World Cup Round of 16 - Spain Falters Again (Spain 1 - France 3)

Boy, am I glad there's no World Cup for the next couple of days. Staying up till 5am almost every night is taking it's toil on me. Despite this game being a well played and somewhat exciting game, I almost fell asleep midway in the first half. Had to wash my face numerous times to stay awake.

It was a pretty darn good game between the Spaniards and the French. Both teams started off scrappy but soon found their rhythm. It was pleasing to the eye that both teams went all out for the win, not wasting time dicking around in midfield or waiting for openings. Both teams came to win, and took the bull by the horns.

Although goalmouth action was at a premium, there was plenty of delightful passing in and around the penalty area to make this a spectacle. Spain had taken the lead via a David Villa penalty midway in the first half, and France equalised before the break with Franck Ribery springing the offside trap to score.

Both teams looked headed for extra time at 1-1, when Patrick Veira, headed in a goal in the 83rd minutes to send the French estatic. Zidane sealed the victory in injury time with a wonderful solo goal, sending the Spanish for yet another disappointing World Cup.

For some inexplicable reason, Spain always manages to kick themselves in the arse when it matters. I thought this Spainish side would have been different, given the way they have played and the players in the squad. There seems to be quality all around, and this looks to be one of the mentally toughest Spanish sides ever assembled. Yet for all their promise, the Spanish have failed to deliver on the big stage yet again.

World Cup Round of 16 - Ghana Beaten Comprehensively by Champions (Brazil 3 - Ghana 0)

This one went for 3 goals, just as predicted. Well, you would think I would have made a killing tonight. As luck would have it (my luck anyway), the guy who usually contacts me with the odds, just had a baby, so he's too busy to entertain me on a day when I actually need him. I'm destined not to make any money out of this World Cup.

Anyway I caught the game at Holland kopitiam with Cow, and have to say the babe factor is fantastic. Kinda hard to concentrate on the game with eye candy all around.

Brazil started the game brightly and scored thru Ronaldo in the 5th minute, making him the all time highest goal scorer in the World Cup. I'm sure that would be the headlines in tomorrow's papers all over the world.

Ghana, without talisman, Micheal Essien, then took over the game. They had possession and chances but were unable to finish. They lacked that special player to create that little bit of magic. Just as the half was going to end with a goal lead for Brazil, Adriano sprung from an offside position.....TWICE....to put Brazil two up.

I'm really believing that someone up there wants Brazil to win this entire tournament. You've gotta be a blind man not to see Adriano in an offside position before he put the ball in the net. In fact he was offside when the move leading the goal started. The last couple of games have seen some horrendous refereeing, although this time it was the freaking linesman's fault.

In the second half, the Ghanaians picked up where they left off, and continued intense pressure on the Brazilian goal but continued to disappoint upfront. By midway in the second half, it felt to me that Brazil was just toying with the Ghanaians, daring them to come at them. It also felt like the Brazilians could counter attack and score anytime they wanted to.

Then with 10 minutes left, Ghanaian striker Asamoah Gyan was sent off for a simulation offense. This is what puzzles me again. Sure Gyan fell over, but he didn't protest or suggest he was fouled. He looked clumsy and tripped. I don't understand this rule at all. Seems to me that even if a striker trips and falls on his own accord, it would be a foul and a yellow card offense, regardless of his intention. Probably the rule wasn't meant to be carried out this way, but it seems the referees and FIFA, especially, have a distinct lack of common sense when it comes to laying down rules.

Of course with just 10 men left and two goals down, Brazil exploited their man advantage and scored another goal through Ze Roberto. They probably could have had more as they toyed with the Ghanaians in the last few minutes.

Well, with decisions going Brazil's way and the quality of their players, I wouldn't be surprised if Brazil wins the cup easily. So far there haven't been any major upsets in this tournament, which makes for some exciting mouthwatering games coming up in the quarters. Personally I prefer to see some underdogs go thru, like in the last World Cup.

World Cup Round of 16 - Thank God for Penalties (AET Switzerland 0 - Ukraine 0) *Ukraine wins 3-0 on Penalties

I'm seriously glad they have penalty shootouts. There is of course some serious debate on if penalties are a fair way to settle football matches, but in this case, they are necessary. Both teams could play till the next World Cup in South Africa 2010 but neither would score a single goal.

Hell, even in the penalty shootouts, Switzerland couldn't score a single one to save their lives. They become the first team to leave the World Cup without conceding a single goal. Strange but true.

For the entire game, both teams showed alot of hardwork, but there was a lack of inspiration in both sets of players. There was plenty of endeavor, but no goals for all the effort put into the game. As the commentator said midway thru the second half, there was plenty of prespiration and no inspiration.

The closest both teams came to scoring was midway in the first half, when Schevchenko hit the crossbar with a header, and Frei also hitting the other crossbar with a freekick, just minutes after. After that, it was always going to be a dull stalemate.

In the end Ukraine prevailed in the penalty shootouts to set up a date with the Italians. It's probably going to be yet another dull game with both defences taking centre stage.

What's interesting to note so far in the 6 knockout games is that no game has been able to beat the 2.5 goals handicap. Every single game has 2 or fewer goals. Maybe it's time for the next one featuring Brazil and Ghana to break the duck. Maybe it's time for me to put a punt on it, since I've been avoiding betting on individual games.