World Cup final matchups: Netherlands vs Spain

BARRY WILNER, AP
JOHANNESBURG (AP) -- Matchups for Sunday's World Cup final between the Netherlands and Spain at Soccer City:
When the Netherlands has the ball
Possession, possession, possession.

The Dutch like to build their attack from the back, meaning the far back: goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg often begins the buildup with passes to his defenders. Captain Giovanni van Bronckhorst scored the first goal against Uruguay in the semifinals, but he's rarely involved in the offense. Instead, the idea is to get the ball from the back line to creative midfielders Wesley Sneijder, Mark van Bommel, Rafael van der Vaart and Nigel de Jong, who was suspended for the semifinals.

They, in turn, probe defenses while allowing Arjen Robben, Robin van Persie and Dirk Kuyt to making darting runs outside and, often in the case of Van Persie, to the inside. Sneijder usually is the man in control of the ball and distributing it to the forwards.

But Sneijder certainly can finish, and his five goals tie him for the World Cup lead. He's also adept at free kicks, as is Robben. Watch for Robben to do everything he can to get the ball on his left foot in space, particularly at the edge of the penalty area. And watch the frenetic Kuyt, who pops up all over the attacking zone.

The deep Dutch offense will test Spain's outstanding defenders, forcing them to close down quickly as the Netherlands gets close to the box. Outside halfbacks Joan Capdevila and Sergio Ramos will be very busy.

When Spain has the ball

Possession, possession ... you get the idea.

No team in the world passes better than Spain. Its game is based on precision, and like the Dutch, the Spaniards often get keeper Iker Casillas to initiate with passes to his defenders. But he's also more likely to play a long goal kick toward midfielders Xavi Hernandez, Xabi Alonso and Andres Iniesta, or even to strikers David Villa or Fernando Torres if he starts. Torres has struggled to recover from knee surgery and barely played in the semifinal win over Germany.

Villa is Spain's best finisher, and is tied with Sneijder for top scorer in the tournament. His quick bursts get him into open areas, and he's accurate with either foot.

Villa also is a sparkplug, the most exciting performer on a squad filled with artistic players such as Xavi, Iniesta and Alonso.
Spain's only goal against Germany, despite dominating the match, came on a set piece, and Xavi is masterful on corner kicks and free kicks. Watch for the taller Spaniards such as defender Gerard Pique and midfielder Sergio Busquets in front of the net on corner kicks, although it was the shorter Carles Puyol who powered in a header off Xavi's corner kick for the winner in the semifinals.
The Netherlands has been criticized for being slow on defense. If that's true, Van Bronckhorst, Gregory van der Wiel, John Heitinga and Joris Mathijsen could be under siege.
Goalkeeping

Casillas is among the world's best keepers and has been for years, earning him the nickname San Iker in Spain. He's particularly masterful cutting down angles on shooters, and he made two huge saves late in the semifinals after Uruguay pulled within 3-2. As Spain's captain, he obviously has leadership skills, and he's among the most popular players on the team. This is his third World Cup.
For Stekelenburg, it's his first. He's been a tad inconsistent and let in a shot by Diego Forlan against Uruguay that perhaps he should have stopped with his arms. But Forlan regularly scores on lots of keepers.
Stekelenburg will be the tallest player on the field and he might need every bit of it to handle the sharp shots the Spaniards can send his way. He is new to this level of competition and generally has handled himself well. He also has not faced an attack like this.

Coaching

Bert van Marwijk's biggest accomplishment might be meshing a variety of big names with various styles into a Clockwork Oranje. This is a more patient Dutch team than most, and it doesn't panic and change its style of play when it falls behind. The most impressive performance thus far came when the Netherlands rallied to beat Brazil in the quarterfinals. The Dutch stuck to their game plan, a testament to how prepared van Marwijk has them.

Vicente del Bosque has been considered something of a caretaker for Spain; Luis Aragones put together the squad that he guided to the 2008 European Championship.

Del Bosque made a few adjustments when he replaced Aragones, particularly in the midfield, where he opted for Busquets' more defensive style instead of Cesc Fabregras. Generally, he has stayed out of the way and let his group's talent and on-field leadership carry it. Showing faith in his players even after a weak start to the tournament in a 1-0 loss to Switzerland was his best move.

Intangibles

Now is the time for both teams, whose key performers are in their primes.

The Dutch have won zero World Cups. Spain has won the same number. So the incentive is massive to erase previous failings, particularly for the Netherlands, which lost the 1974 and '78 finals to West Germany and Argentina. Spain has had an even more checkered history, wasting just as much talent with weak showings at major events.

The Netherlands likely will have more fan support at the final in Soccer City, which just happens to have orange seats for those who believe in omens.

