FIFA World Cup 2014 Brazil [W:2274]

[Jredbaron96]

Miss! Brazil advances!

 

[Jredbaron96]

What a ****ing game. That ending gave some people heart attacks.

 

[PoS]

This is what I dont like about soccer, if its level and the extra time expires it turns into a penalty shootout.

 

[Jetboogieman]

Tough match to be sure, while my sympathies throughout the game were with Chile, they displayed many instances of poor performance, particularly on the first touches, which handed possession over many times to Brazil, overall though, showed better class, Hulks hand slap dive coming to mind immediately.

The brazillians did their usual diving theatrics but did show a little more promise going forward.

Overall a lucky win for Brazil who have squeaked their way through to the quarter finals, but are unlikely to proceed further.

 

[Peter King]

I am not sure this Brasil will be able to defeat Colombia. Colombia has been very good and this Brasil is not that great.

 

[Kobie]

I am not sure this Brasil will be able to defeat Colombia. Colombia has been very good and this Brasil is not that great.

I think Colombia can win the whole damn thing. They've been outstanding.

 

[PeteEU]

Brilliant goal by James Rodriguez.. sadly it should have been a handball after all it was the same type of breast/shoulder taking down of the ball as Hulk... Yes I am still pissed at that moron English ref.

So far Colombia have been the better team, but Uruguay have had their moments.

 

[PeteEU]

Beginning to understand why Monaco paid 45 million Euros for James Rodriguez and why Barcelona is interested in Juan Cuadrado...

 

[Peter King]

Brilliant goal by James Rodriguez.. sadly it should have been a handball after all it was the same type of breast/shoulder taking down of the ball as Hulk... Yes I am still pissed at that moron English ref.

So far Colombia have been the better team, but Uruguay have had their moments.

I think you are wrong, Rodriguez purely held the ball on his chest/shoulder zone, Hulk did it with the chest/upper arm zone.

Take a look at the second vine video on SB.com

Hulk handball, Hulk score, Hulk goal disallowed, Hulk sad - SBNation.com

I think it hits on on the very upper part of the arm, just below the shoulder. I am not saying he did it on purpose but I think it was a handball especially from the viewpoint (I would guess) from the referee. He does not have the luxury of seeing repeat after repeat and close-ups.

 

[PeteEU]

I think you are wrong, Rodriguez purely held the ball on his chest/shoulder zone, Hulk did it with the chest/upper arm zone.

Take a look at the second vine video on SB.com

Hulk handball, Hulk score, Hulk goal disallowed, Hulk sad - SBNation.com

I think it hits on on the very upper part of the arm, just below the shoulder. I am not saying he did it on purpose but I think it was a handball especially from the viewpoint (I would guess) from the referee. He does not have the luxury of seeing repeat after repeat and close-ups.

The ref could not see ****. He was far away and there was at least 1 player in the way. The Hulk goal is a goal, no doubt about that. What he did, is done quite a bit in the English PL, Spanish La Liga and so on and they are all given. Also it was about the same place as where James Rodriguez tamed the ball.

But does not matter, doubt he will be allowed to continue in the world cup, unless it is to please the English or something.. It aint the first time Howard Webb has screwed up on the international stage.

 

[Manc Skipper]

Hulk obviously used his upper arm to collect the ball and direct it downward. The referee was unduly lenient in the yellow card department throughtout the match, but in this case he called it exactly right.
Columbia just won it. I can see them going all the way now, and they have the Columbian Nazi Weed Pope behind them too!

 

[Andalublue]

I missed the Brazil-Chile match, sounded dramatic. I just watched the last 20 minutes of Colombia-Uruguay. It was all Uruguay. I don't know what happened to Colombia after they scored the second, but if they sit back like that against Brazil then they'll pay dearly for it.

Although I thought Brazil would win the tournament, and they still might, I think Colombia could cause them a lot of trouble. I think that second Colombian goal was my pick of the WC so far - a fantastic team goal. I know the first was more spectacular, but that second was just perfect.

 

[Andalublue]

Hulk obviously used his upper arm to collect the ball and direct it downward. The referee was unduly lenient in the yellow card department throughtout the match, but in this case he called it exactly right.
Columbia just won it. I can see them going all the way now, and they have the Columbian Nazi Weed Pope behind them too!

