The Joy of Soccer

The World Cup is over and the worldwide hangover has begun. My withdrawal symptoms will be nothing compared to what South Africa must be going through. I hope the positive energy they harnessed and amplified during the last month stays with them as they tackle more meaningful challenges. As both Spain and the Netherlands return home, there is worldwide commentary on the match. I've been harsh about the Dutch tactics, but my comments are nothing compared to the statements from Dutch legend Johan Cruyff. Some of his comments are as hard hitting as the Dutch tackling during the Finals.

I had the fortune of playing soccer as a kid but only for a couple of years. I spent my formative years of 4 to 7 living in London during which time I developed a love for soccer and chocolate. I only played two years at my school and even those years were on our "B" team. But even with my limited experience -- augmented by a return onto the pitch during grad school for pickup matches -- I can recall the feeling of running on that wide open pitch, trying to account for all the movement and trying to get that circular object to behave properly.

There were a few moments of inspiration.

Dribbling through two midfielders, hearing the crowd cheer and passing it through to one of our strikers. During the grad school days, scoring off a corner kick by striking the ball one time while it was still in midair. And running around the track in high school (I became a runner after my soccer ambitions ended), hearing the call of "help", turning without hesitation and making a perfect pass back to the coach of the girls team. He would speak with me the next day asking why I didn't play soccer. Surprised, shocked (and more than a little flattered), I asked him why he would ask. His response that my pass at full speed was perfect caught me by surprise. I told him that was the exception. He said something that I have never forgotten: "Sayeed, practice is what makes the exceptional the norm. If you don't have talent, no amount of practice will create it. But even with talent, you need to practice to perfect it."

I was crushed when I did not make my high school soccer team. In many ways, I am only now feeling the loss and realize that watching soccer is one of the ways I cope. But I do remember the joyous feeling of those fleeting moments of excellence. And I wish I had continued to practice instead of giving up. One of the most bonding aspects of soccer, football, futbol is that anyone at anytime can experience this joy. All it takes is a round object and an open space. If you want to add some intensity, invite a few friends and make up some goalposts. Pele and Maradona both grew up in poverty and learned to play soccer in the most modest surroundings. There is a wonderful article about Jessica Hilltout, a Belgian born photographer who made a journey across Africa capturing special moments or scenes. The photographs are poignant. Yet even amidst the apparent sadness, there are powerful images of poetic motion, camaraderie, ingenuity, hope, even joy. For a moment, anyone can be Andres Iniesta scoring the World Cup winning goal.

Soccer is called the beautiful game. I believe that soccer is a beautiful game only when it is played with joy. By teams that genuinely enjoy making great passes, that appreciate when their teammates make incisive runs to create space, that move the ball in flowing patterns. They dance. Sara Crompton, the arts editor and a dance writer for The Daily Telegraph, described Maradona's Argentina team in terms of the tango. Argentina played with joy. As did Spain. Brazil diminished its joy for efficiency and the Germans seemed to do the opposite. There was so much made of poor management when Argentina lost. It's probably true that Maradona made mistakes. But does anyone think Fabio Capello is a poor manager? Germany beat England as badly as they beat Argentina. And when people question why Argentina would want Maradona to return as a manager, they underestimate his standing within his homeland but they also don't recognize that many fans appreciated his joyful approach to the game.

There are teams without enough talent to compete against the world's best. And as that coach said to me years ago, no amount of practice will create talent. I understand why Greece and Switzerland adopt such defensive postures in their matches. But it's disappointing to watch a team like Brazil or Portugal or the Netherlands not play freely. They suppress their joy in the relentless pursuit of victory.

For me, the final match asked the fundamental question of soccer: Do you win by expression or do you win by suppression?

And even by the standards of teams who suppress, the Dutch violence on the pitch was reprehensible. Blaming the Spaniards for retaliation and blaming the referee only makes matters worse. The Dutch criticized the Germans for not challenging the Spaniards during their semi-final encounter. It's interesting to note that Spain defeated both the Netherlands and Germany by the same result. Anyone who wants to see the difference between expression and suppression need look no further than the juxtaposition of Spain's matches against these teutonic neighbors. There were *NO* fouls for the first 25 minutes of and few fouls throughout the Spain v. Germany match. If you want to make sure the referee doesn't dominate the proceedings, try not fouling each other. For another point of comparison between the Netherlands and Germany, consider the comments of another soccer legend from the 1970s. Franz Beckenbauer may have been wrong about Germany winning the finals, but he certainly appreciated the joyful approach of the Germans.

