World Cup 2006

[Blind3]

Robben selfish ? He took advantage of an organized yet slower defense. Repeatedly. Van Persie too to a slightly lesser extent .If a player is having his way with the opposition you feed him the ball until the opposition adjust. If only RvN had even a good match,nevermind great, the score would've been 2 or 3 . Van der Sar didn't have alot to do ,but it was a great comfort that he was between the sticks because the "d" made me want to hide my eyes a few times.

I think S-M had the best backline in the group.Better than Argentina with a Gabriel Heinze short on match fitness, Sorin, Burdisso,etc.. Cote` d'Ivoire has offensive horses but i think the Dutch can exploit their defense. That said, the midfield should plan to bring their lunch pails.They will have to work very hard to help a slightly shaky defense v. Drogba, Kone, Kalou,Akale,etc..


CONGRATS ORANJE!!!! I'm more nervous than a long-tailed cat in a room full of rocking chairs re: The US and their chances.

[Stevie Super Samba Skillz]

You think the Dutch can exploit the Ivorian defence? I think collectively they were poor, i.e. they made some collective tactical errors, but Kolo Toure is a damn good defender, up there with the best for sure. Eboue is pretty good too, not sure about the other two.

What I noticed about Angola aswell is that the African teams have a lot of spirit and athleticism, but no coolness and composure in the final third. I'm so pissed there's no Cameroon, Senegal or Nigeria this world cup. Or even South Africa, Egypt or Morocco. All six of which are far better than Angola and Togo. If these teams do poorly, it is bad for African football and I hope they don't lose a qualifying spot in the future as a result.

[FlaFlu]

And I stood up and sang the Dutch national anthem on my own in the bar, to (perhaps ironic?) applause. I mixed up 'vrij onverveerd' with 'altijd geeerd', as if anyone would notice anyway...

:worshippy: :xyxthumbs:

[DanK]

I'm in the U.S., and while watching the Portugal-Angola match, one of the TV announcers (Tommy Smyth... ugh, just all around pretty bad no matter what he's saying) was discussing the Holland match, and said something like, "If I were Van Nistelrooy, I'd be very upset at Robben right now," because in his opinion Robben didn't feed the ball to Van Nistelrooy enough...

Tommy Smyth (with a 'y') as he likes to say. All I can say is :pukey:

This guy has absolutely no idea about football. Just says things to be controversial. Complete w*nker imo. Him and his 'olde onion bag'...i'd like to smack him in 'his olde onion bag!!!'...anyway back to real issues.

Think this is the perfect start for Holland. You don't want to peak too early. Solid win over a very, very tough opponent. A few issues here and there, but better to come out now (with a win behind us) than in the later games.

Robben was excellent, and even managed to avoid rolling on the ground a fair bit which is unusual but nice to see.

A win against CIV (which will not be easy by a long way) and we are set

[jakobg]

Fortunately for Sweden, if they get their heads on straight, they can beat England and Paraguay. Neither of those teams looked all that good.

Not all seems to be right in the Swedish team. They showed obvious frustration in the T&T game, and the press now reports that Ljungberg and Mellberg had some kind of a "wild argument" after the game. Those two had a fight in one of the pre WC 2002 training sessions as well. You could also see Zlatan arguing with Linderoth in halftime of the T&T game.

Anyway, I don't think this will effect the rest of the games that much. I'm sure these guys are used to arguments in their clubs as well.

I have a feeling today's games will be kinda interesting. No real 'big games', but a lot of interesting teams playing. Is Ghana as strong as many say? Will Italy play as boring as they always do? How good is thhis years USA? Can Austrailia make it to the next round? Are the Czechs going to be a top team in this WC? Will Japan be as good as they were at home last time?

Many questions. I hope to get the answers tonight. God, I'm enjoying the World Cup! :yes:

[Frans]

What I noticed about Angola aswell is that the African teams have a lot of spirit and athleticism, but no coolness and composure in the final third. I'm so pissed there's no Cameroon, Senegal or Nigeria this world cup. Or even South Africa, Egypt or Morocco. All six of which are far better than Angola and Togo. If these teams do poorly, it is bad for African football and I hope they don't lose a qualifying spot in the future as a result.

Nigeria was in Angola's qualifying group, Senegal in Togo's. So it's not like they can complain about not qualifying. Personally I'd scrap the CONCACAF - Asia playoff (trinidad and tobago vs Bahrain, this time around) and give another spot to africa.

