Anddddddddddd its...

1 - 0 to ENGLAND in the 22nd Minute!

HALFTIME WHISTLE -


Slovenia - 0

England - 1




USA - 0

Algeria - 0



The scoreline of the first match could so easily have read 3 - 0, if Frank Lampard and Steven Gerrard had done better with their fantastic chances in front of the Slovenian goal with the goalkeeper nowhere in sight.

As it stands, the goal by Defoe is the difference between the two sides right now. And it was a bit of poor goalkeeping by the Slovenian GK. Let's see if the Slovenian side picks up the ante in the second half. England look hungry, determined and ready to score some more.

USA should know by now that they need to win too, and a draw simply wont do them any good. If they win, they go through alongwith England. If they lose or draw, they will be out and Slovenia go through.

Algeria can also lick their lips. If they can eke out a win here they can upset the applecart and leapfrog right over Slovenia and USA. All 4 teams have a chance to qualify.

Let's see what the second half unfolds...

I'm starting to get sick and fucking tired of seeing their goals refused...

FINALLY!!


We're qualified bitches! :D



EDIT: Feel bad for Slovenia, though.

FULL TIME - Match #38 (GROUP C) -





FULL TIME - Match #37 (GROUP C) -




England are through to the Round of 16. They hung on to their lead till the end and fought out the win. Although they could so easily have been 2 - 0 or even 3 - 0, as the second half started and almost immediately Defoe/Rooney got a fantastic chance to score and bungled it.

And what a match between USA and ALGERIA!

USA's Donovan scoring in the first minute of added time after 90 minutes were over! Fantastic show.

The English fans must be relieved and jubilant. The USA fans, however, should be out of the world right now because of this fantastic and thrilling last minute win!

USA top the group on the basis of more Goals scored, England finish runners-up. For all their efforts, poor Slovenia stand eliminated, along with Algeria.

Yay woop woop- go England, go England :D
Even if Rooney is a bloody overrated fool!

And we tee off the final 2 matches for this Group in 2 minutes.

Two awesomely contested matches coming right up!

Now that's it!!...what I was expecting....ENGLAND-GERMANY match in 2nd round!:cool:

Germany should have a comfortable win against Ghana today as they had an unexpected defeat from Serbia in the 2nd game. I hope we'll see them in full swing like the way they appeared in the 1st match. I don't think Serbia can have a win against Australia with a huge goal difference like Germans did. And that will left Group D champion (Germany) will play (or I should say have a "War";)) against England (Group C runner up) in the 2nd round. This will be so goood...at least one of the "deserving" European football giants is going to be eliminated from the competition quite early than the 'expectations':p.

So far it seems a Latin American country is going to win the cup this time.

Btw, I have no hope for Italy though they used to be my one of the favorites besides Argentina, Brazil & Spain. But Spain will have a pretty tough time against Chili and even if they go through then they will have to face either Brazil or Portugal and both the teams have played far impressive football than Spain so far.

HALFTIME WHISTLE -


Ghana - 0

Germany - 0




Serbia - 0

Australia - 0



I am VERY impressed by the Ghanaians.

The scoreline should be reading 3 - 1 to them, because they missed 3 absolutely exquisite chances of scoring a damn easy goal and snuffed them all out themselves by some god-knows-what bad luck.

Germany came close to scoring 1 too, but Ozil wasn't good enough to beat the Ghana GK, Kingston, who has been impressive throughout the first half. Germany look pale, and wilting. Cacau is playing today because Miroslav Klose was red-carded in the last match so he is missing out on this one.

And from what I am hearing about the Australia-Serbia match, it was really fast paced too with plenty of opportunities for both teams. Remember that Australia need to win, and win BIG, to advance on. Serbia have plenty of plans of their own though.

The second half promises of some very exciting moments to come. Hold on to your seats, folks!

And GERMANY ARE UP 1 - 0 in the 60TH MIN!!

What a fantastic thundering shot from Ozil!


...and almost immediately, Ghana NEARLY scored again! Second time in the second half they have missed another absolutely sure goal!

1 - 0 AUSTRALIA!

Tim Cahill scores in the 69th minute!

2 - 0 Australia!

