Match 12: New Zealand - Slovakia PBP [R] 6/15/10

Let's hope there's a decent crowd for this, Japan v Cameroon yesterday was only like 75% stadium capacity.

Look out for Marek Hamsik of Slovakia, this kid is something else, an attacking mid who plays for Napoli in Serie A, he's drawn comparisions with Steven Gerrard and Frank Lampard with his all action approach, averaging around 10 goals per a season.

Hamsik, Weiss and Stoch actually should provide some firepower for Slovakia. Weiss played very well in a friendly against the US and Stoch just won the Dutch league with FC Twente where he was on loan. Chelsea just sold him to Fenerbache.

Stoch on the bench for Slovaks wtf

Of course Stoch isn't in the lineup so don't listen to me

^ lol

Looks like a lot of empty yellow seats today, disappointing.

Too many IMHO. I would have figured at least the connection with rugby, S. Africa and NZ would have brought out more just because. The announcers mentioned it was about 46F but feels like 39F, whatever than means in regards to fair-weather fans.


Simon Elliott LOL

Good open game so far, we need more games in this World Cup like this... Both teams actually taking it to each other.

Slovakia doesn't seem terribly concerned, they lookmlike they can absorb the New Zeland attack without an issue.

17' 0-0 Slovakia keep the ball for ~2 minutes in New Zealand's 1/3, with a couple of throw-ins. Prior to that, New Zealand had about 6 minutes of sustained pressure, with Slovakia unable to keep the ball. Before that, I couldn't tell whether that's Venus or Jupiter in the morning sky -- sheesh, 03:50 in Washington and already the pre-dawn has overpowered all the weak magnitude-0 stars. (I think it must be Venus -- way high above the horizon.)

There wasn't a Haka, correct?

28' 0-0 Ref waves off a foul at 30m center, giving advantage. #9 Stanislav Sestak receives at 20m box right, cuts back 2-3 times to shake his defender, threads a short and flat diagonal pass to #7 Vladimir Weiss slipping in through the box top slightly wide of the right post, and Weiss is momentarily clear -- but blasts powerfully about 2m wide right.

This group is looking eerily similar to group A in terms of results.

Slovakia starting to get on top now, creating numerous chances...

33' 0-0 Another one for the goalkeepulani training video #1 Mark Paston lines up a simple left-foot boot upfield, but the ball bounces feather-light and gets wider than the arc of his swing -- and he only micro-slices it a few meters due west out the side of his 18-box, where #9 Stanislav Sestak pounces on it, brings it in on the endline, and gets Paston to cede a right corner.

39' 0-0 Slovakia right corner, over box to 6-top left, #16 Jan Durica leaps and dumps a header back into the box -- and #1 Paston freezes at the 6-center, and lets it go past him toward the far post! #10 Chris Killen promptly half-volleys it away at waist-height. Some indecision!