valeri.

And again, Germany comes tantalizingly close to a third goal after some great close-range passing between Klose and Podolski.

AND THERE IT IS, MUELLER GETTING A WELL-DESERVED THIRD GOAL AFTER GREAT PASSING AND RUNNING WITH PODOLSKI.

AND FOUR GOALS. CACAU JUST ON AS A SUBSTITUTE FOR KLOSE SCORES VERY EASILY FROM A GREAT CROSS FROM THE LEFT HAND SIDE BY OEZIL.

Germany looks certain to go through, and the only question will be if Ghana or Serbia can pose more of a challenge than did Australia.

Algeria Versus Slovenia. Now You Know I'm A Fan

I didn't get up at 4 a.m. today, but I recorded Algeria and Slovenia and have avoided all news of the results, so I will blog as if I saw it live. The game is key for these two other teams from Group C with the US and England, as the draw yesterday opens the door a little bit. But I would imagine it is a door to a Slovenia-only restaurant, which seems kind of discriminatory, doesn't it?

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: SLOVENIA 3, ALGERIA 2.

FANTASY PLAYER UPDATE: ROBERT KOREN STARTS FOR SLOVENIA. I PICKED HIM ONLY BECAUSE WORLD SOCCER SAID HE WAS GOOD. I HOPE THEY ARE RIGHT.

Slovenia is wearing green, Algeria wears white. That's the sort of fascinating detail you can expect today, because I know very little about either of these teams. Nor do I care about them except as obstacles to the US and England.

Algeria earns a free kick in a dangerous spot about 25 yards out. Nadir Belhadj whips in a dangerous shot, but the Slovenian keeper deals with it well.

Yes, the vuvuzelas continue to be annoying. If they are 'cultural', they must be like the Fox News of South Africa's musical culture.

Not much danger yet from either team, through fifteen minutes. Fortunately, I'm about to go get doughnuts, orange juice, bagels, coffee, and the Sunday papers, which will liven things up a bit.

Some nice passing by Slovenia leads to a good cross, but the keeper grabbed it well.

So far, neither side has a clear advantage; they seem to be evenly matched.

Well-deserved yellow card on a Slovenian player who tripped Belhadj as he surged past him down the line.

Belhadj shows some good attacking flair with his runs down that left flank.

The first really dangerous shot from Slovenia, set up by a fine pass by Robert Koren. Nearly a Slovenian goal, and more importantly, almost fantasy points for me.

HALFTIME, with the score nil-nil. The doughnut was particularly good, though. As was the coffee.

A few good chances have been undermined by a poor first touch for both sides. I think the US and England should be able to deal with both countries comfortably, if they don't get complacent.

Slovenia is starting to get a few more shots in the 63rd minute, and look to possibly have the chance to take control.

Red card to Ghezzal of Algeria, for two yellow cards. That was a silly, blatant hand ball to get the second card, and now Algeria is in real trouble. Down a man.

Algeria will now have to hope to hold on for a draw. 15 minutes to go. That would be a good result for them, after the red card.

Wasted chance as a Slovenian defended did not come get a pass from the keeper, and Ziani of Algeria steals the ball away and nearly scores.

Slovenia is not really attacking or taking advantage of being up a man.

ROBERT KOREN MAKES ME A LIAR BY SCORING A GOAL THE KEEPER SHOULD HAVE STOPPED, EARNING SLOVENIA A LEAD AND FANTASY POINTS FOR SAN FRANCISCO BOHEMIAN UNITED!

A victory for Slovenia would make the group very interesting, with Slovenia topping the table with three points, and England and the US level on one point each.

More rough fouls on both sides and the game wound down to a Slovenia victory. Just the one goal, but I was right on the margin of victory!

The Showdown

England. Versus. United States. Need I say more?

Well, obviously yes, or this blog would already be over.

I'm so excited. Realistic, but excited.

