South Africa 2010 - The Aftermath

The FIFA 2010 World Cup is over & it’s time to look at what happened during this month of competition. South Africa have been outstanding hosts & really, kudos to them for being the pride of Africa!

Vuvuzela

The Stig is the only being in the world who likes the sound of the Vuvuzela. Zzzzzzzzzzzzz...

Burnout

Messi, Torres, Rooney, Drogba, Ronaldo…
Messi played very well in the group stages, however Maradona didn’t know how to get the best out of him later on & so he was left chasing balls.
Ronaldo’s ego got the better of him. While Portugal’s defense was rock-strong, they missed a fast midfielder (Nani?) to link with Ronaldo to lead the attack…
Torres & Rooney just didn’t turn up in South Africa. Both were recovering from injuries but never once showed a glimmer of their pre-injury form. Against Germany, the entire England team looked as if they’ve been playing matches everyday. Probably the hardest league in the world is a tad too… hard?

The French Revolution

During this world cup, the French provided some of the much needed off-field drama to complement the boring group stages. It all started with Nicolas Anelka insulting Raymond Domenech, followed by the team boycotting training & then Domenech not shaking hands with the South African coach. Results - a draw & two defeats, a quick exit for the vice-champions. Better than Zidane’s coup de boule.

Daylight Robbery

“OMG!” – that’s what the Uruguayan ref said after he saw the replay of the-goal-that-did-cross-the-line. At 2-2, England would still have a slim chance…
Later on the same day, Carlos Tevez headed in a goal while being clearly offside. Following these two blatant mistakes, FIFA apologised & decided to finally step in the 21st century - goal-line technology to be discussed at their next meeting. Still no video replay…
That said, Spain have been the beneficiary of most controversial decisions… that’s what you’d call winner’s luck.

4-2-3-1

Two holding midfielders, three attacking midfielders and a lone striker – that was the tactical formation that prevailed during this world cup. Used to great effect by Germany, Netherlands & Spain. Argentina & England have only their coaches to blame for not trying to counter this tactic. Capello playing a rigid 4-4-2 was perfect suicide against a 5-man midfield.

The Hand of Clod

Robert Green’s world famous miss, which gave the USA a 1-1… win.

Jabulani

Much has been said about this ball… it’s too light, keepers can’t catch, etc. Yet the Asians (Japan & S.Korea) achieved perfect control of it during free-kicks.

The Hand of Dog

Luis Suarez pushing the ball on the line at the last minute of extra-time, denying Ghana a historic semi-final, a 1st for an African country. FU Suarez!

Ghana

This team really impressed me during this world cup (excluding the fact that they can’t take penalties). Their midfield has been superior to everyone but the Germans. Their ball control & their confidence while keeping possession makes it look as if the ball sticks to the players. Kevin-Prince Boateng’s conversion into playmaker made everyone forget that Ghana have been playing without Michael Essien. Asamoah Gyan… oh well, while he has been a hero against the USA, he only has himself to blame for missing the crucial penalty against Uruguay. It’s a young team & they can only get better! :)

Thomas Müller - Best Young Player

The youngsters who shined at the world cup - Javier Hernandez, Giovanni Dos Santos, Andre Ayew, Alexis Sanchez, Michael Bradley, Mesut Özil (alias Gollum) & Fábio Coentrão.
But 20-year-old Müller (who looks 50) was definitely a step above with his eye for goal, spatial awareness & ball control. & he also got the golden shoe award for best goal-scorer ahead of Villa & Sneijder.

Diego Forlán - Golden Ball

Bastian Schweinsteiger, Özil, Iniesta, Xavi, Robben, Sneijder & David Villa were all contenders to the Golden Ball award. David Villa, who has been über-lethal while on the left flank, went unnoticed as a lone striker. His enormous contributions to Spain’s victories helped him win the Bronze Ball award. Sneijder who has been the creative force of the Holland team throughout this world cup won Silver Ball award (he was one of the rare Dutch players who didn’t receive a card in the final).
For me, the best player in the tournament, up to the 3rd place play-off match, has indeed been Diego Forlán. He has been the perfect striker in this world cup, scoring from outside the box, making decisive passes & scoring from spot-kicks. His ball control & passing along with his sudden bursts of speed has been largely influential in taking Uruguay up to the semis. In the play-off, in the last action of the game, he almost saved Uruguay but his free-kick hit the bar (call it karma).
Kevin-Prince Boateng, Anthony Annan, Jorge Fucile, Vincent Enyeama, Khedira, Gregory van der Wiel & Keisuke Honda – other players who caught the eye of many big clubs!

The Final

Probably the ugliest final of all time. Holland came out guns blazing, using every illegal tactic to disrupt the tiki-taka passing of Spain. Howard Webb tried by all means to keep 22 men on the field, giving out a total 14 yellow cards before Heitinga was given his marching orders in extra extra-time.
Both sides had the opportunities to kill the game in normal time, but they either missed or the ball was saved by the keeper. Robben has the two best chances of the game but failed horribly by not using his wits. First time he didn’t round the keeper & second time, he didn’t shoot early nor did he fall down when tugged. Iniesta on the other hand gave Spain the man advantage by falling at the right time. With Fabregas coming in, running at the defenders, the outcome was inevitable – Iniesta scored in the dying minutes of extra-time (although there’s a hint of offisde with interference with play). Spain win their 1st world cup & Holland, after going undefeated for 2 years, lose their 3rd final.