Tuesday of last week was a sad day in Philippine basketball as PLDT's Last Home Stand was cancelled before it even began. This led to boos and catcalls from patrons who shelled out hard-earned money just to watch our very own Gilas Pilipinas square off against a select group of US NBA players before embarking on a training camp in Miami, USA in preparation for the 2014 FIBA World Cup and the Asian Games.
Blake Griffin and Paul George weren't able to make it to the trip due to personal reasons. As it turned out, they dodged a large bullet there as everyone knows by now what happened next. As it turned out, I also dodged a large bullet there as I nearly bought a ticket to that event. What prevented me from doing so is the fact that the cheapest ticket I could possibly afford, worth PhP750, could've only afforded me the farthest seat from the court, so I decided against it and just decided to watch the proceeds on TV.
When I was finally able to watch the event on TV, I reached the part where someone from PLDT was announcing that they will refund the money of those who wouldn't be satisfied by what they will see. Some people booed and I didn't understand why at first. Then there was the interview on US coach John Lucas, and then the Gilas and NBA players squared off in a scrimmage. While I found their scrimmages and the showcase air dunkers entertaining, I immediately felt that there was something wrong with the event, and I initially couldn't understand why. And then I found the embarrassing sports headlines the next time I went online.
It would be hard for me to describe what transpired during the immediate aftermath of the memorable exhibition game that never was. But based on my observations from sports articles written online, it appears that the promoters were at fault for not being able to meet the NBA's requirements for holding the event, which was given to them months in advance.
Whatevere else, I strongly believe that this is only a minor setback for Gilas as far as their World Cup and Asian Games preparation is concerned. I strongly believe that they, as well as the US NBA players, can move on from this temporary setback and give their all-out best in the coming FIBA World Cup. Kudos to PLDT Chairman Manny Pangilinan for taking full responsibility for the fiasco and for offering to refund patrons of their hard-earned money for not getting what they paid for. Kudos as well to my fellow Filipino fans for being a generally well-behaved audience despite the boos and catcalls directed towards the players and organizers of the event. Had this taken place elsewhere, particularly overseas, this probably would've ended in a riot that would've put our country in shame in front of the world basketball community for all the wrong reasons.
Despite the fiasco, my support for Gilas will never ever wane. In fact, I will continue to give them my all-out lifetime support in all of their campaigns, locally and internationally. To Gilas' new Kuya Andray Blatche, welcome to the Philippines and Gilas Pilipinas as we begin our quest for glory starting with the FIBA World Cup. Laban Pilipinas! Puso!
Thursday, July 31, 2014
Sunday, July 20, 2014
Drake covers Let It Go, Manny Pacquiao style
Canadian rapper Drake, himself a huge fan of Manny Pacquiao, did a perfect impersonation of the People's Champ during the 2014 ESPY Awards. As a Filipino myself, I find this video very, very funny! Maraming salamat, Drake! You're the man!
2014 FIBA Asia Cup: It's a bronze! A new highwater mark for Gilas Pilipinas, courtesy of Paul Lee
Late yesterday, I postponed attending Mass for tomorrow so I could watch on live TV the third place playoff game between our very own Gilas Pilipinas and China for the 2014 FIBA Asia Cup bronze medal. Just as I expected, it turned out to be a nerve-wracking match as Gilas barely escaped with an 80-79 victory, courtesy of three free throws by Paul Dalistan "Angas ng Tondo" Lee with no time remaining. Living up to his monicker, the Rain or Shine guard calmly sank all charities given to him after he was fouled while shooting a three-pointer from downtown left. The win capped an outstanding tournament for Lee, who is arguably the best Gilas player of the tournament won by powerhouse Iran, Gilas' tormentor in the semifinals. (Iran defeated Chinese Taipei, who Gilas ironically defeated 78-64 in the group stages, to the tune of 89-79 to win their all-time tournament-best second-ever title.)
After several minutes of labor in giving birth to a first-ever podium finish in the tournament for the Philippines, Lee's late-game heroics resulted in a bronze medal, the country's highest-ever finish in the FIBA Asia Cup tournament to date. It thus continued a remarkable trend where the country has steadily improved in ranking with each passing tournament it participates in. With his exceptional overall display and the way he carried the team on his shoulders, Lee can now make a case for inclusion into the main Gilas lineup, a distinction he rightfully deserves. Who would've ever thought his talents are of international grade? As it turned out, Coach Chot Reyes made an absolutely right decision to include Lee in the FIBA Asia Cup final lineup as Lee turned the tournament itself into a virtual audition for him to be included in the final World Cup roster. Looks like a Filipino international basketball star is born!
The only question is who will be bumped off the 12-man roster for the World Cup. Will it be June Mar Fajardo, whose lack of quickness and aggressiveness and being extremely slow-footed and foul-prone has made him a huge liability as an international player? Or Gary David, whose shooting woes have consistently hounded him since last year's FIBA Asia Championship? Or will it be Jimmy Alapag, who has made vocal his intention to retire from international play as early as last year after the same tournament? We'll soon find out, although I'm hoping and praying for Coach Chot to make the absolute right decision in the end.
