For The Ladies...

Now, I understand that most of you have become World Cup Widows, and that's why I'm going to try and entice you to watch today's game. Ivory Coast vs. Portugal involves this man... Cristiano Ronaldo. Let's hope he takes his shirt off, then we can all be happy!

Goalie Blunders - Ball or Balls?

We've seen plenty of keeper blunders so far this World Cup. Most of the teams have blamed the ball, but my question is this... Is it the ball, or is that a load of balls?

We've had Robert Green for England. Justo Villar for Paraguay. Faouzi Chaouchi for Algeria. All keepers who have made bad mistakes in regards to the Jabulani, the ball being used.

According to adidas, it has been thoroughly tested, and gone without complaint before the World Cup. Yes, it makes it more exciting, but surely the balls should be fair for all members of the team, rather than all but the keepers?

And also, why would it be the ball's fault? Surely if you're meant to be the best keeper from your country, then you get behind that ball if its the last thing you do.

I'm going with Balls. It's not the ball, its the players.

Channel Conundrum - Who To Watch?!

Over here in the UK, we have a choice of two channels to watch games on - BBC and ITV. Neither share games until the final, but both have an equal share of games to show. And theres quite a bit of uproar over here over who to watch.

Personally, I prefer the ITV coverage, but with the BBC 'special' pundits. And I don't like all the adverts either, but I guess that's what lets us watch the games!

On the BBC, we have Gary Lineker fronting the coverage, with Alan Hansen, Alan Shearer and Lee Dixon - all of whom are Match of the Day pundits normally. They're joined by Gordon Strachan, Jurgen Klinsmann, Clarence Seedorf, Emmanuel Adebayor, Harry Redknapp and Roy Hodgson. Not a bad team for them!

ITV, however, have Adrian Chiles fronting their coverage, and he's brilliant. Is a fan, talks like a fan, and wants to be a fan, rather than a presenter. It just works. He's joined by Andy Townsend, Kevin Keegan, Marcel Desailly, Edgar Davids, Gareth Southgate, and Patrick Vieira. Hardly prolific World Cup players...

So yeah, there's my take on it all. I just wish Chiles had stayed at the BBC, and ITV had targetted Gary Lineker instead.....

Adam Misses All - Day 4 Round-Up

Now school began again today. Couldn't have been a worse day, but we had to go back. And that means I missed all the football. So what you'll be reading below will be exactly what you can watch if you want to, by clicking on the highlight links. Simple, really.

The first game was the lunchtime kick-off - Netherlands vs. Denmark. What a freaky game! Sat down to watch the highlights, and there were only 3 minutes of them, so I assumed it would be crap, but I was very wrong. Nicklas Bendtner missed some sitters in the first half, and the freakiest own goal this season gave Holland the lead, after Simon Poulsen headed the ball against Daniel Agger's back for it to trickle in. The second goal, late in the second half, was good, as Dirk Kuyt follows up the ball and slides it home. Damian and I discussed the game before kick off, and we disagreed with the choice of playing Kuyt from the start, but we were proved wrong, which is always a good thing! Wesley Sneijder seemed to be everywhere as well, and I think he could be key. Still, 2-0 will set them up well. For the highlights, click here.

Next up was Japan vs. Cameroon. Now it was the story of two of the best teams of the tournament - kit wise of course. Cameroon in yellow with red pinstripes, and Japan in blue with white trim. That's about as good as it gets. The odd bit of flair and skill from Cameroon was nice to see, and broke up a dire game between the two. Japan took the lead towards the end of the first half thanks to a defensive error and a brilliant bit of instinct from Keisuke Honda, and then decided the best way to win the game was to put 10 men behind the ball. Everything from then onwards was Cameroon, but it wasn't enough, and the game finished 1-0. To watch the highlights, click here.

