R.I.P World Cup 2006

[Bushknew]

Well, I was the only one to call it right:

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=215&topic_id=38013&mesg_id=38013

So I now have the bragging rights of the Official DU Football know it all. : - )

Therefore, I demand that all my suggestions on how to improve Soccer be implemented
immediately.

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=215&topic_id=37814&mesg_id=37814

Ironically, it seemed none of the referees saw when Zidane headbutted the Italian player until the INSTANT REPLAY was shown in the stadium.

Speaking of the need for INSTANT REPLAY in Soccer, that French player dove to the ground and France was given a bogus penalty kick which became their only goal of the game.

Frankly, I think Italy was robbed of their second goal, the Italian player wasn’t offsides
when he scored the second goal.

The game should have ended 2 to 0 in favor of Italy in regular time.

Anyway, I have a feeling that FIFA will not implement any of my suggestions
so I guess the next time I pay attention to Soccer will be in 4 years.

[chimpymustgo]

1. Kudos on your prescience. Your "improvements? Not so much.

My understanding was that one of the sideline officials did see the headbutt as it happened. I do agree the Italian player wasn't offsides. But instant replay, while possibily helpful in getting calls, could potentially ruin the flow and the essence of "the beautiful game."

Good call on the Italy pick. I had thought Germany would make it through. Very exciting Cup.

[Bushknew]

3. Thanks, I made some money today …

not only for my early prediction ( from my supposed Soccer know it all buddy) but from the final as well. : - )

Hee hee does victory dance : - )

[brentspeak]

16. The "beautiful game" is made real ugly

due to all the Euro-diving (and Argentine-diving). World Cup 2006 rewarded diving team like Italy and Portugal, and punished honest teams like Australia and the U.S.

[Ravenseye]

2. I agree

1) Zidane is an ass for headbutting that guy, but the side judge obviously only saw it and notified the Ref AFTER the instant replay in the stadium. He got the card he deserved, but it shows a major problem with world football.

2) The French goal was earned by a dive. Total dive. Unquestionable dive. Even Marcelo Balboa on the commentary in the U.S. called it a 'good job of selling it' etc. That PK should never have been taken.

3) While I'm at it Balboa is an ass of an announcer. If someone dives you shouldn't talk about what a smart play it is, you should talk about how shamefull it is. Players and announcers like Balboa are a HUGE problem in the sport when they glamorize and support foul play. (Yet ironically turn around and talk about how great the FIFA fair play rules are when people kick the ball out of bounds when someone on the other team is hurt)

4) The second goal was definately close. Too close to be called offsides by the side judge. When watching it fullspeed there is no visible offsides, and slow motion the player has MAYBE a shoulder...a few inches...offsides. At best. That should have counted.

2-0 Italy.

Who knows what the final score would have been, because I'm sure the game would have played out differently if that were the score after 25 minutes.

Here are my suggestions

A) Penalize players for diving by instant replay after games. IF a player is caught diving, they're removed from the next 4 Fifa sanctioned matches. Have the board that checks it consist of 3 or 5 people who vote on it, from a panel of judges from various countries in rotation, etc. Diving is a huge problem in the sport, and while it can be very hard to catch on the field, it's pretty easy from the box. Diving would surely continue, but the most egregious stuff would end.

B) A second, or even a second and third, official on the field. Rather than instant replay, which I wish I could find a way for it to work, but I can't think of one....but a second official. Works nicely for hockey on a much smaller playing space. Two refs will see more, and can confer. Maybe even three on field officials. One head official who makes all final decisions, but two others to lend their eyes and confer. It's a big ass field for one guy with blurry vision and no depth perception.

Now for some revolutionary thoughts. A few people have made various suggestions that just would change the game way too much. These would change the game, but I think it would generate more offense.

C) A touch more lenience on the offsides. Egregious offsides should always be called, but like today, a shoulder of another player, doesn't make you offisdes later on. Add a 1 foot buffer zone for offsides essentially. eliminate the closest calls which seem to frequently be the ones to cause the most agony.

And really really revolutionary...

D) Open Subs. This is a huge change to the game, yet I think would definately increase the offense. The players get really tired, and sure that's part of the game, the endurance factor, but I think it would be interesting to see what would happen to the game if there were open substitutions, more like hockey....a player being able to run off any time to the bench area, with another player coming on. Giving star players more rest during the game, making better runs and plays throughout.

Anyway. Italy deserved to win imho. The French goal shouldn't of happened, the Italians should have had a second, Zidane acted like an animal, and Barthez can't apparently stop a PK if his life depended on it.

[Endangered Specie]

4. Indeed, the score shoud have been 2-1

BC Italy did commit a possible PK foul in the box later on and didnt get punished

[Bushknew]

6. Diving, Italy vs Australia and Thank You …

Italy was given a penalty kick on a phony dive. The refereeing in the
US vs Italy was a disaster.

Unfortunately, diving and crying wolf is a part of the game of Football and
it shouldn’t be characterized as smart play from announcers and
players.

Thank You for being a soccer fan that recognizes that there ways to improve the game.

Zidane just pissed away millions of dollars in endorsements. He was playing really
well and was the darling of the media and ended his career on this note, what a fool.

These star players have HUGE egos and are used to everyone kissing their ass, so
many can’t handle some good old fashion trash talking on the field.

I really hope some changes occur for this sport.

