This World Cup has brought its share of controversy for sure, but it has been an exciting Cup. It certainly will be remembered.
In the 3rd place game, Germany will be taking on Uraguay. The Germans missed attacking midfielder Muller in the game vs Spain, as the Spanish were able to control most of the game agaisnt the Germans. Uraguay was just too shorthanded, with 4 starters out, including striker Suarez, their leading goal scorer. Against the Netherlands, Forlan did all he could to carry his side, but in the end, it wasn't enough. Both teams will be at full strength for this game, and this one is hard to call, but based on biased & hated of a player, I'm going Germany.
In the final, it will be The Netherlands vs. Spain. There will be a new name added to the list of countries who have won the World Cup. This will be Spain's 1st apprearance in the finals, & The Netherlands 3rd apprearance although they have never won. Spain controlled the Germans, but the hero of the game was Puyol, a defender who headed in a corner kick. Spain's offense was unable to get going against Germany, but they did enough to win. The Netherlands beat Uraguay to get to the finals. A keeper mistake by the Dutch allowed Uraguay to stay in the game, and after the Netherlands went up 3-1, they let down their guard a bit, as Uraguay scored in extra time & threatened to tie the game in the final seconds.
Again, both teams here will be at full strength, so the Dutch defense should be more awake and alert this match, and their offense will also test the Spanish defense more than the Germans. Both teams like to possess the ball, so for the Spanish, keeping possession like they did against Germany will be key. This will be an exciting game, with my pick here being The Netherlands. They took out the number 1 ranked team in the world already & are riding a 25 game undefeated streak.
Thursday, July 8, 2010
Monday, July 5, 2010
World Cup, the Semi-Finals.....Final 4
After an exciting quarter finals, we're down to 4 teams. The Netherlands, Uruguay, Germany, & Spain.
The Netherlands vs. Uruguay. The Netherlands got to the Semi's by going through the heavily favored Brazil. The Netherlands is the only team left that has won every game so far this tournament & in fact are unbeaten in their last 24 games. Uuaguay got here by going through Ghana & are also undefeated in the tournament, having a draw in the 1st round. I'm gonna rant for a second, as Ghana deserved to be here. Suarez (who I hate as a player) stopped a for sure goal in the last few seconds of their overtime quarterfinal game, Ghana misses the pk, and Uruguay wins in a shootout. FIFA should have banned Suarez for the last 2 games, since Uraguay was heading home before he punched the ball out of the goal. That being said, Netherlands will be missing defender Greg van der Weil and midfielder Nigel de Jong.
Uraguay will be missing striker Suarez, defender Jorge Fucile, and possibly Diego Godin & Diego Lugano out with injuries.
I am pulling for the Netherlands again, Ghana game, you can bet that all of Africa will be backing the Dutch as well.
Germany vs. Spain. Germany got to the Semi's after destroying Argentina 4-0. The German speed & youth was able to counter the Argentine defense, with about 25 minutes to go, to send them packing for home with 3 quick goals. Miroslav Klose and Thomas Muller have 4 goals in this World Cup, but Klose has a total of 14. Klose has 2 games to get 2 goals and become the all time leading World Cup Goal scorer.
Spain's striker David Villa is the leading goal scorer of the tournament with 5. But, the problem with Spain is that Villa is about the only one scoring. Villa has scored almost all of Spain's goals, which is a worry, especially with how the Germans are looking to shut him down. Spain got here by beating Portugal, in a game that could have gone either way, with blocked PK's for both sides in the span of just a couple minutes.
Both teams are good an possessing the ball, but in the end, Germany's physical style of play & speed is going to be too much for punchless Spain to overcome.
Wednesday, June 30, 2010
Games of the Month
Sorry for starting this a little bit late, but I have come up with my games for the months January-May. Hope you enjoy them.
January: Arizona Cardinals 51-Green Bay Packers 45 (OT), NFL Wild Card Playoff.
