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    Worsts of the Tournament

    Team: I can't decide between Cameroon and Honduras, but I think Cameroon's stinky attitude gives them the edge.

    Individual performance: Luiz, there's really no other contender.

    FA: Uruguay, spineless defence of Suarez bite

    Commentator: Depends where you are, but on ESPN I thought Jon Champion had a shocker, such as prematurely announcing that a shot that hit the side netting had gone in. Based on what I've read, Jonathan Pearce was a disgrace for not climbing down over his "ball crossed the line" gaffe.

    Summarizer: Steve McManaman is a nice guy, very enthusiastic, but he lacks insight and vocabulary. Ekoku sometimes appears rather supercilious and defensive.

    Refs' decisions: I would go back to the first two games, when Croatia were robbed and Mexico had two goals chalked off. Not sending off Thiago Silva in the 3rd place match was gutless but perhaps compassionate as the ref probably saw another 7-1 looming if he flashed the red card. The whole performance of the ref in Brazil v Colombia was the most disgraceful I've seen for a while, and placed players in danger.

    Fan annoyances: The cheering at the camera even when your side are going out of the world cup. It's an insult to the millions of viewers who genuinely hurt when their team loses.

    #2
    Worsts of the Tournament

    Stewart Robson I thought was particularly awful on ESPN. Very reluctant to speak, even when he was being addressed directly and anything he did commit himself was invariably a cliche anyway.

    Ekoku was rather muted but when he did speak up, it was generally informative, I thought. He also did know (or researched) some tidbits on the African sides, which means he had a utility all his own.

    Comment


      #3
      Worsts of the Tournament

      Good list.

      It's easy to forget Honduras were ever in this. And they weren't even the CONCACAF team that had to play New Zealand to get in.

      The worst was the lack of acknowledgement of the protestors and refusal to use the spotlight of the World Cup to talk about the Qatar clusterfuck. I suppose it's too much to expect anyTV company that has to bid for the World Cup rights to say anything bad about FIFA, but they really should.

      Comment


        #4
        Worsts of the Tournament

        Team: Although they made the Semis, Brazil

        Individual performance: Assou Ekoto

        FA: Uruguay

        Commentator: Voodoo Chiles (I know he's more of an anchorman but still)

        Summarizer: Lawrenson

        Refs' decisions: Brazil v Colombia

        Fan annoyances: Moby and the Coleraine flag got everywhere

        Comment


          #5
          Worsts of the Tournament

          Worst performance by an Ultonian: Moy Park (battery chicken agribusiness), ubiquitous in the pitchside adverts. Ex-Glentoran reserves starlet Afriye Acquah got a cameo in Ghana v Portugal.

          Scottish: 'Tall Dark' Hansen bowed out from the punditry sofa with a tearful dismissal of Brazil's defensive inadequacy. Special mention to Marouane Fellaini, his Dad Big Jock McLaren out of Porridge will be very proud.

          Welsh: no reflected glory from a Patagonian win then, but John Hartson's enthusiasm for Euro 2016 is impressive. He guarantees they'll qualify if Bale plays.

          Most disappointing England player: Hart. Needs more competition for his place

          Comment


            #6
            Worsts of the Tournament

            Worst commentator - Peter Drury

            The best we had here in Australia, was Martin Tyler. And interestingly, apart from Australia's games, we only had the single commentator for the games and so the 0-0 semi-final between Argentina and the Netherlands was 2 hours in the company of Martin Tyler's mind - which was mostly fun but occasionally rambling!

            -

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              #7
              Worsts of the Tournament

              Worst kit: That France 'rugby shirt' abomination.

              Worst TV commercial: Toss up between the Sony (?) ad with the happy people who clearly have no interest in nor knowledge of football whatsoever - and that nonsensical Daniel Sturridge Subway commercial.

              Not sending off Thiago Silva in the 3rd place match was gutless but perhaps compassionate as the ref probably saw another 7-1 looming if he flashed the red card.
              It would've been something to send Silva off on top of having awarded a penalty for a foul that took place about four yards outside the area.

