I hope we stop accusing the other team from diving. Everybody does it to some extend. It is FIFA who should do something about it. As a player if my country depends on me, I will dive too just to win. It's no different than a basketball player calling time out in mid air going out of bound or throw the ball at the opponent to win the ball.
Here are my photos from the Netherlands v Chile match I caught in São Paulo last month.
Spoiler!
Just before the anthems.
The bulk of the Oranje Army.
Just one of the massings of Chilean supporters.
Moments before kick-off.
1-0 Netherlands.
2-0 Netherlands.
The Dutch players thanking the Oranje Army.
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wow, that Corinthians stadium is awesome. I would love to have a smaller version of that in Calgary.
The second tiers on the stands behind the goals are temporary. And pretty dangerous as I heard the local fire department refused to certify them as safe.
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“Such suburban models are being rationalized as ‘what people want,’ when in fact they are simply what is most expedient to produce. The truth is that what people want is a decent place to live, not just a suburban version of a decent place to live.”
Crazy that they built that stadium in Manaus. All the building materials had to be floated up the Amazon. IIRC, there were only 4 games there, and there is no 1st division team in Manaus to use it later.
The World Cup came to the rainforest, eight teams flew in, played, flew out again, leaving the Arena behind. Manaus' largest professional side Nacional will take over tenancy, but they are a small club that last competed at the top level of Brazilian football in 1985, and are currently knocking around in Serie D. In short, all the evidence suggests that the Arena will settle down in the heat and slowly transform into the emblematic animal of the modern sporting super-event: the white elephant.
Manaus is host to one of the world's strangest and most distinctive football tournaments, the Peladão. (Most attempted translations end up settling for 'the Big Kickabout') First held in 1973, teams aren't just represented by an eleven-man football team but by a beauty queen as well, who competes in her own pageants. Should a side find themselves knocked out in the conventional manner, there is still a chance that a strong showing for their queen could see them reinstated in the tournament. A record 1,211 teams competed in the 2010 edition, and in recent years a women's bracket has been installed alongside the typical men's competition, ensuring that the women of Manaus aren't entirely confined to their swimsuits.
Manaus may not have needed the World Cup, and it may not have been able to afford it, but it put its best face on nonetheless. Left to its own devices, it shouldn't be too much of a shock if the city finds a way to kill itself a white elephant, then build something better for themselves from the corpse. After all, this is the impossible city, and they've done it before.
Last edited by troutman; 07-09-2014 at 01:56 PM.
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I would say the opposite. Great tournament with two teams I don't want to see and a final I now have 0 interest in.
I had high hopes for Argentina this tournament and picked them to win but watching them this tournament they have been so boring. Germans are always a destestable team and this year is no different.
I loved the World Cup so far and the storylines have been great but this final holds zero interest for me. I was planning on taking the day off of work but think I will go in and just find out who won after the game is over.
I would say the opposite. Great tournament with two teams I don't want to see and a final I now have 0 interest in.
I had high hopes for Argentina this tournament and picked them to win but watching them this tournament they have been so boring. Germans are always a destestable team and this year is no different.
I loved the World Cup so far and the storylines have been great but this final holds zero interest for me. I was planning on taking the day off of work but think I will go in and just find out who won after the game is over.
Look at it this way; In this final you're guaranteed to see a teams you dislike have their hearts broken. Sweet schadenfreude.
Having a team you hate is more likely to give you a happy ending than having a team you love anyway.
I would say the opposite. Great tournament with two teams I don't want to see and a final I now have 0 interest in.
I had high hopes for Argentina this tournament and picked them to win but watching them this tournament they have been so boring. Germans are always a destestable team and this year is no different.
I loved the World Cup so far and the storylines have been great but this final holds zero interest for me. I was planning on taking the day off of work but think I will go in and just find out who won after the game is over.
Have a good time working on a Sunday. I like my burgers medium and yes, I'd like fries.
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If you thought this season would have a happy ending, you haven't been paying attention.
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Great group play but it's downhill in the knockout stage. The level of World Cup play can't compare to the level of big club play. It's been like this since France 98.
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Great group play but it's downhill in the knockout stage. The level of World Cup play can't compare to the level of big club play. It's been like this since France 98.
Teams are too afraid to take risks at the World Cup.
At club play team chemistry, more developed team tactics, and less pressure, make for more entertaining games.
At the World Cup once you get to the groups stages there is so much pressure on teams, and since the teams are not as tactically sound, it makes it easier for a team to just play safe and defensive without taking any risks.
Group stages are more entertaining since you have some of the lesser known countries with less pressure on them just going for it.
Group stages are more entertaining since you have some of the lesser known countries with less pressure on them just going for it.
I wouldn't mind the WC going back to 2 group stage rounds as in the past. The knockout is the more exciting format but for the last 3 or 4 WC, it hasn't lived up to it's potential.
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