Spain

[fka dagest]

I heard in tonight's game that Spain have yet to receive a yellow card in this tournament.

Now, they are clearly a very good side, with some top class players, but from the last two games I've watched I've felt the ref has been dazzled by the Spanish stars. Against Hondurus the ref gave every decision Spain's way and it seems to be going the same way against Chile.

On the subject of tonight's game why was Torres lying prostrate on the ground for about 5 mins? Even if he was clipped, I still can't work out why he needed to hold his face.

I'm also beginning to detest Sergio Busquets. Every game I see him palying in he seems to get someone booked or sent off with his ludicrous play acting.

Yours, Mr Grumpy.

[CiderHider]

Chile are my 2nd team, love their attitude and hope they injure a few moew players too as we could face Spain in the semi's, haha Germany and Argys before we get there though.

[Olé]

I would say this, but yes, I agree. Villa got away with slapping a Honduran and I thought Chile got the full weight of a one sided refereeing performance last night and no surprise as I remember that same ref being wheeled out by FIFA to do a number on other teams before, not to mention he was the guy who sent Cahill off against Germany and sent two players off in two matches in WC 2006, he's Mexican and they hate him in Mexico. He shows everyone red cards. Chile were hard done by. Spain are untouchable when it comes to refs.

[Gazred]

Wow thats a whole new side to Torres ive seen there, i mean it was clear he made the most of what little if any contact but now seeing that clip looped, what a diving little cheat. Estrada should of been gone by then anyway but Torres has defo done a number on him there, he's clearly struggling for match sharpness and thats been his biggest contribution to Spain's World Cup so far.

Id really love to hear FIFA justify the lack of video replays for officials after this tournament, the amount of time it took the ref to sort that lot out after the 2nd goal, could easily of had an official see that clip and result in Torres getting booked for 'simulation'. So sick of players cheating like this and it just makes it all the worse when you see some of the worlds very best doing it....why do you need to? Ok if you were playing for a minor nation against a big team i could understand you trying everything possible to get a result, not that that justifies it, just more understandable. When you see the likes of Messi diving and over acting at pretty much any physical contact it really does sadden me, such a waste. Do they not care a billion people are watching them cheat?

Dodgy ref aside, what do you rate Portugal's chances against the Spanish Ole? They do seem to have blown a bit hot and cold so far, but i do like the way they play.

[Riaz]

Wow thats a whole new side to Torres ive seen there, i mean it was clear he made the most of what little if any contact but now seeing that clip looped, what a diving little cheat. Estrada should of been gone by then anyway but Torres has defo done a number on him there, he's clearly struggling for match sharpness and thats been his biggest contribution to Spain's World Cup so far.

You having a laugh? he clipped his heels. When you running at speed, a little touch of your ankles and you go down - theres nothing you can do.

Not a yellow card by any means - but not a dive either

[Gazred]

You having a laugh? he clipped his heels. When you running at speed, a little touch of your ankles and you go down - theres nothing you can do.

Not a yellow card by any means - but not a dive either

Thats where we have to agree to disagree then, yes there is some contact but Torres has clearly thrown himself to the floor, look at the movement of his shoulders and upper body. My perception is that his right boot catches the others guys leg, he feels the contact, then on his next stride forwards chucks himself to the floor. From my experience of having my heels clipped, its normaly a stumble and fall rather than launching yourself in the air a second after the contacts made.

[fka dagest]

Thats where we have to agree to disagree then, yes there is some contact but Torres has clearly thrown himself to the floor, look at the movement of his shoulders and upper body. My perception is that his right boot catches the others guys leg, he feels the contact, then on his next stride forwards chucks himself to the floor. From my experience of having my heels clipped, its normaly a stumble and fall rather than launching yourself in the air a second after the contacts made.

Yes, you're right and if the fall was genuine, any normal bloke wold have simply picked himself up very quickly. It was the fact he laid prostate holding his face for 5 minutes which gave him away as a cheat.

He's obviously been taking diving lessons from Stevie G.

[The Batman]

Yes, you're right and if the fall was genuine, any normal bloke wold have simply picked himself up very quickly. It was the fact he laid prostate holding his face for 5 minutes which gave him away as a cheat.

He's obviously been taking diving lessons from Stevie G.

i'm with you on this one. When i saw it, i thought it was totally accidental, but cuz he stayed down, it was clear he made a meal of it.

And why the tv shows ie football first, match of the day etc dont pick up on gerrard's diving is beyond me, does it week in week out for liverpool but it never get's mentioned.

English media bias.

[WellRedPhil]

Chile are my 2nd team.

I muct admit I'm a bit of a Chile fan and would like to see them have a good tournament. I watched them a lot in quaifying and they really impressed me, their attacking attitude makes for excellent games.