While I am joyous at Gilas' latest triumph, I am also a bit saddened by the fact that Gilas could've won the gold medal outright. This considering the fact that China had beaten Iran, 64-51, in the group stages. Had Gilas managed to properly fix their set plays on both ends of the court from the get-go during the game against Iran, they would've avoided that 55-76 shellacking and scored probably the biggest upset of the tournament. Their loss is still understandable, though, as they were not a full-strength team with only half of the original 2013 Gilas players seeing action in the tournament.
What saddened me even more than Gilas' loss to Iran though was the fact that the former's detractors in news sites like Yahoo! would stop at nothing to bring our beloved national team down. Just read their nasty comments, and you would get the idea that they are among those who suffer from the worst-ever known cases of crab mentality. The sheer vileness of their comments simply defies belief. If only they could read this, I would tell them that if I could have my way, I would make a case for them to be stripped of their Filipino citizenships and deported out of the country. Their acts are almost tantamount to treason, showing that they seriously have the makings of a quisling when, God forbid, a foreign country invades the Philippines. Lastly, I would tell them that if they don't like Gilas, the least they could do is to not watch their games or read news articles about them and refrain from making destructive criticisms against them or any other honorable person for that matter. They should hang their heads in shame, for people like them are among those who make this great country sick.
Win or lose, we Filipinos have every reason to be proud of Gilas as most of our Asian neighbors could only dream of having a world-class basketball team like ours. Even the fact that many of our players are being taken in as professional league imports by our neighbors is already an accomplishment worth boasting of.
To our brothers from the Middle East, who have been the yardstick for Asian basketball for the past 7-9 years now, congratulations for another gold-medal finish. And to Paul Lee and the rest of Gilas, hold your heads up high. We will keep on supporting you come hell or high water, for you are the pride of the Filipino nation. Laban Pilipinas! Puso!
After several minutes of labor in giving birth to a first-ever podium finish in the tournament for the Philippines, Lee's late-game heroics resulted in a bronze medal, the country's highest-ever finish in the FIBA Asia Cup tournament to date. It thus continued a remarkable trend where the country has steadily improved in ranking with each passing tournament it participates in. With his exceptional overall display and the way he carried the team on his shoulders, Lee can now make a case for inclusion into the main Gilas lineup, a distinction he rightfully deserves. Who would've ever thought his talents are of international grade? As it turned out, Coach Chot Reyes made an absolutely right decision to include Lee in the FIBA Asia Cup final lineup as Lee turned the tournament itself into a virtual audition for him to be included in the final World Cup roster. Looks like a Filipino international basketball star is born!
The only question is who will be bumped off the 12-man roster for the World Cup. Will it be June Mar Fajardo, whose lack of quickness and aggressiveness and being extremely slow-footed and foul-prone has made him a huge liability as an international player? Or Gary David, whose shooting woes have consistently hounded him since last year's FIBA Asia Championship? Or will it be Jimmy Alapag, who has made vocal his intention to retire from international play as early as last year after the same tournament? We'll soon find out, although I'm hoping and praying for Coach Chot to make the absolute right decision in the end.
While I am joyous at Gilas' latest triumph, I am also a bit saddened by the fact that Gilas could've won the gold medal outright. This considering the fact that China had beaten Iran, 64-51, in the group stages. Had Gilas managed to properly fix their set plays on both ends of the court from the get-go during the game against Iran, they would've avoided that 55-76 shellacking and scored probably the biggest upset of the tournament. Their loss is still understandable, though, as they were not a full-strength team with only half of the original 2013 Gilas players seeing action in the tournament.
What saddened me even more than Gilas' loss to Iran though was the fact that the former's detractors in news sites like Yahoo! would stop at nothing to bring our beloved national team down. Just read their nasty comments, and you would get the idea that they are among those who suffer from the worst-ever known cases of crab mentality. The sheer vileness of their comments simply defies belief. If only they could read this, I would tell them that if I could have my way, I would make a case for them to be stripped of their Filipino citizenships and deported out of the country. Their acts are almost tantamount to treason, showing that they seriously have the makings of a quisling when, God forbid, a foreign country invades the Philippines. Lastly, I would tell them that if they don't like Gilas, the least they could do is to not watch their games or read news articles about them and refrain from making destructive criticisms against them or any other honorable person for that matter. They should hang their heads in shame, for people like them are among those who make this great country sick.
Win or lose, we Filipinos have every reason to be proud of Gilas as most of our Asian neighbors could only dream of having a world-class basketball team like ours. Even the fact that many of our players are being taken in as professional league imports by our neighbors is already an accomplishment worth boasting of.
To our brothers from the Middle East, who have been the yardstick for Asian basketball for the past 7-9 years now, congratulations for another gold-medal finish. And to Paul Lee and the rest of Gilas, hold your heads up high. We will keep on supporting you come hell or high water, for you are the pride of the Filipino nation. Laban Pilipinas! Puso!
Saturday, July 19, 2014
2014 FIFA World Cup: And the winner is...and some more
Author's note: My apologies for the delay of this post. Typhoon Rammasun (Glenda here in my native Philippines) caused a massive power outage that kept us deprived of much-needed electric supply for about four days, thus also keeping me out of the Internet for that length of time.