News from Yahoo Malaysia Sports
Photos from AFP, sportillustrated.cnn.com

WC 2010 :Goal of the tournament by Gio Van Bronckhorst

World Cup Semifinal SPAIN 1 GERMANY 0

Xavi ended up getting his first point of the World Cup on the well-placed corner kick, bending and timing it to meet the charging Puyol. (AP)

The 1-0 final was the same score by which Spain beat Germany two years ago in the European Championship final. With that victory, Spain ended a 44-year major championship drought. (SI)


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Frank Lampard' Disallowed Goal

Germans shell-shocked by oracle octopus

BERLIN (Reuters) -- Germany was in a state of shock on Tuesday after their "oracle octopus" Paul picked Spain to win the World Cup semifinal match against Germany in South Africa on Wednesday.

Not an ordinarily superstitious people, Germans have become believers in Paul's possible psychic powers.
"This is not a good omen," wrote Bild newspaper's online edition after the news of Paul's pick flashed across Germany.
The octopus has turned into an international celebrity after accurately picking the winner of all five German World Cup matches to date -- including its 1-0 loss to Serbia.
Two national networks interrupted their programming on Tuesday for live coverage of Paul's latest forecast, and groans of disappointment rang out across Germany after Paul went for a container with a morsel of food in it bearing the Spanish flag.
"We were all a little bit shocked when Paul picked Spain," said Tanja Munzig, a spokeswoman for Sea Life in Oberhausen. "To err is not only human -- animals can also make mistakes. Let's hope Paul got this one wrong."
The octopus, considered by some to be the most intelligent of all invertebrates, was again given the choice of picking food from two different transparent containers lowered into his tank -- one with a German flag on it and one with a Spanish.
The container Paul opens first is regarded as his pick for the match. Paul first put his tentacles around the German container before moving to his left to the Spanish box -- first opening the lid and then snatching the morsel of food inside.
Germans stunned by Paul's decision to pick Spain took consolation in the fact that Paul got one of his five picks wrong at the Euro in 2008. Oddly enough it also involved Spain: In the final Paul picked Germany over Spain. But Spain won 1-0.
It was Paul's only inaccurate pick of that tournament. He has never been wrong since and has an overall record of 9-1.
"Maybe Paul was just trying to give Spain a false sense of security," said Munzig, who said scores of journalists were at Sea Life to witness Paul's latest pick. Thousands of people have visited Sea Life to see Germany's newest celebrity.
"To be honest I'm going to have butterflies in my stomach watching the Spain match," she added. "I'm not a superstitious person but he's had an incredible winning streak so far."
Paul was born in England. He has been five for five at the World Cup. He picked Germany wins over Australia, Ghana, England and Argentina -- as well as their Group D loss to Serbia.
Media attention over Paul's picks in Germany and abroad has grown with each pick and some commentators have even wondered aloud whether his uncanny run might even be having an influence on superstitious players.
Paul's winning streak may have contributed to a growing superstition among the Germany team.
Germany coach Joachim Loew admitted he will not wash a favorite blue sweater as long as his team keeps winning. Loew said he bowed to pressure from other coaching staff and players to keep wearing the sweater for their matches.
Every time Loew wore the blue V-neck sweater Germany scored four goals. "I am not even allowed to wash it now and I think I will wear it again (against Spain)," Loew said on Monday.

Copyright 2010 Reuters Limited. All rights reserved.
Read more: http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2010/soccer/world-cup-2010/07/06/oracle.octopus/index.html#ixzz0svXU64tB

Why soccer's biggest stars failed to shine

Dan Wetzel, Yahoo! Sports

CAPE TOWN, South Africa – Soccer's superstar players never materialized here at the World Cup. The game's best – Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kaka, Wayne Rooney, etc. – often failed to lift their play and, in turn, their teams, to a level this grand stage demands.

The conventional wisdom on why: They were too selfish, unable to adapt to the team concept of a national squad.

Then there's Diego Maradona's take: Unlike the past, the stars weren't selfish enough.

"Today the players are more collective, more team players," the Argentina coach said after his own star-studded team was bounced from the World Cup. "They want to do everything with their teammates. It is a different type of game right now."

This goes against so much of what we've come to believe, and expect, in sports. The reason that Uruguay and the Netherlands square off here Tuesday in a semifinal is because they embraced selfless, team-oriented play.

Such a mentality is celebrated.

What Maradona is suggesting is that this line of thinking has become so widespread it's actually killed the star player, who no longer acts like a star player. Rather than demanding his place in the natural pecking order of pure talent and past performance, they sink back into the pack.

Such thinking would carry little weight except it is Maradona who said it. Who could know more about what's needed for a talented player to morph into a larger-than-life superstar and dominate the World Cup? No one owned this event the way Maradona did in 1986 when he led Argentina to the title.

His implication is that the star needs to act like the star. That he is better than his teammates is a given. Rather than apologize for it, he must remind them of it, make them respect it. He must lead not by being one of the guys but by being above the guys. It's the cult of personality, if you will.

"I think we were more selfish," Maradona said, which has to be the first time an old player said that about a bygone era. "Maybe before it was about being selfish players who [made the] rest of the team work for us."

Today's players receive remarkable hype – television commercials, video games and media attention. They are single-name personalities around the globe.

Yet you'd never hear one say that the rest of the team works for them. They'd be vilified. Instead today's stars go out of their way to support their teammates and talk publicly about how no one player is more important than the other.