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: ENGLAND 3-1

FANTASY UPDATE: LANDON DONOVAN AND WAYNE ROONEY ARE STARTING. JAMIE CARRAGHER AND CLARENCE GOODSON ARE NOT.

US kicks off, and with some nerves, quickly turns the ball over. Here we go.

Early offsides on Robbie Findley who has lots of speed but little experience. We will see if his selection pans out. We need to hold on for the first fifteen minutes to let our nerves settle.

GERRARD MAKES IT 1-0 IN THE FOURTH MINUTE. MY WORST FEARS ARE REALIZED.

James Milner makes a bad challenge. Should have been a yellow card for the English winger.

We are rattled and making some bad touches. Need to pull it together.

A good passing combination gives a great chance, but Altidore can't quite bury it.

England peppers Tim Howard with a couple tough shots.

And a well-deserved yellow card on James Milner as Steve Cherundolo beats him.

These entries might be sporadic and terse, because I'm nervous. Also, I'm editing out a lot of the cursing.

We must hold on to halftime without conceding again.

Tim Howard is hurt. That's bad. Very bad. But he seems to be back up.

Our defense? Not good. As I feared.

Landon Donovan made a good shot there. We have some signs of danger.

CLINT DEMPSEY MADE TWO BRILLIANT TWISTS AND THEN SCORED WHEN ROBERT GREEN MAKES A TERRIBLE, DAVID SEAMAN-ESQUE HOWLER!

Now we can't concede again in the last five minutes. Hold on until halftime, men.

Vaughn and I just decided there should be a philosophy of Legos: "You must build your life brick by brick." Kind of like the bricks the English probably want to throw at Robert Green right now.

HALFTIME

We must stay steady, and not concede right in the first five minutes -- or at all, ideally. Dangerous time.

Findley's speed just earned us a throw in. Nice.

What a save by Tim Howard! Heskey on a breakaway, and Howard held on to it. Not even a rebound.

Robbie Findley's speed draws a yellow card foul on Carragher. His speed is causing England some problems.

Now Gerrard gets carded by a brutal foul on Dempsey. England has some card issues now.

Altidore made Carragher look old and slow. Which he is, and we almost had the lead.

But all I can say is the final result, England 1, United States 1. What an absolutely outstanding result! I did not expect it, but we looked good. Great poise and calm at the end, and we had chances to win it.

Why We Watch Soccer

Cross posted to Random Thoughts, Organized Chaotically

There are many reasons to take the United States versus England way too seriously, but I am not taking it WAY too seriously. I'm only taking it TOO seriously. I don't have a soccer jersey, so I'm wearing a Montana State Cup T-shirt from 1998, and my boxers featuring Snoopy and Woodstock, because who or what is more American than Snoopy and Woodstock? I'm also wearing shorts and socks, so don't get the wrong image.

It is possible to push all sorts of nationalistic implications on top of the soccer; for instance, British politicians--Tories, naturally--are criticizing President Obama for going after BP. Never mind that BP, while being so good at extracting oil, apparently never spent any time considering how to prevent oil extraction in the case something went wrong.

Or one could talk about the Revolutionary War, and how no one expected the colonies to win that either. Of course, in those days, we had help from the French, and judging by France's tie with Uruguay yesterday, the French would be no help this time around.

Or one could talk about our national inferiority complex in terms of soccer. We want to belong. I, for instance, have always tried to talk about soccer a lot so that my friends from Britain would think I am pretty cool for a Yank.

All of these options would be stupid. The reason why I write about soccer, the reason why I look forward to these games so much, is to have fun despite the many problems in the world.

(I just saw a brilliant, funny skit on ABC featuring Will Ferrell, Mark Wahlberg, and Russell Brand, talking smack about the game. That's what I'm talking about. Faux-serious rivalry.)

Of course, all of those stupid options? They will be chosen, stupid or not.

Game on. All the pressure is on England to win. We have everything to gain.

