i hope you're watching nigeria-spain because so far it's a nice fun game. both teams have fucked up the finish numerous times but nigeria with more misfortune because theya re down by a goal. gotta say, it's frustrating watching the nigerian strikers tangle themselves with their own legs when they should just fucking SHOOT and do it right (instead of the weak-ass shots theyv'e sent valdez).

i'm recording the uruguay/tahiti but it's 4-0 at the moment!

fucker, this nigerian attack is just pathetic. i mean. come on! just kicking any which way. stupid fuckers!

oh, there goes the 3-0

wehll... LEARN SOMETHING, NIGERIA

disappoint

Yeah, really enjoyable game and totally agree about Nigeria's lack of a real attacking threat. Although it's also a worry that Spain allowed them so many chances. Against a more lethal threat (Brazil?) they might really struggle.

well there was plenty of threat but no actual consummation. plenty of tripping with their own feet though. ridiculous.

i'd love to see spain knocked off their pedestal for sure.

btw the ny red bulls are playing philadelphia and it's not a bad game at all! looks like the mls is not 100% shit after all.

i want to see the game everyone wants to see. brazil vs. spain. although i fear it would end up being a bit of how it was when barca met santos in the club world cup.... i hope not though!

A Brazil-Spain final would be great, and seems increasingly inevitable; Uruguay haven't really impressed me yet and Italy have now lost Balotelli to injury, plus the ongoing doubts about Pirlo's fitness.

From what I've seen of Brazil, they've got some good individuals but still seem a bit disorganised, and if Spain's midfield are allowed to get into their usual rhythm it could end up being a bit of a whitewash.

the problem of uruguay is that they are old and haven't renewed their squad. people talk of problems of fitness in the defense but the issue all around is age. you can't just rely on experience and good positioning, you also need speed (e.g., when facing someone like giaccherini). a well-rounded team would combine both kinds of players, but they have the same team as 3 years ago. upfront, suarez and cavani and forlan can be as good as any offense, but without rear coverage they can't unleash everything they've got.

in any case, i hope the commentators stop talking about 1950 in view of tomorrow's game. everyone who played in that final is now DEAD.

I can't disagree but, with a population of under 3.5m, Uruguay just doesn't have the luxury of being able to renew its squad with any kind of regularity. All you can really do is admire what they achieve with what little they have and, if anything, wonder why countries with populations and resources that dwarf theirs aren't dwarfing them on the pitch. I even take back my point about not being that impressed with them in this tournament. I don't think they're contenders to win but given their situation who would ever expect them to?

God knows how they do it. Their football culture seems unique, apparently one of the most intense anywhere in the world - I recently added watching a Nacionel-Peñarol game in Uruguay (while eating a chivito sandwich) to my ever-growing list of footballing must-dos.

oh, well, if you put it that way.

yes to all the rest you said, and i like them lots as well, but the fact is that for results you need some fresh meat and they don't have it. (or maybe they have it and the coach isn't using them? i'd have to investigate that.)

anyway. 5th in conmebol is bad for them. i've heard lots about the chivito sandwich but i've never had one. they make them in a gas station around the corner where i used to live but that is now 3,000 miles away. :(

oh shit fuck i'll pull a recipe from the internet and kill a cow with my own hands if i must.

--

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chivito_%28sandwich%29

ham + churrasco. hey, i can make it happen!

That's some silly reasoning. More densely populated country doesn't mean a better team. The olympics is a perfect example of that. The UK came third on the scale of medals won, behind China and U.S.A and WAAAYYYY ahead of India.

he never said anything about population density!

Sure, other factors inevitably come into play and there's obviously no absolute formula for success (or failure) but I still maintain that any country with as small a population as Uruguay, that's as successful as it's traditionally been, has to be admired. Also, those factors that might compensate for having such a small population, like a high degree of wealth, clearly don't apply to Uruguay either. The only thing I can think of that explains their success is the high level of their interest in the game on a cultural level, but even that's impossible to really quantify. (Although it would obviously help explain why a country like the USA underachieves at football to the degree that it does.)

Or maybe it's all in those chivito sandwiches.

PS: So how was the Bernabeu? Did Real sign you?;)

Save it for the game tomorrow, along with a gourd of Mate.

traditionally, uruguay has been quite wealthy especially for a south american country, and wealth distribution is more equal than the usa for example. generally, it's pretty middle class.

as for nutrition, it's the abudance of healty, pastured beef that keeps them fitter than their rice-and-bean-eating competitors

http://en.mercopress.com/2013/04/10/...apita-per-year

(argentinians eat more chicken and thus eat more meat in total, but uruguayans eat more beef than anyone else in the world)

BEEF!

Football, a healthy economy and beef. I'm moving to Uruguay.

country names are awesome.

The USA (United States of America)
Mexico (Estados Unidos de Mexico, or United States of Mexico)
Brazil ( República Federativa do Brasil,or Federative Republic of Brazil)
Uruguay ( Republica Oriental de Uruguay or Oriental Republic of Uruguay )

Crazy names!

Yeah a cultural level explains Jamaica's insane amount of brilliant runners.


Bernabeu was brilliant. The museum and trophy room were pretty incredible, as was actually being able to get to pitch level and sit on them oh-so-comfy manager seats. Although I did do a snigger seeing them still selling Higuain and Mourinho merc.

BTW, I read this whilst over there and finished it in 4 days.



An incredible book and all of you should read it. NOW!.

Glad the Bernabeu lived up to expectations and, funnily enough, I'm looking for a book like the one you recommend. I just finished rereading Calcio (also great), about Italian football, and was looking for an equivalent on Spanish football. So I'll definitely pick that up.

And for the tactics-heads here, you really do need to read this.



Re the culture explains Jamaican runners thing, of course not. There's obviously lots of factors why certain countries excel in certain sports and not in others. Why is New Zealand so good at rugby, or England at cycling? They're sporting anomalies. Sometimes it is cultural (like with Argentina and polo, Mexico with boxing or, I'd argue, football with Uruguay) sometimes it isn't. But success can itself spawn a culture. Jamaica's recent success in athletics will have undoubtedly inspired youngsters in Jamaica who prior to Usain Bolt may have never considered pursing it. And I'm sure it's lead to a greater emphasis on athletics in schools that may in the past have been more focused on cricket or football.

News just in that Tevez has been sold to Juve for £8m. A ridiculously low fee, even with all the add ons. West Ham spend £15m on Andy Carroll who isn't half the player Tevez is, never mind twice as good! Looks like a panic sale by City but at that price I'm amazed more clubs didn't come in for him. Even with all the controversy surrounding him, he has to be worth at least 15m. At the very very least.

Anyway, 2 1/2 hours till Brazil-Uruguay. Excited