World Cup 2010: One Day Down, Bring on U.S.-England

Day 1 is in the books and what do we have to show for it? Aside from an epic South Africa goal, right, we're left with two draws, a bunch of questionable refereeing and inane analysis from Alexi Lalas. Lord help us, hopefully Day 2 is a lot better tomorrow.

Can't wait for U.S.-England and Argentina-Nigeria too. Any day you get to see Messi play, it's a good day and hopefully he cuts loose and plays like the hero he is for his country. His ineffectiveness for Argentina is a big and overlooked storyline so far; and don't forget Dummy Diego Maradona. If anyone can screw up a good thing for Argentina, my money is on Maradona more so than Messi.

The story of U.S.-England will be the American defense. If Rooney is less than 100%, the U.S. has a chance to steal a result, especially without Ferdinand in the back. Criticize him all you want, but the man is a veteran and a solid player. For consistency's sake, his absence will hurt England.

But the U.S. back line is a fright. Oguchi Onyewu is a shell of himself and if he can't challenge John Terry and Peter Crouch in the air, it's going to be a lonnnnng day for Tim Howard in goal. If the rest of the backline blubs in Bornstein, Bocanegra, DeMerit, Spector et. al. don't play the game of their lives, see the above as well.

Tim Howard, I fear, will have to be a big-time hero for the U.S. to earn a precious point, or 3.

Either way, you have to figure it's gotta be better, in terms of quality of play, than Day 1.

Subscribe to Starting Eleven

World Cup 2010 Running Commentary: South Africa-Mexico

Random thoughts while watching the first match of World Cup 2010 between South Africa and Mexico:

• ESPN has already had a bunch of audio glitches and video flubs. Um, you've only had years to get this right World Wide Leader.
• The hiring of Martin Tyler will prove to be ESPN's best move. Just awesome sparing us JP Dellacamera, Tommy Onion Bags et al.
• Mexico in black; looks wierd
• If South Africa has a strong on-field leader, they need him now in that huddle.
• Thinking of Senegal's '02 upset of France. Hmm.
• This is like a Mexican training session
• Wow. DosSantos should have buried that. South Africa is playing petrified.
• How many times do you see a team dominate completely early on, only to give up a bad goal in counter-attack. Not sure South Africa has it in them.
• South Africa is poor fundamentally. This isn't just nerves.
• Great point, don't be afraid to lose South Africa.
• That was promising, decent run down the right for The Boys, The Boys
• Just for fun, you know like counting yellow cars on the highway during a boring Sunday drive, let's count how many consecutive touches the Mexicans manage during a given possession.
• 10 ending in an offside
• 7 and out of bounds
• BTW, 13 mins. 0-0
• Poorly defended corner, Franco's header off the mark untouched. Should be 2-0
• Ref fell for a dive, dangerous spot for a free kick for RSA
• Ack. Bad miss son, at least put it on goal. 18 mins, 0-0
• One more free kick for RSA after handball, and another set piece disaster.
• robbery!
  

Subscribe to Starting Eleven

'Private' Security Fails in pre-World Cup Fan Stampede Outside Friendly

Less than a week out from the start of the World Cup, and the tournament is filthy with injuries, terror threats and now fans stampeding outside today's Nigeria-North Korea friendly.

This begs the question, a query that's been haunting this tournament since South Africa was selected years ago: Are the players and fans safe?

Suddenly, South Africa's rampant crime rates seem tame to the political turmoil and apparently lackadaisical attitude toward security. Today's tragedy that left 14 injured--a number that's surely to rise--is being blamed on the fact that the match was a friendly. Therefore, World Cup security was not on the job. Apparently the rules say it was Nigeria's match, they provide security. The Nigerians' crack private security team was, apparently, on crack today.

Fans rushed the gates twice trying to get into the grounds and people were run over like traffic cones during a teen's driver's license exam. Pitiful. Frightening.

What are we in for in the next month?