Another Fine Mess(i)

Second game of the day features Argentina versus Nigeria. The question has been whether Lionel Messi will finally duplicate the glory he accumulates playing with Barcelona into his play on the international stage. For whatever reason--and there have been many suggested, most prominently and dramatically being that Diego Maradona, Argentina's coach, is consciously or subconsciously subverting Messi by not making the best use of him, tactically, in order to prevent any player from matching or surpassing Maradona's own stature in the annals of Argentine soccer legend.

Nigeria is always considered a contender, but this is not their strongest side.

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: ARGENTINA 3-1

FANTASY UPDATE: CARLOS TEVEZ starts up top for Argentina.

Argentina is starting Messi, Tevez, and Higuain upfront. Definitely has the potential for many goals. The first attack in the 4th minute features a great surging run by Messi into the heart of the defense, but Higuain misses badly off of a simple layoff pass.

WITHIN 6 MINUTES, ARGENTINA IS UP 1-0. After Messi leads three straight blistering attacks, the last forcing a great save, Gabriel Heinze converts the ensuing corner kick with a diving header. Nigeria is in serious trouble, as Messi has chewed their defense up already.

Nigeria survives further flurries, and earns a corner kick in the 11th minute, which is easily cleared. They are showing life, and enough talent and speed to be able to avoid a rout, but they aren't showing enough yet to make me reconsider my original pick.

Messi makes another brilliant run and nearly gets on the end of a great long ball from Veron. The keeper comes out well to collect. I've liked what I've seen from Messi so far.

Another great shot by Messi draws a strong parry by the Nigerian keeper Enyeama, who will be hoping his defenders stop letting Messi get the ball near the 18.

In the 21st minute, a Tevez-Higuain pass sets up the Madrid man for another shot, and Enyeama comes through again with the save. Nigeria is allowing way too much possession to Argentina in the final third. And it looks like Enyeama is now shaken up.

Nigeria has a great chance to score against the run of play, but the cross is not good enough across the face of goal.

In the 35th minute, Romero, the Argentinian goalie, needs to come off his line strongly to collect a lofted ball. Nigeria has made a couple more chances here and there, and Argentina has lost a little momentum, perhaps.

Messi orchestrates a great give and go off a free kick, rips a great shot that forces a corner kick. He is very entertaining to watch, and you feel that more goals are inevitable.

The longer Nigeria can go without conceding a second goal, the more they will grow in confidence, and Argentina will start to get frustrated. Yellow card to Jonas Gutierrez for a bad challenge.

Another run by Messi draws a free kick at the left corner of the penalty area. He has been everywhere.

HALFTIME arrives with Nigeria having staved off further punishment. Changes to their defending will be needed for the second half.

Messi never seems to stop running. Great give and go almost sees him tuck the ball away, but it just goes wide.

There have been moments, here and there, where Nigeria has snuck into a scoring opportunity. Argentina must not get complacent in looking for a second goal.

Nigeria wastes a free kick in a dangerous spot in the 63rd minute, but they are still only a goal down. They have time to steal a point.

Tevez leads a breakaway, and Messi misses again, and is frustrated, rightly so. That could have killed the game off.

Right after that, Argentina threatens again, and once more, Enyeama makes a big save. So far he is man of the match. Nevertheless, I'm starting to feel that Argentina's finishing is leaving something to be desired. That something, just to be clear, is a handful of additional goals.

Messi almost scores again. That is shaping up to the be the headline of the game: "Messi Almost Scores."

Diego Milito, on as a sub, does not execute well on a breakaway. Argentina seems a little unfocused at this point, and I could see Nigeria finding an equalizing goal. That would be devastating for Argentina, who seem to be tiring, and seem to be telegraphing some passes now.

Argentina was looking dominant in the first ten minutes, but I am not convinced by their performance today. Against weak defending, they have lacked the killer instinct. They have such exciting potential in that starting trio of attackers, but they need sharper finishing.

On this form, Nigeria will have trouble getting past South Korea to advance to the knockout stages.