I'll keep reflecting on the loss of joy with my own soccer journey. Some day I'll embrace that joy I might experience now is fundamentally no different than the joy I experienced on the pitch or maybe even the joy that Iniesta felt when he scored the winning goal. I'm not there yet. Until I get there, I'll keep experiencing vicariously through Spain's victory.

An Ugly Day of Soccer

Today's matches provided plenty of ammunition for the soccer detractors throughout the world.

For all the talent that England possesses in its midfield players and strikers, it is amazing how they produce some of the dullest, uninspiring, and numbing soccer. I'm so hard on England because I really like the way they are capable of playing. Individual players such as Cole, Lampard, Gerrard, and certainly Rooney have had their moments, but as a collective, they just aren't performing. Say what you will about David Beckham, but his free kicks have been directly responsible for two England victories, against the two South American teams they have faced. One might argue that it's a high price to pay for keeping him in the lineup if all he does is take charge of set pieces. But given how much England has come to rely upon these set pieces, it seems worth it. Rooney demonstrated that he can play the full 90 minutes, and that he can still cause havoc. I got the feeling that he is beginning to conclude that he has to take matters into his own hands, which is good for England--and bad for its opponents.

Apparently, Ecuador's manager, Luis Suarez, said they were happy to make it past the first round. They certainly played this way. Maybe the offensive flair they displayed against Costa Rica and Poland was possible only against weaker competition. It was conspicuously absent against both Germany and England. The most surprising aspect of their play was a lack of urgency, but not everyone is obsessed with marching through the tournament. They certainly represented their country well.

England and Ecuador may be criticized for playing poorly. As for the Netherlands and Portugal, they should be ashamed for behaving poorly. The Dutch and Portugese teams are amongst the most creative, elegant and talented teams in the world, which made it even more sad to see the WWE debacle during this match. Having watched so many of these players in club and national team matches, I was shocked to see them behave in this manner. World class players were anything but world class. Lost amongst the wrestling, head-butting, kicking and shoving, we witnessed this evening was a fantastic goal by Maniche. It offered such fleeting promise for the match.

I wonder about Van Basten's coaching this evening. Hindsight is always 20/20, but keeping out Van Nistelrooij was a curious decision. He's obviously not the most popular guy around these days, and perhaps he didn't play with tremendous intensity in the first three games. But the Dutch needed one goal to keep alive, and Van Nistelrooij represents a great option for that one special moment. I also think Scolari used the 4-5-1 formation masterfully. The Dutch couldn't find any space in the midfield or Portugese end of the field.

I'm a great admirer of both Dutch and Portugese, but this match was one of the worst displays in World Cup history. It's too bad we can't replace Portugal with Mexico.

And just when we thought the refereeing could not get any worse. How can a referee hand out 101,351 cards and still lose complete control of the match? FIFA has indicated that it will send home referees who perform poorly. I hope Ivanov was sent to the airport right after the match. If FIFA follows through with their plans, who will be left to referee the final matches?

Where are you, Pierluigi Collina :-)

Group C Finales

I am really sorry that we won't get to see the Ivory Coast play in the next round. Even without Drogba, they offered up some impressive soccer against Serbia and Montenegro. Anyone watching the second half realized that it wasn't a question of if Ivory Coast would score, but a question of how many. It turned out to be just enough. Serbia and Montenegro showed some great finishing skills, and being a man down proved insurmountable for them (though Stankovic's missed header must have tormented their fans). It was refreshing to see Drogba join his teammates for their post-goal celebrations. There was a certain release each time they scored, and a huge sigh of relief when they netted their third goal. This team would have almost certainly advanced to the knockout phase if it had been drawn into another group. This is the last time that Serbia and Montenegro play as a unified team. Given that there were only two players on this team from Montenegro, it may be a sign that we may not hear much from them in soccer circles. Somehow, I don't think this was on their mind when they voted for independence.

