The World Cup Thread

[astrogirl]

Bit of a blow for Josh Kennedy - achilles injury ruling him out of the match against Greece.

He'll be pretty bummed as I think he hasn't played for Hiddink before.

 

[aqua_duck]

Plenty of better defenders than Lucas Neill have tried to stop Ronaldinho and have failed, I don't see how Neill will be marking both Ronaldinho and Ronaldo though, Moore will probably get the job on Ronaldo (who's a fat useless snob ATM)

 

[Misanthrope]

Who else watched the friendly between Australia and Greece? I was very impressed with our first half performance - Skoko's goal was a cracker and we were unlucky not to get another one or two in that half.

Second half was a little less exciting, but a 1-0 win over the European champions with several first line players missing is a damn fine effort if you ask me. Bring on the Netherlands!

 

[Gene Krupa]

One emoticon: :sleeper: !

 

[astrogirl]

Something I have noticed in the past is that in games against quality opposition, the Aussies can't seem to come up with crisp passing - possession always looks to be a bit of a battle. But tonight they showed some good passing especially in the first half.

I don't know enough about the game/players to comment much on individual performances but it looked a good game.

I wonder if Schwarzer's position at goalie is at risk - I don't think Kalac was really tested tonight but he went alright.

 

[Misanthrope]

Schwarzer is still a mile ahead of Kalac. Kalac would have had to do a sh*tload to even challenge Schwarzer's position. Mile Stejnovic (or whatever his name is) was someone who really stood out for mine. He was everywhere.

One emoticon :sleeper:

Are we playing Jeopardy?

Um... Gene's love-making technique drives women to what?

 

[Gene Krupa]

Are we playing Jeopardy?

Um... Gene's love-making technique drives women to what?

Atleast I've made love to a woman this century!

 

[Misanthrope]

Atleast I've made love to a woman this century!

It's not making love when you use rohypnol.

 

[Gene Krupa]

It's not making love when you use rohypnol.

I don't want to hear about how you score your dates!

 

[astrogirl]

Schwarzer is still a mile ahead of Kalac. Kalac would have had to do a sh*tload to even challenge Schwarzer's position.

I read or heard somewhere that Schwarzer and Kalac have been challenging each other since they were kids. Apparently Schwarzer moved to a different district/club to get a start as a young bloke. At least one commentator has suggested that Schwarzer and Kalac are quite close in ability, and that Schwarzer has retained his place thus far due to being the incumbent and not having done much wrong.

I guess Schwarzer has proven himself in pressure situations e.g. the penalty shootout we all remember!

Mile Stejnovic (or whatever his name is) was someone who really stood out for mine. He was everywhere.

Sterjovski? He WAS everywhere wasn't he

 

[Misanthrope]

I don't want to hear about how you score your dates!

Why not? The club and drag has been working for men since the dawn of time. Anything else is just a prop.

Sterjovski? He WAS everywhere wasn't he

He really was the best on show for mine, which is amazing considering I'd never heard of him prior to today.

As for Schwarzer vs. Kalac - I'd prefer Schwarzer just because he's a starter at his club side (Kalac isn't) and he's never let us down before.

 

[astrogirl]

Yup, hear what you're saying about Schwarzer and I tend to agree.

There was some talk though about Hiddink thinking about bringing Kalac on for that shootout, because Kalac has a longer reach and possibly quicker instincts. So it seems Hiddink does rate him... Will be interesting to see what happens.

It's pretty great that we have 2 class goalkeepers.

 

[Alex28]

Skoko deserved his MOTM for mine - splendid goal, some really good kicks in play.

And yeah...Schwartzer is well in front of Spider as well. He really wasn't pushed tonight at all...

 

[aqua_duck]

Something I have noticed in the past is that in games against quality opposition, the Aussies can't seem to come up with crisp passing - possession always looks to be a bit of a battle. But tonight they showed some good passing especially in the first half.

I don't know enough about the game/players to comment much on individual performances but it looked a good game.

I wonder if Schwarzer's position at goalie is at risk - I don't think Kalac was really tested tonight but he went alright.

I doubt Kalac will start ahead of Schwarzer, Kalac doesn't play regularly because he is behind the Brazilian goalkeeper Dida at AC Milan, Schwarzer would be the number 1 I reckon Guus was probably just giving Kalac some game time in case we need to call on him. To be honest I don't think Greece played that well tonight nor do I think they're as good as people think, they won Euro but haven't done much since nor are there any 'great' players in their line up.

 

[aqua_duck]

Sterjovski? He WAS everywhere wasn't he

Mile Sterjovski is a good solid striker, he played for Sydney United in the old NSL and I think he played for parramatta power before moving to Lille in French Ligue 1, was used sparingly and didn't get much of a go but has been playing well for F.C Basel along with scott chipperfield. He won't win you a world cup but he's a capable fill in

 

[B-dos]

Yep, it was a good win and will definitely give us little momentum going into our next two friendlies and the WC. Sterjovski played very well. Skoko's goal was an absolute ripper.