Nazi Weed Pope! Spectacular!

 

[Jredbaron96]

Strong showing by Colombia. They're gonna be tough opponents for Brazil.

 

[Andalublue]

Brilliant goal by James Rodriguez.. sadly it should have been a handball after all it was the same type of breast/shoulder taking down of the ball as Hulk... Yes I am still pissed at that moron English ref.

I just watched that Hulk effort. The referee was spot on, absolutely correct decision. The ball didn't touch his chest, it hit his arm at the point where his shirt sleeve ended. That's handball. I know you have a bug up your ass about Howard Webb after the WC final De Jong incident, but you're making yourself look like the moron with your vendetta.

 

[Jetboogieman]

Well there you have it, a strong, confident, no bars hold team in Colombia going forward against a sluggish and overburdened Brazilian team.

Colombia are ever looking the stars of this world cup, with James as one of it`s heroes.

 

[Peter King]

The ref could not see ****. He was far away and there was at least 1 player in the way. The Hulk goal is a goal, no doubt about that. What he did, is done quite a bit in the English PL, Spanish La Liga and so on and they are all given. Also it was about the same place as where James Rodriguez tamed the ball.

But does not matter, doubt he will be allowed to continue in the world cup, unless it is to please the English or something.. It aint the first time Howard Webb has screwed up on the international stage.

Sorry, but that was handball, as clear as possible, even the very tip of the upper arm is handball according to the Fifa rules and he certainly controlled the ball with that area of his body and that is handball.

And with referee we must assume that the assistant referee saw it and reported it to Webb (if he did not see it himself) that is what an assistant referee is for.

And no, James Rodriguez did not have his arm on the ball to control it, Hulk did.

Hulk handball: This photo proves that the Brazil-Chile handball call was the correct one.

I have seen the scene dozens of times from different angles and it is and remains a handball. The contact with the arm might have been fleeting but even that is handball.

 

[Higgins86]

Brazil were great first half, but second they fell away. The falsely denied Hulk goal took the wind out of them or so it seems. Howard Webb must be sent home.. he should have given Jo the red card, and not disallowed the goal.. pathetic ref, but we knew that from the 2010 finals... FIFA should be ashamed to still have that hack around.

It was a handball...I thought Webb had a great game considering the amount of fouling going on

 

[Peter King]

It was a handball...I thought Webb had a great game considering the amount of fouling going on

In both games the refereeing decisions were excellent.

 

[Linc]

Mexico just as popular a World Cup bet as U.S. in Las Vegas - 06-27-2014

From what I see, Mexico is a +170 underdog against the Netherlands; bet $100 to clear $170.
While Netherlands is a -190 favorite; bet $190 to clear $100.

Mexico began as a 100-to-1 longshot but is now down to 25-to-1.

The sports books will always make money on these huge events .

 

[Linc]

As a noobie in the soccer discussion, has there ever been discussion of instant replay ?

I just watched that Hulk effort. The referee was spot on, absolutely correct decision. The ball didn't touch his chest, it hit his arm at the point where his shirt sleeve ended. That's handball. I know you have a bug up your ass about Howard Webb after the WC final De Jong incident, but you're making yourself look like the moron with your vendetta.

 

[Bob0627]

Group games summary:

39 points, 29 wins out of 48 matches (60.4%), 5 perfect, 35 of 96 correct scores (36.5%)

Saturday's Round of 16 Picks:

BRA 3 CHI 1 (1 - 1) - Winner, correct CHI score
COL 2 URU 0 (2 - 0) - Perfect

43 points, 31 wins out of 50 matches (62%), 6 perfect, 38 of 100 correct scores (38%)

Today's picks:

NED 3 MEX 1
CRC 2 GRE 1

 

[austrianecon]

Your response screams one big thing:
You've never played a sport. You don't know athleticism when you see it.
You're another hipster "American" soccer fan who probably lives in Europe and you probably program computers for a living.

