Igna and Vasya were really good footy, didn't allow any chances inside the box from what I recall and did you see that Igna free kick that hit the bar?
What makes the Igor mistake suck even more is that the fansd and media are all focusing on that instead of the overall crap team play!
Capello tactics are very poor I was disappointed in Russia play 3 points were vital against a poor Korean team yet all people are talking about is Akinfeev mistake. Everybody is sweeping under the rug the entire team poor performance and Capello lack of imaginative style of play very conservative. Why isn't Dzagoev and Kerzhakov starting??
Surprisingly even first half. Russia denied a 1000% penalty (the WC tradition continues!) and Koko with the a huge miss. Defensively another solid effort apart from Kombarov who's getting skinned.
Team gave it their all and outplayed Belgium for good portions, just badly missed that quality in the final third.
Tell me how Capello tactics are so backward?? Why does he continue play so defensive and plays for the draw and not a win. Tell me why Kerzhakov and Dzagoev are on the bench?
His tactics proved to be good up until the last ten minutes. I disagree with his substitutions but his tactics were largely working for 90% of the match.
Algeria is playing well. Won't be an easy math with these 3 points. In fact, they probably will know that a draw will get them through as S Korea won't beat Belgium.
Lol....Algeria will run them like dogs, Russians are so small & slow good god. They got booed off the pitch at Maracana lmao, priceless!
In the next match, Russia has nothing to loose, so play attacking football! The two past matches were so boring.
I'm afraid we might've blew it. Maybe tie Germany but we'll prolly lose. and Ghana will prolly beat Portugal. Portugal was pinned in their own corner with 45 secs left, if Bradley didn't get disposessed so easily with us pushed high up the pitch, we win the game. Just unreal that happened F'd up thing is that scene of Varela celebrating was all too familiar. We saw him score the late winner v. Denmark in Portugal's Euro '12 2nd group game in Lviv. We were sitting in the 15th row next to the Portuguese section and they mobbed him right by us. Really tough pill to swallow, worst kind of deja vu.
I think for $11m/yr., the Russian team should be getting a LOT better coaching than what Capello has provided so far. Bad breaks aside, you make your own luck, and that makes two games in a row where Capello's timid tactics cost Russia in games that maybe they should have taken some kind of result from... Color me not impressed with Belgium, at all. Russia outplayed them for large stretches of the game. the last 7-8 minutes, I am not sure what was going on with the Russian midfield, it seemed to me that around 80th minute they were instructed to bunker behind the ball, never a winning idea. USA-Portugal, what to say? I guess things even out at the end - clearly outplayed Potugal tonight, but to be honest , Ghana outplayed the US in game and was unlucky not to pull a result from that game.
I think the issue with Belgium is they have way too much talent....like Argentina....to play well together. They need a great manager to guide them.
Lmao at the guy sleeping in Maracana watching Russia play! Russia is so small & slow, would love to see Ukraine play them.
He should have put in Kerzh for Kannunikov (who was good mind you) and put Koko out left instead of wasting a sub on Dzago with ten minutes left. About that U.S. game, if Bradley just boots the ball out of bounds the match is over instead he played around and it cost the team. Hopefully Jurgen and Low exchanged texts after the game.
We just need a slightly more positive system. Which international manager still prohibits his fullbacks to participate in the attacks? Seriously? It's so easy to defend Mertens and Hazard that way.
I really felt bad for Bosnia last weekend... They deserved better and that off-side call was BS. On US - Portugal - there is a reason CRonaldo is considered one of the best in the game today. Despite the terrible 94.5 minutes of play, all he needed was a few seconds of brilliance to leave his mark on the game. That is what class is all about... Speaking of individual brilliance - Messi is already dragging the entire Argentina team on his shoulders. If not for Lionel, Argentina is sitting with two draws in the middle of the pack. Argentina (and Brazil, btw) did not impress me at all, at this point. I am rooting for Croatia to beat Mexico today and advance. I think they were robbed against Brazil and I do not think Mexican keeper can pull two perfect games in a row.
Teams that have impressed me to this point are France, Netherlands, and Costa Rica (not because they are good but because no one gave them a chance). Germany look very good if not for some defensive breakdowns versus Ghana. Belgium has not, thus far, impressed me either. With all their supposed ability, they struggled in both of their games. No one else has impressed me.
Yet if it wasn't for yet another horrible gaffe by Bradley, who once again decided to dick around and give up possession with a low percentage pass when ANY OTHER option (taking a wildly inaccurate shot from distance, putting the ball 20 rows into the seats, professional foul, etc.) ends the game and CR never gets the chance. Hard to give him goat of the game with Cameron still on the pitch, but for me, he has been the most disappointing US player so far. If he doesn't get his act together for Germany, I fear the worst and will blame him exclusively. However, Klinsy has to take some blame here - if there ever was an argument for Donovan and his role on this squad, it would have been for him to come on for Bradley after Dempsey's goal (In Donovan's absence, Diskerud should have come on). Donovan knows a little about retaining possession, whereas it is apparent that Bradley wants to gift the ball away at any given opportunity, and I really hate to see him playing that high up the field so late in the game, trying to protect a lead. Other than that - the kids have played well, Germany Jones is the MVP so far, and I was quite pleased at the resolve and attitude of the team after Cameron's foul-up. Croatia-Mexico should be the game of the day. This will be one of the few times u will see me pulling for El Tri, but CONCACAF is showing so well so far, I feel compelled to pull for the team I love to hate.
Exactly. There are a lot of people defending Bradley over on USMNT N&A, and for the life of me I cannot figure out why. He d@mn near cost us the Ghana game with 90 minutes of poor play, and really was to blame for they tying goal last night.
On the other hand, while I find your criticisms of bradley valid, when he lost the ball, there were still 6 or more US defensive players who could not stop Ronaldo and Varela, who combined on that goal. Why are you letting the CB off the hook for Varela breaking free? He has to bear at least some part of responsibility!