Worst Ever World Cup?

[SAS]

I know its only early days.

But compared to the other finals ive watched this just isnt doing it for me at all.

Goals- What goals, been very few, and a couple of them have been massive keeper errors.

Attendence- Surely every world cup game should be sold out? I remember applying for tickets twice, and not getting any both times. Now i see empty seats!!

The Ball - been so many complaints about this `fly away` and its very evident it does swerve. Is this affecting the quality of football which has been quite poor so far.

Atmosphere - There hasnt been one song sung so far from what ive watched. All you can hear is this extremely annoying noise like a bunch of kids in an english ground but on a much bigger stage. It was surreal watching england with no atmosphere. This is one of our biggest characteristics and no doubt drives the team on.

[neekoy]

flipping heck, bit early mate.

Let's see what happens on the field once the the group stages are finished

Agree the jubalnis and vuzuvulas and bafana bafanas etc are annoying but we have seen a definate improvement in even the lower teams which is only good for competition

[LeChuck]

The statistics suggest it is the worst ever so far.

It's been absolutely awful, there has barely been any goalmouth action.

[tcj_jones]

Thank God this tournament has Argentina - the only team I've actualy enjoyed watching!

It's important to remember that, so far, most of the games have been (based on where you'd imagine the teams to finish) 1st vs 4th and 2nd vs 3rd. As such, the games have either been one team attacking vs the other defending, or two teams employing a cautious game plan. This should change a bit in the second round of group games.

I hope it does, because the quality has been awful so far.

[Hughesy]

The worst ever? Perhaps its started tight, but that is simply because their isnt as wide a gap now.

Teams are more focused on tactics & much more technical & also nobody wants to lose the 1st game.

Games from the 2nd group games onwards should improve. The 11 goals in 2 games & 85 mins seem to back that up too.

The ball stuff I dont buy, everyone had the option to use it from Feb, not our fault the Germans took it up & we didnt.

[Tom]

I'm enjoying it much more than the Korea one mainly because I've been able to watch 3 games on some days.

Both games today have been good for different reasons and tomorrow should be a good day with a bit of luck

[Eddie]

It's the knock-out games that really decide how good a world cup is, so it's far too early to judge. So far the games haven't been fantastic, but the bad teams aren't as bad anymore so the games aren't as one-sided and we've yet to see very many good match-ups. Brazil v Portugal and Brazil v Ivory Coast will be good and the rest of the Spain group should be interesting with so much to play for. The 3rd games when there is everything on the line could really make the group stages exciting. I don't think many groups will have been decided after the second match.

[jodrell]

The worst ever? Perhaps its started tight, but that is simply because their isnt as wide a gap now.

Teams are more focused on tactics & much more technical & also nobody wants to lose the 1st game.

Games from the 2nd group games onwards should improve. The 11 goals in 2 games & 85 mins seem to back that up too.

The ball stuff I dont buy, everyone had the option to use it from Feb, not our fault the Germans took it up & we didnt.

I think the ball problems have been with contracts Prem. use Nike, and Germany use Addidas balls. But I agree they all should have all used the ball in training for Internationals.

On 5 live they said goal wise there was not much difference between this world cup and the same stage at the last one.

[neekoy]

It's the knock-out games that really decide how good a world cup is, so it's far too early to judge. So far the games haven't been fantastic, but the bad teams aren't as bad anymore so the games aren't as one-sided and we've yet to see very many good match-ups. Brazil v Portugal and Brazil v Ivory Coast will be good and the rest of the Spain group should be interesting with so much to play for. The 3rd games when there is everything on the line could really make the group stages exciting. I don't think many groups will have been decided after the second match.

We actually agree on this

The first round takes a cautious approach because the two best teams and lowest teams in the group still have to play each other which means if you finish with a draw in the first game it is all open in the second to qualify straight through with a win.

[philipl]

Groups A, B, C, F and H are for sure going to have sudden death matches in the last round of fixtures and there might be shoot outs to get to the top of the table on goal difference in the other Groups plus remaining second round results might transform the prospects of countries seemingly dead and buried at the moment.

So too early to judge the whole tournament but distinctly under-whelming so far. The best matches have only been middlingly entertaning or interesting.