How does FIFA allow this? Again, a very legitimate question. How can FIFA just wash its hands of a friendly less than a week from the start of the event. What? "World Cup security" whatever that is, is too expensive for a friendly? Crowd control isn't important before the tournament? Ridiculous. FIFA proves again that it does not value the safety of its players, its product. The players and the game, and of course, the fans, are the core of the game. To allow private security to be in charge today is irresponsible and negligent. I dare say if Brazil was in a friendly against, oh, anyone, there would have been World Cup security on the grounds.

This is disgusting, and harkens back to the terrorism attack on Togo's players during the African Cup of Nations. Why would FIFA allow a national team to travel through war-torn roads by bus? Probably the same reason it would allow private security to be in charge less than a week out from the World Cup.

Say a prayer for this tournament; I hope this is the last such post I have to write in the next five weeks. We all do.

Subscribe to Starting Eleven

Mailbag Meandering on Tevez Ruling,South Africa World Cup, Mourinho and More

I've been rude. Like single dudes who live alone and infrequently receive guests, I don't get many comments on my posts. But to those who do take the time to leave thoughtful--even thoughtless--comments, I should do better to acknowledge them.

So in a shameless attempt to encourage more correspondence with this space, I'm going to open the mailbag this morning and share some of the better comments and attempt to answer each with some analysis, thought and wit.

Here goes:

9lives wrote in response to West Ham, Carlos Tevez Ruling a Dangerous Precedent:

Well written article. I take the viewpoint that the initial ruling was wrong, that a club who broke the rules should have been deducted points. Middlesbrough called off a game about 11 years ago because they had a depleted squad through illness. They were punished with a 3 point deduction that contributed to their relegation. One cannot of course state with any degree of accuracy that a player contributed any more than his potential replacement might have. But that's why rules are there; to maintain an equal playing field and a degree of fairness.
With regards to Atwell's shocking decision last weekend, it's accepted that these decisions even themselves out over the season. All we can do is accept that flawed logic. The Sheffield United case is different - they never had the opportunity to "even" the playing field by recruiting a player who was not entitled to play for them. Cheers.

Reply: Funny how the experts trotted out before Lord Griffiths couldn't manage to keep their own teams afloat as managers; whatcha say Graham Taylor and Frank Clark? As for my writing, me mum was big on penmanship.

Anonymous wrote in response to Unrest Around 2010 World Cup in South Africa Mounts After President Resigns:

The fact is that SA has its fair share of issues to overcome - but the country is about far more than the sum of its problems. SA is still the closest any African country will get, in a comparison to 1st world hosts. The importance of bringing an event like this to Africa is not so much about providing a spectacle for rich countries, but about providing sustained upliftment for a society whose largest problems can all be traced back to poverty. Whatever the cause of that poverty, the fact is that the only way out of it is forward movement, not retrospection and nay-saying.
So you might need to take a little longer to get to your game - but think about the guy who had to drive you there, his family and his children. Think about the fact that he will be earning a living because of you.
Isn't it maybe worthwhile putting the good of a nation, and it's people before your personal schedule? It is easy to stand on the fringe and criticize, rather show your support for a collective effort and commit to attending the event.

Reply: True, this is a character boost for South Africa, and if the tournament goes off without a hitch, likely it would spur a spike in tourism and bump the economy a bit. But let's inject a bit of realism via rhetorical questions here: Is the World Cup going to solve South Africa's poverty crisis? Or crime? No one wants to yank the World Cup away for the sake of doing it; no one! But isn't a just black eye to the country if the infrastructure isn't ready and organization is a shambles?
As for me getting to the games on time, I'll be plopped on my couch watching the matches -- unless of course you're offering to bring me over. I accept...

Jonathan Wallace wrote in response to: Mourinho: Master Manipulator, Master Manager, Masterful

Exactly! Its nice to see someone else appreciate him for what he represents. Unbridled confidence. If more people possessed it, the world would be a better place for it.