This high scoring, offensive explosion helped the Cardinals move on in the playoffs and Green Bay came back from a 17-0 deficit to force overtime.
February: Canada 3, United States 2, OT, Gold Medal game at the 2010 Winter Olympics. David vs. Goliath match up. David, the United States won the first game in the preliminary round 5-3. Canada would have none of that in the second game, but the U.S. came back resiliently and pushed it into overtime with 25 seconds to play.
March: Kansas State 101, Xavier 96, 2OT, 2010 Men's Basketball Tournment. Electrifying game, which sent K-State on to the elite eight.
April: Duke 61, Butler 59. Another David vs. Goliath match up, and Goliath won again, but barely. Cinderella wasn't given her glass slipper tonight, but it was an amazing game, which was so close for Butler to pull it out.
May: Philadelphia Flyers 4, Boston Bruins 3, Game 7, Eastern Conference Semifinals. The Flyers came back from a 3-0 game deficit and a 3-0 series deficit to force this decisive game 7. As mentioned earlier, the Flyers went down 3-0 early in the game, but came roaring back after a time out by Peter Laviolette.
Again, please let me know what y'all think!
January: Arizona Cardinals 51-Green Bay Packers 45 (OT), NFL Wild Card Playoff.
This high scoring, offensive explosion helped the Cardinals move on in the playoffs and Green Bay came back from a 17-0 deficit to force overtime.
February: Canada 3, United States 2, OT, Gold Medal game at the 2010 Winter Olympics. David vs. Goliath match up. David, the United States won the first game in the preliminary round 5-3. Canada would have none of that in the second game, but the U.S. came back resiliently and pushed it into overtime with 25 seconds to play.
March: Kansas State 101, Xavier 96, 2OT, 2010 Men's Basketball Tournment. Electrifying game, which sent K-State on to the elite eight.
April: Duke 61, Butler 59. Another David vs. Goliath match up, and Goliath won again, but barely. Cinderella wasn't given her glass slipper tonight, but it was an amazing game, which was so close for Butler to pull it out.
May: Philadelphia Flyers 4, Boston Bruins 3, Game 7, Eastern Conference Semifinals. The Flyers came back from a 3-0 game deficit and a 3-0 series deficit to force this decisive game 7. As mentioned earlier, the Flyers went down 3-0 early in the game, but came roaring back after a time out by Peter Laviolette.
Again, please let me know what y'all think!
Game of the Month
I've been thinking about doing a new feature on my blog for a while now, and it is the above title. I will choose what I consider to be the game of the month from all sports. So it could be a round of golf, a NASCAR race, a soccer match, a tennis match, a MLB game, what have you. If there are three worthy nominees, I will say which games are the nominees and then make my choice. Hope you all enjoy a small piece of it.
The nominees:
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Boston Celtics game 7, NBA Finals.
USA vs. Algeria, World Cup qualifying round.
John Isner vs. Nicolas Mahut, Wimbledon, Gentlemen's singles 1st round.
Why each was chosen
L.A. vs. Boston: It was game 7 of the NBA Finals, the ultimate game to crown the champion in the league. It was a close game until the end. Both teams fought hard to the very end. It was very back and forth with some excellent defense. The Lakers and Kobe Bryant then came out on top for his 5th championship and the Lakers 16th overall title. Kobe was also the leader in the Lakers comeback in the final five minutes, when they were down 7.
USA vs. Algeria: The U.S. needed a win here in order to move on to the knockout stage, and come out on top in their respective group. If the U.S. had even just tied Algeria, it would've been considered a huge disappointment for the U.S. not to get into at least the knockout stage. With a blown call by the referee early in the match which cost the U.S. a goal. But, Landon Donovan scored the winning goal in extra time to send the U.S. into their first trip into the knockout stage since 2002. It was an exhilarating match, where you were on the edge of your seat the entire time as it was very hard fought and it was an elimination game for the U.S.