Didn't fail to miss out all the action as it happened in the final game between Germany and Argentina for the 2014 FIFA World Cup title. Just as I hoped and prayed, European pragmatism won over South American flair for the third time in a row as Germany won their fourth title overall and their first since the reunification of East and West Germany courtesy of a thrilling extra time goal (on the 113th minute to be precise) by substitute Mario Götze. The feat made Götze the first substitute in history to score the opening or only goal of a World Cup title match in regular or extra time.
Götze, deservedly named the Man of the Match for the final, actually came in as a replacement for Miroslav Klose in the 88th minute. It proved to be a genius move for Germany coach Joachim Löw as Götze, it turned out, would knock in the title-clinching goal for Die Mannschaft right past formidable Argentine goalkeeper Sergio Romero, triggering raucous celebrations among German fans around the world and sheer anguish upon the Argentines and their fans.
I, for one, really prayed long and hard for a German victory, even thinking "Please, Germany. Win this one!" to myself with every German possession. Two primary reasons led to me wanting for their victory: First, it's been 24 years since the Germans last won the World Cup title, when they were still divided into East and West Germany. And second, Polish-born German Klose is now the World Cup's all-time leading scorer, having achieved that feat in the masterful semifinal win over hard-luck Brazil. So it would be fitting enough for Germany to finally win a much-deserved first title as a reunified nation and for newly-minted all-time leading scorer Klose to cap his international career with a World Cup trophy.
In a chilling throwback to the 2010 tournament, an octopus in Germany named Kleiner Paul (Little Paul in English), who succeeded the late Paul the Octopus as the resident World Cup animal seer, predicted a German victory over the Argentines. And how right was his guess...and mine too! I always had this feeling that Germany will win, but it will be no walk in the park as Argentina are a much more organized team than Brazil. Whatever else, a win is a win. And Germany, perhaps the San Antonio Spurs of football today, finally fulfilled its promise with an exciting title victory.
Argentina, while very much like Brazil in terms of being a one-man team with Lionel Messi, surprisingly proved to be an even tougher opponent than their bitter South American rivals from the east. The way they played in the final seemed to me that they radically changed their game plan to prevent suffering the same fate as Brazil. As such, they proved to be well-deserved, kick-ass opponents to the highly-disciplined Germans as they gave the latter a lot of tense moments in the match, especially in the first half where Gonzalo Higuain had two clear opportunities to score a goal. The first was when he shot wide to the left of the goal after being put through on goal by an erratic header from Toni Kroos. The second was when he had a goal disallowed later in the half after being caught offside after tapping in a cross by Ezequiel Lavezzi from the right wing.
The final proved beyond doubt that Germany is the team to beat in the world today. In their last two games alone in the just-concluded World Cup, they've already managed to outscore 11 teams that have ever participated in World Cup history. For the record, they are Angola, Bolivia, Canada, People's Republic of China, Democratic Republic of the Congo (then known as Zaire in the 1974 tournament), El Salvador, Indonesia (then known as the Dutch East Indies in the 1938 tournament), Iraq, Israel, Togo, and Trinidad and Tobago. The best things about the Germans though are their topnotch national football training program, emphasis on teamwork, unwavering discipline and desire to win it all that won for them the ultimate prize in all of football. Simples.
So much for the German victory. On the other hand, I'm also saddened that other countries that have yet to win the World Cup, like Mexico (and Guillermo "Memo" Ochoa), Netherlands (and Arjen "Floppin'" Robben), the United States (and Tim Howard), Belgium and Costa Rica fell short once again. Up to this very day, the World Cup remains the sole dominion of UEFA and CONMEBOL teams. But as the saying goes, hope springs eternal. Before we know it, one of these winless teams might just take home the Holy Grail for the very first time ever come 2018. (Or perhaps even the hopefully much-improved Azkals will?!)
Now if only I could fulfill one of the things in my personal bucket list, that is for me to witness in my lifetime the Philippine Azkals and Malditas also winning the FIFA World Cup, even just once, like Die Mannschaft did. Wishful thinking alone won't do the trick, though, as this will definitely need more than just rehashing the Philippine national football program, lots of government and private funding and desire to win to make this dream a reality. To the German men's national football team and their fans, a huge congratulations to all of you for winning the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and here's looking forward to Russia 2018! Heil Die Mannschaft!
Didn't fail to miss out all the action as it happened in the final game between Germany and Argentina for the 2014 FIFA World Cup title. Just as I hoped and prayed, European pragmatism won over South American flair for the third time in a row as Germany won their fourth title overall and their first since the reunification of East and West Germany courtesy of a thrilling extra time goal (on the 113th minute to be precise) by substitute Mario Götze. The feat made Götze the first substitute in history to score the opening or only goal of a World Cup title match in regular or extra time.
Götze, deservedly named the Man of the Match for the final, actually came in as a replacement for Miroslav Klose in the 88th minute. It proved to be a genius move for Germany coach Joachim Löw as Götze, it turned out, would knock in the title-clinching goal for Die Mannschaft right past formidable Argentine goalkeeper Sergio Romero, triggering raucous celebrations among German fans around the world and sheer anguish upon the Argentines and their fans.
