No, there are no errors in that title, and no, you're not losing it. There is no Italy to speak of anymore in this tournament. The defending champions will be on their way home, just as their opponents from 2006 were the other day. Soccer is exciting, soccer is crazy, soccer is...freaking strange.
The Italians lost 3-2 at the hands (feet?) of a largely dominant Slovakia today, capping an unimpressive group stage for the Azzurri. The statistics will tell you it was an even game in terms of numbers - possession was nearly even, with Slovakia taking the tiniest of edges with 51%; the Italians had 16 shots to their opponents' 10 (or 12, depending on what site you read); four yellow cards to each side; and so on. But as far as the actual performance, it was decidedly uneven for most of the match. Italy looked slow and tentative early on and through much of the game. Their passing was mediocre at times, abysmal at others - such as when Daniele de Rossi essentially gifted the ball to the opposition, leading to a goal from Robert Vittek in the 25th minute. Losing possession in midfield was a consistent problem for the Italians, as was a seeming shakiness in defense when confronted with an attack. Slovakia's defense was strong, and it wasn't until the 81st minute - down 2-0 after Vittek notched a second goal from close range in the 73rd - that Italy finally answered with a strike from Antonio Di Natale, and their play actually seemed to leave second gear. It got very dramatic here in these final minutes: Italy was suddenly throwing everything they had into the match when Kamil Kopunek added a third for Slovakia in the 89th, followed three minutes later by a Fabio Quagliarella strike to make it 3-2. It went at a frenetic pace until the final whistle, when Slovakia engaged in a group celebration of their victory, and Italy shuffled off the pitch, likely dreading the reactions awaiting them back home.
This seems to be another case of a top team assuming they will win, assuming they have no worries, and allowing those assumptions to take the place of good performances. We all know games aren't played on paper, and that soccer is very much an "any given day" kind of sport, but Italy should not have had any trouble advancing from this easy group. However, that doesn't mean they shouldn't have been trying, or that leaving the trying to the last 10 minutes of the third match is enough. It wasn't - they finish at the bottom of their group and now have a long road home to ponder their mistakes and the dangers of overconfidence.
In the other Group F match, Paraguay and New Zealand played to a nil-nil draw, which was still enough to put the South American side at the top of their group. Paraguay out-shot and out-possessed their opponents by great margins, bested by the Kiwis only in the negative areas of fouls committed and offside calls. Either New Zealand's defense was too strong or Paraguay was simply playing for the draw - or maybe both? Despite it not reading like much of a match, both sides come out of it well - Paraguay advancing as group winners, and New Zealand headed home but with a very impressive showing, going undefeated, garnering their first points ever in the World Cup and finishing in third ahead of Italy. Not too bad for a team ranked #78!
Yeah, you read that correctly. There's been a lot of talk about these unexpected, unusual, even strange results in this World Cup. Depending on your point of view/country of origin, it's either made for a great group stage thus far or a maddening one. But some of these surprises can be quite entertaining for nearly everyone...except for those whose team was on the receiving end. When New Zealand's Shane Smeltz tapped the ball in to put the Kiwis in the lead in the 7th minute, it was one of those shock moments that makes soccer the unpredictable sport that it is. And when the final whistle blew with the score still even, I'm sure there was a collective head-shaking around the soccer world.
There's a question of offside on the New Zealand goal, although from the replays I saw, the ball, which was sent into the box off a free kick, appeared to deflect only off Italian players. Now, I would never claim to be an expert on this rule (or any other, for that matter, but especially this one) but Ally McCoist seemed certain that if the ball only touched defenders then the goal-scorer was not offside. If it had come off an attacking player, then he was, and to my eyes that did not happen. Anyone see it differently, or have a different assessment of the rule than the announcer?
The surprise of the goal seemed to wear off quickly for Italy, as they largely held possession through the rest of the first half. After Iaquinta buried a penalty kick in the 29th minute to put the sides level, the Italians seemed at ease with just controlling the movement of the game, but weren't looking hurried much at all. Once the second half started, I expected Italy to come out with guns blazing. They did continue to control things for the most part, but New Zealand's defense was stronger than anyone must have thought, especially on set pieces. A good thing, that, considering Italy had 15 corners (New Zealand had none, which I didn't even realize during the game) and 23 shots to New Zealand's measly 3. If not for a stellar performance from New Zealand keeper Mark Paston, this game would have ended with a victorious Italian side, I have no doubt. It appears to be another example of underestimating a minnow and expecting a game to play itself out on the pitch as it does on paper.
