By Paul Gardner We’re now reaching the stage of the World Cup when we are forced to put up with a good deal of crap about coaches and coaching. From the coachesthemselves, of course, but also from their players (how would they dare contradict their coach?), and from their followers in the media. Of the […]
SoccerTalk with Paul Gardner
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
My World Cup: Still Waiting for Brazil
By Paul Gardner We’ve had to wait a long time for Brazil in this tournament, and it seems to me we’re still waiting. Brazil’s performance yesterday during its 2-1 winover North Korea was hardly vintage Brazil. We got the thinnest shadow of the beautiful game. We got Dunga’s Brazil, the pragmatic Brazil of which Dunga […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
My World Cup: Referees get it right
By Paul Gardner Half of the 32 World Cup teams have now strutted their stuff, and most of them have been singularly unimpressive. The awful truth behind thisdisappointment is that I am the one to blame for all the caution and the defensive play that we have — and hence the lack of goals. My […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Hoping Soccer Breaks Through the Political Miasma
By Paul Gardner Is it possible that a soccer tournament will break out in South Africa? That the sport will manage to force itself into the foreground and push asidethe huge tribe of pseudo-soccer-enthusiasts who appear regularly every four years — the politicians and the businessmen and the publicists and marketeers and suchlike. An admission: […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Defense wins championships? Think again
By Paul Gardner Despite the fatuous chants, which we shall no doubt be hearing quite soon on the World cup scene, defense does not win championships. Of course, it helpsto have a good defense — an obvious comment — but in the end, a winning team does have to score some goals. Those who concentrate […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
No sign of World Cup boost for MLS
By Paul Gardner So, it’s farewell MLS for a couple of weeks. On the assumption that fans will prefer to watch World Cup games — and might well find MLS games anannoying intrusion — during the next two weeks, the MLS biggies have decided not to compete. Their assumption may well be right, even though […]
Posted inStory
Toughest World Cup job: opening game ref
By Paul Gardner A week to go for World Cup kickoff. A time of mounting excitement — and a time of mounting anxiety and nervousness. Nowhere can those last twoqualities be more pronounced than among the World Cup referees, the 30 officials selected to take charge of the 64 games. For the moment, 63 of […]
Posted inStory
Can this be a soccer ball?
By Paul Gardner Honestly, I would not have thought this was possible. How on earth could the pre-tournament complaints about this World Cup’s new ball get any more strident, any more stupid than those for previous events? I was quite sure we’d exhausted all the possible depths or heights of imbecility known to man. Nothing, […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Torres effect encouraging for USA
By Paul Gardner “He’s kind of a calming influence. I think we were too hectic on the ball in the first half and he kind of settled us a little bit when he got the ball,and it helped us a lot.” That is Landon Donovan, talking about Jose Francisco Torres — and in particular the […]
Posted inSoccerTalk with Paul Gardner, Story
Will soccer heed doctor's orders?
By Paul Gardner Just over a week ago I was talking of the refereeing clampdowns that invariably accompany each World Cup, wondering what would be clamped down on this time. Well, there’s good news. It comes from Dr. Michel D’Hooghe, theBelgian who is the Chairman of the FIFA Medical Committee, and his target is violent […]