Robben was excellent, and even managed to avoid rolling on the ground a fair bit which is unusual but nice to see.

Maybe at Chelsea he's told to look for fouls, whereas in the dutch team he's told to play. Either way, he looked far better today than at any time for Chelsea this season.

[Kowalczyk]

Almost everybody here seems very worried about the Dutch defense. That's a little bit remarkable: almost all of the Dutch newspapers (including de Volkskrant, which I am reading right now) write about the fact that Holland's defense has become remarkably solid under Van Basten. And I agree with them, to be honest.

Yesterday's win over Serbia was the triumph of one brilliant forward (Robben) and a solid duo in the heart of defense, if you ask me. André Ooijer was one of the best men in orange, Joris Mathijsen did a fine job as well and Van der Sar was flawless. That's what won us the game.

It is not new, by the way. Serbia conceded only one goal in their qualification campaign, but Holland were pretty solid as well (3 goals conceded in 12 qualifiers).

After the game the Serbia coach claimed that Holland did not deserve the win, because Serbia had better chances. Pardon my French, but that's bollocks. I watched the entire game and the highlights several times, but Serbia were not that dangerous at all, in fact. They had a few dangerous moments before Robben scored (including that one moment where two strikers were in each other's way and missed the ball), but 100% open scoring chances, right in front of Van der Sar...? Not really. None of the chances Serbia created were as dangerous as Robben's shot (punched out of the corner by Jevric), Van Nistelrooy's close-range backheel opportunity at the near post or Van Persie's free-kick.

Holland had 61% possession and easily the most dangerous moments, so I would say that this win was very deserved, over all. Having said that: Serbia were 'in it' until the last second and Holland were seriously under pressure in the last ten minutes. They could have equalized, but the fact that Holland ended up grabbing the three points was not a case of injustice or anything like that.

I thought Holland worked quite well as a team. They got stuck in and fought hard against a physically superior opponent. They definitely didn't play well for 90 minutes, but they were quite good in certain phases. I thought the first half was totally acceptable as a whole.

Let's not forget that it was boiling hot in Leipzig and that Serbia were a very, very good opponent. Very good job, all in all.

As for the individual players: Robben made the difference and Van der Sar, Ooijer and Mathijsen were very good.

I don't think Van Bommel was that poor, to be honest. I thought he did well, just like Cocu. The most disappointing midfielder was Sneijder, imo. He had loads of possession and kept trying (which is good), but he lost the ball way too frequently, especially in the second half.

Van Persie: didn't get the ball much, but the things he did were mostly good. The touch that sent Robben on his way was pure class. Brilliant. (By the way: did you notice that the build-up of Holland's goal was almost identical to the build-up of Jari Litmanen's 0-1 against AC Milan in Triëst, fall 1995?)

Most disappointing Dutch players, imo: Sneijder and Van Nistelrooy (I thought Heitinga wasn't that terrible).

K.

[Kowalczyk]

One more thing...

I have said all along that this game (the Serbia game) was the pivotal, absolutely crucial game for Holland, even more so when Argentina beat Ivory Coast.

If Holland had failed to beat Serbia, they would almost immediately have put themselves in the position that the Ivory Coast fixture would have been a 'must win' for both teams and a result would have been required against Argentina.

Seriously: a draw or defeat against Serbia would pretty much have meant first round elimination to me. This win was absolutely vital. The Ivory Coast game will now be a 'must win' for them, but not for us, while Serbia will be fighting for their last chance in a 'must win' encounter with Argentina.

That's a very promising situation for Holland. Beating Serbia was a must. The only way to survive. And I'm very pleased that they pulled it off.

K.

[DanK]

Most disappointing Dutch players, imo: Sneijder and Van Nistelrooy (I thought Heitinga wasn't that terrible).
K.

I agree Ko. Thought the team played pretty darn well considering the heat, the opponent AND that it was the first game of the WC. Teams are nearly always more cautious in the opening game as no one wants to lose. I thought van Bastens plan worked well for most of the game.

