The 2010 FIFA World Cup thread (will contain spoilers)

[Icy]

If torres score now it would be really fun

[Ryan S]

I would not be surprised to see Torres getting the winner.

[Izulde]

These close chances Spain keeps getting and missing have been agonizing.

[Easy Mac]

Did sampson score after he cut his hair?

[PilotMan]

You knew it was just a matter of time, but honestly, that was minor compared to the Robben opportunity earlier on.

[miked]

There ya go, the Academy Award goes to #6 who gets the Dutch a red. Barely even touched and flopped down like he was shot by a sniper.

[PilotMan]

He wasn't even touched.

{edit: the very next play, not the red}

[Easy Mac]

Xavier looks like a miniature Brad Garrett.

[miked]

Wow, that #6 is going all out. Not even touched and flops down again. This game is awful.

[EagleFan]

Now that yellow was from a major dive. The defender's hand grazes his shoe and he's grabbing his knee before he even lands. Give me a break.

[EagleFan]

goal kick?

[Icy]

Agree that oniesta dived as soon as he noted the hand on his shoulder. On the other hand holand should have played with 9 since the minute 15.

[Lathum]

GOAL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Abe Sargent]

Spain deserves that

[EagleFan]

Grats Icy

[Izulde]

GOAAAALLL!!!!!!

VIVA ESPANA!!

[cougarfreak]

Wow.............he looked off.

Edit.........not after the replay.

[Abe Sargent]

I began this match rooting for the Oranje and changed about 20 minutes in after seeing how they were playing. Good job Spain!!!!!

[miami_fan]

OUTSTANDING!!!!!!

[Icy]

About time and they still claim offside

[Eaglesfan27]

Congrats Icy and any other Spanish fans on this board.

[Icy]

Football was fair in an ugly game where only on tram wanted to play even when it didnt work against dirty football

[Easy Mac]

Dear Holland, why couldn't you play with passion 2 hours ago. The right team is in the lead.

[3ric]

Tough for the Dutch, but any team with Van Bommel deserves to lose.

[EagleFan]

Originally Posted by Abe Sargent

I began this match rooting for the Oranje and changed about 20 minutes in after seeing how they were playing. Good job Spain!!!!!

About the same, but was hoping for penalties... Just for the heck of it more than anythiing else.

[sovereignstar]

Originally Posted by Icy

Football was fair in an ugly game where only on tram wanted to play even when it didnt work against dirty football

This isn't La Liga. Get over it and just be happy you won.

[MJ4H]

Best team won this time, unlike 2006.

[miked]

The whiny floppers finally get a good one. Congrats.

[Abe Sargent]

YAY NEW TEAM WITH CUP!!!!!

[rowech]

What a horrible final game.

[Izulde]

This win is my best sports moment since the White Sox World Series win in 2005.

[PilotMan]

Well at least Switzerland can get some bragging rights out of this.

[sovereignstar]

Originally Posted by miked

The whiny floppers finally get a good one. Congrats.

Divers 1, "Antifootballers" 0

[Ajaxab]

I wonder if the Dutch don't give up that goal if Van Bronckhorst is still in the game. Braafheid got caught following the ball and ran to the middle leaving his left side open. I don't see Van Bronckhorst making that move. The better team won, but I think the Dutch take it to penalty kicks if that substitution isn't made.

[oykib]

And Paul is perfect.

Howard Webb didn't have a great game. Missed the straight red on De Jong. Missed the second yellow on Puyol. And gave a yellow he didn't see on Heitenga that eventually led to him being sent off. Pretty Awful.

[Ryan S]

Originally Posted by Icy

About time and they still claim offside

The Dutch were protesting after the ref awarded a goal kick after the ball took a deflection off a Spanish player.

[Icy]

New zeland ends being the only unbeaten team in the wc

[Dutch]

I'm no expert but it looked like Spain was just quicker and could control possession a lot better than the Netherlands. That in turn forced the Dutch to be more aggressive in their challenges which caused more contact and more yellows.

I loved the physical play of the Netherlands and prefer that style. If that's dirty then that's my style.

In any event, Spain played another solid game and deserved the win and the trophy. Congrats!

[AlexB]

Originally Posted by rowech

What a horrible final game.

I disagree. It had a good tactical battle in the 1st half, and the 2nd half & extra time were generally good to watch.