Only some players are more important, Maradona notes.

Consider the most competitive environments on earth – the military battlefield, the flight deck of a commercial airliner or a hospital operating table.

This is where failure is not an option. In those cultures, the delineation between the star (the general, the lead pilot) and the others (private, flight attendant) is clear. Often socialization between classes is prohibited – enlisted men do not dine with officers – and the word of the higher-ranked person must be respected.

When having open-heart surgery, no patient would care if the lead surgeon is friends with or helps empower the nurse. In fact, the idea that the nurse would fear disappointing the lead surgeon and would clearly defer to him at all times might be considered a positive. You'd want the most brilliant talent to be the leader.

In Maradona's day, he says, that carried over to a soccer team. He was Diego Maradona and they were not.

"Time changes in life," Maradona said.

In this time, the star player must be humble and supportive. And not just on the field, but in all parts of team life. Obviously all players know they need others to make them better in the game. Someone has to pass them the ball. Or receive a pass. But off the field, is one for all, all for one really the best concept?

It's difficult to say. Maradona only knows the mentality that made him lead a country to World Cup glory. It certainly isn't the only way.

Perhaps it is one of them, though. And with most of the world's top individual players home watching the semifinals, with criticism of their selfish play ringing through their heads, maybe the opposite is true. Maybe they weren't selfish enough.

Maybe Maradona's correct. Maybe the soccer world has gone soft.

(Photos from AFP, Getty images and SI.com)

Don't cry for me, Maradona......Germany thrashed Argentina 4 - 0

                                                                                                                                                       espn
   Argentina   0    Germany   4

                     Thomas Müller (2')

                                                               Miroslav Klose (67', 88')
                                                              Arne Friedrich (73')

Netherlands 2 Brazil 1

Brazil's Robinho fights for the ball with Netherlands' Nigel de Jong (L) during their 2010 World Cup quarter-final soccer match in Port Elizabeth July 2, 2010. REUTERS/Rogan Ward (SOUTH AFRICA - Tags: SPORT SOCCER WORLD CUP)

Netherlands' goalkeeper Maarten Stekelenburg makes a save during their 2010 World Cup quarter-final soccer match against Brazil in Port Elizabeth July 2, 2010. REUTERS/Michael Kooren (SOUTH AFRICA - Tags: SPORT SOCCER WORLD CUP)

PORT ELIZABETH, SOUTH AFRICA - JULY 02: Luis Fabiano of Brazil tackles John Heitinga of the Netherlands during the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Quarter Final match between Netherlands and Brazil at Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium on July 2, 2010 in Nelson Mandela Bay/Port Elizabeth, South Africa. (Photo by Lars Baron/Getty Images)


 
Netherlands hit back to shock Brazil


Reuters - 18 minutes ago
By Brian Homewood

PORT ELIZABETH (Reuters) - Wesley Sneijder headed a second-half winner as Netherlands came from behind to beat ten-man Brazil 2-1 on Friday and book their place in the World Cup semi-finals.
Brazil, the five-times champions, took a 10th minute lead in the quarter-final clash through Robinho and dominated the first-half against a Dutch team which initially looked outclassed.
But the Dutch leveled out of the blue in the 53rd minute after a rare mistake from Brazil's usually impenetrable defense, as Felipe Melo headed Sneijder's cross into his own goal.
Then Sneijder headed a winner as the Dutch avenged a quarter-final defeat in 1994 and a semi-final defeat four years later.
Felipe Melo, returning from an ankle injury which kept him out of the second round match against Chile, set up the first goal after 10 minutes.
He threaded a 30-meter pass through the Dutch midfield and Robinho timed his run perfectly to score with a first-time shot past Maarten Stekelenburg.
The game turned niggly, although Brazil managed to produced a some flowing moves and should have extended their lead.
Juan volleyed over from close range after a jinking run on the right by Dani Alves and Stekelenburg produced a superb one-handed save to tip away Kaka's curling effort, following a dazzling Robinho run down the left.
Just before halftime, Maicon fired into the side-netting after Luis Fabiano rolled the ball into his path.
The Dutch rarely threatened with Arjen Robben far too predictable to outfox the Brazil rearguard.
But they leveled out of the blue eight minutes after the break when Felipe Melo touched Sneijder's looping cross-shot into his own net.
Kaka missed an excellent chance to put Brazil back ahead, side-footing wide from the edge of the area after the ball was gifted to him by a poor clearance.
They paid dearly in the 68th minute when Dirk Kuyt flicked on Arjen Robben's corner at the near post and Sneijder headed into the net.
Shortly afterwards, Felipe Melo was sent off for stamping on Robben.
(Editing by Michael Holden)

Ghana carry Africa's hopes, Brazil face Dutch

Reuters - 1 hour ago

JOHANNESBURG (Reuters) - Ghana carried the hopes of a continent in Africa's first World Cup on Friday while Brazil's coach Dunga said their quarter-final with the Netherlands could be one of the most thrilling matches of the tournament.

