La Copa Mundial: Day 5

When my dad was a youth league coach, he used to say that every match was really two separate yet related games: The first half and the second half. If you win one and lose one, you will tie. If you win one and draw one, or win both, you will be victorious. But if you win a half, then play terribly the other, you can give up enough goals to lose the match.

Today, Togo won the first half. They lost a man early in the second half to his second yellow card, which means they lost twice in the second half -- by score, and by overall confidence. The rest of the game South Korea dominated and won. Maybe my dad was right.

--France and Switzerland played to an eventful 0-0 draw. France looked a little shaky around the Swiss defense. They lacked the final touches for any goals, despite plenty of opportunities. The Swiss held it together in the back, looked pretty solid in the midfield and might have a shot to win the group at this point. I think South Korea will trouble France, and the Swiss should be able to beat Togo. That will give the Swiss the lead in the group, as I think France will draw South Korea. That means the final matches will be crucial in the group -- France vs. Togo and South Korea vs. Switzerland, with the French desperately needing points.

--Brazil played well, but Croatia outshined the returning champs, despite Brazil's 1-0 win. Ronaldinho was only somewhat effective in the midfield, and Kaka was the true star. He looked dazzling in his first World Cup start. Robinho played very well off the bench, making the starting slot in Brazil's next match against Australia up in the air. Ronaldo was walking for most of his time on the pitch, with his only chance coming after striking one shot just over the bar from outside the area. He looked lazy and out of shape, and Robinho looked sharp and hungry. So we'll see with that situation. Croatia looked so good that I think they can win their other two matches and make a run at winning the group. Brazil might be headed to nine points, which shouldn't surprise anyone as this match was the only one anyone considered a dangerous pairing for the Brazilians. But nonetheless, Brazil is in form and ready to repeat and Croatia looks dangerous.

--A few people have asked me what the United States' chances are at this point. Well, Group E looks like this:

Czech Republic 1-0-0 with three points and +3 goal differential
Italy 1-0-0 with three points and +2 goal differential
Ghana 0-1-0 with nothing and a -2 goal differential
USA 0-1-0 with no points and a -3 goal differential

The next match will probably put the U.S. on the brink, if not out of the Cup all together. With the Czech Republic and Ghana pairing off, I expect at least a draw for the Czechs. Assuming the two sides draw, then the U.S. still has hope. But they'd have to beat Italy. Good luck with that. Italy is a composed team with great World Cup experience and incredible skill. They are better than the Czechs. I think the U.S. winning against Italy would be a miracle. Bigger than the U.S. beating the Soviets in the Olympics. Yeah, I said it. It's that hard. So, the U.S. will be lucky to escape with a point, and then they'd need to beat Ghana by several goals, which I don't see happening; then the U.S. would hope the Czechs dismantle Italy, which also will not happen. In short, yes, the United States are done at World Cup 2006 after one match, thanks to goal differential and a very difficult group.

--Don't pay any attention to the FIFA World Rankings. They aren't really considered valuable to any soccer critics and analysts around the world. The favorites of this Cup, based on proven talent and great managing, are Brazil, Italy, Argentina, England and Germany, with Portugal, Holland and the Czech Republic as outside contenders. The following are the FIFA rankings of the aforementioned teams:

Brazil-1
Italy-13
Argentina-9
England-10
Germany-19
Holland-3
Portugal-7
Czech Republic-2

As you can see, the favorites are all highly rated, but I've listed the favorites in order of their expected finish. In other words, Italy, the second-highest rated favorite, is 11 spots below where they should be. Argentina and England are six and seven below, respectively. Plus, Nigeria is No. 11 and they aren't even in the Cup. Oh, and Denmark, the Nigerians' partner in possession of No. 11 aren't in Germany either. So the moral of the story is -- don't put too much faith in those rankings.