Sometimes, great teams neutralize each other when they play, but Argentina and the Netherlands may have been neutralized even before they stepped onto the pitch. Both teams rested players. I would not be surprised if the possession was even, but the Argentinians made the most of their possession, mainly because of Messi and Tevez who had a chance to showcase their skills. Tevez, in particular, did his best impression of the Energizer Bunny. Riquelme did his part, offering several opportunities for others to find the net. Even then, he seemed about fifteen degrees off his best game. There were many, many moments of individual flair and skill, and a few sequences of surgical passing. But these moments only reminded everyone of what these teams are capable of doing. Some might assume that the Netherlands wasn't too picky between facing Portugal or Mexico, but I think this game just shows that both Argentina and the Netherlands are confident they can play with any team. It wouldn't be a shock if these two teams met again--with much higher stakes.

Group D Finales

Perhaps I'm being unfair, but I didn't sense a joie de football from Angola today. Contrast their performance with Trinidad and Tobago, who also found themselves with unexpected possibilities during the final game. On more than one occasion, Angola's players were yelling at and pointing fingers at each other. Soccer can provide great escapism, but reality, both on and off the pitch, eventually has a way of making its inevitable impact. It couldn't have been easy to rely on Portugal for help, though they did their part for Angola (from a soccer perspective only, I repeat, from a soccer perspective only). Iran has played positive soccer throughout each of its games, and they deserved some reward. Angola didn't reach what must have been initially an unthinkable summit, but they did end up with two points, and their first World Cup goal. I hope they don't mind sharing the points with Iran on this day, who managed to salvage one point. More importantly, they showed that a country's place in the political landscape doesn't have to define its place in the soccer landscape. Can you think of another country for which this might be true?

Portugal and Mexico seemed intent on scoring goals. Even at the end of the match when Portugese manager Scolari was asking his players to hold the ball, they persisted in attacking the Mexican goal. Mexico must have known that their passage into the next round was never really in jeopardy, but even at the end of the match, they wanted more goals. The game featured another missed penalty kick (by a country mile), and a stutter step penalty kick. Not quite the style that Socrates used in the classic Brazil v. France match in 1986 but Simao had a better outcome :-)

In 2002, Mexico looked formidable during the group stage, but lost to the US in the second round. They haven't played as impressively in the current offering and they now face a match with Argentina. It's going to take a special performance from Mexico--or anyone for that matter--to beat Argentina. Portugal advances past the first round for the first since 1966 when the magnificent Eusebio led them to a third place finish. Perhaps Portugal has paced itself, and today they rested five players with yellow cards, but they haven't been pushed yet. I'm sure the Netherlands will offer a serious test.

Day Eleven

Togo's team continues to swirl around in the storm of controversy related to compensation. As if playing in The World Cup isn't enough!! Apparently, they threatened to boycott the match against Switzerland. I never had much of a soccer career, and I'm certainly out of shape now. But I'd be happy to play in their place. Whatever the reason for this ongoing controversy, it's unfortunate to have this drama taking place during the games. They are arguing over compensation for wins, draws and for reaching the secound round, and they've been eliminated after two losses. During the last World Cup, Nike ran an ad using a remix of Elvis Presley's song "A Little Less Conversation [A Little More Action Please]" Maybe Togo's players should listen to this tune.

I hadn't seen much of Switzerland before the tournament, but I'm dismayed to see some of their tactics. They used their hands twice in the match against France, and both of the moves appeared to be deliberate. In this match against Togo, their defender Müller demonstrated tremendous skills in the box--karate skills. I'm not sure what the referee was looking at as he waved off Togo's pleas for a penalty kick. Maybe he's a karate fan.

What a difference one game can make. Ukraine not only soundly beats Saudi Arabia, they make up their entire goal differential in one game. You have to admire the Saudis, who keep on running and gunning, despite the scoreline. There's no doubt that drawing with Tunisia was a huge accomplishment. Perhaps it's a little harder to find progress in a 4-0 loss, but it's better than the 8-0 pounding from Germany in 2002. Maybe the Saudis should tighten up their defense when they concede a goal. Nah. It's fun to watch this team play so freely, even when they are behind. Ukraine will certainly sleep better tonight. Shevchenko's pass on the final goal was perfect. Arsenal fans don't want to see that sight next season in the Premiership.