Reply: I'll say it again, Mourinho is a manager of men, and not necessarily always his own. He's picking scraps with guys from clubs big and small; Juventus' Claudio Ranieri was his latest target. Apparently, Jose doesn't think Ranieri speaks the English too good. Classic.
And no, Jonathan Wallace is not my brother, father, nor is he my uncle.

And finally, Aravind responds to Starting Eleven Football Blog Roundup:

Pretty impressive collection of blog posts. Well done dude. I'm subscribing.

Reply: Awesome Aravind; consider yourself an army of one. And no, Aravind is not my brother, father, nor is he my uncle.

Subscribe in a reader

Unrest Around 2010 World Cup in South Africa Mounts After President Resigns

It's going to take more than a dopey leopard mascot to ease the anxiety and uncertainty over South Africa's bid to successfully host the 2010 World Cup. Political reasons have marred this endeavor from the beginning, and you can be sure contingency plans are in place to hold the tournament in the U.S. or Germany, or somewhere else that's prepared in case it gets yanked out from under the South Africans.

The latest blow came yesterday when President Thabo Mbeki and 11 members of his cabinet quit their posts, including finance minister Jabu Moleketi, who was running the books for the World Cup. Not good.

Worse yet, Moleketi oversees construction of physical and transportation infrastructure and he has hinted he won't continue in that role under a new government.

FIFA, meanwhile, is saying it's a manageable situation and it's already talking with a possible replacement, African National Congress boss Jacob Zuma. BTW, Zuma is being prosecuted on corruption charges.

Nothing like a stable atmosphere for your organization's biggest event, which just happens to be the world's biggest sporting tournament behind the Olympics.

Not only has government unrest cast a pall over the organization of the Cup, but violence against tourists is a perennial problem. Yet, South Africa continues to put on a happy face and play down these problems. It is also ignoring the governemnt's support of Zimbabwe and its dictator Robert Mugabe; some liken this situation to the attention the plight in Tibet drew during the Olympics. The New York Times op-ed page has addressed this issue and called for the Cup to be removed from South Africa unless Mugabe step down.

It's sad that football has to become a political stage, and it's something to be avoided, usually at all costs. But the 2010 World Cup has disaster written all over it. FIFA is steadfast in keeping the tournament in South Africa, but at what cost? Will tourists be in danger by the out of control crime? Will the infrastructure be a nightmare, and transport between venues impossible? Does the fact that the tournament is allowed to remain in South Africa indicate a condoning of the political and oppressive situation in the country by FIFA and football fans as a whole?

These are difficult questions that no one is answering. South Africa has 21 months to get its act together; may sound like a long time, but that clock is ticking--loudly.

Early Start for U.S.-South Africa Friendly

Just a reminder that the U.S. men's national team is in South Africa tomorrow for a friendly against the 2010 World Cup hosts. The game starts at 9 a.m. ET and is availabile on Fox Soccer Channel. Get up early. Tune in for live blogging.

Below is the U.S. roster:

GOALKEEPERS: Tim Howard (Everton FC), Brad Guzan (Chivas USA)
DEFENDERS: Carlos Bocanegra (Fulham FC), Jonathan Bornstein (Chivas USA), Steve Cherundolo (Hannover 96), Dan Califf (Aalborg BK), Oguchi Onyewu (Standard de Liege)
MIDFIELDERS: Freddy Adu (SL Benfica), DaMarcus Beasley (Glasgow Rangers), Michael Bradley (SC Heerenveen), Maurice Edu (Toronto FC), Benny Feilhaber (Derby County), Sacha Kljestan (Chivas USA), Eddie Lewis (Derby County)
FORWARDS: Josmer Altidore (New York Red Bulls), Clint Dempsey (Fulham FC), Landon Donovan (Los Angeles Galaxy)

Will be interesting to see if Freddy Adu plays and how much action Josie Altidore sees.