--Tomorrow's matches look interesting, with Spain and Ukraine topping my "Must See" list. The list doesn't really exist, but I will be up at 6:30 a.m. to see that match. Then I will go back to bed, skipping the Tunisia and Saudi Arabia game. If by skipping I mean watching it and staying awake. Haha. That match will decide who takes 3rd in Group H. I expect the Germany-Poland afternoon-cap match to be a good one. Poland needs three points and the Germans can lock up a spot in the next round with a win, or even a draw, honestly, with how even the other three teams in their group are. So I'll take a Spanish draw with the Ukraine, a Tunisian win over the Saudis and a German-Polish draw. Enjoy the games, and be sure to tell me your thoughts!

La Copa Mundial: Day 4

Sometimes you win, sometimes you lose, and sometimes you get hammered. The Czech Republic dominated and annihilated the United States. It was an embarrassing day to be an American soccer fan.

--Australia surprised everyone with three goals in eight minutes at the end of their match with Japan, winning 3-1. They are physical and resilient, but they will have trouble against more skilled teams like Brazil and Croatia. Japan looked pretty bad for about 30 minutes, the final eight of that half-hour being the three-goal explosion. Or should I say implosion on the part of the Japanese? Anyway, I fast-forwarded through parts of the match, mostly because these teams will not really be contenders unless Croatia can draw or beat Brazil.

--The Americans, as I said before, played horribly and the result reflected that. But give credit where credit is due, the Czechs played extremely well after all of the questions surrounding their side. They dominated the midfield, controlled possession and scored quality goals. They will be the only challenge to Italy in this group. As for the Americans, this match is hugely disappointing. It might break their backs after just one match. The true test is their match with Italy on Saturday. The Italians will play (probably) without Francesco Totti, but they are still a great team. If the U.S. loses to Italy, they are done. But they are tough guys, and they can fight back. So we'll see how they bounce back after the disastrous loss.

--Italy played the best first match of anyone in the Cup so far. Their attacking was very well organized, despite Ghana playing a decent match. Italy will pose a serious threat to the Czechs, making their match on June 22 a marked-off event. Ghana will be tough for the Czechs, and I don't think the Czechs can match their performance against the United States, but you never know. I didn't think the Czechs could beat the U.S., and look at me now. An idiot, plain and simple.

Tomorrow's matches will be fun to watch, but more importantly, they feature Brazil.

-- South Korea will look to demolish a tattered Togolese team. Togo's coach bolted from Germany after his salary issues weren't ironed out. Now Togo doesn't have a hired coach, using their assistant as the interim head manager. South Korea is pretty good, and I expect them to play well.

--France and Switzerland play in a key match in Group G. If one of these teams loses, they are in big trouble. South Korea is pretty much guaranteed three points in my opinion, putting pressure on the two favorites in the group to play well. I think this match may end in a draw.

--Brazil's campaign begins with a tough match against Croatia. It will be Brazil's attacking brilliance versus Croatia's stingy defense and organized midfield. I expect Brazil to score at least one or two goals, so the question becomes, can Croatia keep up with Brazil? My answer would be 'no.' But don't hold me to it.

It was a disappointing day for me as a big American National Team fan, but the Cup has been so great that my home country's struggles can't keep me down. I am also an avid England fan, so their being a favorite in the Cup makes the American loss a little more bearable. Anyway, tomorrow should be fun. See ya!

La Copa Mundial: Day 3

A great man once said, "Blame the Dutch." Who was he? That's not important. What's important is the Dutch performance that stole the spotlight of the World Cup this morning.

--The Dutch looked fantastic today, beating Serbia & Montenegro 1-0. Arjen Robben took his first chance to shine on the international stage and ran with it -- literally. Robben diced Serbia & Montenegro's defense several times, scoring the only goal of the match on a breakaway. The 21-year-old attacker tucked a neat finish in the left corner about 20 minutes in to give the Dutch the only goal they needed. Serbia & Montenegro kept within arms length, but really showed limited attacking ability, which was the scouting knock on them coming into the Cup. Oh, and it can't be good for your team if the abbreviation on the TV scoreboard is "S&M." That's never good. But it is funny, if you're 12 like me.