Argentina holds on for a 1-0 win.

4:30 A.M. Really?

At 4:37 a.m., while preparing to watch Greece versus South Korea, I realized I had a problem; namely, that I am up at 4:37 a.m. to watch Greece versus South Korea. Then I realized that this isn't a problem, but an opportunity. Granted, it is an opportunity to be cranky about Greece and South Korea in blog form, but an opportunity nonetheless.

All this to say that I might be cranky in this blog until I get some coffee.

ORIGINAL PREDICTION: South Korea win, either 2-1 or 1-0.

FANTASY UPDATE: Park Ji-Sung is in the starting lineup for South Korea.

The red of the Koreans versus the blue of Greece. It's very bright for this early in the morning.

Greece wins an early corner, but do nothing with it. Boo, Greece. Boo.

Some nice passing down the left wing by the South Koreans, who look lively, results in a free kick when a Greek defender knocks down the smaller Korean.

GOAL FOR SOUTH KOREA, LEE JUNG SOO IN THE 7TH MINUTE! He cut in to the back post to bury the cross in the net.

A Korean defender cannons an attempted clearance off the face of a teammate to concede a corner kick to Greece. Not the best tactic, surely.

My first impression is that South Korea is faster and more athletic, and Greece is bigger and stronger and commits more fouls. Go South Korea!

Greece gets away with a foul in the penalty area that should have been a penalty kick for South Korea. Going down 2-0 would surely have left Greece eating humble spanakopita.

My crankiness is quickly dissipating. Partly this is because I am mesmerized by soccer in general; partly it is because I now have coffee.

There looks to be some possible cracks in South Korea's defense, particularly on set pieces or long balls down the middle, but they are countering well and playing some great football. Greece just got lucky again, with Park Ji-Sung whistled for a non-existent foul as he broke into the Greek penalty area with a defender slipping.

South Korea makes another brilliant break on the counter-attack, great passing and running, and Tzorvas has to make a fantastic save! Great football, very attractive stuff so far. Through thirty minutes, South Korea is the better side.

On this form, I would have to like South Korea's chances to advance from the group, but I haven't seen Nigeria play yet. And there is still much time left in this game for things to go wrong for them. I love World Cup Saturdays!

HALFTIME!

Greece has to stay physical with South Korea to disrupt their attacking runs. They also need to figure out a way to keep possession of the ball more and create some chances, because so far, they don't look dangerous. But South Korea needs to remain alert on defense and beware of Greeks bearing the soccer ball in the final third of the field.

Greece to kick off to start the second half, having substituted their main playmaker, Karagounis, who must have some sort of injury or some loss of form.

South Korea's speed and precision of passing on the counter-attack is what I hope to see from the US today against England. Very fun soccer, good rhythm, very creative and positive play. I'm now a fan of South Korea.

PARK JI-SUNG TAKES THE BALL AWAY FROM GREECE AND SCORES A SECOND GOAL FOR SOUTH KOREA! FANTASY POINTS FOR ME, AND THAT SHOULD BURY GREECE!

What a great game. Greece now has to open up and try to attack more, which will expose them even more to the counter-attack.

Vasilis Torosidis picks up the first yellow card for a reckless, frustrated lunge through a Korean player. It's been that way all day; Greece just is not quick enough on the tackles and challenges.

Greece makes another attacking substition, taking off Samaras who plays for Celtic but has been non-existent today.

It is 5:46 a.m., and light is starting to break here in San Francisco, unlike the circumstances for Greece, for whom night is beginning to fall. I'm talking metaphorically, not literally, of course.

And oh so nearly a third goal for South Korea on a fine cross. Korea kept the ball nicely there on a build-up, and Greece looked nowhere on defense. And South Korea is right back on the attack, and earns a corner.

Greece is finally starting to look a little bit alive, in the 74th minute. It is possible they could still make things interesting, but they need to score soon. The Greeks must rush, one might say.