While all of Africa got behind the Black Stars for their attempt to be the first Africans to reach the semi-finals when they face Uruguay on Friday, FIFA threatened to sanction Nigeria for political interference.
Jerome Valcke, secretary general of soccer's governing body, said Nigeria would be suspended from world soccer if President Goodluck Jonathan did not reverse his withdrawal of the team from international competition because of its dismal World Cup performance.
Speaking in a local radio interview, Valcke gave Nigeria a deadline of 1600 GMT on Monday to comply.

The sanction would mean the blocking of FIFA funds and the banning of all Nigerian teams, including club sides, from international tournaments.

FIFA had already warned the French government to keep out of soccer after parliament launched an inquiry into the 2006 runner-up's ignominious early exit here.
A survey in the Netherlands, which has never won the trophy despite its admired style of free-flowing soccer, said 40 percent of all workers would take the day off, or a half-day, to watch the afternoon match in Port Elizabeth.
"They are always difficult and beautiful games," said Dunga of the match. He captained the five-times World Cup winners to victory over the same opponents in the 1994 and 1998 tournaments.
AFRICAN MOOD

Reflecting a mood across the continent, South African newspapers had headlines backing Ghana's attempt to beat the previous best performance by an African team. "Africa Unite, Black Stars carry continent's dream," said the Sowetan.

The Ghana Football Association said it had received a message of support from Nelson Mandela, Africa's most revered statesman. "We join everybody else on the continent and in the diaspora in wishing you success," Mandela said.
The provincial government of Gauteng, around Johannesburg, South Africa's business hub, has taken out newspaper advertisements and put up posters backing Ghana.
Striker Asamoah Gyan said they could make history.
"We have an opportunity to do something never done before... we have no doubt we have all the African support."
The first two quarter-finals restart the World Cup action after a two-day lull.

The Netherlands' four-out-of-four wins in South Africa have been solid rather than spectacular. Yet with attacking talent like Arjen Robben, Wesley Sneijder, Robin van Persie and Rafael van der Vaart, they pose a real threat to the Brazilians.

"We play our better games against teams that want to play football as well," winger Ryan Babel said.

Dunga has also complained about previous over-defensive opponents and echoed Babel's sentiments. "When you have teams like this, it's always good," he said.

For all their legendary strike power, Brazil have also become masters in defense under Dunga.

Despite criticism at home for abandoning flair, Dunga appears to have found a winning formula of impregnable, European-style defense combined with the lightning-fast counter-attack capacity of Robinho, Kaka and Luis Fabiano.

Cameroon and Senegal reached the quarter-finals in 1990 and 2002. To chart new territory, Ghana need to beat a mean-looking Uruguay side, who are one of an unprecedented four South American teams in the quarters.

"It is a match of destiny which places an onerous responsibility on the Black Stars," Ghana's former president John Kufuor told Reuters.

Uruguay also have history calling them.

"La Celeste" won the World Cup in 1930 and 1950 and would love to recapture those early glory days. Strike pair Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez's five goals between them so far would suggest the South Americans may have the upper hand.

President Jacob Zuma said the World Cup would inspire all Africans regardless of the result because it showed the continent was capable of managing a huge global event.

Zuma said in an interview with FIFA that the World Cup could be a stepping stone to a first Olympics on the continent.

The other two quarter-finals, on Saturday, pit Argentina against Germany and Paraguay v Spain.
FIFA said the captain of every quarter-finalist would read out a declaration condemning racism and any other form of discrimination in both soccer and society.
(Reporting by Reuters World Cup team; Writing by Barry Moody and Andrew Cawthorne; Editing by Ossian Shine)


Pictures from AFP.

Who's right - the dolphin or the octopus?

By Agence France-Presse

It takes a brave creature to disagree with Paul, Germany's soothsaying octopus, who has an impeccable track record on World Cup predictions to date.
But step (or swim) forward Sayco, the dolphin from the Argentine port city of Mar del Plata.
Sayco's keepers at the city aquarium decided on Thursday to see if the friendly creature preferred to play with a ball in German red-black-gold or Argentine sky blue and white.
Leaping four metres out of the water, Sayco unhesitatingly went for the Argentine ball placed on a platform above his pool.
Locals immediately saw a positive omen, with Argentina set to face Germany in the World Cup quarter-finals in Cape Town on Sunday.
Even so, Sayco does not have the track record of Paul, an eight-legged oracle in the Germany city of Oberhausen, who has shot to stardom for his spot-on predictions and who has forecast a German win.
Paul needed just eight seconds to make up his mind about the Germans' chances against England -- even though he was born in England -- and earlier in the tournament he correctly tipped wins over Ghana and Australia.
Not only that, he proved he is not just attracted by Germany's flag by correctly predicting a loss to Serbia in the group phase.

England Would Have Made A Better Start Had I Been Playing - Jermain Defoe

Goal.com - 1 hour ago
Tottenham Hotspur striker Jermain Defoe thinks that the England players all support Fabio Capello to remain on as the Three Lions boss, but admits that they would have made a better start to the World Cup had he featured from the offset.
"Personally I wish I could have done more to help the country than just the goal against Slovenia," Defoe told The Mirror.