--Mexico played incredibly well at times to trump Iran's upset bid, winning 3-1. The match was pretty sloppy for about 65 minutes, but the Mexicans began their run with a bit of luck in the form of a colossal mistake by the Iranian goalkeeper and central defender. Mexico capitalized on the poor clearance, breaking the defensive line with a through ball and taking the 2-1 lead with a sweet finish. They scored a brilliant goal a few minutes later off a nice header. They looked strong in attack and organized in midfield, but their defense will need to improve if they want to make any kind of run. Plus, today was an emotional win for Oswaldo Sanchez, who unexpectedly lost his dad two days before they were supposed to travel together to Germany. Obviously the two were close, so the win was sweet for Sanchez and his teammates. Now let's see if the story makes them the emotional favorites in Germany for the next three weeks.

--Portugal looked good for a half, then tapered off and won with a minimal 1-0 tally. Angola didn't play well for the first five minutes, giving up the match's only goal. But for the next 85 minutes, Angola was arguably the better team. They didn't capitalize on a few scoring chances, and by the end of the match they were worn out. Portugal has to pick it up in their midfield if they want to achieve great things at this Cup. Figo and Cristiano Ronaldo must play better to complement Pauleta and Simao, who were both fantastic.

--Tomorrow is the big day for the USA. The Americans head into tomorrow's match eager to turn heads and prove the critics wrong. I think they will shock the Czechs with their speed and aggression, possibly scoring early in the match. There's no way of really knowing how healthy the Czechs really are, so we'll have to wait and see. Watch the wingers for Czech Republic pace the Czech attack, and keep your eyes on Donovan and Beasley for the US. This will be the best match tomorrow.

--Japan and Australia will be entertaining, but I expect the more experienced Japanese to win.

--The Italians play Ghana tomorrow in a great clash of styles. Ghana is a team filled with crafty players and a can-do attitude. But Italy is very strong, playing with great technical ability, intelligence and experience. The Italians will have their hands full for about 50 to 60 minutes, but they should wear out the Africans and win.

That's it for today, hope you guys are enjoying the World Cup and whatever insight I can provide for you. Feel free to add comments or questions if you have any. See you tomorrow!

La Copa Mundial: Day 2

Well the second day was just as good, if not better, than the first day at the World Cup in Germany. I woke up at 6:30 a.m. MST to see England and Paraguay kick off.

--England's defense looked really good against Paraguay. They were organized and strong in defense, and that made Paraguay really struggle down the stretch. But their attack was hurting, they didn't really seem together in Paraguay's defensive third, which is something they will have to work on in the next few matches. Joe Cole was brilliant for the English, dribbling through defenders several times and creating a few chances. Stewart Downing also did well off the bench. I liked Peter Crouch in the first 60 minutes or so, he had some good touches and was very aggressive. But he needs to learn to challenge for headers with his arms down, or he will be a lot less effective.

--Trinidad & Tobago shocked the world with a 0-0 draw with Sweden. The Swedish had countless opportunities, but the Trinis just held them off. I still think Sweden will be OK. I think they will beat Paraguay, a team that just doesn't have any spark to it. The Trinis will be run over by England, and their few days in the spotlight will end. But they did play well with 10 men for a half, and it was good game to watch.

--Ivory Coast was kind of disappointing, but Argentina looked great for several key parts of the match. They controlled the pace, tempo and possession of the match, and never seemed in doubt of winning. The Ivory Coast was unorganized and absent in the midfield, and that has to change if they want to even challenge Holland to stay in contention.

--The Ivory Coast-Argentina game was the worst broadcasting of any sport I've heard since Joe Buck and Tim McCarver last October. I don't need some roughneck dude from Brooklyn slurring his words and Americanizing the game for me. American soccer fans aren't stupid. We don't need everything to be compared to Shaq and the Pittsburgh Steelers. The NFL has nothing to do with soccer, and I'd prefer to keep it that way. No more analogies please, and get these guys a pronunciation guide.