Excellent save by Lee Woon Jae off a strong shot by Gekas. If this score stands, this is such a well-deserved result for South Korea. I love their work rate, creativity, and speed.

Almost a third goal for Korea. Greece's defenders are not helping the keeper today.

You know a team has performed poorly when the announcer on TV says you have to play a hell of a lot better. I love having former players as announcers. Robbie Mustoe, well done.

And that is it. 2-0 South Korea! Apparently I gave Greece too much credit when I thought it would be a one goal game. Great stuff! Up next, Argentina versus Nigeria!

It Begins, Part 2

France versus Uruguay. Such an interesting game, mostly because of the scandal of the Thierry Henry handball that led to the winning goal for France in the playoff against Ireland. Many people predict France to fail to make it through this group. However, it is always possible that they will exceed expectations. I kind of don't want them to do so, though. I'm rooting for Uruguay today, even though I predicted France would get through the group stages.

MY ORIGINAL PREDICTION

A 1-1 draw.

FANTASY TEAM UPDATE

Nicolas Lodeiro of Uruguay is the only player for either team I have on my fantasy roster, but I do not have him starting today. Nor is he starting in real life.

GAME ON!

France in white will kick off. Uruguay in light blue.

And France just boots the ball down the left flank from the kickoff. I hate that. It leads to a foul and a free kick for Uruguay.

Not much rhythm or consistency yet. Both teams are starting fairly cautiously. A lot of high clearances, ball being sent long down the field. Also, I'm seeing a lot of players slipping and stumbling, which makes me wonder about the condition of the pitch.

And a moment of brilliance by Franck Ribery comes to naught as Sidney Govou fails to turn it into the net.

Uruguay seems to be forming a blockade in front of their goal, keeping five at the back. France is beginning to dominate possession, and they look the stronger side in these first ten minutes.

Patrice Evra picks up the first yellow card of the game for a needless takedown of a Uruguayan winger.

The assistant blows a call where the French keeper, after bungling an attempt to grab the ball, carried the ball over the end line for what should have been a corner kick. The French benefit again from a referee missing something blatant.

Diego Forlan makes a sudden burst and really tests Lloris with a strong shot that is parried away well. The hope for Uruguay seems to lie on the counter-attack.

Gourcuff fools everyone with a free kick from the left flank that curls directly towards goal instead of into the center, and it forces the keeper to scramble into a great save. Shortly after that, Ribery gets a yellow.

France has shown some flair and creativity, and I especially like watching Ribery and Gourcuff.

The problem with Uruguay's counter attack is that it leaves them open. Diaby and Anelka are getting a lot of room to run through the middle of the pitch.

40 minutes in and Uruguay are hanging tough, but one of their defenders, Pereira, was a bit shaken up.

They say that somethings you don't like at first will eventually grow on you. Not the case with the vuvuzelas.

HALFTIME! 0-0 at the break. I love it.

Uruguay kicks off, going from right to left.

I like what I've seen of Diego Forlan. He hasn't scored yet, but he has looked dangerous.

France has occasionally tried one pass too many when they could have taken a shot from the top of the 18. And players are continuing to slip, which means the field could do some crazy things to the ball--but the announcers are not mentioning the slipperiness.

Mauricio Victorino gets a yellow card for Uruguay.

Sagna gives away a free kick in a dangerous spot. Nicolas Lodeiro enters the game, which will earn me fantasy points if another of my midfielders does not play this round. And promptly gets a yellow card, which might lose me points. Damn him for his lack of discipline.

Jeremy Toulalan now gets a yellow card for France. More cards in this game than the last. France is starting to get frustrated.

Thierry Henry replaces Anelka. Will that make a difference?

Lodeiro gets his second yellow card and therefore a red for a nasty tackle. Wow. Ten minutes to go and Uruguay are down a man, trying to hold on for a draw, and my fantasy team is weakened. He owes me an apology.