For me, this is probably the biggest surprise result so far. Spain losing to Switzerland and Germany losing to Serbia were both unexpected, but there was a far smaller distance between the rankings and the overall quality in those matches than there was here. It's not that I expected less out of New Zealand, but I expected more out of the current world champs.
The team with the greater margin of victory wins the group. If the same margin, the team that scores the most wins the group, if that is level, the group winner is decided by a drawing of lots.
Paraguay
5
+2 goal difference
Italy
5
+1 or better
New Zealand
3
Slovakia
1
Italy needs to win by 3 goals to finish first. If Italy win by 2, it comes down to total goals (Paraguay 3, Italy 2), and if that is level, the drawing of lots.
Paraguay
7
Italy
5
New Zealand
2
Slovakia
1
Italy/Slovakia draw
New Zealand
5
Paraguay
4
Italy
3
Slovakia
2
Paraguay
5
Italy
3
New Zealand
3
Slovakia
2
With three draws, goal difference is level, and both have scored 2 goals so far. The team that scores the most in the draw advances, if both score the same, then a draw of lots decide who advances and who goes home.
Paraguay
7
Italy
3
New Zealand
2
Slovakia
2
Slovakia win
New Zealand
5
Paraguay
4
+1 or worse
Slovakia
4
-1 or better
Italy
2
The combined margin of victory must be 5 or more for Slovakia to pass Paraguay. If it is 4, it is total goals (Paraguay 3 Slovakia 1 presently) and if that is level, Paraguay advances on the head-to-head win.
Country mascots: universally sucking since forever.
A team called the All Whites. In South Africa. Somewhere, a polar bear cloned from Hitler's DNA is smiling. But since I'm assuming that name refers to the jersey colors and not some misguided racial commentary, I suppose we can be happy that the Kiwis (much better nickname) stunned Slovakia and shattered the expectation scale for their performance at the #worldcup. Err, World Cup. [F***ing Twitter.]
Everything changed in the span of a few seconds, which were themselves mere seconds from the final whistle. You can catch them at about the 1:30 mark here:
In 1982, New Zealand got bodyslammed by Brazil, the USSR, and Scotland to a tune of 12 goals to 2. Today they looked competent if hapless until Shane Smeltz pulled that sick 180-degree spin at the left corner of the box. Sure, Winston Reid's finish was nice, but if Smeltz doesn't change direction like that, the Slovakian defense probably stays with its marks better and no goal is scored.
The equalizer came from a brilliant spin outside the box, but it never should have come to that -- Slovakia had the better of New Zealand for huge chunks of the game. New Zealand plays a surprisingly bold 3-4-3 formation, and as a result there were numerous counter-attacks from the Slovaks that should have resulted in better chances. Instead, there were a few too many moments of hesitancy, like Robert Vittek receiving a gorgeous pass 6-8 yards from the goal and inexplicably sitting on the ball for a second, which allowed a defender to recover and block him. There were also a few too-early anxious shots and some wasted set pieces, all of which left the door open for New Zealand.
This was the latest equalizer at a World Cup since the 1998 tourney, and it gave New Zealand their first points ever in the event. Quite an upset.
Or was it? NZL is actually ranked 44 places higher than Slovakia in the world rankings***, and Slovakia is in its first Cup compared to New Zealand's second. Sure, they have more prominent players like Marek Hamsik, who scored 12 in Serie A for Napoli and Martin Skrtel, a sometimes-starter for Liverpool, but this team was as green as a, er, kiwi. Slovakia now faces the daunting task of having to find 4 points from games against Italy and Paraguay to have a good chance of advancement.
***Update: Thanks to Andrew, who pointed out that my soccer-bleary eyes got these numbers flipped. We may now resume calling it an upset.
No, there are no errors in that title, and no, you're not losing it. There is no Italy to speak of anymore in this tournament. The defending champions will be on their way home, just as their opponents from 2006 were the other day. Soccer is exciting, soccer is crazy, soccer is...freaking strange.
