Tea at The Break? - Part Two

85 Goals were scored in the 24 group stage matches.
That breaks down to an average of 3.54 goals per match.
Removing the Germany v Argentina 11-0 opener, the average goes down to 3.21 goals per match.

My tea at the break theory shows that 60 goals were scored in the 2nd half of play. 19 of those were scored after the 80th minute.

Tea : good for attackers, bad for defenders.
or, maybe fitness is the issue?

Groups C & D - Recaps

After dealing with some weather issues, the final round of play took place in Groups C & D Thursday ... or was it Wednesday (days are starting to blend together in this Group stage). Anyway, the quarterfinals are set as well. First, the final group stage recaps:

Group C - Norway v Ghana
Norway geared it up after two tight matches. Ghana simply playing for pride, got their first two goal of the tournament. Gulbrandsen took the goal scoring lead for the tournament with a hat trick - now at 5 scored.
Norway 7 Ghana 2
FIFA Recap:
http://www.fifa.com/womenworldcup/matches/round=248549/match=56321/index.html

Group C - Australia v Canada
What an entertaining match! Canada, needing the win, came out fast and took an early lead. Australia knotted the match at 1 and then Canada kept coming forward, finally getting the go ahead goal with 5 minutes left through Christine Sinclair's header. It looked like they had a place in the quarterfinals secured. Then, Matildas captain, Cheryl Salisbury watched as super sub Lisa de Vanna twisted and turned in the box and then slid a pass her way. Salisbury did not miss and the Matildas were through to the quarterfinals. Great match ... unless you're from Canada.
Australia 2 Canada 2
FIFA Recap:
http://www.fifa.com/womenworldcup/matches/round=248549/match=56320/index.html

Group D - China v New Zealand

New Zealand put forth a great effort to try and hold off China but utimately the hosts prevailed. China advances to the knockout stage in less than convincing fashion but at this point, I'm sure the home supporters were happy to see a win against any competition.
China 2 New Zealand 0
FIFA Recap:
http://www.fifa.com/womenworldcup/matches/round=248549/match=56327/index.html

Group D - Brazil v Denmark

Denmark played Brazil to a draw over 90 minutes but Brazil put in a 91st minute winner to make it a clean sweep - 10 goals scored, none conceeded. Denmark had to feel that Chinese 88th minute winner in the first match sealed their fate and kept them from a place in the knockout stage.
Brazil 1 Denmark 0
FIFA Recap:
http://www.fifa.com/womenworldcup/matches/round=248549/match=56326/index.html

Other Places to Follow the WWC

There's some other great coverage of the WWC out there ... where ever the web truly is.

Georgina Turner & Carrie Dunn show great knowledge of the women's game in general and England's squad in particular at Kickster:
http://www.kickster.tv/china_2007/

Beau Dure offers his usual keen insight at the USA Today:
http://blogs.usatoday.com/sportsscope/soccer/index.html

Be sure to take a look, especially as we head into the knockout stage.

Jen O'Neill on the WWC

Jen O'Neill from Fair Game magazine - the expert on women's football in England - offers a look at the Women's World Cup at the NY Times Goal blog:

http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/2007/09/19/a-week-in-china-from-an-english-perspective/#more-220

USWNT - More on the "Greatest Team ..."

The New York Times dropped their "Select" policy so most of their content is available again, free of charge. Which means we get to read the great writer (and soccer friendly) George Vecsey once more.

Here are a few of his thoughts on the current USWNT squad:

http://select.nytimes.com/2007/09/12/sports/soccer/12vecsey.html?_r=1&ref=soccer&oref=slogin

Gayle Bryan (from Fair Game) and Jere Longman are providing posts from the WWC for the NY Times's Goal Blog:

http://goal.blogs.nytimes.com/tag/womens-world-cup/

USWNT - Route One

I've been watching the USA matches in this Women's World Cup and I've struggled to understand why US Soccer is marketing this team as "the greatest team you've never heard of".