Spanish fans must have been horrified when Tunisia took the lead today. Especially given that the Spanish defense seemed frozen in place. Even Casillas could have done better by punching the ball away from goal. But Spain is still looking very good. For many years, I was convinced that Morientes was the Rodney Dangerfield of Spanish soccer. Now it appears that Raul is on the outside looking in. Looking in the back of the net. He's certainly making the case for starting, alongside Torres.

As we move into the final games of the first round, I would put Spain in the top four performers, along with Argentina, the Netherlands and Brazil. Yes, I know that Brazil has only scored three goals, but I think we all know there will be more to come.

Days Seven, Eight, Nine and Ten

Before The World Cup began, I had imagined that Ivory Coast might have been the sleeper or dark horse team. Being placed in the group of death has been hard on them (though, it seems, even harder on Serbia and Montenegro). Having watched Ecuador play twice, I have to say that I believe they are the most promising, surprise team so far. It was so refreshing to see their defenders neutralize Costa Rica's strikers by actually running with them, toward the goal. They didn't rely (exclusively) on the offside trap, having defenders run away from the goal with their hands up in the air. If they tie or beat Germany in the final game of the first round, they win the group.

As for who they might meet in the second round, England still continues to underwhelm. On one level, it was great to see Wayne Rooney in action. The World Cup features the best players in the world, and he certainly fits the bill. But on another level, why did England need his (and Lennon's) boost? Peter Crouch had to resort to hair pulling for the first goal. They just don't seem to be rising to the occasion, and it's worth nothing they haven't beaten Sweden since 1968. If England beats Sweden, and Trinidad and Tobago beats Paraguay, we have to look at tie breakers. As much as I've enjoyed seeing T&T's spirit, I don't see this happening. BTW, major respect to John Terry for that goal line clearance.

Argentina 6, Serbia and Montenegro 0. Argentina has managed this scoreline before in The World Cup in 1978 by beating Peru 6-0, which helped them advance on goal differential over Brazil. However, that match remains controversial to this day. Soccer being soccer, I can even recall articles at the time speculating that Argentina had threatened military action against, or even offered nuclear technology, to Peru (conspiracy theories cut both ways). On this occasion, there's no controversy--just admiration for Argentina's fantastic play. Let's hope both the Netherlands and Argentina continue playing great soccer when they meet in the final game of the first round.

In the "other confederation" arena, it seems that the African confederation is reasserting itself. Ivory Coast played well in a losing effort, Angola tied Mexico, and Ghana's strikers and keeper found their stride against the Czech Republic. From Asia, Iran lost to Portugal, but Japan managed a tie against Croatia, and South Korea came back to tie France. From the CONCACAF realm, there's the US-Italy game.

Let's hope that we witnessed the worst refereeing of the tournament. That ref was hopeless. It takes a lot of courage to hand out a red card to a soccer power like Italy. De Rossi deserved the red card, but many refs would have given him a yellow card and a stern warning. But he almost certainly used Mastroeni for a make-up call. I also don't think he realized that Eddie Pope already had a yellow card. In the end, the US has to be pleased with being alive, though beating Ghana is no easy task. Onyewu seemed to settle into his role, but Eddie Pope still looked lost. The image of him holding up his hand, standing still, during Italy's first goal was rather pathetic. Of course, I'm not sure who's going to play in the back line now that he's suspended.

Both the US-Italy and South Korea-France match left me wondering about European soccer entitlement. What do I mean? De Rossi was clearly upset that his teammate, Zaccardo, scored an own goal (and what a bizarre strike of the ball). Maybe he should have had his words with him. Instead, he decided to elbow Brian McBride. When South Korea scored its goal, William Gallas (who should attend the John Terry school for goal line clearing) was clearly upset. Shortly after the goal, he grabbed (an offside) South Korean player and threw him to the pitch. So, what I wonder about is whether certain Italian or French players would behave this way if they were playing each other (or another of the soccer "powers")? How much of their frustration arose from an expectation, even entitlement, that they were the better team and therefore "deserved" to win.

Regardless of whether I'm just idly (or even unfairly) speculating, it was a very sad sight to see Zidane leave the field, throwing something off to the side. Given his second yellow card, he won't play in France's next game. If teams in their group play better than France, then they decide to advance. But I have to confess that I hope this isn't the last image of Zidane from The World Cup.

