why is everyone emphasizing defense?
if i had it my way, i'd have 5 midfielders and 5 offensives..

attack and strike to win..

(this is the bad part of football -- it turns me into a violent, babbling idiot..)

I went with a 4-4-2. Team is called "Os Brasileiros", I'm in the fans of Brazil group, but if someone creates another I'll join up with the board.

I'm not really surprised Atari knows his football. He seems to know a little bit of everything.

And one day soon America will be a football (ok soccer, or perhaps futbol) nation.



Maybe a little too optimistic, eh?

Do you know how to withdraw / retrieve your team? I thought I had and end up looking like a cheater, which I feel quite uncomfortable about.

Edit: OK now, sorry sorry sorry

the americans are great at re-inventing things..
they will probably revolutionize the game in a few years, just by commitment alone.. all the kids playing "soccer" with the amount of discipline they are getting right now, they will grow up to be superb athletes..
i think the us team has a decent chance at the world cup..

i say that out loud, and my coworkers laugh at me..
we'll see..

The Americans could have done OK at this cup, but they've had the misfortune to be placed in a group with two teams who should be dead certs for qualifcation.

czech republic and italy?

stranger things have happened..
african teams are never estimated at their best effort..
expect surprises.. they make the game more beautiful..

Anything could happen, and to be fair Italy sometimes struggle at big tournaments early on. It would be cool if the US did well. They do have a chance. I'm not sure about Ghana though - a couple of the African teams at this event rely on just one or two very good players, but lack depth.

I see Serhity Rebrov is going to miss the Ukraine's two friendles - they need him to be fit in time for the tournament.

The US team is shrouded in secrecy:

Arena keeps them guessing
1 June 2006
by FIFAworldcup.com

With the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™ eight days away, fans and media from most countries are gaining an ever firmer idea of what the coaches of their respective national teams have planned for the tournament. Not so for USA fans, whose notoriously secretive coach Bruce Arena is proving typically wary of tipping his hand.

Known for the loyalty he earns from players and the unity he instils in his team, Arena showed in Korea/Japan 2002 that he is also a skilled tactician. This was most evident when he trotted out a 3-5-2 formation, previously unused by the US in the tournament, against arch-rivals Mexico in the round of 16. The compact system frustrated the Mexicans in a 2-0 US victory, leaving their then coach Javier Aguirre to lament: "I'm not sure what happened out there."

One of the keys to Arena’s tactical edge is that he never seems to hint at what line-up or formation he will use until the last possible moment, and looking at the teams he put out in the USA's last three friendlies before leaving for Germany provides even fewer clues.

In three matches between 23 May and 28 May, dubbed 'the send-off series', Arena used three vastly different line-ups. This was partially forced by the tight schedule, with a team of mostly reserves taking the field in the second match. However, even when Arena was free to use more first-choice starters in the first and third matches, he opted for two completely different formations, first a 4-3-3 against Morocco and later a 4-4-2 against Latvia.

Versatility is key
Adding to the mystery is the versatility of the American players. Playmakers Landon Donovan and DaMarcus Beasley are generally preferred in the midfield but can also play as forwards. The oft-injured John O’Brien and skipper Claudio Reyna can play virtually anywhere in the midfield, while Eddie Lewis has been used as a full-back with his country but plays in the midfield for his English club, Leeds United.

The result is that, when Arena finally does reveal his line-up, he can easily switch between formations without making a single substitution, leaving opposing managers guessing even after the whistle blows.

Bruce Arena for President.

how come Freddy Adu isn't on that? Isn't he the US version of Rooney?

Adu is shit. He isn't a member of the national team.

Don't believe the hype. Unless of course the hype is about Eddie Johnson.

Oh cool...I bet that new SI is waiting for me down at the PO Box.

"U.S. soccer needs you" would be a perhaps more truthful cover story headline haha.

"Are you with them?" it asks.

Thankfully, I'm not that much of a masochist; I'm only just a little bit of one.
For instance, I just posted in the "hate" thread.

I picked this issue up for the obvious reasons. Nice little preview.

Plus a cool pull out pop up-ish book inside too. Captions and emblems for all 32 teams. Its neat.