I, for one, really prayed long and hard for a German victory, even thinking "Please, Germany. Win this one!" to myself with every German possession. Two primary reasons led to me wanting for their victory: First, it's been 24 years since the Germans last won the World Cup title, when they were still divided into East and West Germany. And second, Polish-born German Klose is now the World Cup's all-time leading scorer, having achieved that feat in the masterful semifinal win over hard-luck Brazil. So it would be fitting enough for Germany to finally win a much-deserved first title as a reunified nation and for newly-minted all-time leading scorer Klose to cap his international career with a World Cup trophy.
In a chilling throwback to the 2010 tournament, an octopus in Germany named Kleiner Paul (Little Paul in English), who succeeded the late Paul the Octopus as the resident World Cup animal seer, predicted a German victory over the Argentines. And how right was his guess...and mine too! I always had this feeling that Germany will win, but it will be no walk in the park as Argentina are a much more organized team than Brazil. Whatever else, a win is a win. And Germany, perhaps the San Antonio Spurs of football today, finally fulfilled its promise with an exciting title victory.
Argentina, while very much like Brazil in terms of being a one-man team with Lionel Messi, surprisingly proved to be an even tougher opponent than their bitter South American rivals from the east. The way they played in the final seemed to me that they radically changed their game plan to prevent suffering the same fate as Brazil. As such, they proved to be well-deserved, kick-ass opponents to the highly-disciplined Germans as they gave the latter a lot of tense moments in the match, especially in the first half where Gonzalo Higuain had two clear opportunities to score a goal. The first was when he shot wide to the left of the goal after being put through on goal by an erratic header from Toni Kroos. The second was when he had a goal disallowed later in the half after being caught offside after tapping in a cross by Ezequiel Lavezzi from the right wing.
The final proved beyond doubt that Germany is the team to beat in the world today. In their last two games alone in the just-concluded World Cup, they've already managed to outscore 11 teams that have ever participated in World Cup history. For the record, they are Angola, Bolivia, Canada, People's Republic of China, Democratic Republic of the Congo (then known as Zaire in the 1974 tournament), El Salvador, Indonesia (then known as the Dutch East Indies in the 1938 tournament), Iraq, Israel, Togo, and Trinidad and Tobago. The best things about the Germans though are their topnotch national football training program, emphasis on teamwork, unwavering discipline and desire to win it all that won for them the ultimate prize in all of football. Simples.
So much for the German victory. On the other hand, I'm also saddened that other countries that have yet to win the World Cup, like Mexico (and Guillermo "Memo" Ochoa), Netherlands (and Arjen "Floppin'" Robben), the United States (and Tim Howard), Belgium and Costa Rica fell short once again. Up to this very day, the World Cup remains the sole dominion of UEFA and CONMEBOL teams. But as the saying goes, hope springs eternal. Before we know it, one of these winless teams might just take home the Holy Grail for the very first time ever come 2018. (Or perhaps even the hopefully much-improved Azkals will?!)
Now if only I could fulfill one of the things in my personal bucket list, that is for me to witness in my lifetime the Philippine Azkals and Malditas also winning the FIFA World Cup, even just once, like Die Mannschaft did. Wishful thinking alone won't do the trick, though, as this will definitely need more than just rehashing the Philippine national football program, lots of government and private funding and desire to win to make this dream a reality. To the German men's national football team and their fans, a huge congratulations to all of you for winning the 2014 FIFA World Cup, and here's looking forward to Russia 2018! Heil Die Mannschaft!
Saturday, July 12, 2014
2014 FIFA World Cup: The Road to the Finals
Over the past few
days (with little sleep to boot), I have been watching the quarterfinal
and semifinal matches of the 2014 FIFA World Cup. As expected, all of
them were slam bang affairs, with no team wanting to give in in their
quest for ultimate glory except for one: host Brazil.
Speaking of A Seleção, I have had this not-so-funny feeling from the very beginning that they were a disaster waiting to happen. The signs were all there even before the start of the tournament, from the incredible pressure on the young players of a home nation expecting nothing more than a victory on home soil, to Marcelo's own goal against Croatia, to a surprising goalless draw with Mexico, to the team's uncharacteristically reckless and aggressive style of play against Chile and Colombia, right up to their tragic 1-7 defeat at the hands of Germany which is particularly interesting for me to discuss about. That defeat left them fighting for nothing more than an "insignificant" third place with the Netherlands in a match that will be held a few hours from now as of this writing.
I had the privilege of being able to watch the now-memorable match on live TV. Brazil, simply put, played badly and lost badly to Germany. The match is so lopsided that it was like watching a seasoned professional football team dismantle an untested grade school intramurals team. It was also like watching an army of soldiers armed with machine guns and bazookas massacre an army of tribesmen armed only with slingshots and arrows. Lastly, it was also like watching a sequel of the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in 2001 between Australia and American Samoa, which the latter lost by a record score that still stands today, 0-31. Brazil also played so badly that they would've been eliminated as early as the tournament's group stages had they been caught by their opponents playing in such a pitiful state. Even if star player Neymar and suspended team captain Thiago Silva were able to play in that match, they would have made very little to no difference at all in the outcome of the match, what with their team made up mostly of inexperienced young players (which was truly and admittedly Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari's fault, something I would further discuss later) compared to Germany's efficient team of seasoned veterans and bonafide team players.