No, my response screams of some who played two sports. Soccer and Baseball. Even had a few call ups to Irish National U-19 team when I was younger and played a few games against German, French and Spanish youth. I was part of state championship team (x2s) and was recruited by some of the top baseball colleges in the country (that's LSU, Arizona, Rice and Georgia Tech) and I turned down their offers and played for Penn State because Penn State had a great soccer program and they allowed me to play both sports. So I was playing two sports in College.

So before you go off half-cocked you need to realize I disagree with you because I have experience. I am talking about how damn hard it is to develop talent year in and year out. How a country like Spain who let's be honest 15 years ago weren't even a powerhouse produced their golden generation in soccer or how Germany is in the middle of theirs and Belgium is starting theirs.

Oh, and I live in Munich because my son is in TSV 1860 Munich's youth program who tends to produce some good talent. He's already being scouted at 14 by two national teams of which he could play for.

I'm familiar with Gedion Zelalem. Because I'm an American soccer fan. I'm familiar with Julian Green. The United States produces 5000 athletes every year comparable to or better than Julian Green. He's just another mediocre Florida athlete born to a Florida father.... BUT he happened to be the son of a US serviceman in Germany, so he grew up with soccer rather than football.

5000 of those athletes can't play soccer like Julian Green. End of story. That's what you are failing to understand. Julian Green has been playing soccer for more then 13 years. You can't take a 18 y/o who played American football for 13 years of their life and give them a soccer ball and say go play. They'd be absolutely crap. Just like if you told Julian Green to play American football.

If he were born in Florida and playing football, he would be a run-of-the-mill american football CB prospect at best. Not even likely to make the NFL.

Julian Green was born in Tampa, he moved to Germany as a young kid. He plays soccer because of that. You think any American football player could play soccer and that just proves how out of touch you are.

Now he's one of the most promising young prospects in the German youth system. How many superior athletes to Julian Green are in the United States right now? Answer: thousands. Not tens, not hundreds.... thousands. I'm not guessing, I know this first hand because I'm involved in high school sports.

No, you are talking out of your ass. There are thousands of high school football players who wouldn't either. This high and mighty attitude about some athletes are better then others is just typical bull**** talk by a person who doesn't understand 3-4% of high school football players play in College (9 thousand total college players), of that only 7% will ever to either get drafted or signed as a free agent. So you are talking out of thousands, maybe 157 players per year or over a 4 year period 630 will get a chance in the NFL.

You want to talk about American soccer talent.... tell me.... who is our best player?
Answer: Michael Bradley. Or Clint Dempsey.

And you'd be wrong. US's best talent is Fabian Johnson. He is the most complete soccer player for the US right now. Clint Dempsey and Michael Bradley have regressed.

"Big friggin deal" you say to these Miami kids' athleticism. Well.... that kid at 2 minutes, I told you to watch for..... he's an All American wide receiver now at the University of Miami. PHENOMINAL athlete. Runs the 100 meters faster than Cristiano Ronaldo, can start and stop on a dime....Shows you have no idea what you're talking about. Look him up: Stacey Coley.

I say big frigging deal because his ability doesn't translate to on the pitch stuff. None of what he did in that video shows he has any ability to play soccer. NONE. 100 meter run, again, means nothing in soccer. You are looking for a 30 meter type speed and rely on pure acceleration and the ability to be at full speed with in a few tenths of a second after switching directions.

And "I don't want these kids interested..." is exactly why the USA will not compete for a ****ing world cup. The suburban, white, elitist soccer moms of the world won't let their precious babies play soccer with the more athletic kids from the ghetto.... so ZERO dollars or interest is put in to developing soccer among our best athletes.... so our best player is.... Michael Bradley.

I don't want kids who play American football to try and be soccer players. You either play American football or Soccer, you can't do both as they are a sport played at the same time in high school. American football requires a player to have unnecessary muscle weight that you don't want in a soccer player. You want your typical soccer player in the 160-180lbs range and lean. Not bulky. I ran into that problem myself when I was in college.

Michael Bradley. The epitome of what is WRONG with american soccer. The product of nepotism son of a coach, NON athletic, looks like a damn cancer patient going bald before he's 30, can't run, can't jump, not tall, not fast, not proven.....and is ****ing up the whole world cup. This is the best player suburban America has to offer.

