[GERMANY-ENGLAND] A shot off the underside of the crossbar revived memories of 1966, when England beat West Germany, 4-2, in the World Cup final at Wembley. Butthis time, England lost a goal that should have counted, and the Germans rolled to a 4-1 win that sends them into the quarterfinals.
What we liked…
— Indifferent, sometimes desultory club form means nothing when Lukas Podolski and MiroslavKlose get into the World Cup. They netted the first two goals in clinical fashion to give Germany a 2-0 lead.
Klose ran down a bouncing goal kick and muscled past
— Podolski, then 21, won honors in 2006 as Young Player of the Tournament. His current teammate,
Mueller doesn’t turn 21 until September and with three goals is tied forthe tournament lead in that category. How fast has Mueller come along? He debuted for Germany three and a half months ago in a friendly against Argentina.
— German mids
What wedidn’t like …
— Debate has raged since 1966 about Geoff Hurst’s controversial goal in the World Cup final that hit theunderside of the bar and was ruled to have crossed the goal line. It gave England a 3-2 lead in overtime of what would eventually be a 4-2 triumph over West Germany. The available video andphotographic evidence has been scrutinized ever since and has yet to resolve the issue.
Nothing is in doubt about Frank Lampard’s apparentequalizer late in the first half; replays weren’t needed to discern it had dropped from the bar as much as two feet over the goal line before rebounding back up to the bar, and then claimed bygoalkeeper Manuel Neuer. Yet somehow referee Jorge Larrionda and the referee’s assistant missed it.
Insteadof a stirring comeback from a two-goal deficit to tie the match, England had only Jermaine Defoe’s header to take into the locker room down, 2-1.Hopefully, FIFA president Sepp Blatter will provide some new bromides to justify his insanely stubborn resistance to changes that could rectify goal-linegaffes. The old excuses are getting really old.
England hit the bar again in the second half when a Lampard free kick from more than 30 yards came back off the woodwork, and he appealedin vain for a handball as Germany raced upfield with the rebound of his free kick off the wall to score its third goal.
— Prior to the tournament, the scintillating attacks of
Coach Fabio Capello assured journalists and fans prior to facing Germany thatRooney’s ankle problem that caused him to be substituted in the match against Slovenia wouldn’t be a factor, yet Rooney’s ponderous runs and tentative touches didn’t muchinfluence the game. Rooney had apologized after criticizing England’s fans, a good number of which had booed their players off the field as the final seconds ticked down on a grim 0-0 tie withAlgeria. Those who booed again Saturday had every right to.
— Coaches in every country could sympathize with Capello. Injuries deprived him of starting defender Rio Ferdinand shortly before the tournament and replacement Ledley King at halftime of the first match. He picked among a very lacklusterlist of goalkeeping candidates and never found a consistent, reliable midfield mix.
Some sympathy and condolences are due for the disallowed Lampard goal, yet over four matches, Englandseldom looked anything close to those teams given the best chance to win this World Cup. The English FA has changed from Swede Sven-Goran Eriksson to EnglishmanSteve McClaren to Capello, a former Italian international who had experience and success at club level with several Italian teams and Real Madrid and carriedEngland smoothly through qualifying.
Is this disappointment due to Capello’s shortcomings, those of his players or a measure of both?
FIFA needs to get off their asses and do something about all the bad calls that have gone on during this World Cup. It is causing games to go sour, and piss off fans,players and coaches. All teams and countries need to stand together and boycott FIFA to get a new ruling on use of video camera’s in goal.
FIFA needs to get off their asses and do something about all the bad calls that have gone on during this World Cup. It is causing games to go sour, and piss off fans,players and coaches. All teams and countries need to stand together and boycott FIFA to get a new ruling on use of video camera’s in goal.
I don’t blame Capello. He had to deal with what he had. But how do we explain the sudden disappearance of the EPL stars? Where is Rooney’s form with Man Utd? Where is John Terry’s form with Chelsea? Capello used the same squad during the qualification with minor changes. Were the stars exhausted from a long demanding season?
I don’t blame Capello. He had to deal with what he had. But how do we explain the sudden disappearance of the EPL stars? Where is Rooney’s form with Man Utd? Where is John Terry’s form with Chelsea? Capello used the same squad during the qualification with minor changes. Were the stars exhausted from a long demanding season?
