Normally, of course, opening day matches are low-scoring games. But they're often funny results, with Senegal beating France last time and (best of all) cameroon dispatching Argentina in 1990. Yesterday's match was neither low-scoring nor an upset.
Watching that first Lahm goal provided me one those thrills that only international soccer can provide. Four minutes in, so much tension, and the left back--the left back!--provides a total golazo. Whatever you think of the German team, Klinsmann's reaction was wonderful.
So are the Germans that good or the Ticos that bad? The ESPN team kept hammering on about Germany's new offensive strategy, but the problem isn't that they were playing too little defense, it's that the defense they were playing was executed poorly. Both times (yes, Marcelo Balboa, both times) Friedrich was a step off on the outside trap.
Mind you Costa Rica also had two defensive howlers, both on the Klose goals. Take away all the defensive blunders and it would have been 2-0 Germany on two monumental goals.
Ronald Gomez looked pretty useless. I really think they should have brought Winston Parks.
As for Poland-Ecuador... a friend of mine is Polish and in 2002 I had a great deal of fun mocking her team's ineptitude (until they beat the USA, at which point I had a fair amount of crow to eat.) Looks like 2006 will bring more of the same from Poland. Ecuador had a classic counterpunching game plan and executed it perfectly.
England-Paraguay in a few minutes, so I'm going to wrap this up. More later today,
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