              Comment


                #8
                Worsts of the Tournament

                Worst haircuts: Chile (Runners up France)

                Comment


                  #9
                  Worsts of the Tournament

                  Reed John wrote: Good list.

                  It's easy to forget Honduras were ever in this. And they weren't even the CONCACAF team that had to play New Zealand to get in.

                  The worst was the lack of acknowledgement of the protestors and refusal to use the spotlight of the World Cup to talk about the Qatar clusterfuck. I suppose it's too much to expect anyTV company that has to bid for the World Cup rights to say anything bad about FIFA, but they really should.
                  On FIFA controversies, Bob Ley would say "but that's a discussion for another time." But if the world cup is not "the time", when is?

                  Comment


                    #10
                    Worsts of the Tournament

                    Worst decision: To give a free kick against Higuain when Neuer flattened him (I can sort of understand why he - wrongly - didn't give a foul against Neuer, but to give one agains Higuain is ludicrous)

                    Worst ad: Cristian Ronaldo for KFC (as mentioned elsewhere)

                    Worst performamce: No contest, Brazil vs Germany

                    Worst haircut: Palacio

                    Stupidest player: Pepe

                    Dive-iest player: Robben

                    Dirtiest team: France (or possibly Honduras)

                    Worst match: Argentina Switzerland (Maybe. I didn't see every game, including England Costa Rica, for example)

                    Comment


                      #11
                      Worsts of the Tournament

                      Worst game: France v Germany was particularly appalling considering the number of talented players on the pitch, so it edges out Japan v Greece and Nigeria v Iran.

                      Worst kit: the all-black with neon yellow trim that Spain wore against Australia. Luckily not too many people saw it on the day.

                      Worst referee: Mark Geiger for allowing France to kick the living shit out of Nigeria, just shading Yuichi Nishimura's appalling performance in the opening match.

                      Worst individual performance: either Marcelo or David Luiz against Germany. Neither of them can ever be taken seriously again.

                      Worst manager: Capello. It wasn't a vintage Russian squad anyway, but he managed to make them look like a bottom-half SPL side.

                      Worst ad: the "Stop the LIGHTS!!!!!!" one that RTE Two ran during every commercial break. It didn't have anything to do with the World Cup but it was still homicidally annoying.

                      Worst pundit: Dunphy. Consistently ill-informed, and visibly half-cut on a number of occasions.

                      Comment


                        #12
                        Worsts of the Tournament

                        jwDidi27 wrote: Worst haircuts: Chile
                        And you must say Brian they'll be delighted to have come out with a victory given such a strong field this year Brian. They've held of competition from the likes of France, Portugal, and Brazil. They must be delighted Brian.

                        Meanwhile, worst tattoos: Chile

                        Comment


                          #13
                          Worsts of the Tournament

                          Worst fans:- Iran...No women.
                          Next worst:- Algeria.. I noticed one.

                          Comment


                            #14
                            Worsts of the Tournament

                            Worst fans:

                            1) The Mexican and their pathetic "puto". If it was a dozen, or even one hundred behind one of the goals, but this was tens of thousands.

                            2) All the fuckin' crying ones. Get a sodding grip! It's football, not parachuting of foodsupply over impoverished and starving sub-Saharan areas and you missed to get at least a can of Spam.

                            3) Croatian. I'm getting fed up with the homophobic "pederi" chant. (means "you gay"). I've tried to explain once before that it's not really 100% equal to the english "you faggot", it's more somewhere between you play like a faggot and you play like a girl, but there's no excuse nevertheless. Who gives a shite about perfection in exact here when it's utter shite to begion with.
                            Bad Blue Boys of Zagreb turning up with flags where "Za dom spremni" was written. The same chant Simunic was suspended for when he grabbed a mic after the Iceland play-offs. Look, I still stand by my previous, that "Za dom" goes way, way back and is not an Ustasja invention. It was stolen by Ustasja. But if we've had a player suspended for it, it's mighty stupid to use that phrase written all over a Croatian flag. It doesn't make things better. And Bad Blue Boys can fuck off regardless of what they write on their flags. The constantly stoned, lazy, no-good idiots.
                            Also, Croatian fans punching Mexican fans in the stands when we were loosing against therm. Might have been that some Mexican fans were overly mocking, isn't out of the question considering they found so much joy in shouting "puto" as a twenty thousand man/women choir, but it was a disgrace to see Croatian fans doing that sort of thing.