By my calculation 20% of (potential) goals were screwed up by the refs today (England-Germany = 1 out of 6; Argentina-Mexico = 1 out of 4). I wonder if the total for the whole tournament is that high. In both cases today the errors made the games less competitive, and consequently less interesting to watch.
By my calculation 20% of (potential) goals were screwed up by the refs today (England-Germany = 1 out of 6; Argentina-Mexico = 1 out of 4). I wonder if the total for the whole tournament is that high. In both cases today the errors made the games less competitive, and consequently less interesting to watch.
I agree. It is amazing to me watching other sports how frequently the replays confirm the referee’s decision. But here the replays find the referee’s wrong much more often. To me this indicates not only the need for replay use but also a review of the officiating methods in general. To ask one man to observe 22 others over such a large area is ludicrous compared to how other major sports are officiated.
I agree. It is amazing to me watching other sports how frequently the replays confirm the referee’s decision. But here the replays find the referee’s wrong much more often. To me this indicates not only the need for replay use but also a review of the officiating methods in general. To ask one man to observe 22 others over such a large area is ludicrous compared to how other major sports are officiated.
The MLS should take the lead on goal line replay. Consult with the NHL, who have it down, and tweak it to work for soccer. It shouldn’t be a big issue. When they are happy with it then take it to FIFA or, if necessary, take it to the various major soccer leagues around the world to garner the support needed to pressure FIFA to institute it. These blown calls are really going to put off casual fans in the U.S. and there is just no excuse for it.
The MLS should take the lead on goal line replay. Consult with the NHL, who have it down, and tweak it to work for soccer. It shouldn’t be a big issue. When they are happy with it then take it to FIFA or, if necessary, take it to the various major soccer leagues around the world to garner the support needed to pressure FIFA to institute it. These blown calls are really going to put off casual fans in the U.S. and there is just no excuse for it.
I think Capello does deserve some of the blame. He failed to do what Loew did in bringing young players into the team to liven it up. England would not have had to play Germany today if they hadn’t produced such a lame effort against the U.S. and Algeria. They needed one more goal out of those two games and yet he’s got Heskey up front whose last goal was probably in the Carling Cup. Also, he had to know he was coming to South Africa with an absolutely lead-footed central defense.
I think Capello does deserve some of the blame. He failed to do what Loew did in bringing young players into the team to liven it up. England would not have had to play Germany today if they hadn’t produced such a lame effort against the U.S. and Algeria. They needed one more goal out of those two games and yet he’s got Heskey up front whose last goal was probably in the Carling Cup. Also, he had to know he was coming to South Africa with an absolutely lead-footed central defense.
England needs Harry Redknap or Roy Hogson at the helm; some one who is cool, competent and understands the English psychy, not an iron fisted dictator.
England needs Harry Redknap or Roy Hogson at the helm; some one who is cool, competent and understands the English psychy, not an iron fisted dictator.
Neither goal-line technology to ascertain whether the ball crossed the line completely, nor additional assistant referees stationed on the goal lines, will not help end erroneous off-side calls, nor will they be 100% accurate. Either one would, however, be an improvement at modest cost.
Neither goal-line technology to ascertain whether the ball crossed the line completely, nor additional assistant referees stationed on the goal lines, will not help end erroneous off-side calls, nor will they be 100% accurate. Either one would, however, be an improvement at modest cost.
With all of the time the players use for “injuries” after a foul that time would equal or be less that any time used to review a play. The England goal could have been reviewed within 1 minute or less and not impacted the length of the game or at any expense to FIFA. Offsides or the USA disallowed goal by EDU would be harder to overturn and take more time to review
With all of the time the players use for “injuries” after a foul that time would equal or be less that any time used to review a play. The England goal could have been reviewed within 1 minute or less and not impacted the length of the game or at any expense to FIFA. Offsides or the USA disallowed goal by EDU would be harder to overturn and take more time to review
The referees need to be more accountable for their decisions. It seems totally ridiculous that the specific ‘foul’ which washed out the Edu goal has never been disclosed. There needs to be some sunshine provided to disinfect the foul smell coming from the house of Sepp Blatter.
The referees need to be more accountable for their decisions. It seems totally ridiculous that the specific ‘foul’ which washed out the Edu goal has never been disclosed. There needs to be some sunshine provided to disinfect the foul smell coming from the house of Sepp Blatter.