Holman comes off the bench as a substitute and scores within 7 minutes of coming in!

FULL TIME - Match #39 (GROUP D) -





FULL TIME - Match #40 (GROUP D) -



Australia win their last match and draw level with Ghana on points, but that huge Goal Difference caused by the loss to Germany in their first match means they stand eliminated, alongwith Serbia.

Germany win their match against Ghana, and both teams advance into the Round of 16. But the German win doesn't mean Germany was the superior side. It was Ghana who impressed for the whole duration of the match, and it was a classic tale of umpteen chances missed by them. The scoreline should have been 4 - 2 or even 5 - 2 in favor of Ghana, but somehow they squandered some very routine chances at scoring the elusive goal every time they got the opportunity.
Germany were slightly outclassed. They will realise it and come back stronger for their R 16 elimination match.

Round 16 lineup for them - GERMANY versus ENGLAND, and GHANA versus USA.

Good night, folks.

I knew Australia were gone after that Germany match, it was all hope and luck from there on in. We really couldn't afford to lose to Germany by more than 2 goals and we also really needed to win 2 of our matches. We played it to close and didn't desrve to go through after the pathetic performance in round 1.

On the other hand, Australia played a good game against Germany, it was just not so satisfying knowing Germany had scored against Ghana.

HAHA! America are better than England at the moment. Hopefully that'll lower the team's morale and people will stop talking about this silly game as though we might win.

How funny!?!
 

If both matches in Group F today end in draws with the same score, a coin toss will decide whether Italy or New Zealand advances.

After 270 minutes of nail biting endeavor against the world's best footballers, the World Cup fate of the Azzurri & All Whites could simply come down to a soccer lottery. As we know after two rounds of group F, Italy and New Zealand are locked together in second place after two draws and an identical number of goals for and against.
If that remains the situation after the 3rd group game for both team, FIFA will decide which side progress to the quarterfinals by picking a name out of a hat, so the All Whites or world champions Italy could be eliminated on the basis of a random draw.
Under Fifa rules, if two teams are equal on points at the end of the group stage, and have scored the same amount of goals, it comes down to goal difference. But Italy and New Zealand have scored the same amount of goals...just two in two games, so their goal difference is identical.

Although being a fan of Italian football IMO FIFA should let NZL go through as they took the lead while they were playing against Italy in 2nd group match. The world champions has been utterly disappointing in the field so far as in both earlier group matches they failed to goal first against their opponent and prevent the defeat by scoring later in the game.

It'll be sad for the All Whites if they get out from the tournament under such a funny lottery system. As a first timer in the World Cup they have been much impressive than Italy so far.

Into the 40th minute of both Group F matches, and guess what?

SLOVAKIA LEADS 1 - 0 OVER DEFENDING CHAMPIONS ITALY!!!


The other match between Paraguay and New Zealand is goalless so far.


Italy look very pale and very out of sorts. As I type this, another Slovakia attack results in the header going over the goal. The Slovakians look very impressive.

Heading out to a dinner meeting. Will post the updates once I am back.

FULL TIME - Match #41 (GROUP F) -





FULL TIME - Match #42 (GROUP F) -



Yes it's official folks - THE DEFENDING CHAMPIONS OF 2006 ARE OUT OF THE WORLD CUP IN THE FIRST ROUND ITSELF!!

Honestly, they deserved to be out. In all 3 matches, the Azurri looked a very pale shadow of the team which won the 2006 WC. They were unimpressive and lacking motivation in this match too, from the first 40 minutes which I had seen them.

The Slovakians were very impressive. They deserve their win totally.

In the other match, Paraguay and New Zealand fought out a draw. Which meant Paraguay topped this group with Slovakia coming second, while New Zealand finished over Italy.

A very strange coincidence, this. Both Defending Champions and the Finalist teams of 2006 are out in the First Round itself in this edition. Goes to show that rankings don't mean anything - the team which plays superior football on its day, takes the win.

Bye bye to both Les Bleus and the Azurri.

JAPAN!!!!! wow - who would have thought Denmark gets crushed by Japan!?!