[jim mk2]

Like the Champions League, the group matches are a deathly bore and the competition won't get exciting until the knockout last 16.

Solution: get rid of the Champions League and go back to the old knockout European Cup and bring back old style World Cups with fewer teams and more meaningful games.

But it won't happen.

[Bobby G]

Jim in a way I agree with you about the CL especially as the group stages are a walk-over. But money talks.

In the WC, I dont think there will be much of a difference between 24 and 32 teams, as of the 8 extra countries 4 will be European and decent, and you get 1 each from other continents. I think it adds to the international feel to it and as we see no team is really small in the WC. Just look at Mexico, Japan, Korea, and Ghana beating possibly more fancied opposition.

The Euros though being expanded to 24 teams is a joke. You're virtually letting all European countries of note qualify automatically. What's the point?

[broadsword]

It's gash.

[Hughesy]

Realistically yesterday saw probably the best days football so far. Tidy performance from Argies, a fight between Greece & Nigeria & then a shock win (or not) for Mexico.

Its hotting up!

[tcj_jones]

Yesterday was a much better day of football, with a real 'World Cup' feel about the games. The day before was also a slight improvement on what had proceeded it. Germany - Serbia should be a good game and, with England tonight, today should be a good day. I reckon it only gets better from here.

[Tim Southampton Rover]

The world cup has come to life in the last few days. It can only get better!

[Guest roverspogges]

Agree with the two previous posts, it's definately warming up now. Slovenia vs USA has been a pretty good game.

[thenodrog]

Like the Champions League, the group matches are a deathly bore and the competition won't get exciting until the knockout last 16.

Solution: get rid of the Champions League and go back to the old knockout European Cup and bring back old style World Cups with fewer teams and more meaningful games.

But it won't happen.

Not often I agree with Jim but has anybody else noticed a correlation between under performing national teams and the Champions league sphere of influence? Today Italy, France and England face humiliating elimination whilst Germany and Spain have had their noses pushed well and truly out of joint by minnows.

I've suggested many times that the Champions league format and distribution of wealth is having a negative effect on our football and has turned every european league into a carbon copy of the Scottish league where two teams dominate totally and the rest are cannon fodder and I feel that now the chickens are coming home to roost.

Whichever way one looks at it real competition has been reduced for the big clubs and the big players that they monopolise. This year has seen a change in this country's annual procession through the season to due to the poor management at Liverpool but since the influence of the CL far too many top players are not stretched on a weekly basis. The worlds best foreign talent has been recruited to play in Europe leagues thereby creating an associated psychology that the lucky home produced nationals who have been signed by the dominating clubs actually believe that they are better than they are. Signing a player who is being reimbursed to the tune of 1 million pa and then paying him 5X that amount does not make him any better as a player and never will. All the fawning over the leading clubs and their players by the press and media and the ludicrous over use of terms like world class this and world class that is simply having a negative and de-motivational effect on our top talent.

I've been of the opinion for almost a decade now that Gerrard and Lampard have not progressed their talents simply because they have never had to strive to improve. They have been slavishly included in every team by every manager since the turn of the century instead of being forced to compete with each other and to extend themselves as they should. The result of this gross mismangement are the players that we see going through the motions today.

Since Friday the nation is imploring the manager to pot the Billy Big times and include the likes of Crouch, Cole, Milner, Dawson, Warnock etc in the team to face Slovenia. Why? They are not all even first choice at their clubs never mind in the England team. It's not cos they are more talented but because we know that they will be better motivated.

[Paul]

Excellent post from thenodrog

[neekoy]

Today has started with a bang, everything is starting to heat up, the better "teams" are now really starting to felx their muscle, we have a number of "top" nations under some serious pressure and we have smaller nations like NZ and Algeria stepping up big time and playing out of their skins.

[SouthAussieRover]

Excellent post from thenodrog

He was due one.

Did you give him a plus?

I'm pretty certain a European nation will win the Cup.

[DeadlyDirk]

Does anyone know when the World Cup starts? I'm getting bored of watching the World Diving Championships which seems to be on all the time at the moment.

[thenodrog]

Excellent post from thenodrog

Thank you Paul.