So here we are. It's all done. Germany lost. Kahn was practically in tears. Brasil, jubilant. Why am I writing in fragments? Only WC soccer can do that to me... (and Beatles songs.) I seriously got weepy today at the end of the match when they showed the hilights from the tourney. It's like the olympics all over again. *argh!* if only france had gotten a little further... or Germany would have at least scored ONE goal i might feel better. Anyway, once I get my jersey (home replica, France), I'll post a pic.

I even woke up early but only managed to catch the 88th or so minute of the game. I so thought Germany was going to pull through even then. When I got to work, Santi told me "Brasil won!" and I was so upset. That's probably why my hand's cut now. Soccer + knives = bad mix.

i met this british guy today at work that used to play pro in england. and he still plays and he's so old tho! really cool... so we OF COURSE had a mini discussion on WC. Of course... *tehe*

no featured footballer today. i'm too tired; but the imaginary one is that cute #21 from Germany... oh wait, no the guy that slid into the other Brasilian guy today and refused the stretcher... him!!! yay!

WAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!! I'm so SAD! WHY DOES THIS HAVE TO END??????? *sniffle x 12* Will I ever get over this??

[6.26.02]

Well here's the scoop: Brasil's still in, Germany is miraculously still in (really), and the favourites (S. Korea) are going to play the second place game on Saturday before (i think) Sunday's final. *sigh* I'm so tired. All I can do when I get home is drag myself to the internet, check the day's scores then fall helplessly into a fitful slumber. Crazy!

no featured footballer today. if there would be one, it would be ronaldo, but since i'm quite partial about ronaldo, we'll skip out today. plus my legs are killing me (and no, sadly it's not footballitis).

[6.24.02]

21 June 2002, 22:06 Seoul - Tokyo
GERMANY 1 : 0 UNITED STATES
by FIFAworldcup.com

Germany got a lone goal from Michael Ballack to beat the U.S. in a hotly contested match-up in Ulsan, Korea. The Europeans move on to face Korea or Spain in their tenth semi-final.

The Americans had the bulk of possession and chances, especially in the first half, but the three-time world champions held the lead expertly. The match offered a striking contrast for the Americans to the 2-0 victory that the Germans eased to in France four years ago.
 

Germany won! You don't know how relieved I am. My friend Hanne told me Friday and I couldn't stop jumping up and down. But hte sad thing is that neither team was playing really (i mean really) good soccer. Oh well. USA is out and Germany will most likely be crushed by the steamrolling S. Korean team.

On the other hand, Turkey beat Senegal! I'm glad an African country has finally made it this far into the Cup, but whoever wins, it's fair. Brasil won too. *eh* It's just Brasil winning again. Nothing too special. I'm keeping my fingers crossed that Brasil doesn't do another '98 final and get mutilated by Turkey. I have no doubt that, unfortunately, Korea's going to be in the final, but you know anything can happen with Brasil on the ticket.

Here's the final schedule for the rest of the Cup *sniffle!* in local time (CST) so you'll know when to get up early to tune into ESPN.

Details from Brits vs. Brasil...
 

Coach Rudi Voeller on Kahn (pictured above after the winning goal is scored by Michael Ballack):
"Oliver Kahn, undoubtedly, saved our lives in the first half many times both on the line and within his own penalty box. We knew that if we wanted to go far in this World Cup, we'd be able to do it with a fantastic Oliver Kahn."

Germany 2006 here I come! I plan to be in Berlin for that game. Love you too Tiina!

And finally, for today's featured footballer, we're going back in time... to a time when South Africa was still in the Cup.

[6.20.02]

found this today during my daily fifaworldcup.com wanderings:

20 June 2002, 14:57 Seoul - Tokyo
Trends, tactics and tea add flavour to England-Brazil clash
 by FIFAworldcup.com

            England versus Brazil has all the ingredients to be a FIFA World Cup™ classic. With such rich footballing pasts, the creators of the beautiful game versus the exponents of the pure form finally meet in the finals again after 32 years apart. It looks set to be a match to savour, we look at some of the key contests which will add spice to the Asian dish.