[Ravenseye]

11. The Ref's were horrible this WC

Absolutely horrible. Nearly every game I watched had a series of agregious calls. The PK on the Australian player made me jump up and scream at the television in anger. There were numerous ones like that, mostly preciptated by some of the worst diving I've seen in years. I know that it can be kept in control, as I look at the EPL and know that diving there is much more limited. They really need to do something about it. It's embarrasing.

Of course there are ways to improve a game, but they have to keep the essence of the game the same. Suggestions that would utterly change the game (like removing offsides, or allowing handballs) are ignorant at best, and stupid at worst. Still, that doesn't mean that things can't change. It's not as if the game itself hasn't changed over the years.

Zidane is an idiot. What a way to go out. Can you imagine Jordan, or Gretzky or Lemieux, or McGuire or any major sports figure in America ending their competitive career by headbutting someone like that and getting ejected in one of the most important games of their career? What the hell did the Italian player say to him to make him do that? INSANE. You mention trash talking, but I mean....come on, he's had to have heard plenty of trash talking in his career. It's not like he's a rookie.

As far as changes you can file all of them in the N.G.F.H file. This is Fifa we're talking about.

[Bushknew]

9. Increase offense? heaven forbid…

I love your rules!!! I’d love to see them implemented.

Any Soccer purists disagree with Ravenseye suggestions?

[jakefrep]

18. A few thoughts....

1) France was hosed out of a PK in the second half. Probably some sort of "make-up" call for the early PK.

2) Balboa sucks as a color guy. He seems to be too fixated on the whole "diving" thing. Sometimes it isn't a "dive", a foul really did happen. It seems to me that the most sensible "punishment" for "diving" is to not reward the dive by whistling a foul. I thought the ref today did a decent job of recognizing that.

[President Kerry]

5. I disagree on the overall assessment, the French played better, and

deserved to win. Now,

1) The France penalty was a dive, clearly. No argument there.

2) The ref didn't call a penalty that really WAS a foul inside the Italian penalty box, after the Italy had tied the game. I think it was a makeup call, so evened thing out.

3) The 2nd Italian goal was off-sides, not by much but it clearly was. You didn't even see the Italians arguing. They knew, and it was 2 or 3 of them.

4) France COMPLETELY outplayed them in the 2nd half and extra times. Barthez barely saw any action; Italy defended well, but Buffon was tested.

5) Zidane screwed up, and it's a shame. 10 minutes to put an end to an exceptional career. And he just lost his marbles. I'd be curious to know what Materazzi had said to him, I'm sure it wasn't to congratulate him on his play. I bet it was pretty ugly, for Zidane to lose it, but it's speculation.

Finally, Zidane was sure going to be one of the penalty shooters, he had executed them routinely for France. They lost by one, with Zidane being out. Too bad.

[HuckleB]

7. The French played better.

But that often doesn't matter with the Italian D. Further, the PK was sketchy, as was the non-PK, as was the off-sides. Any way you wash it, Italy should have won it in regular time.

[Bushknew]

21. The Italian team played a defensive game in the 2nd half …

So, I wouldn’t say they were being outplayed.

I think they were confidant to go to penalty kicks against the older and slower
French goal keeper.

[HuckleB]

8. Italia!

Ah, back to baseball. I love it. But it doesn't get the blood pumping like soccer.

[Bluzmann57]

10. Yawn. Soccer players are sissies.

"Ooooh ouch! I got touched! Think I'll fall down and get the other guy a penalty." I'm glad it's all over. Congratulations to the Italian team.

[Ravenseye]

12. I hate the diving

...as I mentioned upthread I think the diving is the biggest threat to the game today. Yet at the same time believe me...some of those guys that went down? It was legit. I saw a few of the injuries and it made my legs hurt from memory.

The guy who kicked the ball and made shin on shin contact? I had a major knee injury that way that needed arthroscopic surgery. That kind of impact is HUGE. Not to mention various ankle injuries. I played American Football and Soccer and believe it or not, I felt more pain in Soccer than I ever did in American Football.

[northzax]

13. and the head to head hits were hard

until you'd done the head to head hit like that you can't imagine it, it's like being punched in the jaw.

[HuckleB]

17. Blah. Blah. Blah.

Apparently, American football players must real sissies. What's with all those pads?

[citizen snips]

14. Italy deserved to win

[northzax]

15. he was offsides, sorry

there was no real question there. there were two players offsides on that call, and the replays showed it clearly.

and the linesman saw the headbutt and told the on-field referee (there is no replay in the stadium, for just that reason) no sport allows replay for penalties called on players during play (you can't appeal that in Football, for instance) as for the pk, it was a technically correct call, even if a little ticky-tack (technically, you cannot use your body to interfere with a player getting the ball, which is what happened, so it couldn't have been overrruled, since it was within the rules of the game to make that call) refereeing is mostly a judgement call, how much contact is too much? the rules don't tell you, they simply say contact is forbidden.

personally, I like the idea of allowing an additional substitute for each 15 minute overtime, reward the deepest teams with the ability to bring people on to change the game in ot. after two extra times, why not allow players to reenter the match, put a rested Henry back in, for instance. just a thought.

[madrchsod]

19. two referees

just like the youth soccer league i coached in for 17 years. it`s idiotic to think one ref can cover a regulation size soccer field

leave the offsides alone...there`s nothing better than coaching the off side trap esp if you have players that can pull it off

[Kellanved]

20. Agree 99%

The goal was offsides, because an offside player was close enough to influence the play. It was even a very clear case.

But international soccer definitely needs replays as base for referee decisions.

[Bushknew]

22. My impression of the average Soccer player …

Where is my penalty kick!!!!!