While I am not a fan of Michael Bradley.. he's earned his way. While you are bitching.. Bradley made a name for himself in the Dutch League with SC Heerenveen. Then made a name for himself in the Bundesliga with Borussia Mönchengladbach, then made a name for himself in Italy with Chievo and A.S. Roma where he earned the nickname "the General" and "the midfield sergeant". Sorry when you play in the top leagues and prove to those teams you play for that the American stigma doesn't apply.. you are damn good.

Your problem is you are applying traits that don't matter for every position. A midfielder doesn't have to be the fastest, jump or even be tall.. You think Messi is tall or the fastest guy on the pitch? Absolutely not and this is why you are looking pretty bad now.. You don't know what traits are needed to create a good soccer player at certain positions, let alone a great one. And what does balding have to do with it?

This is the best America has to offer.... and why? Because soccer moms in suburbia are too scared to let their kids play against actual athletes from the inner city.

The issues are what they are. Quit hiding from them. We have a world of talent in the United States... and if we were ever to become a soccer nation....

Again you are projecting a bull**** position for whatever reason. Maybe you were excluded as a kid at one time, who knows but don't project your personal issues and your hatred of white people in a topic about soccer. It's very unbecoming. Plus the best of the best in US youth soccer play on traveling teams against other traveling teams or at academies, maybe just maybe all that blow hard position you have isn't true and it's the inner city kid who doesn't want to play soccer or couldn't show his ability at trials and thus he's just not that good. Ever think of that?

 

[austrianecon]

The truth about American soccer: the kids that play soccer are the kids that have moms who won't let them play (american) football. They are suburban, sheltered, white kids who have no hunger, no athleticism, and no drive.

That's why our best player is Michael ****ing Bradley.

If we EVER want to become decent at this sport, we need to do more than to luck out that one of the best coaches in the world happened to marry a Californian and happened to want to give his life to growing American soccer.

We HAVE to get the WHOLE country involved.... which... more than anything.... means taking the game away from being the sport played by kids with overbearing mothers, and INVOLVING the BEST athletes America has to offer, who happen to live in the inner cities of Florida, Louisiana, Georgia, Texas, Southern California, and Virginia.

That's the only way we will ever contend.

Right now, call it like you see it. We're a team of inferior athletes, doing better than expected due to superior coaching and superior monetary support.

As long as soccer remains the exclusive sport of the suburban, white, sheltered class.... we will never win anything meaningful. Mark it down.

And to hijack what someone once said on another forum...

I think we need to be cautious about generalizing about African-Americans, because at least in terms of sports culture, there are really two distinct groups. First- and second-generation African-Americans actually participate in soccer at a much higher rate than the general American population. They're a small fraction of the overall African-American population, but account for well over half of African-American MLS players. African-Americans are actually slightly overrepresented in MLS right now, but it's entirely because of the sons of immigrants. The participation rate for non-recent-immigrant African-Americans is still abysmal. That situation isn't unique to African-Americans; first- and second-generation Americans are also greatly overrepresented among white American players.

I actually don't think MLS has been around long enough to solve that problem. The American sports media has only recently started to grudgingly accept soccer as a legitimate sport, and the media is highly influential. 19 years may seem like a long time, and it's been long enough for lifelong MLS fans to start entering the league as players, but it takes longer than that to change media perceptions. Also, given the cost of playing high-level youth soccer, inner-city outreach has been too limited for most of MLS's existence. MLS has only had free academies for a few years (not long enough to develop more than a handful of players), and even now not all MLS academies are free.

 

[chromium]

I think they will win this match but then loose the next one, against Colombia. It is sad for South American football, that 4 South American teams are in one corner of the knock out schedule of the world cup, from the group of Brasil, Chile, Colombia and Uruguay only one will survive. In all other groups of 4 there is never a mix of 2 countries from the same continent in the round of 16, Europe v. Africa, Europe v. Africa, Europe v. South America, Europe v. Central America, South America v. Europe and Europe v. North America (US).

Well it's sad because i wanted to see how all those south american teams did against the top european teams, but we'll only get a few matches. They keep making a deal of how europe can't win the cup in SA, but now 2 european teams can reach semis without playing SA at all. If Argentina goes down, Holland may even win the WC and not have to face a single SA team in meaningful game.