So it will be Spain versus the Netherlands in the World Cup final. I have to say that that is an excellent matchup and I couldn’t have asked for more. I was rooting for Germany but the match with Spain was dull until the Spaniards finally scored off corner-kick header in the second half. I was shocked at how well Spain stifled Germany’s many great players. I suspect the Netherlands are in for the same rude awakening, and they don’t have the same stout defense that Germany presented. Still, as good as Spain is at controlling the flow of play, they aren’t good finishers (David Villa, excepted). They missed a half a dozen chances to score today.
Spain and Holland are frequently said to be the two best countries never to have won the World Cup. That will change this weekend. I just hope it isn’t decided on penalty kicks.
That header was awesome.
I love it because I have breakfast every week with a two people – one from Spain, and one from the Netherlands. So I can’t wait to see who wins! 😉 I was pulling for Spain, myself. Woohoo!
Just spoke with my daughter in NY. Being an alumni of UNIS(.org), her social circle certainly is multi-national. Two of her best friends are Spanish and Dutch respectively. Apparently, they are all getting together Sunday night for the final (along with Japanese/Puerto Rican, Libyan/Canadian, Croatian/Italian, various other ‘mongrels’, US and several others nationalities). I’ll have to get a report – I’m betting it will be a blast.
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See my comment in a diary – World Cup Dream Final Holland-Spain
Spain is the reigning European Champion and beat Germany in a similar match in 2008: Spain-Germany 1-0.
The Orange team are on the roll and haven’t lost during the last 25 games!
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."I mentioned something to this effect in the cafe the other day – Geneva is quite the international city.
Tonight, the Spanish are running crazy. Cars honking, whistles and vuvuzelas blowing and screams and shouts piercing the night. I don’t expect much sleep.
vuvuzela are lost on me. I understand that many players would support their banishment from football grounds.
It took a while but I don’t think I even noticed them during today’s match.
“Among the Thugs” by Bill Buford. It’s a fascinating account of his experiences among British football club supporters. Much violence, racism and neo-nazism from working class guys without much hope for the future. There are some obvious parallels to be drawn to folks in this country.
I have always had difficulty associating hooliganism with soccer. It would make more sense with Rugby.
I mean, try imagining golf hooligans. Or baseball.
Looking forward to this final game with two quality teams fairly evenly matched, with prospects for a close match all the way to the end, and finally a team to emerge with their first ever Cup.
As for PK shootouts, I’m not against them. After two solid hours of slogging it out on the pitch, that’s plenty of time for one team to decide it if they were capable, and frankly by the 2-hour mark, I’m ready for some closure. The shootout is actually fun to watch even though soccer purists disdain it for its artificial aspect, but it’s a darn sight better than the NFL’s “sudden death” system, which favors a lucky coin toss and a just good enough kicker.
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25 Matches without a loss, won all World Cup qualifying games and a perfect score in South Africa. Orange clockwork are focused on the goal of winning the World Cup for the 1st time in Dutch soccer history. The top players of The Netherlands are playing in the four top leagues of European Soccer: Italy, Spain, England and Germany. Unique for the individual talented players to perform great as a team. Bert van Marwijk sticks with his 11 starting players with very few changes.
The line-up:
Goalkeeper: Maarten Stekelenburg (Ajax)
Giovanni van Bronckhorst (Feyenoord – captain)
Joris Mathijsen (Hamburger SV)
John Heitinga (Everton)
Gregory van der Wiel (Ajax)
Nigel de Jong (Manchester City)
Mark van Bommel (Bayern Munich)
Dirk Kuyt (Liverpool)
Wesley Schneider (Inter Milan)
Arjen Robben (Bayern Munich)
Robin van Persie (Arsenal)
Spain has been super-efficient scoring only 7 goals and 2 against. Their top scorer is David Villa with 5 goals. Looking at the World Cup statistics, that fact could be their weakness: the attacking line has been very dependent on David Villa. True, to win a match you can perform well with only a single goal: Puyol against Germany. Too keep the Dutch attack from scoring will be a tall order for Spain!
CAPE TOWN, South Africa (AP)–No style points. Winning is what matters.
After losing in their two previous trips to the World Cup final, the Netherlands is determined not to let its flashy play get ahead of going home with the big prize.
“We know we can play football,” Dutch captain Giovanni van Bronckhorst said. “To be mentally strong is now most important.”
The Netherlands reached the 1974 and ’78 finals with some of soccer’s greatest players, but each time the host nation–West Germany and then Argentina–beat Oranje teams with a reputation for overconfidence.
After Tuesday’s 3-2 semifinal win over Uruguay, coach Bert van Marwijk is determined to make sure that his team’s 10-game winning streak–including six at this tournament–does not create the same problem.
"But I will not let myself be reduced to silence."