"I remain convinced that had I played in the earlier two games we would have got off to a better start than we did."

England crashed out after suffering their worst defeat in their World Cup history, a 4-1 thrashing at the hands of arch-rivals Germany in the Round of 16.

The Spurs hitman does not believe that Capello should be sacked despite England’s disappointing World Cup performance.
"[Capello's] CV is second to none and he has won titles and trophies with four top European clubs and with some fantastic players that way," Defoe added.
"For me personally, he gave me an opportunity and I'd like to think I took it in that Slovenia game.
“And I would like to think, despite what is being said, that he has the respect of the players."
Defoe understands the anger and disappointment expressed by English supporters and media after England’s last 16 defeat against Germany.
"I accept it was a bitterly disappointing World Cup campaign from a group of players of whom everyone expected so much.
"I have seen pictures of kids who had been watching the Germany game crying after the 4-1 defeat. It reminded me of when I was young – it would hurt so much to see England losing. I know the feeling from both sides of the fence.
"I take the point that it can't be fatigue, as the Germans in particular have played more games than us.
"Maybe it's because so many players were under pressure to live up to expectations that it affected their normal game.
"There was boredom out there. But then players are used to that from being away with their clubs. And that soon went as well when the games started and we could break up our days by watching them.
"I don't want to get into any other debates that have nothing to do with me. But I will say that I want to keep representing my country. The feeling seems to be to replace everyone in the England team, but who with?
"The same guys who returned from South Africa will go on to prove this season that they haven't become bad players overnight."
The 27-year-old scored the winner against Slovenia in the group stage that got England into the knockout stages, but was substituted after 71 minutes after making little impact against Germany.

From Yahoo Malaysia Sports

Relief for Africa as Ghana keep World Cup hopes alive

                        Ghana were the only team to make it into the knock-out stages of the last tournament



By Joshua Howat Berger (AFP) – 1 hour ago
JOHANNESBURG — Africa rallied behind Ghana on Thursday after the Black Stars kept the continent's dreams of football glory alive by making it through to the second round of the first World Cup on African soil.
Africa had faced the ignominy of having no representatives in the business end of the tournament for the first time in 28 years after a string of failures by the continent's five other representatives.
But the Black Stars limited three-times champions Germany to a 1-0 victory in Johannesburg late Wednesday, a result which enabled them to stagger into second place in Group D and thus line up a showdown with the United States.
"The African National Congress congratulates Ghana for representing the entire continent by proceeding to the next round of this 2010 FIFA World Cup tournament," said South Africa's ruling party in a statement.
"Well-done Ghana for doing Africa proud and all of us as Africans proud."
Tournament organisers were also desperate for at least one African team to make it through to the knock-out stage given it is the first time the tournament is being held on the world's poorest continent.
"We wish to congratulate Ghana for keeping the African flag and the representation high in the tournament and we wish them luck in their next game against the USA," said Rich Mkhondo, spokesman for the local organising committee.
"This is an African World Cup, and we have always maintained that we wish and hope that the African teams will do well, and they are making us very proud."
Ghana, the first African nation to win its independence, was the continent's trail-blazer at the last tournament when they also were the only team to make it into the knock-out stages.
They managed to beat the US at the 2006 tournament in Germany and a repeat performance would give them a decent chance of making the semi-finals with either Uruguay or South Korea standing in their way.
No African team has ever made it to the semi-finals of a World Cup, and the hosts have been quick to transfer their allegiance to Ghana in the wake South Africa's first round exit on Tuesday.
"Ghana Fly the Flag for Africa", read a headline in the Johannesburg-based daily The Star, adding that they had provided "some much-needed relief for Africa ... whose teams have been disastrous."
Although a record six African teams qualified for the tournament, Cameroon, Nigeria, Algeria and South Africa have all been knocked out and Ivory Coast are almost certainly doomed to lose out to Brazil and Portugal.
Reigning champions Italy are also struggling after drawing against lowly New Zealand and Paraguay in their opening games and need a victory over Slovakia Thursday to be sure of making the last 16.
Two of Europe's other big guns, former champions Germany and England, have already booked their ticket to the second round and will meet in Bloemfontein on Sunday.
English newspapers are already savouring the prospect of a new battle between the old enemies. England won the 1966 World Cup against Germany but have since suffered heartache agains the same team -- including their defeat on penalties in the 1990 semi-finals.

