Blitzkreig
Whether you think this German side is good is irrelevant, but the Brazilian side has about as much commitment as a bad Division One side!
Will anybody beat the Germans?
Yes! But I don’t know who will!
How To Motivate Your Team
I like this story about paying the footballers from Ghana in cash, which a mate forwarded from Bloomberg.
Perhaps, if we paid ours in cash, they’d have performed better.
Crass Commentary From ITV
When France scored their third goal against Switzerland, the ITV commentator said this.
Not for the first time, there really is a mountain between France and Switzerland.
That really is one of the most crass statements heard in a football commentary.
One Of The Most Depressing Days Of The Year
I hate June the twentieth, as it was my late son’s birthday. He would have been forty-four today, if he hadn’t died of pancreatic cancer four years ago. I never hate my late wife’s birthday in the same way, but that could be eased as another son virtually shares it.
So why did England’s kamikaze defending have to ensure their exit from the World Cup last night?
The media will be full of this depression today.
To make matters worse, BBC Breakfast is talking to a lady, who lost her husband and daughter in a speed-boat accident.
I’ll have to find something stimulating to do.
If my son were still here, we’d at least be arguing the whys and wherefores!
My only comfort is life could be worse. I did try to organise a luxury trip to the World Cup some months ago, but failed.
I would feel a lot worse, if I was waking up in Brazil.
ITV And The BBC Disagree Over Fred’s Penalty
ITV’s commentators and experts thought that the penalty awarded to Brazil last night was correct. The BBC’s pundits were adamant Fred dived.
The Times this morning is saying that Fred was guilty. Type “Fred penalty” into Google News and most newspapers the world-over think it was a dive!
Brazil were lucky, as other decisions of the referee didn’t stand up to video scrutiny.
Let’s hope that the rest of the referees have been to Specsavers!
A Little Alone Time For Roy
This headline accompanied a picture of Roy Hodgson walking by the waterfront by the team’s hotel in Rio.
Managing footballers and especially those as well-paid as today’s England team, is probably not an easy job. I got to wondering, how the players were reacting to Roy’s apparent calmness.
So I looked up Sir Alf Ramsey’s obituary in the Guardian. Talking about his playing career, they said this of Sir Alf.
He was a calming and reassuring influence on the whole team.
So one could probably assume that he managed his teams in a similar way. We do know from the likes of Ian Callaghan, that Sir Alf fought to get the best for his players, and it was probably partly from Sir Alf’s pushing that the whole England squad from 1966 got winner’s medals. Even if he got his posthumously.
I don’t think that for the England team to get worked up will do them any good.
So is Roy doing his best to keep total calm in the camp? After all he has been to World Cup Finals before with Switzerland in 1994. So he probably knows more about motivating a side in the World Cup than any of the public! Or the pundits!
I’m Disappointed With My City
London is one of the most multi-cultural cities in the world, if not the most multi-cultural city.
And I live in one of the most multi-cultural boroughs in London; Hackney.
So you’d think that there would be a big screen somewhere to watch the World Cup.
But I can’t find a public one anywhere in London.
For the last World Cup in 2010, Hackney had a festival with a big screen close to me in Gillette Square. It’s reported here on the Hackney web site.
I’m very disappointed with my city.
Has Wayne Rooney Grown Up?
I heard this from Roy Hodgson in the England Press Conference today.
If it’s anything to do with desire and ambition then we’ve got nothing to fear. I’ve told the players to go away for a week and get mentally prepared. Wayne has decided to take a physio with him because he is so determined to come back firing on all cylinders. His attitude – spot on, desire – couldn’t be better, ability – yes he has. Now it is all about bringing that to the match on the day.
The Rooney of old wouldn’t have been so professional!
Watching The World Cup
Obviously, Brazil is out for most fans and although I’d like to go to Manaus to see England play Italy on the 14th June, it is probably prudent not to go.
But why not go and watch the match in Italy. I could fly out on the Friday, watch the match in a bar on Saturday night and then take the train back on the Sunday or the Monday.
Cities that come to mind are Venice, Naples, Salina and of course Taranto.
You may ask why Taranto! Just don’t go near a Royal Navy ship or establishment on the twelth of November, as often they are celebrating the battle that marked the start of the end of the battleship and was then imitated by the Japanese at Pearl Harbor.
Brazil World Cup Doesn’t Seem Much Better
Under their report on Sochi and its troubles, there is an article with this heading.
World Cup protest threat as corruption bill hits £32bn
Given all of the other well reported troubles in Brazil, it does seem that watching sport on television in 2014, is going to be an interesting experience to say the least.
The Anonymous Widower 