Beckham V Ronaldo

            With Ronaldo’s injury problems robbing him of almost two years of football, the mantle of the world’s most marketable footballer has been picked up by David Beckham. The Manchester United midfielder has won over legions of fans with his ferocious free kicks, film star good looks and ingenious hairstyles. And in no other country on  the planet is his iconic image better appreciated than in Japan, where hoards of screaming fans tend to follow players rather than teams.

          But while Beckham may have the lead on style, Ronaldo’s performances in the tournament give him the edge on substance. The competition’s equal topscorer has awakened images of the time when “il fenomeno” first burst onto the football scene in a direct style rarely witnessed in the modern game. Ironically, it has been Beckham who has struggled through injury in the run up to the finals but, with both players now fully fit, the superstar who shines brightest in the land of the rising sun may have the key to victory.

Eriksson V Scolari

        The two coaches went into the finals with contrasting support from supporters back home. Sven-Goran Eriksson had won over the formerly sceptical English press and public with his charmingly reserved manner as well as the team’s spectacular performances in gaining qualification over great rivals Germany.

         Luiz Felipe Scolari, on the other hand, already on the back foot for his teams’ emphasis on defence rather than Brazil’s more natural attacking style, had received a tirade of criticism extending beyond the bounds of professionalism into personal attacks following his decision not to include veteran striker Romario in the squad.

           So far in the showpiece tournament, the Swede’s status has been consolidated thanks to tactical-inspired victories against Argentina and Denmark, while Scolari has left Carioca supporters in a dream-like state of contented bewilderment by ignoring his previous football ideology and adopting a more natural free-flowing attacking style, bringing the selecao to the brink of success.

         Motivation has been a key factor in both coaches progress and Friday’s match seems set to be won as much in the dressing room as out on the Shizuoka pitch.

Barmy Army V Carioca

         Millions of viewers from all over the planet will tune in to watch only the fourth tournament match between the two great footballing nations while 51,000 fortunate fans will be at the scene of the battle by Mt Fuji.

          But, with local support already proven to be worth an extra man in this tournament, there is still no telling which team will benefit from the crowd’s volume. England’s matches have been accompanied by the usual army of travelling support decorating stadiums
         with red and white St George flags. But Brazil’s sultry skills and carnival carioca revellers traditionally win over local support and there is still no telling to which way the flow will go.

         However, the selecao have a major advantage in the location of the match in Shizuoka, on the south-western part of Hokkaido. It is Brazil’s capital in Japan with 70,000 Brazilians among a population of 3.7 million. The emigrants, brought in to work in the green tea plantations, will be in full canary yellow force to back their native land and could give Brazil that vital edge in one of the most eagerly awaited contests of the first Asian finals.
 

... and today's #10 footballer...

today's featured footballer: Rivaldo of Brasil

[6.19.02]

no action today. next match is the quarters on friday. it's going to be spain vs. s. korea, england vs. brasil (that should be one to watch), senegal vs. turkey, and usa vs. germany. bah, i wish i had cable so i could watch the england match. oh well. i hope the usa loses. we don't deserve to win really. i guess everyone deserves to win, but it's just that we win at everything (well most everything) and most people here don't even care about soccer. nothing like europe. nothing at all like europe. i heard that germany's team isn't too great, but i really hope they can pull this off. the u.s. wasn't even supposed to get this far. mexico was going to wash them and hang 'em up to dry, but that didn't happen. bah. it's going to be a good match either way.

hah. i just thought about those footballitis commercials from adidas. *chuckle*

more good news (really!). next world cup is going to be in germany! 2006! the year i graduate from college. i'll have to make it a point to go. hopefully i'll already be there. no promises though. well, today's featured player (since no one is actually playing) is going to be my favourite player: zizou! i'll post some articles and such and then sit patiently and wait for friday to come...

current match schedule
 

20 June 2002, 00:56 Seoul - Tokyo
Koreans paint the town red
by FIFAworldcup.com

    There were few signs of what had just happened. Wednesday morning seemed like a normal workday with workers scuttling along the busy streets of Seoul and the roads heaving with traffic. Only at closer glance as labourers washed down roads and children rushed off late for school, was there evidence that Korea had witnessed one of its biggest mass celebrations in its long history.