That finished off Group E, and that meant the last game of the day was the start of Group F - Italy vs. Paraguay. Now normally, this would have 'drubbing' written all over it, but with the selection within the squads, people thought a little differently. Paraguay took a shock lead thanks to a header from a corner by Antolin Alcarez, but this was cancelled out in the second half thanks to a bit of stupid goalkeeping, and Daniele De Rossi slots the ball home. From there, it was all Italy, but their old squad couldn't do anything more, and the game finished 1-1. To see the highlights (I wouldn't bother...), click here.

That was Day 4, and I think this may now be the trend for the next few days......

Tale of Two Halves - Day 3 Round-Up

And it really was. We went from one extreme to another in just a few hours. And it was well worth the wait.

First up today was Algeria vs. Slovenia, to finish off the first round of games in Group B. It was like watching paint dry. The game was boring, slow and repetitive, and it looked like no-one would score until Robert Koren popped up with little over 10 minutes to go. Dull. Dull. Dull. If you really, really want to waste 5 minutes of your life, and watch just how dull this game was, then click here.

Then we had Serbia vs. Ghana to launch Group C, and that was just like a party. Having an African nation actually play well, unlike Algeria earlier, made the whole continent go mad. And that was before the goal. Asamoah Gyan converted a penalty with 5 minutes to go to give Ghana an opening game win, and they now set themselves up for a big tournament. To watch highlights of this one, and I advise you at least watch the brilliant goal, click here.

And the final game of Day 3 was that between Germany and Australia, and what an absolutely stunning game. The first half was the best half of football I've watched in the last year. Ozil is the best player seen so far, and with Australia playing very poorly, they conceded two very classy goals. Second half was a little more open, and with a correct piece of refereeing, sending Tim Cahill off killed the game with it. The third goal was a one-man effort, and then Cacau slotted one in with 20 minutes to go. It just seamed effortless for them to walk this game. With the game finishing 4-0, Germany now look like the team to beat. To watch the highlights, and please do, because it was just brilliant, click here.

And today was the first time ever that every game of the day involved a red card. Weird how things like that go, int it? Let's hope that's the lot for now though.

One To Watch - Mesut Ozil

I've just sat and watched the first half of the Germany vs. Australia game, and watched in awe at the passing maestro in midfield. And guess who said he was one to watch?! (you can even check!)

Mesut Ozil has just ripped the Australians apart. His passing has been precise and perfect; his skill has shown why he is one of the most talented kids in the tournament; his finesse just makes everyone sit back and watch him come to life.

He's led every attack for Germany, and is behind every move for his nation. I'm just hoping that the rumours of Fergie looking into signing him from Werder Bremen for Man United this summer are true, because in a couple of years, he is gonna be even better than he currently is, and thats a scary proposition.

Outstanding Attacking - Day 2 Round-Up

Having now watched 5 out of the 64 games, we're beginning to get a bit of a feel for how its all going. And how attacking was today?!

First game of today was the Korea Republic against Greece,and it was a brilliant display by the Asian team. They showed that they really have recovered the form of the 2002 semi-finalists, and it was actually a very enjoyable game to watch - makes a change when it involves Greece. Highlights are found here.


Next up on the roster was Argentina vs. Nigeria, and it was the best game so far. First half was absolutely stunning - haven't seen a game of football like that in a while. Messi's jinking runs and Tevez's brute force matched perfectly, and the lack of defence for both teams were only uncovered fully in the last 10 minutes. The passing was brilliant too, and it bodes well for the next month. You can watch the highlights here.

Finally, we had England vs. USA. What a really poor game. When Gerrard put the ball in the net within 10 minutes, I thought we were on our way. But no, however we did it, we let the USA come back, and eventually ended up drawing 1-1, thanks to an absolute blunder from Robert Green. If I were Capello, I'd have pulled him off at half time, and let him know it wasn't acceptable. Second half was a little better, but we brought on slower players and brought the pace of the game right down, making Wayne Rooney a very unhappy bunny. Still, if you want to watch the highlights, click here.