[kurtsimonw]

Promise, what promise? Enlighten, please. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif)

This promise

This post has been edited by kurtsimonw: Jul 17 2011, 11:19 PM

[acid911]

Oh that promise. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) Again. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/tongue.gif) Yup, Paraguay just became favorites for me ahead of Uruguay.

[Fillipo Simone]

Yes, and that's about the only thing that will be interesting about Paraguay. Now seriously, their team has a long continuity of being boring. I hope for a Chile-Uruguay final.

I want to go back to the time of Ronaldo, the good old 90s, when the Brazil NT scored at will, and at the very least knew how to take penalties.

My thought exactly. Pato - well - we like him all, but he's doing the thing he's doing with Milan; scoring 2 goals in one game and then MIA for a couple of them. There's something wrong about it, and I'm not quite sure what it is.

[William405]

Yes, and that's about the only thing that will be interesting about Paraguay. Now seriously, their team has a long continuity of being boring. I hope for a Chile-Uruguay final.


My thought exactly. Pato - well - we like him all, but he's doing the thing he's doing with Milan; scoring 2 goals in one game and then MIA for a couple of them. There's something wrong about it, and I'm not quite sure what it is.

Well,we've seen for youngsters like Pastore,they suffer from being inconsistent.Also,luck played a role...

[Milan Are Brilli...]

Well, it's the English media then. I read German, Italian and Croatian papers, they don't do that to this extent. Messi sure isn't beyond criticism, that would be absurd.

So, I said Messi was good against Uruguay, you said you don't agree, but never told me - how do you rate his performance yesterday, not for the whole tournament? I asked - don't you think his assist and his movement which made Perez and a few others crazy and eventually resulted his expulsion isn't enough to say he was good?

Yeah, it honestly must be our media, because the amount of hype he gets here is absurd. He is to the point where he is beyond criticism here, as I said the only time I can remember a TV pundit saying anything like that was Andy Gray saying he's perhaps not big enough to play against the stronger sides over here. Apart from that I can't think of examples, perhaps apart from some random online articles.

That's possibly because we are still old fashioned and obsessed with height over here with our players, someone who's 5'6/5'7 and built like a teenage boy would probably been told he's too small to play. Though, that is changing to a point Wilshere for example, but it's still there. Unless you are a winger as soon as you are below 5'10 there's that seed of doubt in coaches minds. We need to look at the Spanish and realise not everyone has to be 6ft in this game to be top, top quality.

Oh, yesterday I think I said 'below-expectation' because to me he made one assist, a good assist yes. Though he never picked the game up by the scruff of the neck and drove his team on, which you would expect of world-class players. He played well in the 1st half yeah, but the 2nd, and extra-time he was practically non-existant too me when his team really needed him and others of course to step up to the plate.

Surprisingly I'm not really sad that Copa America won't have two of its biggest names anymore. I just feel kind of fed up with and sick and tired of football in general! gonna take a break for a while...

Been saying it for a while now, this is not the same game I fell in love with, it's no where near as entertaining which is probably why I spend a bit more of my interest in other sports now. Still, I guess I do still love it, just not as much as before!

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

So 1-1 Chile Venezuela, looks like we could be keeping up the 100% record of ET. Chile weren't great in the 1st but the 2nd they've finally looked like they can win this. OH DAMN Venezuela have just scored, 2-1, who'd have bet these 4 going through (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif)

[X-Offender]

My god, Paraguay were bloody horrible. They couldn't make more than two consecutive passes without losing the ball. In 120 minutes, I can't remember a single scoring opportunity. Brazil should have drowned them in goals. Too bad they had all forgotten to put their contact lenses on.

This post has been edited by X-Offender: Jul 18 2011, 02:02 AM

[Jack Bauer]

In all 1/4 finals the favorite lost. Pretty amazing. Nobody expected to see teams like Peru, Venezuela and Paraguay going that far. Copa of the underdog (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif)

[acid911]

OH DAMN Venezuela have just scored, 2-1, who'd have bet these 4 going through

(IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/biggrin.gif) (IMG:style_emoticons/default/laugh.gif) Anyone for Uruguay vs Paraguay?

My god, Paraguay were bloody horrible. They couldn't make more than two consecutive passes without losing the ball. In 120 minutes, I can't remember a single scoring opportunity. Brazil should have drowned them in goals. Too bad they had all forgotten to put their contact lenses on.

I'd be very hard pressed to call this team Brazil. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sleep.gif) They even have the wrong-colored trousers on. Can't dribble past more than two players, can't score, and bloody hell can't take penalty kicks. Plus, zero creativity in the midfield. Absolute zero. Luckily for me, I can separate these imposters from the classic/legendary Seleção of the years gone by, so I wasn't too disappointed with the defeat.

