Month: June 2014

  • Results for Groups G and H

    There are no games in Brazil today, so we have a chance to catch our breath before we kick off the knockout rounds tomorrow.  The group stage was fun, but now we’re down to the nitty gritty, where a small mistake could send your team packing.  Yesterday, four more teams punched their tickets into the Round of 16:…

  • Back to Regularly Scheduled Programming (for a moment, anyway)

    Oh… you though that I’d turned this into a full-time soccer blog?  Well, I suppose I can’t blame you for that.  It’s been a few weeks since I’ve posted on anything other than the World Cup, and now that we’re getting to the knockout rounds (with the U.S.A still alive, no less), I don’t imagine…

  • Results for Groups E and F

    We have indeed seen the last of Luis Suarez in this World Cup.  FIFA handed him a suspension that covers the next nine international matches, as well as a four-month ban from “all football-related activities.”  According to the announcement, he won’t even be allowed to enter a stadium during that time.  Inconvenient not just for…

  • Results for Groups C and D

    What can I say about Luis Suarez that hasn’t already been said?  I mean, this was the third time in the last four years that he’s bitten an opponent during a match.  Not sure how much he can complain about the world labeling him as a sociopath.  He’ll serve a suspension, and then he’ll play again,…

  • Results for Groups A and B

    If you’ve made time to watch the World Cup this year, you’ve been rewarded for it.  Everyone seems to agree that it’s been a great tournament so far – plenty of goals, exciting and competitive games, and some shocking results in the group stage.  The pace has picked up this week, as the first round…

  • Thirty Seconds

    Half a minute.  That’s all that stood between the U.S. team and progression into the Round of 16.  They just needed to keep Portugal out for another thirty seconds… I probably watched the replay of that closing sequence in Manaus twenty times last night.  When the ball comes to Bradley near the half-way line, all…

  • World Cup Preview – Group H (and thoughts on Brazil/Croatia)

    Well, after all that talk, we’ve finally seen some real, live soccer.  And it was… interesting.  Brazil wound up meeting pre-match expectations with a 3-1 win, but that score isn’t indicative of how close the match really was.  Brazil was sweating, for sure, and they’ll know that they’ll need to improve if they want to…

  • World Cup Preview – Group G

    The time has finally come!  If you’ve developed a strategy to shorten your work days over the next few weeks, today is the day to begin implementing it.  Brazil vs. Croatia kicks off at 4:00 (New York time) this afternoon.  I’m sure your boss (and, hopefully, my boss) will understand. Since today’s preview seems likely to get a bit wordy,…

  • World Cup Preview – Groups E and F

    Only one day left!  On to Groups E and F! GROUP E Pretend, for a moment, that you don’t know anything about the 2010 World Cup.  Then, say I were to tell you a story that went something like this:  In one of the group-stage games, a coach  addresses his team at half-time, with the score 0-0. …

  • World Cup Preview – Groups C and D

    Only two days left until kickoff!  No time to waste – we’re on to Groups C and D today. GROUP C I like Arsene Wenger, and I respect everything that he’s accomplished with Arsenal over the years, but I’m going to pick on him a bit here.  Every time that Arsenal fails to beat the…