The German victory was nothing short of a blitzkrieg. If the late great Brazilian playwright Nelson Rodrigues referred to his country's upset loss to Uruguay for the 1950 World Cup title at the Maracana stadium as Brazil's Hiroshima, then their 2014 semifinal loss to Germany could be their Nagasaki. Who knows, if ever they host the World Cup again in the future and (God forbid) lose again, that one could very well be their Tsar Bomba.
I could only imagine the Brazilians who vehemently protested the hosting of this year's World Cup for several reasons, including the amount of public money spent to enable its hosting that could have instead been used for the improvement of the country's education system, law enforcement and infrastructures, are now telling their compatriots who supported its hosting, "See, we've told you so!"
I for one cheered for Germany to win that match and correctly predicted they will. What I failed to predict though was the way they will, to use one of many hackneyed phrases, run up the score. Even I didn't see it that blowout coming. One sports journalist's comment that Die Mannschaft keeps getting better with every match they play materialized through their semifinal match with Brazil more than their previous encounters in the tournament. So much has so far been said and written about this great team, and the Brazilian greenhorns, to use another hackneyed phrase, found them too great an obstacle to hurdle and very soon realized they still have a long, long way to go before they could be a legitimate championship-contending world beater once more.
Germany's record-setting victory, which came exactly 24 years to the day since their last World Cup win in 1990 when they beat Argentina (incidentally also their finals opponent this year) in the final, could also be counted as a form of sweet revenge against Brazil for what the latter did to them in the 2002 World Cup. It could be recalled that the Ronaldo-led Brazil beat the Oliver Khan-led Germany, 2-0, in the final match of that tournament. The Germans, most especially newly-minted all-time World Cup leading scorer Miroslav Klose who played on that 2002 German team, probably had that debacle in my mind when they played their South American arch-nemeses once again 12 years later, eventually leading to that whopping victory that left Brazil shell-shocked and dumbfounded. The late Brazil goalkeeper Moacir Barbosa, pilloried by his own countrymen for the remaining 50 years of his life for surrendering the losing goal to Uruguay in the 1950 finals, could be smiling up there now that he and his teammates have finally been exonerated from further humiliation in their graves and vindicated with the fact that there is now a World Cup defeat even more humiliating than what they experienced 64 years earlier.
To paraphrase what one column in an online article aptly said, the Samba beat was destroyed by a machine with an efficiency that simply defied belief. But Brazil was also the architect of its own downfall, including but not limited to David Luiz's inability (or reluctance) to defend, Luis Gustavo's fumbling midfield moves, Julio Cesar's lack of decisiveness between the posts, Fred's painfully laughable performances, coach Luiz Felipe Scolari's exclusion of legends Kaka, Robinho and Ronaldinho from the team…well, name it, they've had it. Speaking of David Luiz, his mistakes can somewhat be excused given the fact that he's a natural attacking midfielder forced to play defender for reasons only Senhor Scolari himself knows. Kaka, Robinho and Ronaldinho, on the other hand, are bonafide World Cup veterans and proven winners on the international stage who would've served as big brothers and mentors to their national team's young guns on how to play and conduct themselves on the grandest football stage of them all. But Scolari's exclusion of all of them from the team that would've potentially rivalled the Seleção from 1970, arguably the 1992 US basketball Dream Team equivalent of football, made that impossible.
The Germany 7-1 Brazil match set all-time records which are simply too many to mention here. For a list of some of these astonishing records, you can go to this link and this one.
Now speaking of Argentina, their penalty-shootout victory against the Netherlands was anything but convincing at all. With the way they played, they should pose little to no threat at all to the Germans, who I believe will be firmly cheered for by majority of the Brazilians due to the fact that the latter and the Argentines are known to be virtual mortal enemies on the pitch. If I were the coach Alejandro Sabella of Argentina, I will better change drastically my team's game plan, lest Germany will eat them alive and whole in the final match for the title, which could potentially turn out to be a sequel of the Brazil vs. Germany semifinal match. La Albiceleste, to be more straightforward, share essentially the same strengths and weaknesses as their bitter South American rivals. They live and die with just one or two players, and in Argentina's case it happens to be Lionel Messi. As much as I love that guy, his FC Barcelona club and his compatriot Pope Francis, I'm afraid I'll have to go for the Germans here. End of.
Lastly, if the 2010 World Cup had Paul the Octopus (RIP, little buddy), then this year's World Cup has Mick Jagger. There's only one sinister twist, though: If Paul correctly predicted all winners of eight matches (including the final game), all of the teams the Rolling Stones frontman cheered for ended up losing their respective matches, leading sports media to dub him the "World Cup Angel of Doom." I have one nagging question, though: Is he for real? Or is it just coincidence that the teams he cheered for were just plain and simply bad like Brazil? There is but one thing I'm definitely sure of: If the Germans could or would pick up from where they left off against Brazil in the final, then Argentina would find themselves in no man's land, not even if Mr. Jagger cheers for the Germans to win it all.