That, or the fact that Paraguay are my 3rd favorite team in South America, whatever floats your root beer.

In all 1/4 finals the favorite lost. Pretty amazing. Nobody expected to see teams like Peru, Venezuela and Paraguay going that far. Copa of the underdog

Agreed. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/innocent.gif) Though deep down inside me, I was confident of Uruguay giving a hard time to the hosts.

[X-Offender]

I'd be very hard pressed to call this team Brazil. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sleep.gif) They even have the wrong-colored trousers on. Can't dribble past more than two players, can't score, and bloody hell can't take penalty kicks. Plus, zero creativity in the midfield. Absolute zero. Luckily for me, I can separate these imposters from the classic/legendary Seleção of the years gone by, so I wasn't too disappointed with the defeat.

I suppose if Pato and co. had scored one of the dozen chances they created tonight, you'd be saving that speech for another occasion. Stop being so harsh. They have quite a good, albeit unexperienced team.

On a side note, Robinho was by far the best man on the field today, at least for Brazil. Some really classy moves out there.

[acid911]

I suppose if Pato and co. had scored one of the dozen chances they created tonight, you'd be saving that speech for another occasion. Stop being so harsh. They have quite a good, albeit unexperienced team.

Not really, I've been far from impressed with this team for quite some time. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) More so, with the squad that Mano took to the Copa, no Hulk/Hernanes/Kaka/Marcello/Nilmar. Sure some may not have been totally fit, but still. Young team or not, it's always about balancing experience with youth to create the ultimate mix.

And yes, if the Paraguayan goalkeeper somehow did not manage to put a foot to that shot from Pato, then the result would have been different, but for me, far from satisfactory. The Brazilian defense was never a worry for me, but the lackluster midfield most definitely was. Like I said, simply no creativity, all muscle.

On a side note, Robinho was by far the best man on the field today, at least for Brazil. Some really classy moves out there.

Agreed on this count, yes. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Pity it did not amount to anything, but he played well.

[Rossoneri7]

Not really, I've been far from impressed with this team for quite some time. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sad.gif) More so, with the squad that Mano took to the Copa, no Hulk/Hernanes/Kaka/Marcello/Nilmar. Sure some may not have been totally fit, but still. Young team or not, it's always about balancing experience with youth to create the ultimate mix.

And yes, if the Paraguayan goalkeeper somehow did not manage to put a foot to that shot from Pato, then the result would have been different, but for me, far from satisfactory. The Brazilian defense was never a worry for me, but the lackluster midfield most definitely was. Like I said, simply no creativity, all muscle.


Agreed on this count, yes. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/smile.gif) Pity it did not amount to anything, but he played well.

This Brazil was very much trying to play with individual plays ... No team effort to build up play.

When Maicon was introduced the game prior to this, he was a reference point on the right flank that brought the whole team into play. Yesterday, however, Brazil was split between Neymar, Pato, Ganso, Robinho, Lucas, etc etc all wanting to steal the show.

Had Pato and Robinho performed with that mentality in Milan, they wouldn't have been given the chance to sniff at the by-line, let alone start for Milan (IMG:style_emoticons/default/wink.gif)

This post has been edited by Rossoneri7: Jul 18 2011, 07:16 AM

[acid911]

This Brazil was very much trying to play with individual plays ... No team effort to build up play.

When Maicon was introduced the game prior to this, he was a reference point on the right flank that brought the whole team into play. Yesterday, however, Brazil was split between Neymar, Pato, Ganso, Robinho, Lucas, etc etc all wanting to steal the show.

Had Pato and Robinho performed with that mentality in Milan, they wouldn't have been given the chance to sniff at the by-line, let alone start for Milan

Totally agreed. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/king.gif) Great post, and that's what I've been saying since the start of the tournament. The team lacks the cohesion, and the require players who the coach did not take with him. That, and the wrong mentality meant that they just had to falter when the opposing team got together and played as a unit.

In the end, Paraguay wanted it more, and they ding-dang got it all. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sleep.gif) Defensive play/tactics and all that.

[Fillipo Simone]

I don't know about you, but the selection of penalty shooters and the way they took the penalties was so amateurish that I've even began to be inclined to say they missed on purpose.

[acid911]

Yeah, they almost seemed like they all wanted to miss so as to put the blame on the coach. (IMG:style_emoticons/default/sleep.gif) Only Thiago Silva did not get the memo, and he hit it in, but the Paraguayan keeper saved him in the end. The Fred one was just a few inches off the target, but the other two were hit for the moon. Pathetic.

[X-Offender]

Especially Elano's. What the hell was that???