Oh, and kudos to me for my successful campaign to get Diego Forlan the Golden Ball. 
Van Bommel is one of the biggest hacks on the planet. He was very cynical all game and I think should’ve been sent off for a tackle on Iniesta (I think). Also, for persistent infringement.
Spain was the best team of the tournament, and is really gorgeous when they’re on, and not being hacked to pieces (or diving over the whole field). I just don’t think any of that was on display today.
Iniesta was very lucky not to get sent off himself for retaliating after Van Bommel fouled him. Early in the second half, I think. The ref was looking the other way, but it was a red card for certain if he’d seen it.
Hats off to Spain. I never expect them to win anything, but they were clearly the most deserving team, not only tonight but over the course of the tournament. For all the criticisms of this World Cup - and boy, are most of them valid - it ended the way it’s supposed to end: with the world’s best national team lifting the trophy.
Brilliant atmosphere in the pub tonight and in Dublin city centre, with all the Spanish people living/studying here. Normally they sort of annoy me (nice people, but they never get out of your way :)) but tonight I’m delighted for them.
Oh, I don’t think that’s a red. He gave him a little hip check. Yellow for sure. Then probably two more for diving and one for taking his shirt off.
I’ve really come around to instant replay from this WC. Not even stopping the match, but have the 4th official look at video and tell the head ref through a radio. Bam, just fixed like 90% of shitty calls without slowing the game.
I thought that when i saw it happen, but the replay suggested that Van Bommel milked it for all it was worth. The hip check didn’t look as bad to me when i saw it for a second time. Initially, i thought it was an elbow to the face.
I’ve only commented a few times, but I want to thank all the knowlegable commenters, and the pointers to blogs and other websites. This was fun!
No that was never a red card. Possibly a yellow, would have been harsh though in my opinion. Van Bommel made it look way worse than it actually was.
Also, Van Bommel is scum. Absolute scum. How he didn’t get sent off this tournament I have no idea - even after being booked today he had at least two more fouls that warranted yellows (one should have been a penalty), plus he stamped on Iniesta’s foot, which is why Iniesta reacted the way he did. De Jong should have been sent off. Robben should have been sent off for kicking the ball away near the end when he was already on a yellow. (I hate seeing players booked for this kind of crap, but in Robben’s case he’s such a sly snivelling little weasel that I would have been overjoyed!) Heitinga deserved to go, could have been sent off earlier. All in all, this Dutch team are a disgrace to football, and I am DELIGHTED that Spain won. Skill and courage beat gamesmanship and intimidation, and that is something to celebrate.
And Thomas Mueller gets the Golden Boot as well as Young Player of the Tournament…
But how often do those opportunities happen in stoppage time at the end of the game? Of course they don’t use their hand to stop those balls in most of those situations because a taking a red card in order take your chances on stopping a penalty is pretty stupid. I guarantee you that if this situation was common (needing a hand ball to save a sure goal seconds from the end of a knockout tournament game), using the hand would be very common.
Sure. :rolleyes:
It has nothing to so with being American. Nor honor. It’s about whether the penalty is worth the risk. A red card and PK is a very small penalty to pay in this particular situation. And if this situation was common, then so would handball.
Oh, congrats Spain. Deserving champions.
This is why I enjoyed the Germany Spain game so much more - pure football. What a relief that Spain won, and I’m sorry they did themselves resort to some dodgy behaviour. The ref had his hands full, Spain deserved the cup and they got it. I really thought there’d be more more goals, but one turned out to be enough and a great one too.
Is it just me, or does Robben look like Patrick Stewart?
The third-place game was a lot more fun to watch. I can understand, the players are so freaked out in the final to not be the goat that they are going to play super defensively.
Congratulations to Spain! My Asturian ancestors are surely happy about this.
What a gesture.
The only other time I’ve seen a player have the same opportunity at the very end of a match was during the 1994 Coca Cola Cup Final. Manchester United were already down 2-1, and in the 90th minute Andrei Kanchelskis found himself standing on the goal line during a corner sequence with a Villa shot coming at him and the goalie too far away to get to it.
Guess what he did? Handballed. Straight red, off he goes, Villa converts the penalty anyway and wins 3-1.
Any player with the opportunity to save his side from being knocked out of the World Cup in injury time like that would do the same thing Suarez did. It’s not the same when it happens in the 56th minute.
I remember this game - Ron Atkinson’s greatest triumph!
I feel bad now. I was thinking what a glory hound putz he was to risk a future red card. That changes everything.
Was it a Dutch player who took off his medal right after he got it? I’d like to reassign my putz award.
Couldn’t find the bathroom in time so you dropped in on this thread? :dubious:
May your next sporting event be met with a dead battery and a parking lot full of opposing fans.
So now that the tournament is over, which was the best goal?
The ones that come to mind:
URU v. NED - Van Bronckhorst hits the post from the edge of the area.
ARG v. Mexico - Tevez’s second goal (not the offside one).
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sy3LuJwCwmM (skip to 1:59)
I’m sure I’m forgetting a couple. Maicon’s strike against N. Korea doesn’t look as impressive as I remember at the time. Maybe (as much as I hate to admit it) Donovon’s goal v. Slovenia?
Taking off the second place medal immediately is a long tradition. I can’t remember ever NOT seeing a losing player take it off with self-disgust. Anyway, I think it was the Dutch coach who they showed taking it off.
Van Bronckhorst’s goal gets my vote. Best strike I’ve seen in years (possibly ever) and the fact that it was in the semi final just makes it all the more special.
For example, Villa’s goal where he beat two or three defenders and hit it into the top corner would have been a lot more impressive were it not against Honduras.
Tchabalala’s goal from the first game was pretty good too. And some of the Brazil goals - Luis Fabiano’s two against Ivory Coast were pretty sweet, even if he did handle the ball clearly for the second.
Tbh though, I think Maicon’s goal get better every time you see it; I definitely think he meant it - he hits the ball with the outside of his right foot, so the ball would curl towards the goal, rather than towards the onrushing strikers. A brilliant finish.
Some other good goals were Suarez vs S Korea, Podolski vs England (nice team move), Endo’s free kick for Japan vs (??) and Rommedahl vs Cameroon. . .
Tons of other ones too, cant think of them now though.