                            4) The Brazilian. You know how I can tell that it was only upper class people in those seats? Not a fucking tifo. Not one.
                            Oh, and they could not resist to do the "puto" when they played Mexico. Not a dozen, not a few hundred behind one of the goals, but in the tens of thousands. So fuck'em. 7-1 was mild medicine.

                            5) The Halloween ones. I don't think I've seen a world up before with so many twats dressed up like twats. Were they really there for the football, or for a costume party?. The bloke with the shell of a huge water melon over his head especially.

                            6) That German moron fan during the final. The one the camera showed a few times way ahead of Germany's goal, him with the back towards the pitch, swinging a scarf over his head, up towards the stands. You fucking imbecill! A once in a lifetime thing to experience, you don't even watch the game. No, instead you want to make the final about you and how you can tell your friends back home how you got the whole section engaged in singing along. Which they would have even if you died under your seat five minutes before kick-off. I truly detest fans who don't even watch what's played before them. No, I don't only detest them. I think they should be banned from all games, even second tier Kazakhstan games. What on earth are they good for?

                            Comment


                              #15
                              Worsts of the Tournament

                              Tifos weren't allowed, I suspect.

                              I really liked France's shirts.

                              Comment


                                #16
                                Worsts of the Tournament

                                Pietro Paolo Virdis wrote: 5) The Halloween ones. I don't think I've seen a world up before with so many twats dressed up like twats. Were they really there for the football, or for a costume party?.


                                I don't mind them so much, but fifth place on your list seems reasonable.

                                Comment


                                  #17
                                  Worsts of the Tournament

                                  Worst game: France v Germany was particularly appalling considering the number of talented players on the pitch

                                  True, but sometimes nerves kick in when there is something substantial at stake so I can grudgingly accept stalemates in these circumstances.

                                  England and Costa Rica, however, had no such excuses, with one already eliminated and the other safely through. To produce such turgid fayre when they both had licence to relax and express themselves was unforgiveable.

                                  Comment


                                    #18
                                    Worsts of the Tournament

                                    Worst Commentator Reaction - I think every single one of them labelled the Brazilian National Anthem as 'Spine Tingling' which it may have been in the stadium, but to me just sounded like a drunken cockney knees up once the music stopped.

                                    Comment


                                      #19
                                      Worsts of the Tournament

                                      England and Costa Rica, however, had no such excuses, with one already eliminated and the other safely through. To produce such turgid fayre when they both had licence to relax and express themselves was unforgiveable.

                                      the truly worst game cant be a relative dead rubber at the third round of the group stage, cos you could just switch over to italy v uruguay.

                                      the worst game must be a 'this or nothing', so iran v nigeria for the groups and france v germany + all argentina's knockout games bar the final for the next rounds

                                      Comment


                                        #20
                                        Worsts of the Tournament

                                        Worst post-tournament magazine article: Brian Glanville in World Soccer (still) couldn't bringing himself to praise the tournament; he says "when the dust settles" we'll realize it wasn't a classic tournament.

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                                          #21
                                          Worsts of the Tournament

                                          He'd be right, though - it wasn't. The group stages were terrific, but (with only a few exceptions) the knockout-stage matches - which to many 'are' the World Cup - were pretty turgid affairs.

                                          Comment


                                            #22
                                            Worsts of the Tournament

                                            That issue of World Soccer is a disgrace. Not the Glanville column, but the match reports, which are all in micro-capsule form and read like they were assembled by computer. Absolute shite.

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