Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Post Match Thread [R]

Since you talked about Argentina, both your defenses have not been tested yet in these 2 rounds.
Maybe Mexico will end up having a better defense (not that improbable) and going farther than the argies.

 

Congratulations to Mexico! Great win.

 

Just got done watching the DVR of the second half after dropping my wife off at the airport.

Kudos to Mexico. Complete and utter domination.

And France was TERRIBLE with their offside trap on the first goal. Hell, their back line was awful for the entire match.

 

Oh and Ekoku is completely clueless. Called the first goal offside and said the PK was a dive.

I'm sorry I defended him earlier.

 

the only one to show up with blue white and red in their hearts for les bleus were Toulalan and Lloris. The rest didn't deserve to be on the pitch and should donate their meals after the game for charity because they don't deserve it. What the hell was that? seriously? HOW many balls did Ribery lose away carelessly? how many poor passes did Diaby have? how many poor touches from Evra? what the hell? and Gourcuff was not there...so who was supposed to be the playmaker? GOVOU are you kidding me?

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

It just happens that Asia is a huge continent. I don't favor the break up of AFC (Asian Football Federation) because it tends to lower the level of competition and eventually development while potentially sending more mediocre teams to the world cup. That's exactly the problem with CONCACAF; there is very little competition outside of the US-Mexico rivalry and those two are pretty much always guaranteed to qualify. IMO, both US and Mexico owe a great deal to the excellent friendlies they arrange with nations outside CONCACAF. Those friendlies give them more competition than the qualification games.

 

Has Ribery ever played well in the center of the midfield? I think Domenech is to blame for his poor game.

 

Also Serbia was in a real group of death. Every single one of those teams was very good (argentina, netherlands, ivory coast, serbia). Uruguay and Mexico are decent but hardly top teams.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

Asia is just a European name given to an arbitrary landmass. You could just as easily include Europe and put it in one federation called Eurasia. The federations should be arranged according to geography, culture, and history as is the case with South America, North America, Europe, and Africa. "Western Asia" (middle east, stans, india, pakistan, afghanistan) has nothing in common with "East Asia" (japan, korea, china, thailand, indonesia, australia, philppines, etc.) They should be two separate federations so that the entire massive region isn't unrepresented. I don't think giving them one berth out of Europe's 13 would decrease the quality much. It would certainly promote football in that massive region of the world.

 

Ivory Coast was a first time qualifier and Holland was in transition. They didn't do anything too impressive in 2006 and hadn't really been that great for at least half a decade - not qualifying for 2002 and only beating Latvia in 2004 so I think this group is sort of a group of death in its own right when you take into account host nation advantage.

I really don't see the Serbia 2006-France 2010 connection here. If anything they're polar opposites. France are on paper the strongest team in this group where the opposite could be said for Serbia in their group in 2006. Serbia went into 2006 as a first time qualifier as an independent nation with a reputation for having a group of good, yet unspectacular players who formed and played as a cohesive unit and enjoyed a very successful qualifying campaign. France meanwhile come into 2010 as the previous WC finalists and former champions with a team filled with superstars who are as incompetent at playing together as a world XI team playing a charity match. The only similarities is that they both wear blue and they both (most likely) play 3 matches.

 

Congrats to Mexico. This is a real team, with a real fighting spirit.

I may surprise you but i am glad you won. I was so sure of this i had bet on Mexico, and you proved me right.

As far as les Bleus.... In order to respect the rules of politically correct, i will just say you cannot win when you don't like the blue shirt.

Period... Now Uruguay and Mexico to the next stage !

 

Yeah, I usually root for France (karma for 1982 and 1986) and to reward they beautiful way they usually play (Platini, Zidane, Henry, etc).

Still, I'm amazed that Cisse and Henry can't get a game when they needed goals. Or than Nasri couldn't make the squad. Or that Vieira couldn't have provided some much needed leadership (or even an old hand like Flamini).

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

Although I agree with you that concacaf is not as strong as the best conferences, I do think you underestimate the competition the USA and Mexico get from the rest of the nations that comprise it. Mexico was on the brink of elimination this season and barely made it through. We could have seen Jamaica playing instead of them but they got there act togather. The conference as a whole is improving and garnering more respect as mexico proved today. Nrth american teams are constantly invited to participate in south american tournaments ( club and international) and vice versa. So i do think you are mistaken in that point. But you are right that the challenging friendlies always help teams become exposed with new playing styles and techniques.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

The problem with CONCACAF is that USA and Mexico are it's only really, really good teams, and their progress rate is held back because they're in a conference of minnows.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

Hopefully there's more improvement in CONCACAF so that ALL teams continue to improve.