Tomorrow is another early day here in the Centennial State (Colorado, people, c'mon). First, we'll see Holland play Serbia & Montenegro. Holland is one of the most fluid attacking teams in the world, and Serbia & Montenegro is one of the best defensive teams around -- heck, they only allowed one goal in their 10-game qualifying stretch. Then Mexico will demolish Iran and Portugal will demolish Angola. It's worth getting up to see the first match, which will kick off at 9 a.m. EST. Great chess match. Enjoy!

La Copa Mundial: Day 1

Paul Gardner once said about soccer, "To asthete it is an art form, an athletic ballet. To the spiritually inclined, it is a religion.

Well, Opening Day at the World Cup in Germany truly is the soccer sabbath day. The first day of a month-long competition that rocks the world with grace, unity and pride. What a day for sports. What a day for the world. What a day for me.

Selfishly speaking, the first day was great. I got to see a high-scoring match and an upset. What could be better? Perhaps a day when England, Argentina, Sweden and the Ivory Coast all play. And yes, I mean tomorrow. Unlike March Madness or the NBA Playoffs when the excitement dies down after the first few rounds, the World Cup gets better with each passing day.

--Germany's attacking style looked good. But, as you heard Marcelo Balboa say 37 times during the course of the match, the offside trap doesn't work against quick strikers. Wanchope is good and quick, and Ecuador has some quick guys up front as well. Trouble might be brewing for the Germans against a solid defense that shuts them down, and a quick offense that gets behind their defenders.

Costa Rica played poorly, despite scoring twice. They are usually a free-flowing, fun team to watch (as is every Latin American team, really). Today, they just didn't have it. Germany was bigger, tougher and really played like a home team behind their fans.

With Ballack, Germany won't be that much better on the attack than they were today (today's performance was as good as it gets attacking), but they will have a bit more of an anchored midfield. The leadership and strength Ballack brings to his team might make them a little stronger on defense. Manager Jurgen Klinsmann will work with his defense on avoiding that offside trap in the next two games, so don't expect the Germans to concede two goals again in the group stage.

--Boy, can that ball knuckle or what? The ball was just flying everywhere. I can't wait to see more long tries like the ones from Lahm and Frings today.

--Anyway, Poland just looked unorganized and a little out of it. They didn't seem to really care about losing. Ecuador played with some pizzazz and theirs resembled the Opening Day performance of Senegal just four years ago.

--Tomorrow, England and Paraguay kick off at 7 a.m. I will be up and ready. The English should win. Watch Frank Lampard work in the midfield and Peter Crouch in his first big game up front. Then we'll see Trinidad & Tobago get handled by Sweden, and then Argentina will play the Ivory Coast. My upset alert is for the Argentina-Ivory Coast game. The Coast looks good, and Argentina doesn't have a great defense.

See you tomorrow.

The NBA: It's Fantastic!

Does anyone remember when Shaq was on "Quite Frankly"? Did anyone ever think I would start an entry with a reference to "Quite Frankly"?

I hope not. I know I didn't. Terrible show. Anyway, Shaq dissed Erick Dampier, saying something along the lines of Dampier playing in the WNBA. It was funny. But also ironic, because apparently this will be the all-telling, end-all-be-all WNBA vs. NBA World Championship: The Final Battle.

Now that the sports media has finally been forced to end their love affair with Detroit, we can start talking about the NBA Playoffs. Let's face it: If the Heat win the Finals, Dwayne Wade wins the MVP; if the Mavs win, Dirk Nowitzki gets it. Simple as that.

I like the matchup problems both teams will have to deal with in the Finals: Dirk vs. Antoine Walker, Udonis Haslem and James Posey. Shaq vs. Dampier and Desagna Diop. Wade vs. Jason Terry, Josh Howard and Jerry Stackhouse. Who will guard the agile small forwards Howard and Stackhouse if Walker is in?

Look, Dwayne Wade isn't going to shoot 62% against the Mavs. He will take the same amount of shots, maybe even more per game, but still score around 27 points a game. There's nothing wrong with that, but he will be taking shots away from his supporting cast. And if Walker, Posey, Payton and Williams aren't hitting from outside, the lane will close up pretty quickly on Wade, especially with Shaq and Haslem camping out on the blocks. But then again, Wade has just made the impossible possible during these playoffs.