Isner vs. Mahut: The longest match in tennis history. Need I say more? Although it was just a 1st round match, it was at many consider to be the most prestigious grand slam, Wimbledon. Plus, the match was over three days, was the longest match in the illustrious history of tennis, not only breaking any and all previous records, but shattering them. Consider these astonishing facts: 11 hours, 5 minutes, the length in time of the match. 8 hrs, 11 mins., the time of the 5th set alone. 183 games in a match, and 138 in the fifth set alone. Then, there were a record number of aces recorded: 113 for Isner compared to 103 for Mahut.
Out of the three nominees, I chose the tennis match for the sheer historical nature of it. While the Lakers winning back to back titles and the U.S.A. moving on to the knockout stage certainly are great moments and games, I doubt you will ever see an 11 hour tennis match again. While some parts of the match may have gotten boring, you just had to stay tuned to see who would be the first to succumb to the other. Hence, the Isner-Mahut match is this month's game of the month.
I will continue to do this for every month for the rest of the year. At the end of the year, I will take the "winners" from each month and put them against each other for the game of the year. I will also choose other games from earlier months as well. If you disagree with my picks for the games or for the pick with the game of the month, please contact me on facebook, twitter @pjwalk85, or leave a comment below. Thanks!
The nominees:
Los Angeles Lakers vs. Boston Celtics game 7, NBA Finals.
USA vs. Algeria, World Cup qualifying round.
John Isner vs. Nicolas Mahut, Wimbledon, Gentlemen's singles 1st round.
Why each was chosen
L.A. vs. Boston: It was game 7 of the NBA Finals, the ultimate game to crown the champion in the league. It was a close game until the end. Both teams fought hard to the very end. It was very back and forth with some excellent defense. The Lakers and Kobe Bryant then came out on top for his 5th championship and the Lakers 16th overall title. Kobe was also the leader in the Lakers comeback in the final five minutes, when they were down 7.
USA vs. Algeria: The U.S. needed a win here in order to move on to the knockout stage, and come out on top in their respective group. If the U.S. had even just tied Algeria, it would've been considered a huge disappointment for the U.S. not to get into at least the knockout stage. With a blown call by the referee early in the match which cost the U.S. a goal. But, Landon Donovan scored the winning goal in extra time to send the U.S. into their first trip into the knockout stage since 2002. It was an exhilarating match, where you were on the edge of your seat the entire time as it was very hard fought and it was an elimination game for the U.S.
Isner vs. Mahut: The longest match in tennis history. Need I say more? Although it was just a 1st round match, it was at many consider to be the most prestigious grand slam, Wimbledon. Plus, the match was over three days, was the longest match in the illustrious history of tennis, not only breaking any and all previous records, but shattering them. Consider these astonishing facts: 11 hours, 5 minutes, the length in time of the match. 8 hrs, 11 mins., the time of the 5th set alone. 183 games in a match, and 138 in the fifth set alone. Then, there were a record number of aces recorded: 113 for Isner compared to 103 for Mahut.
Out of the three nominees, I chose the tennis match for the sheer historical nature of it. While the Lakers winning back to back titles and the U.S.A. moving on to the knockout stage certainly are great moments and games, I doubt you will ever see an 11 hour tennis match again. While some parts of the match may have gotten boring, you just had to stay tuned to see who would be the first to succumb to the other. Hence, the Isner-Mahut match is this month's game of the month.
I will continue to do this for every month for the rest of the year. At the end of the year, I will take the "winners" from each month and put them against each other for the game of the year. I will also choose other games from earlier months as well. If you disagree with my picks for the games or for the pick with the game of the month, please contact me on facebook, twitter @pjwalk85, or leave a comment below. Thanks!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
The World Cup - Quarterfinals
So we're down to the final eight teams: Netherlands, Brazil, Uruguay, Ghana, Argentina, Germany, Paraguay, & Spain. Out of these teams, Ghana is the only African team left, & the only second place team from the bracket round left. The other 7 teams have won their 1st round bracket. Instant replay or not, there will always be controversy. The disallowed England goal vs Germany, the offsides goal for Argentina vs Mexico. As far as England is concerned, they have been an overrated team. The played lackluster in the tournament up until the game against Germany, but the German youth proved too much for them to handle.
