occasional posts by risa aratyr
Uruguay brought on the team they wish had been fit and card-cleared for their match against Holland. The return of Lugano and Suárez to the starting line-up was particularly pleasing to the fans. Germany’s starting 11 was an altered squad. A couple of mainstays were under the weather, Klose had a back problem, Butt was … Read more WC Fields [3rd place] — Uruguay v Germany
After some weirdness in the Group stage — a close shave victory over the Black Stars and a surprising defeat to Serbia — Germany returned to the form they’d displayed against Australia and proceeded to clobber England and clobber Argentina. They expected to clobber Spain. A few days ago I posed the question, “How the … Read more WC Fields [semi] — Germany v Spain
Those who only follow the fortunes of the big-name teams miss some of the very best matches. The crowds show up for Germany, Brazil, Argentina, Mexico, USA, England. There were only 3 of us in the pub to see Uruguay-Holland. Lucky us. This one was riveting. With two star player suspended on reds and Lugano … Read more WC Fields [semi] — Uruguay v Holland
GERMANY v ARGENTINA On paper? A not-to-be-missed match, end-to-end, neck-and-neck. On the pitch… Argentina got creamed. Germany won by a resounding 4 – 0 margin. The one and only question I had at the end of the 90 minutes was, “How the hell is anybody going to beat these guys?” Argentina’s pride was crushed as … Read more WC Fields [1/4 finals] — Day #2
HOLLAND v BRAZIL Holland has what it takes to be real contenders. They’ve already shown their coordination, precision passing, attack mentality and individual skills. In this match they revealed a ruthless side to their game that sent a message to their opponents in the next round: if our beautiful football isn’t enough to win it, … Read more WC Fields [1/4 finals] — Day #1