North Korea at the World Cup #3

And returning to our favourite segment here on Brenton writes, it's time for Round 3 of "North Korea at the World Cup". (See numbers one and two.)

Over at the World Cup Blog, they have a page for each team at the World Cup, including North Korea. I assume the other teams have actual fans writing, while they probably had to find someone willing to have a bit of fun with the North Korean page, including posting this supposed photo of the Great Leader (or whatever he's called):

That's nice. Could that really be him? Is this really the guy whose birth was foretold by the appearance of a swallow and marked by a double rainbow?

Jerseys, uniforms, kit, shirts, whatever you want to call them

Interested in showing your support for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea? Unfortunately for you, there's been some trouble in getting ahold of the current North Korean kit. This store's link, which looks promising (but doesn't even have the right shirt), leads only to a store offering retro shirts from 1966. And that's it. Here's a shot of the shirt, just to tantalize your senses:

The website of the Italian company Legea that has produced the shirts* acknowledges their sponsorship but doesn't include any links or information. I've emailed as many addresses as I could find in hopes of a response; I'll keep you updated.

* This might be interesting for you Canadian footie fans: Legea also produces the uniforms of the Montreal Impact (but they're not listed on the Legea website... too small?), rivals of our Vancouver Whitecaps. Interesting company they keep.

World Cup Day Eight: predictions gone to shit

I'm watching the Germany-Serbia match right now, it's 0-1 in the 73rd minute, and my predictions (and I suspect most everyone else's) have gone to shit. The ref in this game is waaaaaaayy too card-happy. Klose should never have been given his first yellow.

Also, what is up with the cardigans worn by the German coaches? Horrible idea. Apparently others thought so too. I'm looking for a picture. He's usually so well dressed, as seen in this photo probably from Euro 2008:
And here is the cardigan in question:

You be the judge.

My predictions

Germany 2-1 Serbia (guess I got that one wrong)

There's still time (EDIT: full-time. 0-1 to Serbia. Argh) for Germany to get me the result, but after having a penalty saved I'm not sure they have it in them. Podolski has had a bit of trouble in front of goal today.

Slovenia 1-2 USA

I've never cheered for the US, and I almost hope I'm not right on this one. But they should be better than the Slovenians. Because I didn't see the Slovenia-Algeria game, I have no idea how they did, other than they barely beat one of the least-favoured teams. C'mon you plucky Balkan bastards!

England 2-0 Algeria

England have to win one game, right? There should be a gulf in class, and I don't think Algeria have a Swiss performance in them. Count on Rooney for one (he has that ad to live up to, after all) and maybe Crouch to gangle one in. Yes, gangle (from gangly) is a verb now.

World Cup Day Six results, Day Seven picks and results

Because I can, and because I went a sad 2 and 7 on my

predictions over the past three days, and because

Nina is away for the weekend.

I was wrong, wrong, wrong. My prediction record is hanging in tatters.

Day Six results

Chile 1-0 Honduras

me: Chile 1-1 Honduras. Wrong result, half-wrong score. Chile attacked with style. I really expected more from Honduras this World Cup. A good win marred by a horrible dive by Chilean forward Alexis Sanchez. Shame.

Spain 0-1 Switzerland

me: Wrong result, wrong score. I could be forgiven for getting this one wrong. Never underestimate a great coach (Ottmar Hitzfeld). See my match report on what happened.

Uruguay 3-0 South Africa

me: Uruguay 1-1 South Africa. Wrong result, wrong score. I should have heeded my own words: "I suspect the Uruguayans have too much quality for the South Africans". A blatant dive for a penalty, but Uruguay looked like winning. The first Forlan goal wasn't as spectacular as everyone says (it was deflected, ferchrissakes), but it was still pretty nice. Uruguay look in good position in what was the most difficult group to predict.

Day Seven predictions and results (lucky I emailed them to a friend so I remember them)

Argentina 4-1 South Korea

me: Argentina 2-1 South Korea. Right result, half-wrong score. Argentina put on the show we expected from Spain. How much of this is Maradona and how much is the skill of the players? Your guess is as good as mine, but I am starting to hope they fail so the Maradona era comes to a crashing end. He's an annoying man.

Nigeria 1-2 Greece

me: Nigeria 1-0 Greece. Wrong result, wrong score. Another victory marred by some playacting. Nigerian midfielder Sani Keita, in a fit of anger kicked out at Torosidis, who went down like he'd been stabbed in the leg. If there was contact it was minimal. Stupid, stupid move by Keita, one that likely cost his team a chance at progressing.

France 0-2 Mexico

me: France 1-1 Mexico. Wrong result, wrong score. Will this be the second time in a decade that the French fail to score at the World Cup? Well done to Mexico, who played with intent, passion and flair. France looked good in the first half but couldn't break down Mexico's backline. Abidal had no business taking down the Mexican player for the penalty; he was never going to threaten a goal.

My predictions thus far

I started well, highlighted by a ballsy call on the 1-1 draw between England and the US which put me at 4 and 1 after Day Two. Day Three gave me another two correct, for a 6 and 2 record. Day Four left me at a respectable 7 and 4. Then came the fall.

Days Five, Six and Seven were not kind to me. A sad 2 and 7, with my only positives the easy Brazil and Argentine victories. I thought for sure I was safe picking Spain... bah.

So I'm 9 and 11 on the tournament so far. And it's only going to get harder. At least I've got my FHM jogo bonito girl up top.