 

If the football universe were fair, then any team other than France would progress from this group. Heck, if the football universe were fair, then the French would not even be in South Africa! I keep thinking about how much more lively this group might have been if it had been Ireland, South Africa, Uruguay, and Mexico.

Honestly, who amongst the neutrals really wants to see this incompetent, flaky coach and his sulky, insipid, quarreling batch of players progress in this World Cup??? I sure don't. I have no desire to see this team play another match. I will be disgusted if France eek their way through and keep one of the other three nations who are playing for the shirt and seem up for every game from progressing to the knock-out stages.

Memo to the FFF: Tell Domenech not to let la porte hit him in le derrière on the way out, dump any players who don't truly want to play for the shirt, get an inspiring, competent coach, rebuild the team, and start fresh with Euro 2012!

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

Well, there was some controversy with the way Uruguay tied Costa Rica, in what could have been an offside position. And Argentina saved itself from tying Peru in Buenos Aires thanks to a clear offside goal. Had that game ended 1-1, Argentina was done.

La Main du Diable is still worse.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

The triumph of France in 1998 was hailed as a great moment when "multicultural France" came together as one, and helped ease certain tensions that had been growing for a decade.

I'm a bit concerned this (yet another) failure may exacerbate the tensions that have been growing for the past five years.

I even wonder up to what point a team reflects its society. The Greeks who played versus Korea did so as if they had just come from a country that had financially collapsed, BTW.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

I do think that a counterargument to the view tha w so many slots euro squads should finish in the knockout rounds and that's the fact that w so many teams in the tourney, there are many more chances for failure too, especially in groups w multiple uefa teams. In fairness to uefa who would deseve the slots? Arc? W it's miserable history of total failure except '02? Caf w it's 1 advancer no matter how many teams in each tourney. Oceania? Please? Concacaf? Well ours is the only other fed w one exception that always shows at least a little well, but we don't deserve it, we just rightly claim that
caf and arc already have
far too many considering
the paucity of senior
level success. No, the ony Feds who've earned it are uefa and conmebol. I think after this caf and afc should surrender a slot and a slot. I just doubt it will happen.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

Frankly, I'm ok with the slots as they are alocated at this point. Perhaps CONMEBOL should get their usual 4.5 plus Brazil, even if it means having 60% of that confederation teams in the WCF 2014. After all, Africa got six spots this WC. South America would make a better use of a sixth spot, I'm sure.

In 2006, UEFA got their full 13 plus Germany, and in 2002 AFC got both hosts plus 4 for a total of six teams. So I think it'd be only fair to have Brazil + 4.5 for the CONMEBOL.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

Who said that I based that statement on this WC's group matches? I used France's lack of quality in this WC's group stage as an example of a team that probably shouldn't be there..

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

Oh their lack of quality is the least of it.

They shouldn't be there because they cheated.

Thierry Henry's handball into the goal while playing Republic of Ireland is the reason France is in this WC; not because they were a quality side, because they aren't as a team.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

France DON'T have a lack of qualify that is their problem.

Many of their players play for top teams like Chelsea, Man U, Arsenal, Bayern, Lyon, etc

Player for Player they should be among the favourites, not many teams have better players.

The problem is as a team they are like the Dutch often were, a bunch of sulking egomaniac pre madonas.

 

Re: Match 18|France vs. Mexico|17-06-10|Play-by-Play Thread [R]

OK. So I'm trying to figure out the FIFA ranking system. This Mexico win puts Mexico at +1259 ranking points so far for June(?), and USA at +549(?). With Slovenia ranked at 25, a US win over Slovenia would count for 1943(?) ranking points for an average June of +1246(?) for the US, meaning that Mexico is having a better run so far.

I realize that this is TOTALLY subjective, but for you math geeks out there, am I doing my math correctly?

 

I definitly want to add that Mexico has to take the group. Another poster speculated on the value of meeting the argies as they could implode at any time. That's crazyness to me, Mexico has a mental block w Argentina that doesn't even exist w brazil. '05 confed, 06 world cup, '07 copa. After all those lessons why not take s Korea or Greece instead? No need to be a glutton for punishment. And that's a probable qf ticket too.