Just on a side note: Does anyone else think we should ditch the "Socceroos" name? I personally hate it. To me it sounds a bit childish and the fact that 'Soccer' is part of the name surely loses us credibility in Europe. Now that we have gained some credibility, lets keep it. No other country that i know of calls its national team a name like this, and if they do have a nickname they dont use it as regularly as we do. Anyone agree?

 

[astrogirl]

Agree with you b-dos. I thought we were going to ditch it when all the other changes were being made (new boards, A-league etc etc), and I'm disappointed that the name hasn't been dumped.

 

[Jobdog]

Good solid win by the boys last night. In all seriousness I didn't think they were pushed that much at all. Skoko's goal as has been said was a beauty and we probably should have put the Greeks away. That seems to be our biggest problem in recent years, think the Uruguay World Cup Qualifier, we should have landed the knock out punch before penalties. That might come back to haunt us in the World Cup is our ability to put teams away. In saying that, I think we will still get past the first round.

On the subject of Kalac Vs Schwarzer, Kalac was not really tested last night, but he did come off his line a few times and IMO looked shaky. Towards the end of the match, all it would have taken was a glancing header from the Greek striker (name escapes me) and we would have gotten a draw. Schwarzer for mine whenever he comes off his line, he always has a purpose. All in all a good performance by the boys, obviously some improvement left, but when Harry and John come back to name a few, that will help out.

 

[The_Joey_Show]

Here's my individual player summaries. Feel free to tear me to shreds... I'm not easy to offend!

KALAC - not tested, and seemed a little shaky on the back pass. Certainly no match for Schwarzer, but a worthy reserve.

CHIPPERFIELD - this bloke is a champion. For an ex-striker to be playing left back in an unfamiliar 3-4-3 formation is near unheard of, and he kept Giannokopolous (who is an excellent wide midfielder) quiet to the pouint where he was subbed at halftime. Must be a starter in all 3 WC games.

NEILL - well I've made my feelings on this guy clear before. He's one of the most under-rated defenders in world football. He was all over Charisteas like chicken pox last night. A key to our chances, especially against the fast-moving joga bonito style played by Brazil and not a lesser extent Japan.

MOORE - a good return to the national colours for the ex-skipper, but I still prefer Popovic. May be pushed into a wide defensive role to replace Vidmar if we return to a 4 man defensive unit, which I am expecting us to.

GRELLA - Fills the holding role beautifully. A tough and tenacious defensive midfielder who will run all day. Plays a very important role in the shape of the side and plays it well. Will need to maintain his form for the big games, because we are going to need him.

CULINA - Played what I thought was his best game for the national team last night. Partnered Grella well in defensive, and tore the Greek midfield to pieces with his precision passing game.

STERJOVSKI - Like Moore, a good return to the national colours for Mile. Has a big engine and plenty of ticker, and will be a very useful sub in the WC. Unfortunately seems to be battling for a starting shirt with Tim Cahill, which will limit his game time.

SKOKO - Fully deserved his man of the match award. Scored a cracker and held the 'spine' of the team together well along with other central players Grella and Neill. Another who may struggle for a starting shirt with the return of Kewell and Cahill, but will play a big role off the bench.

BRESCIANO - For mine, Bresc is the best Australian player in the world at the moment, including Kewell and Cahill. Had a quiet one last night, but has the ability and temprement to blow the WC wide open.

VIDUKA - played well with limited opportunities. Should have had a penalty awarded and was dangerous around the box. Won't let us down in Germany.

 

[pennywisealfie]

I actually think you guys are over rating Mile a fair bit. he did some good things but he shoulda done so much better considering the amount of ball he was given in dangerous areas.

Ive always hated the name socceroos and i always will.

this is something that hasnt been brought up yet and its sort of off topic, but ive noticed recently since soccer is getting more exposure in australia, that certain people are pushing it way too much. My first instance of this was one Tony Palumbo was the guest host for sbs on the champions league final and at the end of the game he said something along the lines of "After seeing a game like that, all those Rugby League and AFL fans must be crazy to not like football". Thats not going to get soccer anywhere, i doubt a rugby league fan thats tuned in to watch it because hes curious about soccer sees this comment and says "hey yeah, i am an idiot for liking rugby league, im a soccer fan now", all its gonna do is make people pissed off and not watch soccer. A couple of days ago Guus Hiddink continued the missionary work by bagging out afl and calling football "the real game". Again, pople are going to see that and say "f**k you, i love afl".

I actually used to go to every nsl game i could back in the day and Zelijko Kalac was the sh*t. he was the best goalkeeper id ever seen, but NSL teams found him out, hes too tall and struggles with well placed low balls. So maybe he might be a better option then schwarz because the international players might not know him that well, and if it wasnt for that weakness, kalac owns schwarzer.