The Italians lost 3-2 at the hands (feet?) of a largely dominant Slovakia today, capping an unimpressive group stage for the Azzurri. The statistics will tell you it was an even game in terms of numbers - possession was nearly even, with Slovakia taking the tiniest of edges with 51%; the Italians had 16 shots to their opponents' 10 (or 12, depending on what site you read); four yellow cards to each side; and so on. But as far as the actual performance, it was decidedly uneven for most of the match. Italy looked slow and tentative early on and through much of the game. Their passing was mediocre at times, abysmal at others - such as when Daniele de Rossi essentially gifted the ball to the opposition, leading to a goal from Robert Vittek in the 25th minute. Losing possession in midfield was a consistent problem for the Italians, as was a seeming shakiness in defense when confronted with an attack. Slovakia's defense was strong, and it wasn't until the 81st minute - down 2-0 after Vittek notched a second goal from close range in the 73rd - that Italy finally answered with a strike from Antonio Di Natale, and their play actually seemed to leave second gear. It got very dramatic here in these final minutes: Italy was suddenly throwing everything they had into the match when Kamil Kopunek added a third for Slovakia in the 89th, followed three minutes later by a Fabio Quagliarella strike to make it 3-2. It went at a frenetic pace until the final whistle, when Slovakia engaged in a group celebration of their victory, and Italy shuffled off the pitch, likely dreading the reactions awaiting them back home.
This seems to be another case of a top team assuming they will win, assuming they have no worries, and allowing those assumptions to take the place of good performances. We all know games aren't played on paper, and that soccer is very much an "any given day" kind of sport, but Italy should not have had any trouble advancing from this easy group. However, that doesn't mean they shouldn't have been trying, or that leaving the trying to the last 10 minutes of the third match is enough. It wasn't - they finish at the bottom of their group and now have a long road home to ponder their mistakes and the dangers of overconfidence.
In the other Group F match, Paraguay and New Zealand played to a nil-nil draw, which was still enough to put the South American side at the top of their group. Paraguay out-shot and out-possessed their opponents by great margins, bested by the Kiwis only in the negative areas of fouls committed and offside calls. Either New Zealand's defense was too strong or Paraguay was simply playing for the draw - or maybe both? Despite it not reading like much of a match, both sides come out of it well - Paraguay advancing as group winners, and New Zealand headed home but with a very impressive showing, going undefeated, garnering their first points ever in the World Cup and finishing in third ahead of Italy. Not too bad for a team ranked #78!
Country mascots: universally sucking since forever.
A team called the All Whites. In South Africa. Somewhere, a polar bear cloned from Hitler's DNA is smiling. But since I'm assuming that name refers to the jersey colors and not some misguided racial commentary, I suppose we can be happy that the Kiwis (much better nickname) stunned Slovakia and shattered the expectation scale for their performance at the #worldcup. Err, World Cup. [F***ing Twitter.]
Everything changed in the span of a few seconds, which were themselves mere seconds from the final whistle. You can catch them at about the 1:30 mark here:
In 1982, New Zealand got bodyslammed by Brazil, the USSR, and Scotland to a tune of 12 goals to 2. Today they looked competent if hapless until Shane Smeltz pulled that sick 180-degree spin at the left corner of the box. Sure, Winston Reid's finish was nice, but if Smeltz doesn't change direction like that, the Slovakian defense probably stays with its marks better and no goal is scored.
The equalizer came from a brilliant spin outside the box, but it never should have come to that -- Slovakia had the better of New Zealand for huge chunks of the game. New Zealand plays a surprisingly bold 3-4-3 formation, and as a result there were numerous counter-attacks from the Slovaks that should have resulted in better chances. Instead, there were a few too many moments of hesitancy, like Robert Vittek receiving a gorgeous pass 6-8 yards from the goal and inexplicably sitting on the ball for a second, which allowed a defender to recover and block him. There were also a few too-early anxious shots and some wasted set pieces, all of which left the door open for New Zealand.
This was the latest equalizer at a World Cup since the 1998 tourney, and it gave New Zealand their first points ever in the event. Quite an upset.
Or was it? NZL is actually ranked 44 places higher than Slovakia in the world rankings***, and Slovakia is in its first Cup compared to New Zealand's second. Sure, they have more prominent players like Marek Hamsik, who scored 12 in Serie A for Napoli and Martin Skrtel, a sometimes-starter for Liverpool, but this team was as green as a, er, kiwi. Slovakia now faces the daunting task of having to find 4 points from games against Italy and Paraguay to have a good chance of advancement.
***Update: Thanks to Andrew, who pointed out that my soccer-bleary eyes got these numbers flipped. We may now resume calling it an upset.
