As I recall the play, calling it a dive is not accurate. There was certainly contact. Whether he “made the most of it” is perhaps up for debate - but it was no dive.
This article: http://worldcup.si.com/2010/06/18/united-states-2-slovenia-2/?hpt=C1
claims that “…this result should have been the first time a team had ever won 3-2 in the World Cup after going down 2-0 at halftime”.
I guess that’s not true? I took the writer’s claim at face value.
Well, yes, that is true (note the specific score given, 3-2, and the specific half-time score, 2-0). It would not be the first time a team has been down 2-0 and come back to win by any score though.
Note that in the '54 final example, the score was 2-2 at half-time.
1954: Switzerland - Austria 5:7; The host of the WC led by 3:0 to everyone’s surprise but was beaten in the end by a much better team from Austria.
1954: West Germany - Hungary 3:2
The legendary final. Germany had been beaten by Hungary in the group stage 8:3, Hungary was the best team of the world at that time and led in the final game 0:2 after eight minutes. The game looked as if it was over. But it wasn’t. The decisive moment came in the 84th minute and every German football fan knows by heart the words of the reporter Herbert Zimmermann (sorry for the following in German):
1970: West Germany - England 3:2
England led 0:2, Bobby Charlton was substituted to rest for the semifinals. Good move. Germany won in the end and had a little revenge for the Wembley goal.
Ah, I guess I glossed over that “halftime” part. So the other times a team has been down by 2-0 or 3-0 and come back and won had scored at least one goal in the first half of the game.
Which of course would have made the American achievement even more noteworthy had we not been jobbed out of that final goal!
Oh, right. That’s not what you posted though. I must admit that’s a nice subtle bit of journalistic overselling in the article.
So you’re commenting on the game and didn’t even see it? There’s a surprise.
The foul that gave the free kick came from a Slovenian guy who put his arm across Altidore’s chest, wrapped him up, and pushed him down. It was absolutely a legit foul, and there was no dive.
Ok - new goalie - let’s go!
Both teams have dropped their goalies, wonder if that is a World Cup first.
As usual, running something through Babelfish is entertaining:
Translation from wintertime’s post:
"Six minutes still in the staggering village stadium in Berne. None staggers. The rain sizzles incessant down. It is heavy, but the spectators, it do not await to out like could it also! A soccer world championship is every four years, and when one sees such a final game, so balanced, thus packing, now to Germany at the left wing by shepherd, shepherd passes on to Morlock of the Hungary repelled, and Bozsik, again and again Bozsik, the right runner that Hungary at the ball. It has the ball lost this time, against shepherd - shepherds inward geflankt - header - repelled - from the background would have Rahn to shoot - Rahn shoots! - Tooooor! Tooooor! Tooooor! Tooooor! …
Gate for Germany - link shot of Rahn, shepherd struck the flank inward, became generally accepted shepherds against Bozsik. Three to two for Germany five minutes before that playing. If you consider me moved, consider me over-snatched, I believe, also to football laymen should a heart have, should at the enthusiasm of our crew and at our own enthusiasm with be pleased and should thumbs now hold. Four and one-half minutes of thumbs hold in staggering village…"
My favorite is “consider me over-snatched.”
Differing opinions are always going to happen in football, some will say it was diving or simulating and others will claim it is legit. There isn’t always a black and white answer.
I would say the USA started the game poorly and Slovenia finished it poorly as they tired and the USA’s fitness held out. Overall a draw seemed a fair result for both teams.
Now onto the main event, come on England!!
Everyone in the US is all atwitter about the referee’s call, but I’m letting it go. It was a bad call, yes, but it was a single bad call. Those sorts of things happen during games, it just so happened that it aborted what would have been a tremendous comeback.
Is it just me, or does Capello look a bit like this when he is angry?
There wasn’t a “single bad call”. There were numerous bad calls, most egregious of which was the yellow card on Findley for the phantom handball that cost the US team his services for the game against Algeria.
One might happen to be thinking with the amount of money being wagered in various legal and ilegal venues, that a USA victory may not be viewed as desirable in some quarters.
Thus should Slovenia have failed to put the plucky American team down in the natural course of events, then other arrangements may have needed to be in place.
Declan
That call didn’t have a material effect on the game. If they had called a non-yellow card offense on Findley, it would have made no difference in the game.
I am undecided whether losing him for the game against Algeria is a good thing or a bad thing.
Free kicks that result from fouls are purely a judgment call. The problem with soccer is that too many players take dives and its often impossible to tell whether a fall was intentional or the result of an actual foul. Telling whether a player is offsides or not is much more straightforward. A “dive” resulting in a free kick is common. But a blown offsides call when the player was obviously not offsides is not as common.
Now tell me why you hate America so much.
Thought from earlier; the German manager makes me laugh. Pretty much all the coaches are large, somewhat jowly men with boring suits or a team tracksuit. And then you have the German manager with a v-neck sweater and a tshirt, looking like a catalogue model or something.
Algeria looking the better side at the moment. 
Out of curiousity, what is the largest deficit that has ever been overcome in WC play?