Shut up Shut up Shut up
Don't wanna hear it
Get out Get out Get out
Get out of my way
Step up Step up Step up
You'll never stop me
Nothing you say today
Is gonna bring me down



You asshole... :(


Can say for sure that Denmark wont be missed in this World Cup by anybody else than danish people, coz geez..


On another note, CONGRATS to the US for winning their group in front of England. That's awsome. :cool:

No one! The magnificence of J-Horror is showing on their football now:D

The first 2 goals were brilliant and both came from 2 superb free kicks for the very first time in this World cup.

Kudos Japan!

Hahaha

J-horror for sure.

YEAH BABY! You better recognize! :p


Seriously though, they've really stepped up their game. Their matches have been great to watch since the beginning... it's quite a shock.

The US have landed themselves into a nice position. They definitely have enough about them to beat Ghana in the second round and it will be either Uruguay or South Korea in the quarter finals. Its more than possible they could make it to the semi-finals.

England, if they beat Germany on Sunday will probably face Argentina in the quarters. Thats a tough couple of games.

I wouldn't be supporting France if I was you either. They were terrible. :p

Yes well done USA- sis is already picking her diamonds.
Bugger- we now have to play Germany, Argentina, Brazil and Spain:(

FULL TIME - Match #43 (GROUP E) -





FULL TIME - Match #44 (GROUP E) -



Yes who would have believed?! I am pretty sure everyone's fancied team was Denmark in their match, but instead the Asian team packed enough punches to shut out the Danish. On the day that mattered, they were simply the better team. Denmark were outmanouvered, outclassed and completely dominated. The two free kicks which resulted in the first two goals were evidence of Japan's wonderful talent in swinging this ball past unexpecting goalkeepers - something other teams need to watch out from now on.

The Netherlands also completed their expected win over Cameroon to finish top of this Group. Arjen Robben returned into their ranks and they fielded a full-strength squad. It was a tight match till the 83rd minute when Robben's perfectly timed run and shot rebounded back to substitute Huntelaar who scored the 2nd goal, which proved to be the decider.

The Netherlands will take on Slovakia, while Japan will be one-on-one against Paraguay.

HALFTIME WHISTLE -


Portugal - 0

Brazil - 0




North Korea - 0

Ivory Coast - 2



Well, Brazil vs Portugal was always going to be a clash of egos and history, and it was plenty evident in the first 46 minutes. Ruthless tackles after tackles were resulting in at least 7-8 yellow cards and one very early substitution for Brazil (the player involved was in serious danger of getting red carded because he was losing his cool and composure fast).
The only chance came through Nilmar's shot which was marvelously saved by the Portuguese GK. But overall, plenty of rough football but not many chances at either goal.

The Ivory Coast - North Korea match was more fascinating to watch. As one would have guessed, the half belonged completely to Ivory Coast who dominated almost the entire duration of the first half. Two superb runs by Drogba saw Yaya Toure and Romaric at the perfect place (in front of goal) at the perfect timing, and both didn't miss on converting them. Ivory Coast has come into the match knowing they were pursuing that HUGE Goal Difference Portugal has created by winning 7 - 0 over North Korea. They need to top that with their win, and also need a favor from Brazil to win (and win big) in their match, to entertain any hopes of going through.
But, as talented a side as Ivory Coast is, I seriously doubt they can win this match with a huge scoreline.

The other one isn't looking likely to be a big scoring match either. Let's see what happens in the second half.

FULL TIME - Match #45 (GROUP G) -





FULL TIME - Match #46 (GROUP G) -




As mouthwatering a prospect as the first match was, it was the most boring 90-odd minutes of football you will ever get to see. As Angra would say - *YAWN*, with a capital Y. It was like both teams had mutually agreed on playing out a draw, with either team hardly making an effort to score a goal. Even with 5 extra minutes given, neither team wanted to score a goal. It all petered out to a dull, mindless draw. Except for one fantastic run by Christiano Ronaldo, there was nothing else to report from this match except for some of the loudest and most angry (and disappointed) vuvuzelas ever blown in a WC match so far.

The other match was surely pretty exciting. No efforts were spared by the wonderful Ivory Coast team to pull off a huge win over North Korea, but they missed and were denied plenty of half-chances to score some. They kept the pressure up till the final minutes of extra time, but except for one wonderful moment when substitute Kalou scored a superb goal, the others didn't materialise for them.