The key to this series is shutting down the opponent's supporting cast. Whether it's Dallas cutting off Williams, Walker, Haslem, Payton and Posey, or Miami shutting down Harris, Howard and Stackhouse; either way, whoever does it, wins.

I think Miami wins the series in seven games. They will cut off the inside game, forcing Dirk to shoot more jumpers while preventing Howard and company from getting in the lane. I don't think Dallas can create in the paint against a solid inside team like Miami -- a team with more than one interior defender, unlike the Spurs or the Suns.

But don't get me wrong, Dallas will make this a great Finals. They switched tempos between Memphis and San Antonio, and then again between San Antonio and Phoenix. They can play any style of ball.

So can the Heat. They beat the Bulls mixing up power with precision, the Nets with a slower paced game and the Pistons with a smart game. They will probably try to maximize possessions against a great offensive team like Dallas. They can slow it down when they want.

Now remember, I picked Seattle in the Super Bowl, Houston in the World Series last year and "Grounded for Life" to be the next great American sitcom, so don't take this for some accurate predictor of winners. I just like Miami in seven.

Match-by-Match Predictions: Oh Yeah!

As the Kool Aid Man once said, "Oh yeah!"

Every single match, winners, losers and everything in between. Goals, too. Go!

June 9
Germany 2, Costa Rica 1
Poland 2, Ecuador 0

June 10
England 1, Paraguay 0
Sweden 2, Trinidad & Tobago 0
Argentina 3, Ivory Coast 0

June 11
Holland 1, Serbia & Montenegro 1
Mexico 2, Iran 0
Portugal 4, Angola 1

June 12
United States 1, Czech Republic 1
Italy 2, Ghana 0
Japan 2, Australia 1

June 13
Brazil 3, Croatia 1
South Korea 2, Togo 0
France 0, Switzerland 0

June 14
Germany 1, Poland 0
Spain 1, Ukraine 1
Tunisia 2, Saudi Arabia 1

June 15
Costa Rica 2, Ecuador 1
England 3, Trinidad & Tobago 0
Sweden 1, Paraguay 1

June 16
Argentina 2, Serbia & Montenegro 0
Holland 2, Ivory Coast 1
Mexico 2, Angola 0

June 17
Portugal 3, Iran 0
Ghana 1, Czech Republic 0
Italy 0, United States 0

June 18
Japan 1, Croatia 1
Brazil 3, Australia 1
France 1, South Korea 1

June 19
Switzerland 1, Togo 1 (Oh no!)
Ukraine 3, Saudi Arabia 0
Spain 4, Tunisia 0

June 20
Poland 0, Costa Rica 0
Germany 3, Ecuador 0
Paraguay 2, Trinidad & Tobago 0
England 1, Sweden 1

June 21
Serbia & Montenegro 1, Ivory Coast 0
Argentina 1, Holland 0
Angola 2, Iran 2
Portugal 1, Mexico 1

June 22
Italy 0, Czech Republic 0
United States 2, Ghana 1
Croatia 1, Australia 1
Brazil 3, Japan 1

June 23
Switzerland 1, South Korea 1
France 3, Togo 0
Spain 4, Saudi Arabia 0
Ukraine 3, Tunisia 1

Second Round and Beyond
Germany 2, Sweden 1
Argentina 2, Mexico 0
England 2, Poland 0
Holland 1, Portugal 1 (in penalties)
Italy 1, Japan 0
Ukraine 1, France 0 (Upset City!)
Brazil 3, United States 2 (in extra time)
Spain 2, South Korea 1

Quarterfinals
Argentina 1, Germany 1 (in penalties)
England 2, Holland 1
Italy 2, Ukraine 0
Brazil 3, Spain 1

Semifinals
Italy 0, Argentina 0 (in penalties)
Brazil 1, England 0

Consolation
Argentina 2, England 1

Finals
Brazil 2, Italy 1

There you go. Enjoy!