Cup Crazy - 12 June

Day 4 saw Brian get his predictions terribly, terribly wrong, the US lay an egg, and a shocking development. Read on, friends...

Roman Chop
Absolutely shocking stuff today before the kickoff of the Ghana-Italy game. As the cameras panned to show the Italy starting XI, I'm sure you saw what I'm referring to and your jaw hit the ground as well: Francesco Totti has cut off his long hair. This is the most recent in a disturbing trend of Italian footballers cutting off their Mediterranean locks. I'll spare you the obvious Samson references, but if Italy gets the boot early, we'll all know why. On the right is Totti today, and on the left is him yesterday.

Ugly Americans
I obviously had no business suggesting that the United States could beat the Czech Republic. Of course, I had just consumed a pitcher of beer when I made that prediction. But we learned very early during today's game that the US was nowhere close to having the class of the mighty Czechs. Giving up an early goal is often decisive in the World Cup. There's so much pressure that if a team concedes in the first five or 10 minutes, it's often hard to rally back into the game. After a terrible defensive lapse by the Americans on their left side that allowed Grygera to cross unmarked, the error was compounded by Pope and Oneywu falling asleep and letting Koller get a free header for the decisive goal. After that, the US could never settle into the game. The midfield was a shambles. Beasley was very poor, particularly with his first touch. Donovan was non-existent, although partly because the US would only advance the ball down the wings and refused to pass in the middle of the field. McBride got no service. The passing was poor and there was far too much one-on-one play. When the other team has three goals and you only have one shot on net, game over. On current form, the US hasn't a prayer of beating the Italians on Saturday. As for the Czechs, their midfield showed that it is perhaps the best in this World Cup. Rosicky and Nedved were superb. The defense and goalie Petr Cech were untested all day. A major concern, however, will be problems up front. Koller appears to be lost indefinitely, and Baros is unable to run and might not feature in the entire tournament. But despite these issues, the Czechs have proved me wrong - they came to play.

Molto Bello
Italy and Ghana put on a lovely display of attacking football today, particularly in the first half. The Italians bombarded the goal early on and finally capitalized in the 40th minute with a strike from Pirlo. The newly coifed Totti, while not dominant, was very influential in linking the midfield with the dangerous Luca Toni and effective Alberto Gilardino. Once Totti came off, the Azzurri had trouble in possession. Ghana's midfield was superb. They controlled the ball well, passed well, and made good runs for each other. The missing piece, of course, was up front. The Black Stars' forwards contributed nothing, so Essien and Appiah had to start bombing away (without much accuracy) from distance. You have to love how Ghana, much like African neighbors Cote d'Ivoire, played fearless, attacking football. Perhaps the US could learn a thing or two from the likes of Ghana. As for the Italians, while they were far from their best, they played effective football and have a lot to build on. Their defense isn't as good as in years past. But the attack is so much stronger that Italy should be good for at least two or three goals a game.

Socceroos Leave it Late
I don't expect either Australia or Japan to go very deep into this World Cup, so I'll keep my remarks brief. Simply put, the Japanese ran out of gas in the second half. They were fortunate to have the lead and looked close to increasing it at times. But the Aussies were relentless in the second half and deserved their comeback win.

Tomorrow's Predictions
I don't know why I bother anymore, but here it goes:

Korea 2, Togo 0
France 2, Switzerland 1
Brazil 1, Croatia 0

Goodnight now.

Photos courtesy fifaworldcup.yahoo.com. Let Brian know what you think at bookableoffense@gmail.com.