I really don't know whatever it will be, everybody should be very happy and if Holland wins it will be the party of all parties in Holland and I can assure you this will be amazing and if Holland looses still a great party.

Style wise very much the same and still will be very pleasing for the purist.

I have been interviewed on CTV and today on CBC, they say it will be shown at 6.

On Sunday of to the School Bakery and Cafe on Fraser in Toronto.

It will be one heck of a blast and the last time well over a thousand showed up.

Been a pretty horrendous World Cup so far. Like watching lower level first tier teams in February. Makes you think we should be giving out extra points for goals scored, or maybe 4 for a win (I know this is not feasible).

The only way I have been able to deal with what I have seen is by reminding myself that 2 thirds of the teams are going to play to not lose in the first match, while by Thursday things will heat up a bit because the defensive shells won't work. Slovenia first in their group, the only story of any interest so far, the conclusion to the England debacle.

I am looking to complete my 2010 FIFA World Cup Panini sticker album and I only need 2 more stickers. I am looking for sticker #77 (Walter Gargano - Uruguay) and sticker # 453 (Ben Sigmund - New Zealand). If you have doubles of these two I'd be more than happy to trade or buy. I have alot of doubles availible to choose from to help you complete your set. I am also interested in trading stickers from the 1998 France album and the 2002 Korea/Japan album. Message me for further details.

Looks sweet, can't wait for it. Really looks like they've tried to capture the fan atmosphere of the tourney.

comes out on April 30th

Just great

another 4 years come and gone. On to Brazil in 2014...

1. Tevez goal vs. Mexico

2. Lampard no goal vs. Germany

3. Edu no goal vs. Slovenia

4. Kaka red card

5. New Zealand goal vs. Italy(ok, this is debatable)

6. De Rossi penalty vs. New Zealand

Is this especially awful officiating, or is it the same officiating as always but just under a larger microscope? And what mistakes have I missed?

Get your friends to do it.

Get your soccer club to do it

Get the guy who owns a bar to do it

Get the guy who owns a soccer store do it...

You get the idea.

Email or physical letters.

The numbers were great, but a response is even better.

Thanks,

Jamie

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/globe-online-poll-world-cup/article1636385/

So far we all see what's going on with some of the "super powers", the lack of talent is very evident and unless they start looking into their own backyard and work properly with their youth, I think they are doomed to failure.

What do you think?

Please don't give in to all those who want to implement present day technology into the beautiful game. Reviewing whether or not a goal was scored by video replay will only kill the flow of the game. It will become sterile like ice-hockey, where sometimes after viewing every conceiveable angle, the evidence is still inconclusive. In the meantime either of the teams could have scored a conclusive goal if the action had not been stopped.

Besides, are we going to play two different games of soccer now? Video-replay during the World Cup Final games and no video-replay at World Cup Qualifying games, because there's no way that all the third-world countries are going to have the financial resources to install this technology at their national stadiums. Or are they going to be excluded from the World Cup because they are to poor to cater to the whims of the rightous rich.

Besides, I like a little controversy. It makes games memorable. England crossbar 1966. Diego's handball 1986. Funny how the English are always involved in these situations. Decisions go against teams and individuals every day in life, and true champions overcome when adversity goes against them. Do you ever hear Brasil complain? Or the Dutch?

Stick to your guns Sepp. Don't give in to those rightous fools who know nothing about the beautiful game, but only want things to be perfect and just, which any fool knows is impossible.

Someone also suggested in the comments to his post that John Collins was invited over from Scotland to join the CBC studio team.

Link: http://www.truthandrumours.net

(the info is in the last paragraph of his post about D.S. Cherry)

No complaining about Xavi, but I think Iniesta has been the big light in Spain.

A lot will depend on what happens Saturday and Sunday, but I am personally rooting for Forlan.