Netherlands v. Brazil. The Netherlands have seemed to play it safe so far in the tournament, but with Robbins back in the lineup, look for him to go at the Brazilian defense to create scoring chances. Brazil is trying to become a more complete team, not scoring a lot of flashy goals, but still winning. I'm pulling for Netherlands, but the winner of this game, will be playing in the finals, regardless of who they face in the next round.
Uruguay v. Ghana. Forlan & Suarez, the Uruguayan strikers are looking to propel their country into the next round. They are facing the last African team left in the cup. With an entire continent backing them, the Ghanaians are riding high, after knocking the USA out of the World Cup for the 2nd time. Lady Luck is going to run out, as Uruguay will look to pick apart Ghana's midfield & defense. The winner here will face either the Netherlands, or Brazil.
Argentina vs. Germany. The best player in the world, has yet to score in this tournament, but Messi has had a hand in a good portion of Argentina's goals, either setting players up, or teammates knocking in second chances he's created. Argentina's goalie looked less than stellar in the game against Mexico, look for the Germans to test him. Germany has gathered both youth & experience in their run to the finals. Look for them to counter-attack with speed & expose the defense, especially on the outside flanks. I'm pulling for Argentina, but look for the winner here to join either the Netherlands or Brazil in the finals.
Paraguay vs. Spain. Paraguay needed 120 minutes, & penalty kicks to edge Japan. Spain took care of Portugal in 90. Paraguay is going to need their forwards to put shots on goal is they are to have any chance in this game. Spain was methodical in breaking down the Portugese defense, look for them to do the same should Paraguay get into a defensive shell to try & counter attack. Spain is good at keeping possession of the ball & will take the chance to counter away for most of this game. I'm expecting Spain to move on from here to the next round.
Looking forward to another exciting four games, which should be close.
Looking forward to another exciting four games, which should be close.
Friday, June 25, 2010
World Cup - the Knockout Round
The group stages are over, 16 nations have advanced to the next round in the World Cup. From here on out, there are no draws, just winners & losers. Should regulation end in a tie, the teams will play two 15 minute halves. If there's no winner after the extra time, then it goes to penalty kicks.
There were some upsets, the Americans drawing with England, Spain losing to the Swiss, North Korea playing well against the Brazilians, only 1 African Country making it out of the group stage, the defending champions, Italy, knocked out, and the French self-destructing. But, now the real competition starts, consider this the "Sweet Sixteen" of soccer.
Uruguay v. South Korea: The South Koreans defense will be tested by strikers Forlan & Suarez, but the Koreans played well against Argentina in their loss, so they should know what to expect from Uruguay. I expect the South Koreans speed to be the the decisive factor. The winner will face the winner of the USA & Ghana. South Korea moves on.
USA v. Ghana: Four years ago, Ghana knocked the USA out of the World Cup. The USA had to relay on a goal by Donovan in the 91st minute to advance this time. The Americans have given up early goals in 2 games, and if it happens again, I don't expect them to come back. Ghana will be backed by the the entire continent of Africa and for the USA to win, they need to be aggressive up front, tighten their defense & watch the Ghana counter attack. USA moves on.
Argentina v. Mexico. Mexico looked good in games against South Africa & France, but failed to score against Uruguay. The Mexicans will have to look for opportunities to counter the Argentine attack. Argentina looked good offensively, but their defense was wide open for counter attacks. Look for a team to exploit that. Argentina was the best player in the world (Messi), who has yet to score a goal, but has been a major factor in the Argentine offense. The winner here will face the winner of England v. Germany. Argentina moves on.
England v. Germany. The English looked shaky in the opening rounds, mostly in net. The Germans had one ugly loss, but have looked good in their 2 wins. Look for the Germans to test whoever is in the net for England. Germans move on.
