Today's Action

Great game today from Ivory Coast, who finally got their game on track. They were shaky in defense at first and went down 2-0 before climbing back in style. Two of the goals came from PKs, but their offense was attacking and energetic. Too bad, they'll have to wait until 2010 for another crack.

Argentina and Netherlands promised to be a corker, but the two titans of Group of Death I were disappointingly incomplete in a nil-nil draw. Both sides left several key players (who had fell victim to the contagious yellow card flu spreading like wildfire in Germany) off the pitch, which reduced the effectiveness of each team. Argentina, to my eyes, looked the better side, but like Netherlands couldn't seem to figure out the last 10% of the attack. Despite many chances to score, both teams failed to find the back of the net.

Portugal looked very good in defeating Mexico, a team that I thought would surprise, but has instead disappointed during this tournament.

Quick Hook
Talk about a tough business. The whistle ending the match had barely stopped reverberating and Iran had already fired its football association president, with the coaches and star Daei sure to follow. Serbia's coach has quit (quite obviously before he was fired, or worse). Togo's coach has already quit, and come back...during the Cup.

One coach who has got to be on his way out is France's Domenech. Is there a better team with worse results? How can a team studded with stars, including one of the world's great strikers Thierry Henry, score so few goals? The French remind me of the English team. They would be better with a real coach.

What is that they say about football coaches? They usually go the same way they came, fired with enthusiasm.

I'm sure we're set to see several more coaches get quick axings as the group play completes.

Oh, Faux Pas! Apparently, a Ghanaian player pulled the wrong flag out of his shorts in the game with Saudia Arabia. This crap all got started with Terrell Owens in the NFL and has spread bird-flu-like across the globe and across sports. I say give players a red card if they pull a prop to celebrate a goal.