------------------

Diego Forlan (Uruguay)

Architect of the team’s attack, very influential, great impact for his team, provider of quality final passes, goal scorer, set pieces/shots from long range

Asamoah Gyan (Ghana)

Huge work rate, efficient, good dribbler, creates problems to each defence, good goal scorer

Andres Iniesta (Spain)

Very fine ball-playing attacking midfielder, a star for the team, impressive dribbling ability

Lionel Messi (Argentina)

Outstanding in his pace and creativity for his team, dribbling, shooting, passing – spectacular and efficient

Mesut Oezil (Germany)

A real talent for the present and the future, quick feet and great vision, good final and decisive passes

Arjen Robben (Netherlands)

Very good pace and dribbling skills, wonderful ability to cut inside from the right, effective to his team

Bastian Schweinsteiger (Germany)

Impressive by his first pass (forward and accurate), very good passer, has moments of individual brilliance, ball-winner

Wesley Sneijder (Netherlands)

A maestro in midfield, exceptional work rate, the engine of Netherland’s attacks, excellent passer and scorer

David Villa (Spain)

Top scorer; quick, two footed, very good on one-on-one situations, provides good final passes, excellent finisher

Xavi (Spain)

The metronome and the engine of the Spanish team, very influential in the passing style of the game, one of the finest midfielders in the tournament

If the South Americans are producing such dominance is it only because of number of clubs etc or is it something more fundamental about competition in South America ?

How can Canada begin to send more of our young players after u16 south to play ?

Should we encourage more of our club teams .. especally those in the YSL to go on tour to south america and or spend externded training time in the South ?

Should our clubs look to hire club head coaches from South American countries to give our players a different flavor for the game.. can we bench mark ourselves effectively to what is going on in South America ?

My feeling is the CSA technical folks need to make more connections in the South with professional clubs and we need to have a funded program to send players from our national youth team pools south for extended training .. on u18 and u20 club teams, with the CSA picking up travel and accomodation costs and monitoring the players progress, its proable we could place players for under $1000.00 dollars a month with accomodation ..food etc tossed in and have such players in club youth systems in South American clubs.

On a side note, I can't believe the tournament is almost over. It feels like it just started last week or something...

I really wonder how this will be treated in the German media and all the questions by others the Dutch media included.To make it simpler would be playing against Spain.

The real funny part The Dutch national Anthem says we are of German blood and goes on to say our King is from Spain.

Will these guys sing it.I guess so,just so ironic and full of an amazing and brilliant history.

All here have been impressed by Germany's solid defense and speedy attack.

from BA herald today....

http://www.buenosairesherald.com/BreakingNews/View/37902

-----------------------

World Cup

To attack or not to attack? Maradona remains uncertain about game plan

Argentina's coach Diego Maradona arrives for a news conference at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria June 11, 2010.

Training sessions to come seem to be crucial for Argentine players hoping to be part of the starting eleven against Germany on next Saturday's quarter-finals match in Cape Town.

Coach Diego Maradona is planning to set a football practice for this afternoon in which several tactic schemes will be tried on the pitch as the probable lineup against the Germans will not be revealed until tomorrow's practice.

Anyway, rumours at the Argentine football camp in Pretoria indicate that Maradona plans to make several changes for next Saturday mostly in the midfield.

Maradona understands that Angel Di María has not met expectations so far and thinks of replacing him in what could be taken as a defensive move as the team might also show a four-men midline for the quater-finals as the original World Cup plan was until the coach decided that a man of such a brilliant season like Carlos Tévez could not be let out of the starting eleven. So far, 'Carlitos' probed Maradona to be on the right tune.

In spite of Tévez two goals against Mexico, he could be moved out as Argentina could see the returns of Jonás Gutiérrez's and Juan Sebastián Verón in what would represent a more defensive 4-4-2 formation.

Gutiérrez would play on the left instead of Di María, while Verón would be part of a strong defensive duo along with Javier Mascherano. This way, Atlético Madrid's Maximiliano Rodríguez will keep his spot as right-mid.

When it comes down to the defensive line, everything indicates that Maradona will initially preserve same back line that played against Mexico, even though there are many indicating that Walter Samuel could replace Martín Demichelis who hasn't been at his best and showed certain doubts on his game throughout the tournament.

Meanwhile, Maradona will keep Nicolás Otamendi on the back right, and AS Roma's centre-back Nicolás Burdisso on the field as he probed to bring security, reflects, and most important great speed -something that both Samuel and Demichelis lack of and worries the national team's coach considering the speed that German forwards have demosntrated so far.

If there is one reason for Maradona considering that Demichelis should remain in the field, is that Demichelis offers plethora of experience defending Germans forwards as Klose, Podolski and company as he's been playing and facing them in the German Bundesliga where he plays Bayern Munich since 2003.

http://news.bbc.co.uk/sport2/hi/football/world_cup_2010/8777118.stm

Lovely control of the game by Spain. Attacking football wins again.

C.Ronaldo was a joke of a player this tournament. Movie star attitude and only thinks about himself. He was horrific.