Evra pledges to reveal 'truth' behind humiliation

France's defender Patrice Evra looks dejected at the end of the Group A first round 2010 World Cup football match France vs. South Africa on June 22, 2010 at Free State Stadium in MangaungBloemfontein. South Africa won 2-1. AFP PHOTO FRANCK FIFE


By Agence France-Presse, Updated: Tuesday, June 22, 2010 9:24 PM


France captain Patrice Evra promised on Tuesday that his disgraced and humiliated World Cup team would not risk further public anger by claiming lucrative cash handouts.
But the Manchester United defender, dropped for the final match of his country's doomed campaign, pledged not to hold back on revealing the inside secrets of how France's World Cup fell apart in a storm of resentment and rage.
"I share the pain of all France. Tonight is the time for apologies. It's an apology that could have been made yesterday, but I was banned from doing so by the coach," said Evra, one of the ringleaders of the players strike on Sunday which was called to protest the expulsion of teammate Nicolas Anelka.
His part in that disastrous public exercise was punished by embattled coach Raymond Domenech who dropped him from the team's 2-1 defeat to South Africa on Tuesday.
"Now is not the time to settle scores. All of France will have the time to have explanations for this disaster. I will give them. I will talk about what has happened. I will tell the truth. I have nothing to hide."
France, the 1998 champions and 2006 runners-up, ended their ill-starred South African adventure at the bottom of Group A having lost to Mexico and South Africa and scraping a 0-0 draw with Uruguay.
They went home with one point, one goal and with the unwanted title of laughing stock of the football world.
Aware of the public fury, Evra said his teammates would not claim the bonuses owed to them from lucrative marketing deals.
"We will not accept a single cent from sponsors. We will refuse all the bonuses," said Evra.
According to the agreement signed with the French Football Federation (FFF) the players would not receive any extra money for failing to reach the second round, but were liable to benefit from lucrative marketing revenues generated by the squad.
The Manchester United star refused to admit that the strike on Sunday, described as "unspeakably stupid" by Domenech and which saw the players refuse to train, had been a mistake.
"Our pain wasn't exaggerated. We communicated our reasons for what happened," he said.
"Tonight I was dropped from the team without a valid reason. These are difficult times."

USA 2 Slovekia 2

US midfielder Landon Donovan R shoots and scores a goal past Slovenia's goalkeeper Samir Handanovic up and Slovenia's defender Marko Suler during their Group C first round 2010 World Cup football match on June 18, 2010 at Ellis Park stadium in Johannesburg. AFP PHOTO PEDRO UGARTE