They look so disjointed. Sure Abby Wambach is one of the top three players in the world, Kristine Lily is a legend, and there are other outstanding players in the squad. Yet, when I watch them play, I miss seeing the dynamic flowing soccer of previous years.

Then I read these quotes from Coach Greg Ryan and it all made sense & it saddened me:

"Back then, you could get away with playing little passes all over the field and have success doing it. But in the modern game, a team that just knocks the ball around the middle of the park is going to get killed doing it," continued Ryan, who replaced 1991 world champion-turned-coach April Heinrichs in 2005 and signalled a shift from the technique-driven short-passing game to a more physical and direct style.

"If you spend all your time trying to look pretty, you're going to end up with big problems the other way," said Ryan, who lined up alongside Franz Beckenbauer and Carlos Alberto in his playing days with New York Cosmos. "We try to attack, exploit the space and turn it into goals," he said. "This is the only way to play now. Look at what happened to China when they were risking things right in front of their own goal against Brazil. They got stuffed 4-0."

http://www.fifa.com/womenworldcup/news/newsid=598139.html#direct+us+reflect+realities

The US teams of the late '90s and early part of this decade knocked the ball around, made runs and moved the ball from flanks to the inside. There was flair in their game.

Watching the US employ this route one attack today reminds me of how we sneered at Norway's & Canada's simple attack back in the day. Truly sad and likely a losing proposition should Abby Wambach get injured or she gets shut down by an equally physical central defender like England's Faye White.

Group D - What to Expect

China v New Zealand
China needs the win to insure passage to the quarterfinals. They will not disappoint their home crowd. New Zealand will put up a fight but eventually will just not be able to stay with China for the full 90 minutes.
China 6 New Zealand 0

Brazil v Denmark
Denmark's task will be huge. They'll have to first defeat Brazil and then overcome a huge goal difference. It's not going to happen. Brazil will complete the sweep of the group and should enter the knockout rounds as one of the favorites to reach the Final.
Brazil 4 Denmark 0

Group C - What to Expect

Norway v Ghana
Four seems a popular number of goals to score against Ghana. I see no reason why Norway shouldn't equal the number set by Australia & Canada, especially since they'll want to win the group in order to avoid Brazil in the quarterfinals.
Norway 4 Ghana 0

Australia v Canada
This will likely be a brusing battle with many chances and end to end action. In the end, I see Australia holding on to the lead under a barrage of last minute shots by Canada. Australia will win the match but lose its grip on Group C's first place. That'll mean that they'll meet Brazil in the quarterfinals. Tough road for Tom Sermanni's Matildas.
Australia 3 Canada 2

Group B - Recaps

Nigeria v USA
The US did what it needed to do and won but somehow they remain unconvincing in their performances. Not sure what it means. They did win their group and they didn't lose a match. Still one has to wonder how they will fare if Abby Wambach is unable to play. Instead of answering questions, the USA raises more questions with each match played. Give full credit to Nigeria for a hard fought match which wasn't decided until the final kick.
USA 1 Nigeria 0

US Soccer Recap:

http://www.ussoccer.com/articles/viewArticle.jsp_2490369.html

North Korea v Sweden
Sweden showed up a little too late. Had they performed like this against the US or Nigeria, Sweden might be in the quarterfinals. Instead, they go home and wonder what went wrong. Meanwhile, North Korea can gear up to play Germany in one could be the most fascinating match of the quarterfinals.
Sweden 2 North Korea 1

FIFA Recap:

http://www.fifa.com/womenworldcup/matches/round=248549/match=56314/index.html

Rob Stone on TalkSport

Rob Stone talked to TalkSport in England about MLS, that Beckham guy, and soccer in America.

Here it hear:

http://www2.talksport.net/Uploads/media/8/5/5/100558/robstone.mp3

Fred Huebner - Fire Play by Play Man

Fred Huebner will make his debut as the Fire play by play man on My50 TV this Sunday.

