The Netherlands won, it was guessed.
The result was guessed but the performance wasn't...at all.
Yeah we are so lucky the US drew.. To be fair almost every major team seems to be under performing so maybe the new ball really is as bad as they say.
All teams play with the same ball, so if it was a bad ball then all teams would be playing worse than normal, and the 'major' teams would still win.
Anyway, cant wait to see Italy vs NZ, even though we will most likely lose badly
Yeah we are so lucky the US drew.. To be fair almost every major team seems to be under performing so maybe the new ball really is as bad as they say.
All teams play with the same ball, so if it was a bad ball then all teams would be playing worse than normal, and the 'major' teams would still win.
Anyway, cant wait to see Italy vs NZ, even though we will most likely lose badly
Forza Italia!
Yeah we are so lucky the US drew.. To be fair almost every major team seems to be under performing so maybe the new ball really is as bad as they say.
All teams play with the same ball, so if it was a bad ball then all teams would be playing worse than normal, and the 'major' teams would still win.
Anyway, cant wait to see Italy vs NZ, even though we will most likely lose badly
Couple of arguments to argue against that >_>
Most football players in big teams will play a lot more football then smaller teams, at international and club level. It could take them a lot longer to grow adjusted to a new ball as they are so used to the old one.
Different leagues use different balls. One might be more similar to the ball they are using now compared to another ball a country is using.
And some teams got training time with that ball. Others didn't. I know England didn't get any trainign time with that ball due to someone using it as a scapegoat (I think Andy Townsend...) over Green's blunder.
I don't actually think the ball has anything to do with it actually. Spain were all over Switzerland just couldn't put the ball in the net, France have been like this since 2002, Portugal were up against Ivory coast... hardly a bad side, Germany were down to 10 men and if Podolski wasn't so crap they would have won that game, Italy have a bunch of oldies and Argentina are generally playing pretty good. I didn't watch the Brazil game so I can't comment >_>
I think most of it was mentality to be honest. Pretty much every team in the first game went out with mentality of "don't lose!". Instead of going all-out, they would play rather simply and if they went a goal up would sit back and defend.
My Dad's team is Everton and my team is Watford. Two of the worst offenders of "sitting back". We're not good at defending! Stop doing it! Play normally! I suppose it applies to other teams as well. England can't afford to do that due to the lack of Rio.
And on a different note, I actually wouldn't be suprised if Ivory Coast beat Brazil. As much as I hate the guy, a fit Drogba is probably the most dangerous player in this tournament. I can't see any face stopping him.
Yeah we are so lucky the US drew.. To be fair almost every major team seems to be under performing so maybe the new ball really is as bad as they say.
We totally won that game by the way.
That was a freakin' phantom call.