If France can't get the winner here, they have a lot of thinking to do.

Thierry Henry appealed in vain for a handball in the box, which was very ironic, given that you would think Henry would know exactly what is a handball and what isn't.

A controversial free kick in injury time, very soft foul to give in this situation. France's last chance.

The wall holds.

Uruguay holds on for a 0-0 draw, playing with ten men!! Amazing! I predicted a goal each, but otherwise, I was right!

I picked Lodeiro for my fantasy team because I liked what I read about him in World Soccer. I thought he might be an impact player. I just didn't foresee that the impact would be his cleat on Sagna's ankle.

It Begins . . .

The sun broke early this morning, and I was up with it. Coffee has been brewed.

Mexico is playing South Africa, and with this, I commence in-game blogging.

Javier Hernandez is not starting up front for Mexico, which disappoints me, as he is on my fantasy team, but it makes sense, as he is young, and the pressure on the opening game would be high-pressure..

First yellow card to Mexico, for delaying a free kick.

Mexico looks the better team, with more of a cutting edge, and they have come closer to scoring, but so far, South Africa is keeping enough defense back that there were no clear cut chances.

Oh, there's a yellow card on South Africa.

31 minutes in, no goal, but South Africa has put together some nice passing sequences.

Guillermo Franco makes a great run, and almost sneaks it past the keeper, but the goalie makes a great save.

In 38 minutes, a narrow offside call cancels a Carlos Vela goal.

Vaughn and I have coined a new phrase: "a snowball's chance in Iceland." Interpret it as you will.

Mexico is starting to collect more dangerous chances. They will score at least one goal today.

Vaughn is very excited. Only two more years until Euro 2012.

Inches away from a goal for South Africa! What a change that would make.

Before the game, Vaughn and I both predicted Mexico as victors, but wanted South Africa to win. Then we heard the vuvuzelas. South Africa must never succeed at anything ever again.

HALFTIME! Time for scrambled eggs and bagels.

Second half starts just as I serve up, and South Africa serves up the best chance they have had so far, a dangerous looking cross.

AND ON THE COUNTER, SOUTH AFRICA TAKES THE LEAD, AND BREAKS OUT INTO AN ORGANIZED CELEBRATION! Amazing pass, quick run, clinical finish!

South Africa seems to be growing in confidence. They are passing well, and staying organized on defense.

A chance to make it 2-0 goes begging, which could have wrapped it up. South Africa is having the better chances now.

Javier Hernandez enters in the 73rd minute. Mexico needs better finishing, as they wasted the chances they had. I need fantasy soccer points, so our needs match nicely here.

On this form, Mexico will not be going through. Blanco makes a bad first touch, sending South Africa off on another run.

A dubious offside call stops a chance for Mexico in the final third.

13 minutes to go, and Mexico must find an equalizer. On this rate, the honking to be heard in the Mission later will not be honks of joy for Mexicans.

AND JUST LIKE THAT, RAFAEL MARQUEZ LEVELS IT!

Will South Africa collapse? Or will they hold on? Will Mexico be energized to find a winner?

Mexico gets a free kick in a dangerous spot with five to go. south Africa clears the danger.

Osorio of Mexico tries a little gamesmanship. Was caught with the ball in an isolated area, had no help, so he fell to ground and grabbed the ball, trying to force the referee to call a foul. A foul was called: hand ball. I love it.

South Africa should have just won it; a breakaway shot bounces off the post.

A 1-1 DRAW! That seems to be the right result. Neither team played quite well enough to win, although they both had chances that should have been taken.

MY ORIGINAL PICK

Mexico with a 2-1 win.

Going For Goal

Just tomorrow to get through, and then, glory be, the World Cup is here!

Right down to business: time to finish up the last picks of the game, to set the stage.

Last injury notes: Arjen Robben and Andres Iniesta, of Holland and Spain respectively, seem to have picked up knocks and may miss at least some action. Their teams should be able to cope, however.