Also as of this writing, we currently have no World Cup champion since around 6 p.m. of June 18, 2014 Brazilian time, when Spain lost badly to Chile, 2-0. This is all about to end starting at 4:00 p.m. Sunday Brazilian time (3:00 a.m. Monday here in Manila), when Germany takes on Argentina for the 2014 FIFA World Cup title in a first-ever final featuring countries of two living popes, namely Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI from Germany and Pope Francis from Argentina. Go win it all, Die Mannschaft!
Speaking of A Seleção, I have had this not-so-funny feeling from the very beginning that they were a disaster waiting to happen. The signs were all there even before the start of the tournament, from the incredible pressure on the young players of a home nation expecting nothing more than a victory on home soil, to Marcelo's own goal against Croatia, to a surprising goalless draw with Mexico, to the team's uncharacteristically reckless and aggressive style of play against Chile and Colombia, right up to their tragic 1-7 defeat at the hands of Germany which is particularly interesting for me to discuss about. That defeat left them fighting for nothing more than an "insignificant" third place with the Netherlands in a match that will be held a few hours from now as of this writing.
I had the privilege of being able to watch the now-memorable match on live TV. Brazil, simply put, played badly and lost badly to Germany. The match is so lopsided that it was like watching a seasoned professional football team dismantle an untested grade school intramurals team. It was also like watching an army of soldiers armed with machine guns and bazookas massacre an army of tribesmen armed only with slingshots and arrows. Lastly, it was also like watching a sequel of the 2002 FIFA World Cup qualifying match in 2001 between Australia and American Samoa, which the latter lost by a record score that still stands today, 0-31. Brazil also played so badly that they would've been eliminated as early as the tournament's group stages had they been caught by their opponents playing in such a pitiful state. Even if star player Neymar and suspended team captain Thiago Silva were able to play in that match, they would have made very little to no difference at all in the outcome of the match, what with their team made up mostly of inexperienced young players (which was truly and admittedly Brazil coach Luiz Felipe Scolari's fault, something I would further discuss later) compared to Germany's efficient team of seasoned veterans and bonafide team players.
The German victory was nothing short of a blitzkrieg. If the late great Brazilian playwright Nelson Rodrigues referred to his country's upset loss to Uruguay for the 1950 World Cup title at the Maracana stadium as Brazil's Hiroshima, then their 2014 semifinal loss to Germany could be their Nagasaki. Who knows, if ever they host the World Cup again in the future and (God forbid) lose again, that one could very well be their Tsar Bomba.
I could only imagine the Brazilians who vehemently protested the hosting of this year's World Cup for several reasons, including the amount of public money spent to enable its hosting that could have instead been used for the improvement of the country's education system, law enforcement and infrastructures, are now telling their compatriots who supported its hosting, "See, we've told you so!"
I for one cheered for Germany to win that match and correctly predicted they will. What I failed to predict though was the way they will, to use one of many hackneyed phrases, run up the score. Even I didn't see it that blowout coming. One sports journalist's comment that Die Mannschaft keeps getting better with every match they play materialized through their semifinal match with Brazil more than their previous encounters in the tournament. So much has so far been said and written about this great team, and the Brazilian greenhorns, to use another hackneyed phrase, found them too great an obstacle to hurdle and very soon realized they still have a long, long way to go before they could be a legitimate championship-contending world beater once more.
Germany's record-setting victory, which came exactly 24 years to the day since their last World Cup win in 1990 when they beat Argentina (incidentally also their finals opponent this year) in the final, could also be counted as a form of sweet revenge against Brazil for what the latter did to them in the 2002 World Cup. It could be recalled that the Ronaldo-led Brazil beat the Oliver Khan-led Germany, 2-0, in the final match of that tournament. The Germans, most especially newly-minted all-time World Cup leading scorer Miroslav Klose who played on that 2002 German team, probably had that debacle in my mind when they played their South American arch-nemeses once again 12 years later, eventually leading to that whopping victory that left Brazil shell-shocked and dumbfounded. The late Brazil goalkeeper Moacir Barbosa, pilloried by his own countrymen for the remaining 50 years of his life for surrendering the losing goal to Uruguay in the 1950 finals, could be smiling up there now that he and his teammates have finally been exonerated from further humiliation in their graves and vindicated with the fact that there is now a World Cup defeat even more humiliating than what they experienced 64 years earlier.
To paraphrase what one column in an online article aptly said, the Samba beat was destroyed by a machine with an efficiency that simply defied belief. But Brazil was also the architect of its own downfall, including but not limited to David Luiz's inability (or reluctance) to defend, Luis Gustavo's fumbling midfield moves, Julio Cesar's lack of decisiveness between the posts, Fred's painfully laughable performances, coach Luiz Felipe Scolari's exclusion of legends Kaka, Robinho and Ronaldinho from the team…well, name it, they've had it. Speaking of David Luiz, his mistakes can somewhat be excused given the fact that he's a natural attacking midfielder forced to play defender for reasons only Senhor Scolari himself knows. Kaka, Robinho and Ronaldinho, on the other hand, are bonafide World Cup veterans and proven winners on the international stage who would've served as big brothers and mentors to their national team's young guns on how to play and conduct themselves on the grandest football stage of them all. But Scolari's exclusion of all of them from the team that would've potentially rivalled the Seleção from 1970, arguably the 1992 US basketball Dream Team equivalent of football, made that impossible.
