12/21/24
June 21, 2002
Will England v Brazil be repeat of 1970 first round tie?:
"The match had it all, as Brazil offered up some of the finest sleight-of-foot ever seen, while England moved the ball around the pitch with clinical accuracy and efficiency."
Pele unbelievably denied by Gordon Banks but ultimately, both sides finally separated by a golden goal: "... Tostao eluded two men on the left before laying the ball into the box to Pele. The maestro then controlled, lulled his defender to sleep and poked the ball calmly into the path of the onrushing Jairzinho who hammered it past a now lordly Banks."
The match starts in an hour and a half. Get your scores and post-match commentary and analysis right here.
posted by worldcup2002 to soccer at 12:00 AM - 19 comments
Okay, Juninho's not in the starting eleven for Brazil, so I'm much less conflicted: England needs to stuff them in order to prove to Big Phil that he was wrong to leave the little fella out. (Though in all seriousness, this one is so hard to call. 2-1, but to whom, I dunno.)
posted by etagloh at 12:40 AM on June 21, 2002
1 all at the half. Sweet game! Inglaterra contra Brasil.. thank you, Univision!
posted by ShinyKnows at 02:25 AM on June 21, 2002
"And Seaman's been beaten!" 2-1.
posted by ceiriog at 02:43 AM on June 21, 2002
I'm in Cardiff and it's almost silent outside, and this is supposed to be the rush hour. When the Welsh come out and support England then you know it's something special. That said, England don't look like they're going to equalize
posted by fullerine at 03:08 AM on June 21, 2002
Ah well. Jammy goal from Afropuffboy, but Brazil were the better side. Looked as if England were playing against themselves (and their own inhibitions) as well as the Brazillians. Scholes wasn't allowed to get into the game, and every time we had a bit of a run, we gave them the time to compose themselves. No real belief there in the end. Now, let's hope the Germans get a shock...
posted by etagloh at 03:26 AM on June 21, 2002
Glory be to the early hours! Thanks be to Folgers, bright lighting and unemployment. Brazil proved themselves a step ahead and the better team goes through. That said, I was a bit disappointed in the lack of hustle from the English side. I guess it says as much about the Brazilians, but at the end I saw little extra effort from the Brits. And would someone with more knowledge comment on the subs that England made. I thought they proved questionable. Oh, and bad call on the Brazillian red card, but it goes and comes.
posted by 86 at 03:39 AM on June 21, 2002
Brazil did indeed prove themselves a better team, but only by one goal. It was a great match. Unless Owen was hurting, I wondered why they took him out towards the end.
posted by armando at 03:43 AM on June 21, 2002
I agree with your assessment, etagloh. Aside from the early going, when Owen scored, England never really gave Brazil any trouble. They didn't hustle Brazil enough, letting them bring the ball anywhere on the field at leisure. They didn't construct any plays in midfield or attack -- nobody ran at the Brazilians -- and were content to knock balls back and then loft them hopefully into the box. They didn't press their one-man advantage in any meaningful way. And Seaman gave away that jammy goal. I wonder if he was still dazed from that awkward fall he took. What a waste.
posted by worldcup2002 at 03:46 AM on June 21, 2002
Yes, good match, though refereeing was poor. Brazil passed the ball much better than England, and England never really looked like scoring, even against ten men. Still, England couldn't have lost to a better team, and they got a lot further than people thought they would.
posted by BigCalm at 03:48 AM on June 21, 2002
*cries*
posted by Succa at 03:59 AM on June 21, 2002
Fecking pathetic performance. Oh btw, don't call us Brits, we're English.
posted by squealy at 04:17 AM on June 21, 2002
Oh, and bad call on the Brazillian red card, but it goes and comes. It was a centre-forward's tackle. As Big Ron said, he got caught for a cowardly tackle: he pulled his foot out, and it made it look worse. Still, over the ball, studs showing, deserved at least a yellow. Subs: Owen looked surprised (shades of Lineker, 1992?) but he'd had no supply, and never looked like repeating the luck of the first half. Dyer didn't know where he was supposed to be playing, which forced Scholes further back. Wassell looked sparky but didn't see enough of the ball, Sheringham the same. In essence, we lost the match by not allowing our central midfield to play as midfielders: they always looked scared of being caught out, which didn't do them justice, not just for their ability but for their tenacity in earlier games. Not with a bang, but a whimper. Actually, it reminded me of England-Greece, but without Beckham sufficiently fit and in form to rescue it single-handedly.
posted by etagloh at 04:32 AM on June 21, 2002
Yes, yes, yes. They weren't taking the game to the Brazilians. Nobody wanted to hold on to the ball except for maybe Scholes, Mills and Beckham. And even then, they were hitting those high passes in when they released the ball. Certainly not the stuff of champions. Some runs at the defence might have resulted in opportunities, at least a greater likelihood of corners, free kicks, maybe even penalties. I question taking Owen off, but I'm guessing he was suffering a bit from the new groin injury. As for the subs, it might have been better to bring Fowler rather than Sheringham. Fowler brings a more well-rounded approach and vision to the game. Maybe something inventive might have come of it. And, that Ronaldinho sending-off was harsh. If he had pulled that on an England forward breaking clear and one-on-one with the Brazilian keeper, it might have warranted the red, but not in this case. A yellow would've been sufficient.
posted by worldcup2002 at 09:52 AM on June 21, 2002
What an awful game. It was almost as boring as Germany v Paraguay (did anyone beside be see paralells between that game and Monty Python's philosopher's football skit?). I can't believe I got up at 6 am to watch this. Sadly this was one of those games were it wasn't the better team that won but the less bad. If Senegal get through tomorrow (depends on which Turkey shows up) they should make short work of the Brazilian side that showed up today (plus they'll be without Ronaldinho, who was the only Brazilian being any brilliant). If this was the "real" final we can just forget about the rest of the tournament. Awful.
posted by Kattullus at 09:56 AM on June 21, 2002
Senegal! Senegal! Senegal! I want to see them smack Germany aside in the final. Diao, Diouf, Cisse, Papa Diop brothers, Faye, H Camara, kick ass!
posted by worldcup2002 at 11:57 AM on June 21, 2002
*sob*
posted by Ben at 12:22 PM on June 21, 2002
Alright!! OK. Not a good game, but I think Brazil deserve some credit for going forward when a goal up and a man down, not the kind of thing you often see from any of the traditional football powers.
posted by liam at 12:36 PM on June 21, 2002
That was hard to watch. Poor England really didn't deserve to win it though, and Brazil was the better side. I think the weather did the English in (not to mention Seaman).
posted by kafkaesque at 02:01 PM on June 21, 2002
Hmm.. hard to guess the outcome, but the Italian-conspiracy-theory has me asking which team would generate the better ratings & maximum future returns for FIFA. Go England!