Netherlands v. Slovakia. The Netherlands looked good in all 3 wins, and with Robbins coming in as a sub in the 3rd game (he was questionable for the cup cause of injury), he showed great play
making & no rust, setting up a goal in his Cup debut. Slovakia looks to be solid, and will challenge the defense, but expect the Orange to come out on top of a tough game. The winner will face the winner of Brazil v. Chile.
Brazil v. Chile. Brazil is a less flashy, more defensive minded team than in Cups past. They are looking to be a more complete team. The 2 south American teams are familiar with each others styles, making this a game to watch. But, look for Brazil to move on.
Paraguay v. Japan. It's a clash of styles, Japan's tactical passing & moving the ball against the Chilean South American style. Though not flashy, Paraguay will use quick passing & look to get on the scoreboard often. This could go either way. The winner here will face the winner if Spain v. Portugal. It's a coin flip, and I'll say Japan moves on.
Spain v. Portugal. Spain was shocked in their opening match, a loss to the Swiss. Portugal's best game was a 7-0 thrashing of North Korea. There are 2 teams familiar with each others styles, it will be a close match that can go either way. Another coin flip, and let's go with the number 1 team in the world, Spain.
Another post will be posted previewing the round of 8. Looking forward to these enticing matches.
There were some upsets, the Americans drawing with England, Spain losing to the Swiss, North Korea playing well against the Brazilians, only 1 African Country making it out of the group stage, the defending champions, Italy, knocked out, and the French self-destructing. But, now the real competition starts, consider this the "Sweet Sixteen" of soccer.
Uruguay v. South Korea: The South Koreans defense will be tested by strikers Forlan & Suarez, but the Koreans played well against Argentina in their loss, so they should know what to expect from Uruguay. I expect the South Koreans speed to be the the decisive factor. The winner will face the winner of the USA & Ghana. South Korea moves on.
USA v. Ghana: Four years ago, Ghana knocked the USA out of the World Cup. The USA had to relay on a goal by Donovan in the 91st minute to advance this time. The Americans have given up early goals in 2 games, and if it happens again, I don't expect them to come back. Ghana will be backed by the the entire continent of Africa and for the USA to win, they need to be aggressive up front, tighten their defense & watch the Ghana counter attack. USA moves on.
Argentina v. Mexico. Mexico looked good in games against South Africa & France, but failed to score against Uruguay. The Mexicans will have to look for opportunities to counter the Argentine attack. Argentina looked good offensively, but their defense was wide open for counter attacks. Look for a team to exploit that. Argentina was the best player in the world (Messi), who has yet to score a goal, but has been a major factor in the Argentine offense. The winner here will face the winner of England v. Germany. Argentina moves on.
England v. Germany. The English looked shaky in the opening rounds, mostly in net. The Germans had one ugly loss, but have looked good in their 2 wins. Look for the Germans to test whoever is in the net for England. Germans move on.
Netherlands v. Slovakia. The Netherlands looked good in all 3 wins, and with Robbins coming in as a sub in the 3rd game (he was questionable for the cup cause of injury), he showed great play
making & no rust, setting up a goal in his Cup debut. Slovakia looks to be solid, and will challenge the defense, but expect the Orange to come out on top of a tough game. The winner will face the winner of Brazil v. Chile.
Brazil v. Chile. Brazil is a less flashy, more defensive minded team than in Cups past. They are looking to be a more complete team. The 2 south American teams are familiar with each others styles, making this a game to watch. But, look for Brazil to move on.
Paraguay v. Japan. It's a clash of styles, Japan's tactical passing & moving the ball against the Chilean South American style. Though not flashy, Paraguay will use quick passing & look to get on the scoreboard often. This could go either way. The winner here will face the winner if Spain v. Portugal. It's a coin flip, and I'll say Japan moves on.
Spain v. Portugal. Spain was shocked in their opening match, a loss to the Swiss. Portugal's best game was a 7-0 thrashing of North Korea. There are 2 teams familiar with each others styles, it will be a close match that can go either way. Another coin flip, and let's go with the number 1 team in the world, Spain.
