The World Cup
U.S. goalkeeper Tim Howard may have broken his ribs Saturday when England’s Emile Heskey slid feet-first into his mid-section. If you’ve never broken ribs before, know that it’s one of the most painful injuries you can suffer. (I’ve done it a few times, lucky me.) You can play through it, but it’s going to hurt like hell on dives and possibly limit your reach. Howard is expected to play though, ESPN reports in the video below.
Today’s World Cup matches:
Netherlands vs. Denmark, 7:30 a.m.
Japan vs. Cameroon, 10 a.m.
Italy vs. Paraguay, 2:30 p.m
All will be live on ESPN and online at ESPN3.com.
Yesterday’s matches:
Slovenia beat Algeria 1-0 in a result with a big impact upon the U.S., which now has much less room for error than it would have had the two teams played to a draw.
Germany destroyed Australia 4-0. With Tim Cahill suspended due to a red card, the Aussies can book their flights home.
Ghana beat Serbia 1-0 on a late penalty in what was easily the match of the day.
Two of those matches got decided by silly handballs though. One led to a second yellow and ejection for Algeria, while another set up a penalty kick for Ghana. What are the odds of that?
FIFA is investigating why at least 8,000 ticket-holders didn’t show up for the Greece – South Korea match. Here’s a hint, guys: Greece plays ugly soccer.
Zinedine Zidane became the latest to rip France coach Raymond Domenech, aka Crazy Ray, saying he “is not a coach” and that “there is no teamwork” on the France team. There also is no Karim Benzema, which could explain the lack of goals. Has a coach ever been fired DURING the World Cup?
World Cup organizers promise not to silence the vuvuzelas. “People love the vuvuzelas around the world,” said Rich Mkhondo, a spokesman for the local World Cup organizing committee.. “Only a minority are against vuvuzelas.” Yes, the minority who watch the game on TV.
Local
The Delaware County Times takes an in-depth look at the rise of soccer in the Chester area.
The paper also has coverage of Saturday’s airing of the U.S.-England match at PPL Park in Chester, which is set to open this month. So too does the Philadelphia Inquirer, which also had a second story on the event.
Reading United AC is staying busy during the World Cup. They took their first loss over the weekend but have still been one of the top teams in their PDL division this year.
What I love most about the vuvuzelas is how they drown out all that intrusive crowd noise. You know, the clapping, cheering, collective gasps, not to mention those silly chants and the singing. Who needs that racket when you can bliss out on the gloriously mind numbing white noise-like sound of the authentically traditional vuvuzela?