However, at the same time the players gave everyone who doesn't like football plenty of ammunition - there was lots of diving, lots of waving of cards, moaning at the ref, nasty late digs... Both sides were at it, trying to bend the rules in their favour one minute, and then haranguing the ref when they either don;t get the decision they tried to con, or the opposition did exactly what they were doing as well.

The ref made a couple of poor calls, could/should have sent off van Bommel and de Jong for sure, plus Robben should have gone by the letter of the law for kicking the ball away, but he was put under pressure every second by the players actions.

The game was much much better at 11v.11 than it would have been 11v.10 or 11v.9, plus the right team won in the end.

[Chief Rum]

IMO, Spain was clearly the best team on the pitch. They deserve the Cup.

But put me down also as one who believes this game has done little to advertise the quality of the "beautiful game". Very ugly play, way too dirty on the Dutch side and way too "floppy" on the Spanish side, as all noted. I thought oykib above here got it just right with respect to the calls the ref should have made.

I don't question the result. I think in any straight up the game, this one goes to Spain. But as someone who would like to see soccer do better in the US, this was an awful, awful match.

[Icy]

Class acting from the dutch now waiting on the field to salute the champs

[AlexB]

Originally Posted by oykib

And Paul is perfect.

Howard Webb didn't have a great game. Missed the straight red on De Jong. Missed the second yellow on Puyol. And gave a yellow he didn't see on Heitenga that eventually led to him being sent off. Pretty Awful.

I disagree with the last one - it was a yellow and he was playing an advantage as Spain had the ball IIRC. The replay showed that he could have seen it - he was close and was looking in that general direction.

He did make some other mistakes, but see my above post.

[oykib]

I thought he had played advantage on that play. But the commentators were going on that he hadn't blown for it and didn't mention it. Either way, it didn't look like a real yellow to me. It was more rolling around after a fairly routine foul from what I saw.

[AlexB]

Gave him a kick after the ball had gone.

I missed Iniesta off my 'should have gone' list - yellow for the dive after the Heitinga yellow, and yellow for shirt off as he did get. Would have been harsh, would have hated to see someone getting red for celebrating a WC winning goal.

[Ryan S]

Originally Posted by Jari Rantanen's Shorts

Would have been harsh, would have hated to see someone getting red for celebrating a WC winning goal.

Especially when he was paying tribute to a player that died aged 26 last summer.

Daniel Jarque - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

[oykib]

Didn't notice that myself. Congrats to Spain. I would've liked them to be allowed to play. Their last two games were awful to watch because of how the other team set up.

I don't think that the Dutch can complain about going a man down as late as they did-- considering the fact that De Jong definitely should have gone in the first 15. But that many missed calls makes the ref the story. That's something I hate to see in any competition. I'd been impressed with Webb up until this game. And that's after being underwhelmed during the past Premier league season with him as the "#1 ref."

[AlexB]

Definitely - they mentioned that

Although Webb definitely made some mistakes, I thought he did well in keeping the game a contest for as long as it was by not dishing out second yellows for this type of thing that technically should be yellow, but he gave the players a little latitude given the occasion. It's a shame they responded in the way they did and didn't enter into the spirit.

[miami_fan]

Originally Posted by Jari Rantanen's Shorts

Definitely - they mentioned that

Although Webb definitely made some mistakes, I thought he did well in keeping the game a contest for as long as it was by not dishing out second yellows for this type of thing that technically should be yellow, but he gave the players a little latitude given the occasion. It's a shame they responded in the way they did and didn't enter into the spirit.

You could tell that Webb was doing everything in his power to keep the game 11 v 11.

[Ryan S]

Diego Forlan wins the best player award.

Thomas Müller wins the young player award and the Golden Boot.

[MIJB#19]

*sigh*

It was an interesting run for the Netherlands, good to see our country get united in times where we're politically falling apart. I think we lucked into the final, playing un-Dutch football. Tomorrow everybody will talk about the goal being offside, but I don't buy it, that's not where we lost it. We sold our souls to ugly football, sadly the end result is the same as it always has been.

Mission unaccomplished.


In the end football lost once again, with a final between two teams with a defensive first strategy. It was basically 5-4-1 vs 5-4-1, but it prevailed once again over entertaining football. But that's how the game is evolving.

Anyway, congratulations to the new world champions. The Spanish tactic worked wonders and eventually resulted in six straight victories en route to the FIFA World Cup.