Westfahlen arenalla...

World Cup Semi Finals – By Chris.

Germany - Italia 2.25 - 3.70

My selection for this World Cup is Italy, and why should I abandon Lippi's side now that they are in the semi final? Italy are the better football side, no doubt in my mind, but I guess it is fair to say that Argentina were rather dominant against the Germans, but to no avail, so the Italians better be careful! Poor coaching gave Germany the late initiative against Argentina, but I am pretty convinced that S-G Eriksson and Scolari would have made the same silly decision as the Argentina coach, Pekerman. Safety first, in this case Riquelme and Crespo replaced - I hate negative coaching! By the way, the worst coaching so far was van Basten' s negligence against Portugal. They laid siege to the Portugese penalty area in the second half, but he refused to play van Nistelrooy. Poor Kuijt, he was never where he was supposed to be. Surely van Nistelrooy would have found the Portugese net, at least once! If I was a Dutch citizen, I would be very upset with van Basten. It seems to me that certain managers have bigger egos than the players these days.

There was no world class football by the Germans against Argentina, and I was fairly disappointed. Not with their effort - they worked as hard as ever, but it became blatantly evident that Argentina were technically superior and were allowed to keep possession for long spells. M. Ballack is nowhere near his best, and it does not look like he will hit top form in this tournament. Winning the World Cup without Ballack in top form? Sounds like a very tall order. Argentina were too defensive, 1-0 up, and I know perfectly well that Italy could fall into the same trap. Italy have the best defender in the world at this moment, Cannavaro, they have the outstanding Zambrotta and at last their bomber Luca Toni has found the net, and I see this Italian side improving with every game. Lippi has found the right formation, with Toni up front and Totti just behind. Germany come with their strong collective, their euphoria and home advantage of course, but I hold on to the technically superior Italians. Materazzi returns from suspension, but Nesta will be rested once again and De Rossi will have to wait until the final. Camoranesi is a doubt for the semi final. One late worry for the Germans: pictures show that T. Frings gave away a punch or two after the Argentina game and a suspension is a distinct possibility. The pictures were shown on Italian TV, and if Italy are behind this new turn of affairs, it will give extra motivation for the German side. Missing Frings however, is a terrible blow. No matter how I look at this match, what a great price on the Italian win (3.70)!

France - Portugal 2.10 - 4.33

This is a new situation for France. They have been underdogs to both Spain and Brazil, but to this semi final they come as clear favourites. No wonder of course, as France were stronger than both Spain and Brazil. Those two impressive wins make France favourites to win the World Cup. Their defence has been just fantastic and their "safety risk" Barthez has hardly been tested. For once, all of the big names in the French squad live up to their names, and I have to say that they look like the perfect football side at the moment. Zidane was man of the match against Brazil, but my personal favourite is Ribery. For the sake of football, please let France be one of the finalists! (2.10).

I would be very disappointed if this rather negative Portugese side get to the final. I am a bit fed up with their tricks and tactics. Negative approach most of the time and their players are trying hard to get film contracts, or else how do you explain all of their theatrical moves. Deco and Costinha are back for this semi final, a huge bonus of course, but I guess that Scolari will put 10 men behind the ball and Pauleta up front, as usual. The French patience will be severely tested this time, because Portugal can wait, and wait, and they are very clever, playing their kind of football. Let us face it. It is very difficult to play Portugal. Scolari is a clever, scrupulous manager, very pragmatic and will do whatever to get the necessary result. Hopefully France will take an early lead and then we will have a great game ahead of us. If not, it can turn out to be somewhat of a drag. These odds? (2.10) I think it is a decent price. I would land on the other side of evens. France to win (2.10).

-Chris





Itse toivon Italia-Portugali finaalia,mutta pahalta näyttää.on sen verran pahat vastustajat..

...ole koskaan voittanut Italiaa arvokisoissa. Joten jos lähdetään historiallisista seikoista kokoamaan totuutta niin tämä ottelu menee rankkareille eikä ratkea koskaan. :) Meriiteillä ei koskaan ole pelejä voitettu.

Oma veikkaukseni ja hartain toiveeni on että Italia vie voiton 2-1.