Completed games tonight:

Germany 3:0 Colombia
Liechtenstein 0:1 Togo
Sweden 1:1 Chile
Angola 2:3 Turkey

Italy vs Ukraine is about to finish - it's 0-0. Tunisia play Uruguay later.

This comes from the SI issue:

"An official with the Iran football federation has accused Mexico of relying on voodoo in advance of their June 11 game, then said that Iran 'already planned appropriate measures against such tricks and generally believes that real believers cannot be affected by such magic. And as the Iranian team has a deep religious belief, it will resist like an unconquerable castle."

That is priceless.

There were some other funny bits I may post later.

Yeah that about sums it up, doesn't it?

Thanks for the blurb.

Would you be in favor of making the Iranians play on a soccer field against themselves that was riddled with IED land mines?

I wouldn't, but it's amusing to think about nonetheless.

Right, this is insane stuff.

I sent it to an online Iranian friend. Waiting for a response.

Ehgland have just beaten Jamiaca 6-0. It wasn't even a match, but that's the idea isn't it? Last game before the World Cup, get a nice big win and go to Germany happy. Fair enough. Peter Crouch's third was a lovely goal, to be fair.

There's more references to the Iran/Maxico voodoo story online. From the Persian Football Journal:

Iran prepare for 'Mexican Voodoo'
May 8, 2006
DPA

Iran will prepare themselves for the "Mexican Voodoo" during the World Cup in Germany, an official of the Iranian Football Federation (FFI) said on Sunday. "The Mexicans are masters of psychological wars and might use magicians (for voodooing)," said Ali Pour, the cultural deputy of the Iranian Football Federation.

"This issue (Voodoo) has to some extent affected our players and some of them link it to the injuries of (Ali) Karimi (Bayern Munich) and (Vahid) Hashemian and (Mehdi) Mahdavikia in the Bundesliga," said Ali.

Many Iranians are superstitious and for example believe in the "evil eye" or "salty eye", meaning that if someone deeply wished something bad for somebody, then the bad thing would eventually happen.

Therefore many keep a small and usually blue stone with an eye on it - some even hang it inside their cars - to confront ill-wishers.

"We have already planned appropriate measures against such tricks and generally believe that real believers cannot be affected by such magic and as the Iranian team have a deep religious belief, it will resists like an unconquerable castle," he said.

whoever has peter crouch in their team must be rubbing their hands together.

my team is called Billa Rewe Konzern, but I'm not sure, if i see through it completely. What do i have to do? Wait till June, 9 th?

Send a personal message to johnnywinternoshow with your email address so that he can send you an invote to join the Sonic Youth World Cup group.

i'm still not convinced by crouch. If i was an england fan I'd be blindly hoping that erikson brings defoe instead of him. I'ma liverpool fan and I'm not sure if crouch should even be in the first team there. There's rumours that rafa benitez is after defoe or tevez or fernando torres. Any one of them would be fucking fantastic compared to auld lanky

gulasch, you can sign up by sending me your email like hippriest says or else go to http://en.fifaworldcup.fantasysports...inprivategroup, the group number is 17686 and the password is ratherripped

thanks!

my yahoo id is lhasafever3@yahoo.com

i think i should be able to figure this out . . . i've never done anything with fantasy sports, and i don't know much about soccer outside of my own experience playing on different teams.

some really varied teams now. Atari's looks one to be reckoned with

Its cool more people have come around to join.

2 teams wouldnt have worked.

I was going to wake up at 7am to watch the England game, but I'm happy I didn't waste my time.

I suppose this was aimed at getting a feel for how T&T plays. Soca Warriors are better than the Reagge Boys.

http://www.soccerphile.com/soccerphi...tball-war.html
(click for the rest of the article)
For many Croats, the war of independence from Serbia did not start in June of 1991 as most history books will tell you. The "real" date was May 13th of 1990, when Dinamo Zagreb ultras, the Bad Blue Boys (their original name is in English) stood up against the Serb-controlled police and their foes, Red Star Belgrade followers, that were tearing Dinamo's stadium apart. That was also the day Zvonimir Boban became a legend for a kick without a ball.