Sneijder just didn't click today, same with van Nistelrooy, but I would be surprised if these 2 had another bad day next game. As for Heitinga. He was OK. Not brilliant, but not terrible either, not by a long way. He even managed to get some of his long passes happening...I think things are falling nicely into place for the team in Orange. :eusa_pray:

[AsgAarD_xxx]

As for tomorrow's games - I was really impressed of Angola form. They had a good game (and their goalkeeper was great). They didn't stay at their own half, but played offensive football. But I don't understand why their best striker (or maybe I should say "the most-known") - Mantorras started the game on a bench?

[Kowalczyk]

On to today's games...

Today is the day for a number of our Ajax USA mates: Australia vs Japan at 15:00 CET and then U.S.A. vs Czech Republic at 18:00.

Best of luck to all my Yank and Ozz friends. I'll be rooting for you.

The U.S. have a very tough group: Czech Republic and Italy... That's tough. They will require a result against the Czechs, who are still a very good side, but they're starting to age. I think the U.S. have a chance, but a draw wouldn't be a bad result either. Defeat would be a disaster, though. If that happens they will require a result against Italy.

As for Australia: they are in the slightly awkward position (just like Holland were) that their first game is the most important one right away. Australia must beat Japan, otherwise they're screwed, simple as that. They will require at least four points and if you're realistic three of 'em will have to be taken off Japan.

Good luck, boys!

K.

[Ayman]

I was relieved more then anyone at the Hems. Serbia dont concede many goals and I can see them getting a 1-1 result against the Argies. In our case we have a tough task, I was really impressed with our defense, with the exception of Gio van Bronckhurst, he seemed nervous, and couldnt defend as solidly as the other three. I thought both Sneijder and Van Nistelrooij were unlucky. Never the less, the first game is always one of the hardest games, so I cant complain.

[SPL]

A very good win by the dutch Robben was outstanding and maybe the fact that he did not dive but stayed on his feet had something to do with it!!

Do any of you think Heitinga should be in his main position the middle of defence and not right back?? Ooijer was the pick of the defence though.

[Kowalczyk]

Ooofff... Australia 0, Japan 1 at half-time.

They must turn it around! Come on Australia!!

K.

[Henk de Gier]

that goal was absolutely a foul, the ref should have given a free kick to Australia.

[Kowalczyk]

I'm at work. Can't watch...

K.

[Henk de Gier]

just watch the replay tonight.

Cahill (2) and Aloisi made me happy :)

[DanK]

F*^k yeah!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What a come back. :eusa_dance:

Tim Cahill's 2nd is one of the goals of the WC so far.

I was starting to get that sinking feeling, then 84th min...1-2-3 and its over. 3-1!

Its still going to be bloody hard to get to the 2nd round, but we have done ourselves a huge, huge favour.

Our first goals ever at the WC and what a way to get them.

To the game itself. Japan's first should have probably been a foul on our keeper, although i think schwartzer could have been more aggresive in getting to the ball.

I think we had something like 20 or more shots on goal. Thank god finally the result matched the domination in the game.

Viduka was brilliant all day and held up the ball so well for the others.

Well done boys. If we can get a low scoring loss or better against Brazil, we have a real, real chance.

2 from 2. Holland with 3 points, now Australia 3 points.

Sorry if this post sounds all over the place. its 1:30am here and I am over tired and over excited.
:yes:

[aveslacker]

aveslacker.... I DEMAND your opinion on these Argentinian c*nts.

Sorry, amigo, I didn't see the game. I'll fill in with some choice adjectives, no doubt, after Monday's NL - Argie Bargie game.

[aveslacker]

Congrats to my Aussie and Dutch colleagues. Both teams earned well-deserved victories.

I hope my US-Boyz can join you guys with three points. I truly believe that they're up to it, but in my heart I think a draw is most likely. I would not be too disappointed with that.

The game starts in about 30 minutes, and I am pumped!

I just love the World Cup! :headbang:

[Henk de Gier]

Congrats to my Aussie and Dutch colleagues. Both teams earned well-deserved victories.

I hope my US-Boyz can join you guys with three points.

I hope not, i've got my money on the Czech republic on unibet.com ;)

[ajaxperu]

what a great pass by Grygera for Koller! :xyxthumbs:
Great to see an ajacied playing well

[Dubbel]

0-1. Don´t despair aveslacker. The Checks won´t be able to keep the zero at back.

[FlaFlu]

I think they will. The US don't have enough firepower.

[ajaxperu]

2-0. Excellent goal
It's not over yet, lots of things can change in the second half