QUARTERFINALS!

MEXICO VERSUS ENGLAND

This would be a fascinating match, a repeat of a recent friendly where England won, 3-1, but by all accounts were outplayed by the Mexicans. There is a healthy dose of skepticism about the Three Lions among the English media, and there seems to be oceans of confidence on the part of Mexico, so I could see a stunner here.

But I don't think it will happen. England by a duplicate 3-1 scoreline, and a red card will be issued to Marquez.


ARGENTINA VERSUS GHANA

People will be very happy for Ghana. But happiness will be their only consolation prize, as Argentina overwhelms them 4-1.

NETHERLANDS VERSUS BRAZIL

So many times, the Netherlands have promised the world everything, their talent seeming to promise a championship run. It won't happen this time. Brazil will be too organized, and their devastating counter-attack will make the difference, leading to a 2-0 win. Orange crushed again.

DENMARK VERSUS SPAIN

Come on. There's a reason why Barcelona--who provided six of the starting eleven in Spain's friendly versus Poland yesterday--is one of the best teams in the world, and FC Copenhagen is not.

Spain wins 3-1.


SEMIFINALS!!

ENGLAND VERSUS BRAZIL.

Much as in 1950, when the English lost to the US in Belo Horizonte, Fabio Capello's squad will be left with unpleasant associations with the capital of Portuguese language in South America, as they cannot get past Brazil. Brazil wins 2-1.

SPAIN VERSUS ARGENTINA

If England must lose, at least the Hand of God will not intervene on behalf of their Argentinian nemesis, Diego Maradona. It should be one of the best matches of the tournament, but Spain will prevail 3-2. Which will spare the residents of Buenos Aires the sight of Maradona running naked around a city landmark, as he apparently pledged to do if his team were to win the Cup.

THE FINALLLL !!!!!

BRAZIL VERSUS SPAIN

This game would be outstanding. I think, however, that Spain will be too strong, and Brazil will not be able to rely on the devastating counter-attack at their command. Spain takes it, 3-1.


So there it is. I doubt that things will turn out terribly close to my predictions, but that is part of the fun. I'll post live commentary as I watch each game, even the recorded games--which wouldn't really be live, I guess, but we'll just pretend.

Round Of 16, Part Two

I'm already planning the morning of Friday, June 11th. The first game kicks off around 7 a.m. I will have coffee brewing by the time Vaughn shows up, which will be needed, because I will have the sleepless night little kids used to have when they dreamed of Santa Claus. There may well also be scrambled eggs, and conceivably turkey bacon. If something is worth doing, it is worth doing well. I should get some Irish Whiskey somewhere, to drink a toast to those who should be playing in the Cup, and to get angry at the French who kept them from it.

If you want to join my World Cup bracket or fantasy league, go to www.soccernet.com. The bracket group is under San Fran To Montana, and the password is Hamilton. The fantasy league is called San Francisco Rain, and the password is sanfranfog.

JUNE 28, 2010

WINNER OF GROUP E VERSUS RUNNER-UP OF GROUP F (NETHERLANDS VERSUS SLOVAKIA)

Having just set up a World Cup Fantasy team, and league, on soccernet.com, I hope Wesley Sneijder will be at the center of the offensive flow for the Netherlands. Slovakia, having exceeded expectations by advancing at the expense of Italy, will have nothing to lose and should throw everything forward to play attacking soccer. The Netherlands should be able to cope with it and get past Slovakia, making its World Cup debut. I see a 3-1 win for the men in orange.

WINNER OF GROUP G VERSUS RUNNER-UP OF GROUP H (BRAZIL VERSUS CHILE)

Another South American clash, it should be an entertaining and energetic game. Chile should be capable of making a great fight of it, but I don't foresee the upset. A late goal will make it appear closer than it really was, but Brazil walks away with a 3-2 win.