[Riaz]

Of course Torres made a meal out of it - but it was'nt a dive.

[Olé]

Dodgy ref aside, what do you rate Portugal's chances against the Spanish Ole? They do seem to have blown a bit hot and cold so far, but i do like the way they play.

It's hard to say as Queiroz has changed the team in every game so I have no idea if he even knows his best side, usually he doesn't, and we will absolutely need to have the best side out against Spain, which means not half-fit players like Pepe or players played out of position like Danny. Almeida up front is a must as something to aim for. The way Portugal setup with one or two trincos (defensive midfielders) lends itself to shackling Spain's game. Ramos versus Coentrao on the Spanish right will be interesting

One thing that can be said is Queiroz has changed the complexion of the Portuguese team as this is the most defensive team in years, which is a logical approach when we struggle to score and have probably our weakest squad in a decade. This should make the Spain game tight, particularly as they've not been playing well. 18 or 19 unbeaten and the same number of clean sheets in about 24 games is a good record and now consecutive games between the top 3 FIFA seeds in the world (no, I don't believe it either).

I think it'll be close, provided Villa or Torres don't open it up early as we are always fragile confidence wise and if we go behind we'll stay behind. In general Queiroz has been a bit hopeless tactically to date so Spain should be favourites. The one interesting angle is Queiroz time at Real Madrid means he knows a lot of these players first hand and may have some ideas how to deal with them. Plus we'll be well supported relative to Spain due to big community out there. The rivalry means Spain will likely find their A game.

Ronaldo needs to stop trying to do everything on his own, which is even more likely against club teammates and the country he plays in. Spain play better as a team so for that reason alone I expect them to edge it. If we're to get a result, Meireles, Tiago and Mendes (assuming he plays) need to do a number on Xavi and Iniesta and win the midfield battle. That will cut out the service to Villa or Torres and give Ronaldo (and Simao I hope) more time on the ball to expose Spanish weakness.

[Gazred]

Thanks for a very comprehensive report! Certainly agree its a battle of who controls the midfield area, so important for the way both teams play. Well best of luck, hope its a good match.

[fka dagest]

I only saw the last 20 mins of Spain vs Portugal, but in that time I saw Capdevilla unpunished for a blatant shove on Ronaldo and Capdevilla pretending to have been elbowed to get a man sent off.

What else did I miss?

Busquets must have feigned an injury at some point surely?

BBC's analysis was appaling as usual, they obviously fancy Spain and apparently the guy deserved to be sent off because of the apparent intention - although there was clearly no contact. I doubt Clarence would have chuckled in quite the same way had Ronaldo gone down feigning contact and getting Puyol sent off.

[Olé]

^ Thanks mate.

The BBC have long hated us, since 2006, they said some really offensive things (not just about football) both after the England game and even in the coverage of the semis, but you only really remember if it's your own country. Gary doesn't really like England and lives in Spain most of the time hence his permatan, so no surprises what makes him so jolly.

This thread is most worthy. David Villa slapped a Honduran in the face, Torres got a Chilean sent off, and today Capdevilla got Ricardo Costa sent off. The long distance pictures where they thought they might have seen an elbow on Capdevilla is invalidated by the close up shot where Capdevilla suddenly recoils in mock agony with an arm yards from his head.

The two handed shove on Ronaldo by Capdevilla (last man at the time) was par for the course, Ronaldo's reputation precedes him and he was fouled all game and told to get up each and every time, whereas just before the Capdevilla shove Alonso got a foul for slipping over (as replay confirmed) and Villa dived (textbook Torres reverse pike) to get a player booked.

Portugal have long been painted as the cavalier clowns without the discipline to trouble any serious teams. At great pain to ourselves, Carlos Queiroz turn us into some sort of Greece-2004 ultra defensive smash & grab throwback and we're painted as anti-football by media who throw themselves all over whoever our opponents are and however they're cheating.

Juan of Brasil - beautiful game and all that - as the last man deliberately punched the ball away from a clean break for us, and stays on, whilst Spain continue a rich 2010 tradition of cheating to get players sent off today, just as Torres did on Saturday. The media will salivate all over both countries and instead revel in the number they've done on the likes of us.

I'm not saying I expected us to win, I actually expected us to disappear with a whimper in the first round after a qualifying campaign that would have run aground playing Bristol Rovers girls U-12 team, but I do object to the horrible smell of consistent rampant officiating to favour a couple of headline teams. Maybe Lord Triesmann was right about the Spanish after all.

[Economou]

^ Thanks mate.

The BBC have long hated us, since 2006, they said some really offensive things (not just about football) both after the England game and even in the coverage of the semis, but you only really remember if it's your own country. Gary doesn't really like England and lives in Spain most of the time hence his permatan, so no surprises what makes him so jolly.