    Hours before, the streets of the capital were splattered with blood red as Koreans celebrated their miraculous comeback victory against Italy taking the co-hosts into the quarter-finals of the world’s greatest football tournament.

    In downtown Seoul an estimated 1.1 million “Red Devils” supporters took to the streets in the early hours to transform the land of the morning calm into a fabulous frenzy of fire-cracking festivities.

   The normally peaceful air was invaded by the sounds of honking horns, slaps of high fives and screams of “Korea fighting”. Red-clad students waved Korean flags as they stood atop cars and vans circulating the city, while motorcyclists pulled wheelies well into the early hours as police watched on amused.

Victory-inebriated ceremony

   A gang of students drummed on every passing car the beat of the famous chant “Dae ~ Han Min Gook”, meaning “the Great Republic of Korea,” followed by five claps each time. Far from being offended, drivers of the swanky cars sang and honked to the rhythm of the victory-inebriated ceremony.

   Two thousand super huge fireworks had been put on hold at a cost of a hundred million won ($85,000) until the result was known. And when Ahn Jung Hwan headed in the winner, they thunderously exploded into the Korean night marking a waking call for the start of the party celebrations.

   The success of the Korean team during the tournament has only been matched by the passion of its people. More than 80% of the population were estimated to have watched the match with men and women young and old suddenly experts on Guus Hiddink’s “fighting Korea” stars.

   High-school seniors with vital exams fast approaching have postponed their studies to drink from the cup of success.

   “With my university entrance exams ahead, I’m not exactly supposed to go around town kicking up a racket,” said eighteen-year-old Eun-Jung while smiling apologetically. “The pressure is so high in this country that high school seniors like myself simply can’t afford the time or energy on anything else but studies.

   “Today is different, though,” she enthused, with “Be the Reds” emblazoned on her Red Devils T-shirt. “Nobody is going to work in the library while Korea’s playing. Besides, I want to give the Korean players all the support I could possibly gather - otherwise I know that I will feel somewhat guilty if they lose.”

Spaghetti

   Guilt can take many forms for Koreans. One supporter Park Jin-Ho typified how Koreans were united behind their team and would not be able to stomach defeat.

  “I made the mistake of having spaghetti just hours before the match,” said the journalist, who watched the match with friends in the Samsung-dong district of Seoul. “When Italy went ahead, I felt so guilty I was nearly sick. But the thing that prevented me was the knowledge that everyone would then see the evidence of my betrayal. I thought to myself I should have eaten Kimchi. Obviously I enjoyed the match in the end, but it was the longest I have ever lived.”

  Such is the solidarity among the people for the national team, there will be few tortillas sold on Saturday.

today's featured footballer:Zinedine Zidane #10 (i like those number 10s!)
 

[6.18.02]

i watched some world cup action today. it was taped, but we didn't know it at the time. italy and s. korea were playing and i was totally rooting for italy. hotter guys, good players, plus they were the foreigners on the home field. things looked like they were going well, but hah, my friend was on the phone with a friend in germany and she said that italy lost. i was so mad that i started to scream/cry. when i got home, i hopped on the web and found some intersting articles. here are a few with some pictures (not all related to today's match).

PARIS (Reuters) - Defeated champions France "made a mess" of the World Cup despite going into the tournament as the best team, Patrick Vieira was quoted as saying on Tuesday.

"It's true that physically we were burnt out but I don't think it's the only reason. Look at England, they also played a lot but they reached the quarter-finals," he told the sports daily L'Equipe.

"We made a mess of it. Maybe we had too much confidence. We got our objective wrong. We went there to win the Word Cup, our aim should have been to reach the second round."

The Arsenal midfielder added: "Our defeat is very difficult to accept particularly when you see the teams that are still in the race.

"If you look at the names of their players one by one, I still think we had the best team on paper and it's all very frustrating."

Vieira refused to be drawn into the debate about the future of coach Roger Lemerre who is resisting calls for his resignation.

"There are things that are beyond us, the players," he said.

"To say that Roger Lemerre is not the right man for the job is going too far. One thing is for sure, he made some mistakes and he is partly responsible for what happened but so are the players and so are all the members of the staff."

today's featured footballer: Francesco Totti # 10

information taken from the official 2002 world cup website.

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