I've known Fred for quite a few years now and am quite pleased that he's earned this opportunity. Fred is one of those rare people in the sports media. He grew up following all sports - except soccer - but has become one of the most passionate and knowledgeable soccer fans around. The 1990 World Cup brought Fred into the soccer fold and since then he's been Chicago sports media's biggest fan of the sport. At the Score (WSCR 670AM, where Fred has been a host/reporter for 15 years), soccer is not a prime topic of conversation. Yet Fred has always done his best to slip in soccer results and comment when big soccer stories present themselves.

He had Peter Wilt on the air the first day that the Chicago Fire announced their front office staff and he continues to push for more soccer guests in his current stint as co-host of the Mike North Morning Show. You can usually find Fred at all the matches in town (Fire, US matches, friendlies) and more often than not, he's in the stands, not in the press box. A true fan, he visited Germany during the last World Cup and watched the US play their group stage match against the Czech Republic. What a letdown ... but the beer was good!

I hope that these two matches lead to more over the air broadcasts for the Fire with Huebner describing the action. It's great to have a real fan commenting on the game.

From the Fire press release:

"My50 to Air First Game Broadcast This SundayThe My50 broadcast team will make their MLS debut this Sunday, as the Fire's newest broadcast partner, Fox affiliate My50, airs their first of two games this season. Local sports radio personality Fred Huebner will handle the play-by-play duties and long-time Fire broadcast sideline reporter Chris Doran will join him in the booth as color commentator, while local Fox affiliate reporter Sarah Kustok will make her Fire broadcast debut with the sideline call. Chicago Fire Soccer and My50 reached an agreement in early August to broadcast two games this season, including the Oct. 21 home finale against the Los Angeles Galaxy. More information on My50's programming is available at www.my50chicago.com."

Blanco Changes Chicago Soccer Atmosphere

In a short period of time, in so many ways, Cuauhtémoc Blanco has changed the Chicago Fire atmosphere.

On the field, the results are pretty evident: a 4-2-2 record, three goals & five assists, and he has pushed the Fire into the eighth and final playoff spot.

In the community, he has connected with Chicago's large Mexican-American community. Even Chivas fans (this one included) are willing to put aside his time with Club America and give him our support. He was asked to be the Grand Marshall for the 16th of September parade this past weekend - quite an honor for somebody who has only been here a couple months (story link below).

http://www.mlsnet.com/news/team_news.jsp?ymd=20070917&content_id=117687&vkey=pr_chf&fext=.jsp&team=t100

The biggest change though, seems to be the change in atmosphere at Fire home matches. Besides the larger crowds (near capacity), fans are actually starting to pay attention to the match instead of wondering what they'll eat or drink next. It's great to see young kids watching the match and reacting to the play on the field instead of asking mom or dad for another slice of pizza. Indeed, the youngsters are very savvy soccer wise and they are generating a lot of the atmosphere each time Blanco gets the ball.

Section 8 continues to organize a constant buzz through the matches but it's now being augmented by fans throughout the park on a regular basis. There are plenty of Blanco supporters who have been fans of his play with Club America & El Tri but now, many are supporting the Fire while wearing the Blanco Fire #10 shirts and t-shirts. Each flick, each backheel, each expertly weighted pass is drawing oohs, ahhs, and applause whether it results in goals or not. It's the magic that people want to see, the beautiful football/soccer/futbol that makes people smile & shout.

MLS has always prided itself on a being a tough league with hard tackles and end to end activity. What often has been missing is the creativity and subtlety. Players like NYRB's Dave van den Bergh can complain about what he perceives as diving and how this is not the tough play MLS players like. However, I think he misses the point that a foul is a foul and it can't be excused just because MLS players like to play tough. The game should be about creating chances and bringing something special to the game.

Blanco has brought that magic to Toyota Park.