Another post will be posted previewing the round of 8. Looking forward to these enticing matches.
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Stanley Cup Final review
What a series! Even though it didn't go 7, it was a very entertaining series none the less. Five of the six games were 1 goal games, 2 went into overtime, and all but one were moderately to heavily scoring.
Reviewing everything, I think Jonathon Toews definitely deserves the Conn Smythe award, as he was the captain of the team. I also think that since he was the scoring leader, he deserves it. Now, he's still not the top player in the league, but I'd definitely put him in the top 5, along with Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, Henrik Sedin, and Joe Thornton. The reason for that, is because as with Crosby, he now has won a Stanley Cup and is a gold medal winner with Canada.
Chris Pronger, if the Flyers had won, probably would've won the Conn Smythe award. The reason for that is because he played nearly 30 minutes a game. Pronger also brought big time leadership to the club. Even though he may have been listed as the assistant captain, he probably was the most vocal leader in the locker room.
Both the Flyers and Blackhawks came into the series facing long Cup droughts. Chicago had not won since 1961, and they have now erased the longest drought for any hockey franchise. Now, that honor belongs to the Toronto Maple Leafs. That honor will stick to them for a little while now. The Blackhawks also have made a great transition from a franchise going nowhere fast to Stanley Cup winner. In five years, they went from one of the worst franchises in the NHL to Stanley Cup champions. Not many teams can lay claim to that.
The Flyers had a great season, overcoming adversity in almost everything. Their biggest obstacle that they overcame was their 3-0 games and 3-0 goals in game 7 comeback against the Boston Bruins to win it. I tip my cap to them as they were not favored in any series, except probably against the Candiens, who just came off back to back 7 game series in the conference finals.
Next year, the Blackhawks may not get this far, as they have plenty of free agents coming up. But, they still have their big 3, Hossa, Toews and Kane all back, and with those 3, they will always be dangerous. The Flyers, will again be back in the playoffs, as they essentially have everyone except for their goalies and Arron Asham coming back.
Looking forward to the 2010-11 NHL Season!
Reviewing everything, I think Jonathon Toews definitely deserves the Conn Smythe award, as he was the captain of the team. I also think that since he was the scoring leader, he deserves it. Now, he's still not the top player in the league, but I'd definitely put him in the top 5, along with Alex Ovechkin, Sidney Crosby, Henrik Sedin, and Joe Thornton. The reason for that, is because as with Crosby, he now has won a Stanley Cup and is a gold medal winner with Canada.
Chris Pronger, if the Flyers had won, probably would've won the Conn Smythe award. The reason for that is because he played nearly 30 minutes a game. Pronger also brought big time leadership to the club. Even though he may have been listed as the assistant captain, he probably was the most vocal leader in the locker room.
Both the Flyers and Blackhawks came into the series facing long Cup droughts. Chicago had not won since 1961, and they have now erased the longest drought for any hockey franchise. Now, that honor belongs to the Toronto Maple Leafs. That honor will stick to them for a little while now. The Blackhawks also have made a great transition from a franchise going nowhere fast to Stanley Cup winner. In five years, they went from one of the worst franchises in the NHL to Stanley Cup champions. Not many teams can lay claim to that.
The Flyers had a great season, overcoming adversity in almost everything. Their biggest obstacle that they overcame was their 3-0 games and 3-0 goals in game 7 comeback against the Boston Bruins to win it. I tip my cap to them as they were not favored in any series, except probably against the Candiens, who just came off back to back 7 game series in the conference finals.
Next year, the Blackhawks may not get this far, as they have plenty of free agents coming up. But, they still have their big 3, Hossa, Toews and Kane all back, and with those 3, they will always be dangerous. The Flyers, will again be back in the playoffs, as they essentially have everyone except for their goalies and Arron Asham coming back.
Looking forward to the 2010-11 NHL Season!
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