The Germany 7-1 Brazil match set all-time records which are simply too many to mention here. For a list of some of these astonishing records, you can go to this link and this one.
Now speaking of Argentina, their penalty-shootout victory against the Netherlands was anything but convincing at all. With the way they played, they should pose little to no threat at all to the Germans, who I believe will be firmly cheered for by majority of the Brazilians due to the fact that the latter and the Argentines are known to be virtual mortal enemies on the pitch. If I were the coach Alejandro Sabella of Argentina, I will better change drastically my team's game plan, lest Germany will eat them alive and whole in the final match for the title, which could potentially turn out to be a sequel of the Brazil vs. Germany semifinal match. La Albiceleste, to be more straightforward, share essentially the same strengths and weaknesses as their bitter South American rivals. They live and die with just one or two players, and in Argentina's case it happens to be Lionel Messi. As much as I love that guy, his FC Barcelona club and his compatriot Pope Francis, I'm afraid I'll have to go for the Germans here. End of.
Lastly, if the 2010 World Cup had Paul the Octopus (RIP, little buddy), then this year's World Cup has Mick Jagger. There's only one sinister twist, though: If Paul correctly predicted all winners of eight matches (including the final game), all of the teams the Rolling Stones frontman cheered for ended up losing their respective matches, leading sports media to dub him the "World Cup Angel of Doom." I have one nagging question, though: Is he for real? Or is it just coincidence that the teams he cheered for were just plain and simply bad like Brazil? There is but one thing I'm definitely sure of: If the Germans could or would pick up from where they left off against Brazil in the final, then Argentina would find themselves in no man's land, not even if Mr. Jagger cheers for the Germans to win it all.
Also as of this writing, we currently have no World Cup champion since around 6 p.m. of June 18, 2014 Brazilian time, when Spain lost badly to Chile, 2-0. This is all about to end starting at 4:00 p.m. Sunday Brazilian time (3:00 a.m. Monday here in Manila), when Germany takes on Argentina for the 2014 FIFA World Cup title in a first-ever final featuring countries of two living popes, namely Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI from Germany and Pope Francis from Argentina. Go win it all, Die Mannschaft!
Friday, July 4, 2014
My first post: My view of the 2014 FIFA World Cup so far, and that Luis Suarez
Before
everything else, I would like to thank my baby brother who, through
Facebook, encouraged me to create this blog to best express my inner
thoughts and feelings I could hardly contain. Thank you for the valuable
piece of advice, bro!
I have been watching the 2014 FIFA World Cup since Day 1, and it has proven to be as good as advertised so far. Just about all of the matches that have been played up to this point are world-class, although some of them were either sub-par or marred by lousy officiating.
Cases in point include national teams like those of England, Spain, Russia and South Korea. All of them played way below expectations, so bad in fact that the Philippine Azkals could probably beat them. The England players, for one, have been vilified back home for caring only about their pockets and playing without heart, teamwork, or patriotism whatsoever. Spain may have lost their desire for winning, what with their international successes in the past six years, having won Euro 2008 and 2012 aside from the FIFA World Cup in 2010. Russia continues to disappoint today as they did in the 2002 World Cup, although they can console themselves with the fact that they will host the 2018 edition of the tournament where they are automatically qualified and have yet another chance to redeem themselves. Lastly, South Korea are nowhere near the 2002 team that finished a fighting fourth behind eventual champion Brazil, Germany and Turkey. Despite being coached by the legendary Hong Myung-bo, one of the players from that great 2002 team, their performances of the current World Cup showed that they do not belong to the same football field as Guus Hiddink and Company. Just goes to show how difficult it is to develop a world-class champion team, doesn't it?
But perhaps the biggest disappointment of all so far could very well be Luis “Useless” Suarez. Argh! He did it again! He doesn't learn, does he? Those now-infamous gnashers of his has claimed yet another victim in Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini, the third of his brilliant yet controversial career. His latest shenanigan netted him a four-month, nine-match suspension that cost him the rest of the 2014 World Cup and all of the 2015 Copa America. By getting himself suspended for the umpteenth time, he rendered himself useless for Uruguay's Round of 16 match against Colombia, which Los Charrúas found too great an obstacle to hurdle without him and thus got eliminated to the tune of 2-0. Luis Suarez. So young, so talented yet so corrupted.
His immature act alone is vile enough, but what is perhaps even more vile is the way his teammates and some of his Uruguayan countrymen defended him despite the video evidence clearly showing him on the wrong side of the argument. In fact, some Uruguayans even wore vampire false teeth to show their admiration for him as a national hero, even though he cost his country the golden chance of winning a third-ever World Cup without him in the team's lineup. Another one is his teammate Diego Lugano, who called Chiellini a crybaby and said that the bite marks he got from Suarez were scars from an old injury.