2 goals that were for US, and 1 that wasn't

RONALD BLUM, AP - 7 hours ago
JOHANNESBURG (AP) -- Maurice Edu kicked the ball into the net. American players jumped around wildly, thinking they had capped a historic comeback, turning a two-goal, first-half deficit into a 3-2 victory over Slovenia in the World Cup.
"Then I heard the whistle," Edu said
Referee Koman Coulibaly of Mali had called it off.
Over and over, American players asked, "Why?"
In English. Then in French.
"He just ignored us," Landon Donovan said. "Or he didn't understand."
Perhaps Coulibaly, working his first World Cup game, will never explain himself. By the rules, he doesn't have to speak to the media on game days, and his next availability isn't until Monday. Perhaps it will remain one of those unsolved soccer mysteries.
What's known for now is this: Donovan and Michael Bradley scored second-half goals that did count, and U.S. hopes to reach the second round remained alive with a 2-2 tie Friday night.
And for one moment, Edu felt "pure excitement."
It did not last.
Now it comes down to Wednesday's match against Algeria.
"My guess is there's not many teams in this tournament that could have done what we did and arguably won the game. And that is what the American spirit is about," Donovan said. "And I'm sure people back home are proud of that."
Slovenia (1-0-1) leads Group C with four points and would have qualified for the second round with a win. The U.S. and England (both 0-0-2) are tied for second with two points each following England's 0-0 draw with Algeria (0-1-1).
The top two teams in the group advance, so the U.S. would make the second round with a victory against Algeria. The Americans also could advance if they tie the Algerians while England draws Slovenia, provided the U.S. maintains its advantage in goals scored over the English, currently 3-1.
"We can still get through," goalkeeper Tim Howard said. "Being down 2-0 in a game, I've played long enough to feel very lucky and fortunate to come out of it still in the World Cup."
It was the second time in a month that an official's call had thwarted American sports history. Just a few weeks ago umpire Jim Joyce's decision cost Detroit pitcher Armando Galarraga a perfect game. Different sports, yes, but enormous consequences in both cases.
This would have meant so much more than one World Cup match, more than the largest country in the tournament, with 300 million people, tying the smallest with 2 million.
"I'm a little gutted to be honest," Donovan said. "I don't know how they stole that last goal from us."
Donovan took a free kick from the side of the penalty area in the 85th minute, as players jostled in front. Aleksandar Radosavljevic held Michael Bradley in a bear hug, and Edu spun away from Bojan Jokic and, one step into the 6-yard box, stuck out his left foot and put the ball in.
It was unclear to the U.S. what Coulibaly actually called. At the time of the whistle, American captain Carlos Bocanegra, who was a few feet away from Edu, did have an arm around Nejc Pecnik, preventing the Slovene from jumping for the ball.
"Whistles were blown very early. No explanation," Bocanegra said.
"There's no point talking about it," said a disgusted Michael Bradley, the coach's son.
But there's no forgetting it either.
"What I've heard is that there were three fouls in the box, and all of which were against Slovenia players," coach Bob Bradley said.
"In the midst of the game with everything that's going on, it's rare that when a tough call is made that a referee at that moment will give you an answer," he said. "Sometimes after the fact you might get an answer, but that's not always the case, either. When you're involved in the game long enough, there are moments where you are frustrated, because you feel that situations have not been handled 100 percent correctly or fairly. But that's the way the game works sometimes, so you move on."
Slovenia was outshot 14-7, but had two shots on goal in the first half and scored on both.
The Green Dragons went ahead when Valter Birsa got behind Bradley and the defense, found 5 yards of space and from about 28 yards caught Howard flat-footed. The goalkeeper was screened by defender Oguchi Onyewu, who slid across to deny Birsa the right side of the goal. The ball sailed past Howard and went in.
"I just lost sight of it," Howard said.
The U.S. nearly tied it when Clint Dempsey crossed toward Donovan inside the 6-yard box. But as Donovan was about to redirect the ball into the goal, Miso Brecko made a sliding deflection to knock it away. Donovan skidded into the goal without the ball, and several American players put their hands on their heads in frustration.
On the counterattack, Zlatan Ljubijankic ran up the middle, took a pass and sent an 8-yard right-footed shot under Howard.
A pro-American crowd of 45,583 at Ellis Park that had been chanting "USA!" was silenced. Frustration showed when Donovan, wanting to take a free kick, shoved Jose Torres, who had the ball. Torres, a 22-year-old midfielder, started in place of the more defensive Ricardo Clark.
"Jose's a young kid who is playing in his first World Cup game," Donovan said. "It's just an emotional game and at the moment I wanted to let him know what I needed to tell him."
American players retreated to their locker room and talked of a need to regroup.
"This group will never be together again," was how defender Jay DeMerit remembered the discussion. "`We just said if we're going to go down, we go down swinging."
Bob Bradley made two lineup changes at halftime, inserting Benny Feilhaber and Edu for Torres and forward Robbie Findley, who received his second yellow card of the tournament for a hand ball in the 40th and will be suspended for the Algeria game. Dempsey pushed up from midfield to forward.
Donovan started the comeback in the 48th minute when he ran onto a Steve Cherundolo pass from midfield and got by Bostjan Cesar, a defender who fell down and then unsuccessfully chased after him. Donovan originally planned to cross, but came down the endline and shot from the 6-yard box, putting the ball over goalkeeper Samir Handanovic and into the roof of the net.
It was the third World Cup goal for Donovan, his first since 2002, and his record 43rd for the national team.
"I decided to take a touch and aim high -- and aim at his head," Donovan said. "And I don't think he wanted to get hit from there."
Michael Bradley tied the score in the 82nd, when Jozy Altidore's header off Donovan's free kick fell in the middle of the penalty area. Running at full speed, Bradley caught up to it about 8 yards from goal and with his right foot tapped it over Handanovic's head.
"That's Mikey. He was pretty energetic at halftime," Howard said. "He wanted the talk ... to stop and to put our money where our mouths are. He did a good job of being an example of that."
Slovenia coach Matjaz Kek talked about his team losing its concentration in the second half and how the Americans benefited from it. "We were ahead of the United States, but we didn't overcome this pressure," he said.
It was almost the first come-from-behind win for the Americans in World Cup play. The United States is 6-16-5 in the World Cup, never falling behind in its victories. That would have changed, if not for what the U.S. believes was a phantom foul.
"I haven't seen the replay, but I've had 43 text messages from people who did, and they didn't see a foul, either," U.S. Soccer Federation president Sunil Gulati said.
During the last week, U.S. players said this wasn't so much a "must-win game" as a "can't-lose" match.
That changes against Algeria.
"Now we have to win," Donovan said. "Period. End of story."

From Yahoo Malaysia Sports

Fernandes Switzerland 1 Fernando Spain 0

DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA - JUNE 16: Goalscorer Gelson Fernandes of Switzerland celebrates victory after the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Group H match between Spain and Switzerland at Durban Stadium on June 16, 2010 in Durban, South Africa. (Photo by Laurence Griffiths/Getty Images)

DURBAN, SOUTH AFRICA - JUNE 16: Fernando Torres of Spain looks dejected after defeat in the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa Group H match between Spain and Switzerland at Durban Stadium on June 16, 2010 in Durban, South Africa. (Photo by Doug Pensinger/Getty Images)

Swiss shock favorites Spain in Durban

Reuters - 53 minutes ago
By Nick Mulvenney
DURBAN (Reuters) - Switzerland pulled off the biggest shock of this World Cup when they beat European champions Spain 1-0 in Group H on Wednesday, their first ever victory over their opponents in 19 games.

Gelson Fernandes' goal after a mix up in the Spanish defense gave the Swiss a shock 52nd minute lead and Spain, for all their talent and guile, were unable to find a way through the massed ranks of white Switzerland shirts.

"We tried in an orthodox way and in an heroic way but we were not able to score. It wasn't our day. We dominated almost all the match," Spain coach Vicente del Bosque said.

"This defeat means that we have to win the other two (group) matches," he added.

