World Cup: Weekend of soccer

First off, I am not a diehard soccer fan. I follow the Word Cup every four years, and I occasionally catch an MLS match or a FIFA friendly (usually involving the USA). So everything written after this needs to be read in that light. But I love the World Cup. I love the passion of the fans, the incredible ability of the players, and the rhythm of the game, which to me is a combination of hockey and baseball. It is a strategic, slow-paced sport, combined with frenetic, physical combat around the goals. Great stuff.

There are some things though that FIFA needs to address:

• More officials. The NBA has three officials on the field, the NFL more. MLB has three-man crews, and adds additional umps for the postseason. And FIFA thinks one guy roaming that huge pitch is sufficient (with a couple of linesmen)? Come one. The foul on the US was symptomatic of this. FIFA needs an official closer to the goal who can see the physicality on corners and free kicks and let offensive players make a play. The physical nature of soccer is one of its charms, but mugging a player at the goal (and missing obvious calls) is just plain annoying and detracts from an otherwise terrific sport. Even increasing to two officials would make a huge difference.
• Stop the flop. Now before the more dedicated footballers tell me to get back to writing about baseball, let me say that I don't find the flooping in soccer any more offensive than I find in the NBA or than WRs falling over and trying to draw interference calls in American football. I get that it's part of the game. I also know that soccer is a very physical sport, and injuries are common. But please stop holding your face when you were whacked in the shoulder. And please stop grabbing your knee, and then popping up when a yellow card is issued. I'm not saying replay should be used in game (though I'm not against it), but I think FIFA should think long and hard about handing out very stiff penalties against obvious cheaters. I know they do it sometimes, but they should do it more.

This past weekend I watched 4 matches, and here are my thoughts on each.

USA 2, Slovenia 2 (Friday)
Alexi Lalas in the postgame basically said that the Americans shouldn't blame the officials, that they played liked crap for the first 45 minutes, and that if they had turned in a decent first half, that the awful call wouldn't have mattered. That's a load of crap.

All teams have bad sections of a game. Soccer, because of it's low scoring, is hyper-sensitive to these bad periods. But the US did come back and scored two goals, and made the play to score another. They were robbed. Yes, going forward, they can't dwell on it. But make no mistake: that ref made a huge mistake, and seeing him act as a back-up on Sunday was weird. Even if FIFA doesn't feel like the mistake wasn't worth taking action, from a PR standpoint, I would keep the dude as far away from a pitch as possible for the remainder of the Cup.

All of that being said, what that game proved is that when the US is clicking, they can move the ball and create very quick scoring opportunities. Assuming they make it to the next round (which is certainly still a big if), they could surprise, especially against weaker defensive squads. It would be great to watch the Yanks make a run.

Netherlands 1, Japan 0 (Saturday)
'There's only two things I hate in this world. People who are intolerant of other people's cultures and the Dutch.' A great quote from a lousy movie (Austin Powers) that actually has nothing to do with this game. But it kept running through my mind the entire time. My actual age: 14.

The Dutch showed something: their usual flashy style isn't necessary, as they scored early in the second half and put the clamps down on Japan, pretty much putting a stamp on the next round.

Italy 1, New Zealand 1 (Sunday)
So, what's up with these big-time European powers like France and Italy playing themselves out of potentially playing in the second round? Now, Italy is still in the driver's seat, and can get into the second round with a convincing win over Slovakia, but man, this match was winnable. They had the most talent, but the Kiwis wanted it and made plays on both sides of the pitch. Fun match.

Brazil 3, Ivory Coast 1 (Sunday)
Besides the US comeback on Friday, my favorite match of the Cup so far. Watching Brazil is like watching the Phoenix Suns in basketball: it's just more fun. Now the last 20 minutes turned into an ugly slugfest, with Kaka getting a second yellow card for standing on the field and having a guy run into him. Regardless, Brazil and Portugal are in the next round after Portugal's 7-0 dismantling of Korea this morning.

I just love watching Brazil. People keep asking me who my second team is after the US. Usually I route for England for whatever reason, not sure why. I'm part British, but I'm also part French and German, so that doesn't really make sense. I like watching Mexico, but they're our rivals, so I can't route for them. So for me it's come down to Brazil or Argentina, but I've stayed away from Brazil because how can your second team be the No. 1 team in the world? Isn't that the pansy pick?

Screw it. They are my second team. I don't really care if they win the whole thing or not, but I want them in the Final because that team is the most fun to watch.

So go USA, and if it can't be USA, then let it be Brazil. And anytime I can say Kaka in a sentence, I will take that opportunity. Remember my true age: 14.