When I read about Lugano's comments, I thought to myself, "Sure, Señor Lugano! You would be singing an entirely different tune if you were the offended party, wouldn't you? And where's your own solid evidence proving that Signor Chiellini's scars were indeed from an old injury? If you have nothing to prove other than show how inane and baseless your comments and opinions are, wouldn't it better to just keep your own biased views to yourself, lest you will come across as a fool in the eyes of the rest of the world? People like you and those defend veritable thugs like Suarez, including some of your countrymen, make this world sick!" Truly, there are none so blind as those who WILL not see.
So much for thug defenders. A very notable exception to the rule among Suarez's fellow Uruguayans is Alcides Ghiggia, the scorer of the winning goal against Brazil in the 1950 World Cup championship match. To paraphrase his comments, Ghiggia mentioned that Suarez is a kid who is sick in the head, and his act is one that is not normally done in the pitch.
Kudos to you, Señor Ghiggia! You are not only a legend of the game but also a true gentleman off the pitch and an asset to your beloved country. If more people would be thinking and acting the same way as you do, this world and not just your beloved Uruguay will be a much better place to live for all, regardless of differences in creed or color.
In a few hours from now, Brazil will be facing off against Colombia, while France will go up against long-time nemesis Germany. I for one am divided between France and Germany, but I will be clearly cheering for Colombia in the other match. I'll surely be there as the action takes place!
I have been watching the 2014 FIFA World Cup since Day 1, and it has proven to be as good as advertised so far. Just about all of the matches that have been played up to this point are world-class, although some of them were either sub-par or marred by lousy officiating.
Cases in point include national teams like those of England, Spain, Russia and South Korea. All of them played way below expectations, so bad in fact that the Philippine Azkals could probably beat them. The England players, for one, have been vilified back home for caring only about their pockets and playing without heart, teamwork, or patriotism whatsoever. Spain may have lost their desire for winning, what with their international successes in the past six years, having won Euro 2008 and 2012 aside from the FIFA World Cup in 2010. Russia continues to disappoint today as they did in the 2002 World Cup, although they can console themselves with the fact that they will host the 2018 edition of the tournament where they are automatically qualified and have yet another chance to redeem themselves. Lastly, South Korea are nowhere near the 2002 team that finished a fighting fourth behind eventual champion Brazil, Germany and Turkey. Despite being coached by the legendary Hong Myung-bo, one of the players from that great 2002 team, their performances of the current World Cup showed that they do not belong to the same football field as Guus Hiddink and Company. Just goes to show how difficult it is to develop a world-class champion team, doesn't it?
But perhaps the biggest disappointment of all so far could very well be Luis “Useless” Suarez. Argh! He did it again! He doesn't learn, does he? Those now-infamous gnashers of his has claimed yet another victim in Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini, the third of his brilliant yet controversial career. His latest shenanigan netted him a four-month, nine-match suspension that cost him the rest of the 2014 World Cup and all of the 2015 Copa America. By getting himself suspended for the umpteenth time, he rendered himself useless for Uruguay's Round of 16 match against Colombia, which Los Charrúas found too great an obstacle to hurdle without him and thus got eliminated to the tune of 2-0. Luis Suarez. So young, so talented yet so corrupted.
His immature act alone is vile enough, but what is perhaps even more vile is the way his teammates and some of his Uruguayan countrymen defended him despite the video evidence clearly showing him on the wrong side of the argument. In fact, some Uruguayans even wore vampire false teeth to show their admiration for him as a national hero, even though he cost his country the golden chance of winning a third-ever World Cup without him in the team's lineup. Another one is his teammate Diego Lugano, who called Chiellini a crybaby and said that the bite marks he got from Suarez were scars from an old injury.
When I read about Lugano's comments, I thought to myself, "Sure, Señor Lugano! You would be singing an entirely different tune if you were the offended party, wouldn't you? And where's your own solid evidence proving that Signor Chiellini's scars were indeed from an old injury? If you have nothing to prove other than show how inane and baseless your comments and opinions are, wouldn't it better to just keep your own biased views to yourself, lest you will come across as a fool in the eyes of the rest of the world? People like you and those defend veritable thugs like Suarez, including some of your countrymen, make this world sick!" Truly, there are none so blind as those who WILL not see.
So much for thug defenders. A very notable exception to the rule among Suarez's fellow Uruguayans is Alcides Ghiggia, the scorer of the winning goal against Brazil in the 1950 World Cup championship match. To paraphrase his comments, Ghiggia mentioned that Suarez is a kid who is sick in the head, and his act is one that is not normally done in the pitch.
Kudos to you, Señor Ghiggia! You are not only a legend of the game but also a true gentleman off the pitch and an asset to your beloved country. If more people would be thinking and acting the same way as you do, this world and not just your beloved Uruguay will be a much better place to live for all, regardless of differences in creed or color.
In a few hours from now, Brazil will be facing off against Colombia, while France will go up against long-time nemesis Germany. I for one am divided between France and Germany, but I will be clearly cheering for Colombia in the other match. I'll surely be there as the action takes place!
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