Another very entertaining African team bites the dust.

Brazil finish first, Portugal take second.

And so we kick off the final 2 matches of the First Round in about 8 minutes, folks. Yet another group where the final 2 matches hold the key to the selection of the last 2 teams for the Round of 16.

Spain needs to win, and win big.

Chile are no pushovers.

Switzerland would be licking their lips.

What a FANTASTIC GOAL by DAVID VILLA!!

Seriously folks, wherever you are, if you missed this goal, make it a point to catch it in a Highlights package or on your local Sports News, whatever.

One of the most stunning long range goals you ll ever get to see!


SPAIN LEAD 1 - 0!

HALFTIME WHISTLE -


Chile - 0

Spain - 2




Switzerland - 0

Honduras - 0



First things first. Can FIFA do everyone a favor and put all the referees in front of a Firing Squad once the WC is over? Seriously, this is the worst refereeing I have seen in a WC in my life so far. Giving that poor Chilean player a second Yellow and subsequent Red card when he wasn't even looking or even touching Fernando Torres is glaringly harsh. It soured up the fabulous moment when Spain had hit their 2nd goal, courtesy of Iniesta through a superb pass by David Villa.

Damn the refereeing.

Chile have their work cut out. Not only are they trailing by 2 goals, but they are down to 10 men too. Beausejour had a couple chances of scoring but blew it, but now it remains to be seen if he will be as attacking as he was in the first half. Spain will look to keep possession as much as they can, and secure the win.

This makes the Switzerland - Honduras tie very interesting, now that the score reads 0 - 0 over there. Switzerland need to win with only 1 goal to pip Chile into the Round of 16. Spain look pretty much secure, unless Chile pulls out some big rabbits out of their hat in the second half.

FULL TIME - Match #47 (GROUP H) -





FULL TIME - Match #48 (GROUP H) -




Well, like I predicted, Spain kept a firm hold of the ball after conceding a surprise goal barely 2 minutes into the second half. Which meant they fought out the win. Chile, surprisingly, didn't attack much either - either due to their being short by 1 man or because they had a hunch the other match was gonna end in a goalless draw.
Either way, the final 20-25 minutes of the first game became dull and boring. The result meant that Switzerland, who failed to convert their chances in their match against Honduras and were held to a goalless draw, were knocked out even after beating Spain in the first match of this group. Too bad.
Spain top the group, Chile finish runners-up.

This is how the Round Of 16 (which begins tomorrow), looks like -




Expect some real surprise results in the Elimination Round, folks. For now, lets have some of your predictions on them, if you are brave enough.

It's been a very unpredictable World Cup so far -

Disappointing Europeans.

Awful France & Italy.

Surprising Asians and Americans.

No flair South Americans.

Explosive and talented Africans.

7 - 0 Portugal.

Dull draws.

Piss-poor refereeing.


Details of all Groups and the matches in the first two posts of this thread. Keep checking those for the latest updates. Good night, everyone.

49: [26/06] uruguay - south korea

50: [26/06] usa - ghana

51: [27/06] germany - england

52: [27/06] argentina - mexico

53: [28/06] netherlands - slovakia

54: [28/06] brazil - chile

55: [29/06] paraguay - japan

56: [29/06] spain - portugal

Uruguay & USA

HALFTIME WHISTLE -


Uruguay - 1
(Suarez 8')

South Korea - 0

FULL TIME - Match #49 (ROUND OF 16 - #1) -



It was a good game, with plenty of attacks on either goal and South Korea kept pushing Uruguay till they equalised in the 68th minute. But the man of the day, Suarez, was fantastic. The Ajax Amsterdam striker was in really awesome form and he scored two fantastic goals from very extreme angles (helped a bit by Diego Forlan no doubt), which would no doubt qualify as two of the finest hits into the net in this WC so far.

Uruguay advance on, brimming with confidence and ready to take on the world. Disappointment for South Korea, but they will be content with their showing in this WC.

Good luck, USA! You are gonna need it.

Bill Clinton and several million Americans are supporting you! Go and show them you have it in you!

No goals yet..

I'M BORED!!!