This thread is most worthy. David Villa slapped a Honduran in the face, Torres got a Chilean sent off, and today Capdevilla got Ricardo Costa sent off. The long distance pictures where they thought they might have seen an elbow on Capdevilla is invalidated by the close up shot where Capdevilla suddenly recoils in mock agony with an arm yards from his head.

The two handed shove on Ronaldo by Capdevilla (last man at the time) was par for the course, Ronaldo's reputation precedes him and he was fouled all game and told to get up each and every time, whereas just before the Capdevilla shove Alonso got a foul for slipping over (as replay confirmed) and Villa dived (textbook Torres reverse pike) to get a player booked.

Portugal have long been painted as the cavalier clowns without the discipline to trouble any serious teams. At great pain to ourselves, Carlos Queiroz turn us into some sort of Greece-2004 ultra defensive smash & grab throwback and we're painted as anti-football by media who throw themselves all over whoever our opponents are and however they're cheating.

Juan of Brasil - beautiful game and all that - as the last man deliberately punched the ball away from a clean break for us, and stays on, whilst Spain continue a rich 2010 tradition of cheating to get players sent off today, just as Torres did on Saturday. The media will salivate all over both countries and instead revel in the number they've done on the likes of us.

I'm not saying I expected us to win, I actually expected us to disappear with a whimper in the first round after a qualifying campaign that would have run aground playing Bristol Rovers girls U-12 team, but I do object to the horrible smell of consistent rampant officiating to favour a couple of headline teams. Maybe Lord Triesmann was right about the Spanish after all.

Dead right about Ronaldo, fouled thrice during the game yet the ref gave nothing. The sending off was a joke, although Costa was definately getting more wound up the longer the game went on.

[Harry]

^ Thanks mate.

The BBC have long hated us, since 2006, they said some really offensive things (not just about football) both after the England game and even in the coverage of the semis, but you only really remember if it's your own country. Gary doesn't really like England and lives in Spain most of the time hence his permatan, so no surprises what makes him so jolly.

This thread is most worthy. David Villa slapped a Honduran in the face, Torres got a Chilean sent off, and today Capdevilla got Ricardo Costa sent off. The long distance pictures where they thought they might have seen an elbow on Capdevilla is invalidated by the close up shot where Capdevilla suddenly recoils in mock agony with an arm yards from his head.

The two handed shove on Ronaldo by Capdevilla (last man at the time) was par for the course, Ronaldo's reputation precedes him and he was fouled all game and told to get up each and every time, whereas just before the Capdevilla shove Alonso got a foul for slipping over (as replay confirmed) and Villa dived (textbook Torres reverse pike) to get a player booked.

Portugal have long been painted as the cavalier clowns without the discipline to trouble any serious teams. At great pain to ourselves, Carlos Queiroz turn us into some sort of Greece-2004 ultra defensive smash & grab throwback and we're painted as anti-football by media who throw themselves all over whoever our opponents are and however they're cheating.

Juan of Brasil - beautiful game and all that - as the last man deliberately punched the ball away from a clean break for us, and stays on, whilst Spain continue a rich 2010 tradition of cheating to get players sent off today, just as Torres did on Saturday. The media will salivate all over both countries and instead revel in the number they've done on the likes of us.

I'm not saying I expected us to win, I actually expected us to disappear with a whimper in the first round after a qualifying campaign that would have run aground playing Bristol Rovers girls U-12 team, but I do object to the horrible smell of consistent rampant officiating to favour a couple of headline teams. Maybe Lord Triesmann was right about the Spanish after all.

You forgot to mention the goal being offside too!

And the BBC decided that because it was such a lovely move that it didn't deserve to be offside. So that's ok then.

I'm really narked off with Spain. Is it just me who thinks their ticky-tacky style is actually quite dull to watch. Pass it around all day, rarely getting in behind. Give me Chile any day of the week, they play quick, close, one/two touch football, but with the intent to get beyond the defence, not just flit around in front of the midfield for hours on end. Sorry - I just don't enjoy watching Spain.

[Esmond Million's Bung]

Of course Torres made a meal out of it - but it was'nt a dive.

So he is a cheat then?, Feigning a non existent injury.

[Olé]

versus Honduras

http://www.gifsoup.com/view/811035/david-villa-punch.html

versus Chile

versus Portugal

I don't know what the British media sees in these guys, Holland and Argentina have been far better competitors this tournament.

[Riaz]

I only saw the last 20 mins of Spain vs Portugal, but in that time I saw Capdevilla unpunished for a blatant shove on Ronaldo and Capdevilla pretending to have been elbowed to get a man sent off.