The Swiss, who have now not conceded a goal in the World Cup since a 3-0 defeat to Spain in 1994, share the lead in Group H with Chile, who beat Honduras 1-0 earlier on Wednesday.

After a forgettable first half, the Swiss looked like spending another 45 minutes defending for their lives until goalkeeper Diego Benaglio's long punt caused chaos in the Spanish defense.

Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas clashed with Swiss striker Eren Derdiyok and Gerard Pique was unable to stop the ball falling to Fernandes, who clipped the ball into an empty net.

The defeat ended a run of 12 straight victories for the Spanish, who had qualified for the World Cup with a 100 percent record and were many pundits' favorites to win the tournament.

The European champions enjoyed a near monopoly of possession for much of the game but were unable to convert the chances they created.

Del Bosque, who had started the match with David Villa as a lone striker, brought Fernando Torres and Jesus Navas on after the goal to try and rescue the game but they were unable to find a way through.

Xabi Alonso hit the underside of the bar with a fine strike in the 70th minute, Navas shot lamely Benaglio when through on goal about a minute later, and Pique squandered another chance on the next Spanish attack.

Derdiyok, playing in place of his injured captain Alex Frei, then jinked his way through the defense to almost double the Swiss lead but, to the relief of the Spanish, his shot came bouncing back off the post.

Torres had a couple more openings in the dying minutes of the game but failed to exploit them and, after five minutes of added time, the Swiss were able to celebrate a famous victory.

(Editing by Nigel Hunt)

World Cup: USA 1-1 England - Man Of The Match

Who was the top player for the USA in their draw with England?
By Allen Ramsey
Jun 12, 2010 4:24:00 PM
It was a solid result for the USA as they worked a 1-1 draw with England to open Group C play. England took and early lead only to have Clint Dempsey level the match just before the break on what can only be described as a major gaffe by England 'keeper Robert Green.
But which player did the most to make sure the USA left with at least a point?
The answer seems to be pretty obvious. American goalkeeper Tim Howard was the exact opposite of his counterpart in the England goal. Howard made several massive stops to keep the Three Lions from ever regaining their lead including one at point blank range off of Emile Heskey.

From goal.com



Steve Cherundolo, who dominated James Milner in the opening 30 minutes before putting the clamps on Shaun Wright-Phillips, also deserves to have his name called as one of the top performers on the night. Cherundolo not only locked down his side of the field defensively but drew several fouls in the first half as he bombed forward.
Another player for the USA who had a fine showing was midfielder Michael Bradley who did very well to help relieve pressure by passing and dribbling his way out of trouble.

Johan Cruyff: Winning The World Cup Will Be 'Impossible' For England Under Fabio Capello

Goal.com - 6 hours ago
Holland legend Johan Cruyff believes that England cannot win the World Cup under Fabio Capello, citing that the way the Three Lions play is too similar to Italy as they are 'only interested in the result'.

The former Barcelona star believes that the influx of Italian managers like Carlo Ancelotti at Chelsea, Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini and Capello has affected football in England.

"With Capello on the bench, all the world knows how England will play. It's a curious situation in England,” Cruyff told The Mirror.

"The Italian coaches are influencing the philosophy. There are the examples of Ancelotti, Mancini and Capello.

"England now have many similarities to Italy. The mentality has changed and now they are only interested in the result.

"After the failure in Germany is 2006, now England needs a great spectacle but that is impossible with Capello as coach."

This is not the first time that the Dutchman has criticised Capello and his attack on the Three Lions boss is one of the few that he has faced since becoming England manager.

Cruyff believes that Spain, Argentina and Brazil are the three teams that will be the favourites to win in South Africa, but he is not as optimistic about Holland’s chances.

"If Spain can show their quality on the pitch then they can aspire to great success. But they must improve with each game without suffering from growing pressure.

"They must show the same pride and quality that they did at Euro 2008 to win the World Cup.

"It would be unfair for Argentina just to rely on Lionel Messi. Their system and team must be strong and they must make changes when necessary to make sure his work is not lost.

"Brazil have incredible talent and they are different now. Now they have a big keeper, a good defence and a more European style. They can be more negative. For me now, Spain is the Brazil in this World Cup.

"Holland has some good players but the stars don't play in Holland. Without playing in Holland, it's impossible for the team to improve long term."

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South Africa hammers Guatemala 5-0

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POLOKWANE, South Africa (AP) -- Katlego Mphela converted two penalties and South Africa defeated Guatemala 5-0 on Monday in the last chance for players from the host nation team to impress before the World Cup squad is announced.



Reneilwe Letsholonyane, Surprise Moriri and Bernard Parker also scored at the Peter Mokaba Stadium to give Bafana Bafana a boost in the final run-in to the tournament.

Guillermo Ramirez missed a second-half penalty for Guatemala when his spotkick was saved by Moeneeb Josephs.

Captain Aaron Mokoena became the first player to win 100 caps for South Africa and celebrated by wearing the number 100 on his shirt.


Coach Carlos Alberto Parreira will cut five players Tuesday to get his roster to 23.

From Yahoo Malaysia Sport.