Today was one of the most anticipated days for this World Cup, at least in the Anglosphere. It was England vs United States of America in the final game of the day. The day was absolutely chock full of really exciting games and the big meeting between the two world powers was not a let down. For months since the groups were drawn and the schedule was announced this game has been highly anticipated by every fan in both countries. For the English it was a chance to hammer their dominance home against a supposed weaker competition, for the Americans it was a further chance to prove our growing strength. Before I get to that epic clash I want to discuss the earlier games a bit.
I woke up, as I'm going to do many times in the next month, at 7 a.m. to catch the coverage of the first game of the day. It was a meeting between perennial Asian power South Korea and European underdogs Greece. While this game wouldn't get most people out of bed so early it was actually a game I was really looking forward to seeing. I like Asian football a lot more than most fans. The J-League is exciting, the K-League is solid, the Southeast Asian teams are fun to watch, and the Middle Eastern teams are more fun than their politics. So I root for these Asian teams while everyone else is busy underestimating them. Today it was a particularly pathetic Greek team that took the brunt of the first Asian onslaught. Park Ji-Sung, Man United's hard working midfielder, led his South Korean team to a 2-0 victory over a Greek team that looked like they were belonged in a third division somewhere. Sipping on my coffee I was blasted awake by the chances the Korean team was creating and they just never let up on the poor Euro 2004 champions. I hope Algeria vs Slovenia will be able to wake me up tomorrow like this match did, but I doubt it.
The second game was Lionel Messi vs Nigeria, y'know if you believed the media hype. In reality Argentina took to the field to begin what many people are saying will be a very victorious campaign. They had the better play on the field today and are probably frustrated that they were only able to come away with a single goal despite the chances they created. Messi didn't perform to his full capabilities but he did better than Wayne Rooney certainly. It was a nice 1-0 win to start the group for Argentina. South Korea is on top, followed by Argentina, with Nigeria and then Greece on bottom.
This brings us to the big game, England vs USA. This game meant everything to both sides. The final result left both teams scratching their heads and saying "Could've been worse," while still thinking the next round is a certainty. It ended in a 1-1 draw and honestly it could have gone either way and the draw was a just result. The United States simply wanted to get a result much more than the English. For the English fans I'm sure this draw was akin to a 5138-0 loss, but certainly it's not all that bad. Our American team is underestimated all the time and if you based our chances on the 2006 campaign you're out of your mind. This is a different team with a different coach and a new mindset. We beat Spain a year ago and we stood eye to eye with England and refused to back down. We gave them a game. Clint Dempsey's goal may have been pure bad luck on the part of Robert Green (who will get a hilariously mean nickname from the English fans I'm sure), but the USA deserved it. Gerrard scored after 4 minutes which I really thought was going to set the tone for the match but it didn't. The Americans bounced back and held firm. We got our point in the group and really need to try for a result against the weaker two teams. After the way we stared England down I just can't see Slovenia or the weak Algerians having anything significant to throw at us. But I may be surprised.
That's my World Cup thoughts for the day. More tomorrow, plus maybe my early thoughts on what I hope to see at E3. Maybe.
My link for today is The Bugle. It's not exactly a website or a blog but a link to the homepage of my favorite podcast. Hosted by John Oliver and Andy Zaltzman who are both British with excellent accents and tip top humour (with a U!). Check out an episode or two. You can find it on iTunes by searching for The Bugle. Updated almost every week on Friday. This podcast always makes me laugh, and it probably will make you laugh too. Of course it's not fart jokes and funny sounds, but usually pokes fun at world events and dictatorial leaders. If you're intelligent and worldly these guys are for you. Or not.
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