What else did I miss?

Busquets must have feigned an injury at some point surely?

BBC's analysis was appaling as usual, they obviously fancy Spain and apparently the guy deserved to be sent off because of the apparent intention - although there was clearly no contact. I doubt Clarence would have chuckled in quite the same way had Ronaldo gone down feigning contact and getting Puyol sent off.

Dont think portugal can have any complaints about the sending off, what goes around comes around! that goes for ronaldo aswell - he thinks he's not allowed to be touched for some reason!

As for spain, I would'nt like England to play like they did'nt last night - I keep hearing what a wonderful team they are - but last night was boring! that slow shit aint for me.

[Riaz]

They showed a clip a few seconds before that and it did look like he caught him....

but if not, its natural justice, what goes around comes around.... and I enjoyed it!!

[Olé]

They showed a clip a few seconds before that and it did look like he caught him....

I have seen that clip and it was from a long way out and from behind Capdevilla and yet at the only possible moment of impact he never moves or even flinches, yet when the shot goes in for close up, there was a further split second before Capdevila's reaction and recoil which happened with the arm nowhere near him. And more tellingly a clip of AFTER the incident shows Capdevila get up, then go down again in agony when he sees the ref running towards the incident. You just can't find excuses for that

but if not, its natural justice, what goes around comes around.... and I enjoyed it!!

Ah, right, you must mean when someone feigned Rooney stamping on their bollocks in 2006. Yeah, what a faker, clearly Rooney, one of the world's best three players ([c] most world cup previews 2010), was actually using his special powers to hover several centimetres above Carvalho's groin, whilst keeping fit by doing his steps exercises. Natural justice, what goes around comes around, right, got it,

From time to time Portugal dive (and often ridiculously) but just the same as all international teams do, England included (a big hello to you Stephen Gerrard, Michael Owen) but I've been watching us for 25 years and have never seen us get a player sent off by embarrassing play acting with one exception and that was Figo versus Holland and that only earned an opponent a second yellow for a player who had already put Ronaldo out of the same game inside 25 minutes with an inch studding to the upper thigh.

Rivaldo play acted to get a Turkish player sent off in the same tournament so the disease of creating a decisive decision through acting affects even the media darlings of the beautiful game, but in the last 10 weeks, Busquets (Spain International) play acted to get an Inter Milan player sent off, missing the Champions League final, Torres (Spain International) play acted to get a Chilean sent off last Saturday, and from any reasonable view Capdevilla (Spain International) play acted to get Costa sent off on Tuesday.

What a team, glad you enjoyed it, I suppose enjoyment at this World Cup has been in short supply.

[fka dagest]

Spain vs Paraguay tonight.

Do Paraguay have a chance? Probably not.

Here is my prediction:

Paraguay has lots of players booked. Spain none. Lot's of Spanish players play-acting. Ref generally giving every thing Spain's way. Busquets to get a Paraguay player sent off. Spain go on to win 1-0 - FIFA, The media, BBC, the ref and the public are happy.

I'd love it... love it... if Spain lost.

[Harry]

Spain vs Paraguay tonight.

Do Paraguay have a chance? Probably not.

Here is my prediction:

Paraguay has lots of players booked. Spain none. Lot's of Spanish players play-acting. Ref generally giving every thing Spain's way. Busquets to get a Paraguay player sent off. Spain go on to win 1-0 - FIFA, The media, BBC, the ref and the public are happy.

I'd love it... love it... if Spain lost.

Here's my prediction. Spain have 70% possession, most of which will be across the back four and the midfield, never really penetrating the box. Neat and tidy football yes, but boring & dull at the same time.

They'll still win mind, but it won't be at all exciting.

And yes, they won't pick up a booking and they'll fall over at every opportunity, and everyone will have a massive w.ank about how cultured and stylish and fantastic they are!

[MC Risk]

Here's my prediction. Spain have 70% possession, most of which will be across the back four and the midfield, never really penetrating the box. Neat and tidy football yes, but boring & dull at the same time.

They'll still win mind, but it won't be at all exciting.

And yes, they won't pick up a booking and they'll fall over at every opportunity, and everyone will have a massive w.ank about how cultured and stylish and fantastic they are!

whatever Harry.....having watched and played football with you for best part of 6 years, i know for a fact you couldnt see a good team and skilled players if it hit you in the face

Dry bread

[Harry]

whatever Harry.....having watched and played football with you for best part of 6 years, i know for a fact you couldnt see a good team and skilled players if it hit you in the face

Dry bread

Not saying they're not a good team with skilled players. They're just not very exciting to watch and I don't get all the hype.

I guess you're still carrying a grudge cuz I was better than you I spose.