JUNE 29, 2010

WINNER OF GROUP F VERSUS RUNNER-UP OF GROUP E (PARAGUAY VERSUS DENMARK)

I think that Nicklas Bendtner could have a big tournament for the Danes. With their organization on defense, one or two goals could be enough to put them through, but this game is a bit of a toss-up for me. But I'm saying here that Denmark makes it through to the quarter-finals with a 1-0 squeaker.

WINNER OF GROUP H VERSUS RUNNER-UP OF GROUP G (SPAIN VERSUS IVORY COAST)

Ivory Coast has plenty of talent, but there is still a disparity between Spain and most other teams in the world. This will be evident in this game, particularly if Didier Drogba really is injured for the entire tournament. Spain will overwhelm the opposition with a 2-0 win that has Ivory Coast chasing the ball most of the day.

Tomorrow: on to the quarter-finals!

Countdown To Heaven On Earth

Six days until I rise at 6 to watch Mexico and South Africa kick off the 2010 World Cup, and I am brimming with excitement, even as some frailties on the part of the US defense make themselves evident, leaving me with a bad case of jitters about Wayne Rooney and the rest of the Three Lions.

Speaking of jitters, injuries to big-name players continue to mount, which has to add jitters to the stomachs of national team coaches. Rio Ferdinand, England captain and defensive anchor, down with an injury. Didier Drogba, for the Ivory Coast, broke his arm, and is most likely done for the tournament, although the federation hasn't yet confirmed. Andrea Pirlo for Italy is resting at home, although reports do not indicate that injury is severe enough to preclude his participation.

I think England will miss Ferdinand, although they should still win the group, much as I would love to see the US stage an upset. The Ivory Coast will surely miss Drogba, but I'm not going to change my picks at this point, and I think that they will find the goals to make up for his absence, but it could be that the loss will be insurmountable against Brazil and Portugal--not so much against North Korea, who lost the use of a striker for the tournament because they listed him as a goalkeeper on the official roster they submitted to FIFA.

And so I have completed my picks for the Group Stages, and it is on to the Round of 16!

ROUND OF 16

JUNE 26, 2010

WINNER OF GROUP A VERSUS RUNNER-UP OF GROUP B (MEXICO VERSUS NIGERIA)

There will be immense expectations on the shoulders of Nigeria to do well, and they should receive tremendous support. I would like to see them win. However, Mexico seems to be in fine form at the moment, with strong results in their recent friendlies (including being rated by many as the better side in their loss to England). Mexico is young and talented, and I think they get a 2-1 victory to advance to the quarterfinals and set off a heck of a lot of honking down the hill from my apartment on Mission Street.


WINNER OF GROUP C VERSUS RUNNER-UP OF GROUP D (ENGLAND VERSUS GERMANY)

Not where these two teams would have expected to meet, and the attention paid to this match will be high. The loss of Rio Ferdinand will be hard, and England will have to play at their sharpest against a German team that is consistently strong. But if the US is not going to win the World Cup, and I don't think it is quite our time yet, then I want England to win, so sentiment will shape this prediction of a 3-2 victory for England.


JUNE 27, 2010

WINNER OF GROUP D VERSUS RUNNER-UP OF GROUP C (GHANA VERSUS UNITED STATES)

The loss of Michael Essien for Ghana will make a difference in their battle with Germany for victory in the group, but Germany lost a corresponding midfielder named Michael (Ballack), so they cancel each other out, and I am sticking with Ghana as the surprise pick. And I see them taking the next step to the quarterfinals, as the US has shown too many flaws on defense. So I am afraid this would be the end of the road for the Americans. 1-0 for Ghana.

WINNER OF GROUP B VERSUS RUNNER-UP OF GROUP A (ARGENTINA VERSUS FRANCE)

Not the team for France to run into if they wanted to make a run to the quarterfinals. Leo Messi serves as an avenging angel for the Irish and puts France to the sword with a hat trick of spectacular goals. 3-0 Argentina.


To be continued tomorrow. . .