What's the deal with Serbia and Montenegro now? Montenegro officially declared independence yesterday.....So a country that doesn't actually exist is playing in the World Cup....sort of.

boban was pretty good on the ball too. Hadn't ever heard of this before, cool link

Quote:

Originally Posted by Iain What's the deal with Serbia and Montenegro now? Montenegro officially declared independence yesterday.....So a country that doesn't actually exist is playing in the World Cup....sort of.

Well, there are a few options. One would be Serbia "inheritting" Serbia and Montenegro (same with czech republic/Czechoslovakia a few years ago). I think that's the most probable case.

thanks for the scoop, Iain.
A new country in the world...now that's worthy of writing about and this thread, being the best on the board right now, needs bumps.
http://www.zaman.com/?bl=internation...60604&hn=33715

montenegro's independence hasn't been ratified by anyone yet. also, they're not a fifa member.

it's already been decided they're playing as one country in the tournament, but they will likely appear as two countries in the euro 2008 qualifiers, despite of the draw already been made for that. i wonder how uefa are going to fit them in.

as for countries not existing having a national football team... how about england, wales, northern ireland, scotland?

they "declared" independence, yep
& are
still awaiting the approval of the UN & other countries

in the soccer news out there Montenegro is being termed the "new Scotland" for the very reason you allude to pokkeherrie.

I was thinking about this too. Its a strange situation for this team. Even more strange if they move on as they are capable of doing.

Here is more funny bits about the craziness of the World Cup:

"Finally there are the fans who are resigned to misery. In Germany a recent survey revealed that only 7% of respondents think the hosts will win. (Even fewer seem interested in picking up a keepsake: The company that produced Goleo, the Cup's leonine mascot, had to file for bankruptcy after poor sales.)

Spain, a perennial power with a long history of underachieving, adopted its supporters' defeatist attitude by booking its players into a hotel where the most expensive room goes for 99 euros a night. (Motel Seis, anyone?)

But no one traffics dread like the folks in England, who did their best to look past the upcoming tournament by obsessing over the search for a coach who would lead the team after it. Once a replacement for Sven-Goran Eriksson was found, it was back to fretting over '06, so one fan, Paul Hucker did the natural thing: He bought a p100 insurance policy that pays him a million if he suffers psychological trauma because of England's elimination. Enjoy!"

ONLY 5 DAYS!

I suppose that's true. It's just weird to me that their status as a country has changed (almost) as the World Cup is getting underway. I wonder how it is affecting the mood in the dressing room, if at all.?

Ghana beat Jamaica 4-1 this week, and this afternoon hey have beaten South Korea 3-1. That's a pretty decent result today - good form going into a tough group (Ghana/USA/Italy/Czech Republic).

Qualifying comptitions for tournaments often have different numbers of teams in different groups, so the split won't be a problem.

The name SCG will linger through the football World Cup in Germany and possibly the basketball world championships in August and September in Japan. SCG, invited on a wild card after a disaster last year at the home Euro, defends the basketball title won four years ago by Yugoslavia.

I read somewhere that there's only oneMontenegran player in the squad now. The squad are reportedly happy enough, but all is not well politically:

The Serbian government is yet to definitely and unambiguously recognize Montenegrin independence. Belgrade, which inherited the SCG, did not send representatives to the ceremony in Podgorica despite invitations to participate.

A day earlier in Belgrade, EU top diplomat Javier Solana called on Serbia and Montenegro to build a 'constructive relationship' and swiftly resolve issues stemming from the dissolution of their union.

Serbian Prime Minister Vojislav Kostunica, who continues to appear angry and frustrated over the decision of Montenegrin voters, refused any EU help in the dissociation process.

from what i've read and saw, serbia and montenegro players have always stated that they have a very tight and close squad... i think about 80-90% of it consists of serbs. we'll see next week in their first game against holland.

speaking of that match, holland just drew australia 1-1 in a kicking frenzy. cocu, sneijder and van bronckhorst had to leave the pitch with injuries and might miss their first world cup match against serbia and montenegro. with van der vaart still injured that would be worrying for midfield.
http://www.irishexaminer.com/breakin...z8&n=184857682

fuck, sneijder is in my fantasy line up