As for Brazil, everyone seems to think they're still going at 50%. All I have to say is that Brazil can put anyone into the game, even a guy named Fred, and he will find a way to score :-)

Day Three

What did Arjen Robben have for breakfast?

In addition to his excellent skills, he displayed an incredible amount of energy. It didn't matter if he faced one, two, three, or four defenders, he kept charging at them and causing havoc. That had to be the performance of the tournament to date. When the Netherlands is firing on all cylinders, they are a sight to behold. The one curious aspect of their play was their repeated back passes that put Van der Saar into awkward situations. Given that he kept nursing a cramp, was it wise to keep pushing the ball back to him?

They looked better than Argentina on this day. It will be interesting to see what might happen to Argentina if a team inhibits Riquelme. While Robben shined today, there are other Dutch players who can rise to the occasion. How does one close down space on eleven players? Serbia and Montenegro certainly tried, but there were so many occasions the Dutch simply controlled play. Having said this, Serbia and Montenegro also had its moments. I think this is the group of death because each team has shown great skill and ability to control play. Ivory Coast and Serbia and Montenegro showed they can keep their opponents back on their heels. I think there's quite a bit of drama left in this group, perhaps culimating with the Argentina v. Netherlands encounter on June 21st.

I once heard that Marco van Basten preferred playing club soccer to playing for the national team. Perhaps that was true, but maybe one of the most gifted strikers (not just in the Netherlands) has particular insights into how to make the Dutch play as a cohesive, brilliant unit. He seemed fairly reserved as a player, and even more so as a manager. He must have been pleased at the end of this match, but he also looked like someone who knew that the uphill journey had only just begun.

During The World Cup, what transpires outside the soccer stadium sometimes makes more news than what happens inside the stadium. Iran has been the in the news for various political matters, and their President has made insensitive, indefensible comments about the Holocaust. Apparently, the crowd booed the Iranian team as they came onto the pitch. Mexico, on the other hand, had a personal tragedy given that goalkeeper Sanchez's father passed away this week. There was one political aspect to their team as well since there seems to be some controversy about two players who are naturalized citizens.

During The World Cup, what eventually happens inside the soccer stadium sometimes provides relief from what happens outside the stadium. Iranian keeper, Mirzapour, gave Sanchez a bouquet of flowers at the beginning of the game. Zinya, a Brazilian born Mexican, assisted brilliantly on the second goal and, despite being five foot, four inches, rose mightily to head home the third goal. Everyone on the team and every Mexican fan in the stadium cheered.

At the end of the game, Sanchez's teammates surrounded him, joining him in what must have been a bittersweet moment for him. I'm sure he is thrilled with the victory, but I'm also sure he has other things on his mind. The final image from the broadcast was an Iranian player applauding the crowd. Iran played a clean, positive, decent game. It was very encouraging to hear former US players emphasizing that they viewed their 1998 World Cup match with Iran as a game. That, as athletes, they were concerned about what happened on the field. Even as nations rattle sabres, players on the field can exchange gifts or swap jerseys. I do not know how specific Iranian players feel about their President or country's politics. But I do know that they represented themselves well on the pitch. I hope no one booed them on their way out of the stadium.

How do you measure progress?

The last time Portugal and Angola met on the soccer pitch, Portugal won 5-1, but the match was suspended after 68 minutes when a fourth Angolan player was shown the red card. When faced with a force that once dominated them, both on and off the field, it was natural to be nervous and anxious. Angola avoided disaster in the first minute, only to have it return in the fourth minute. At that point, if someone had told me that Portugal would score eight goals, I would have believed it. In another reality, Angola might have buckled and the Portugese goalfest would have commenced. But the Angolan players steadied themselves, and responded well. There was no chance that this group would receive four red cards. Tommy Smyth spoke well when he said "this team knows a little something about soccer..."

Portugal was humiliated by their performance in the 2002 World Cup. They played well in Euro2004, but two losses to Greece left the home crowd disappointed. They won today, albeit with more difficulty than they might have imagined. So three points from the first game is progress.

But the progress for the Angolans was more impressive. It was a courageous performance. If there is honor in defeat, the Angolans can claim it.