World Cup: Spain v. Switzerland; Spain can pass very well

Spain v. Switzerland

• After 15 minutes: Spain have had 77% of possession so far but not a shot on net (but then two in the space of two minutes, neither threatening). Spain have just passed the ball around midfield and defence, never really getting in behind the Swiss backline.
• Defensive midfielder (DM) Sergio Busquets' specialty is falling over after losing possession in order to get a freekick. The count is at 1 so far.
• 24th minute: Good chance for Pique in the box, well saved by the Swiss keeper.
• 27: First real chance for the Swiss on a freekick: Iker Casillas fumbles the dangerous shot but grabs the loose ball.
• Swiss (and ex-Arsenal) defender Senderos looks like he's injured his ankle.
• 30: Freekick for Spain right at the top of the box after a dangerous run by Iniesta: into the wall at waist-height by David Villa. Waste is right.
• 38: The match has really slowed down; lots of fouls. I don't like Spain's chances of scoring before the half.
• 40: Possession is down to 68% for Spain. Worrying...
• Ramos again passes back to Xavi and stays put. I wonder if coach Del Bosque has told him to stay put in defence.
• Spain look frustrated. They're certainly having more trouble breaking down the Swiss than they did Poland.
• 44: Finally a real chance when Spain break with speed. Villa looks in scoring position but oddly chooses to chip the keeper, missing the net by miles.
• Dear Spain: I'm actually looking forward to the half so I can do the dishes.

Second half:

• This new Jabulani ball really seems to fly off the boots. Xabi Alonso just put one fifty feet over the crossbar.
• 49: Great move by Iniesta puts David Silva in a great position in the box, but he's dispossessed all too easily when he should have shot. Silva has struggled.
• 52: Switzerland score!!!! Horrible defending as the Swiss break from a goal kick. Casillas did well but the ball fell kindly to Gelson Fernandes (who you might think is Spanish but you'd be wrong; he's from Cape Verde, a former Portuguese colony off the west coast of Africa).
• 60: Good pressure from Spain leads to a few chances.
• 61: Silva and Busquets off for golden boy Fernando Torres and speedy winger Jesus Navas. Looks like Del Bosque has decided a dedicated DM isn't needed against a team that is only going to defend.
• 65: Immediate results as Iniesta has a great chance that bounces wide. Navas then combines with Torres for a decent chance.
• 68: Great chance for Torres as Spain break quickly: he puts the ball high and wide. I've picked him as the top scorer, so he better get his shooting boots on.
• 70: Alonso's shot hits the crossbar from a corner! Navas looks dangerous running at the Swiss defenders, and has a decent shot.
• 73: First yellow card; Howard Webb has done a good job of refereeing today.
• 75: Nearly another for the Swiss as forward Derdiyok puts one off the post.
• 76: Barcelona's young striker/winger Pedro on for teammate Iniesta, who looks injured. Pedro had a great season for Barca; this will be his first tournament with the national team.
• 83: Spain break but Torres wastes possession. Navas then sends a cross right into the Swiss defender. Alonso wastes a freekick. They'll have to do better.
• 86: My recording is jumping all over the place. Maybe that's why Chris gave the PVR away so easily.
• 87: Torres puts a shot 50 feet over the crossbar, then kicks the ball away when almost in alone.
• 89: I'm tense. This is my team (other than North Korea, of course), if that's possible.
• 90: Five minutes of stoppage time; I can't remember a significant injury or time wasting. Pedro wastes a corner. The Swiss waste some time (the keeper gets a card).
• 94: Villa clears from a Spanish freekick. That was a poor choice.
• 95: And that's that. The Swiss beat Spain for the first time in 19 tries. We've got our first big upset. Group H is thrown wide open.

Torres was in no position to be striking poses this game. 24 shots on goal for the Spanish and 67% possession meant nothing in the end. I feel like I'm back watching Arsenal.

World Cup Day Six predictions, and a Spanish wondergoal

A quick one before bed.

Day Six predictions

Chile and Honduras draw 1-1.

I've picked Chile to go through, and I'm tempted to go for a 2-1 win for them, but Honduras are better than their ranking indicates and should compete.

Spain beat Switzerland 2-0.

If you haven't seen it yet, enjoy this goal from a warm-up game Spain played against Poland:

Good luck, Switzerland.

Uruguay and South Africa draw 1-1.

This is a really tough game to call. I suspect the Uruguayans have too much quality for the South Africans, but home field and all that...

North Korea at the World Cup #2

I think this will be a regular segment (see first NKatWC here).

Apparently the North Korean "fans" at the World Cup aren't North Korean at all, nor are they fans. They are Chinese, and paid to act like fans. Weird. Read all about it at Deadspin, but in case you worry that Deadspin isn't so reliable, the story was first told in the Telegraph and Reuters.

As one tv anchor who made the trip said:

"When it comes to support in worldwide competitions, Chinese fans will stand for the Asia teams," Bi Fujian, one of the most popular television anchors in China, told Reuters TV before leaving for the trip.

"Not to mention that 60 years ago, China's military forces valiantly crossed the Yalu River to fight alongside the North Koreans against their enemies.

"Sixty years on, we cheer for their football team and hope they will go far."

It makes sense. Our good buddy Kim Jong Il would never allow so many North Koreans out of the country to see that they don't have to live on grass and clay.

World Cup Day Five results, and more!

Doesn't really deserve an exclamation mark, sorry.

Results

Slovakia 1-1 New Zealand

me: Slovakia 2-0 New Zealand. Wrong result, wrong score. Boo. New Zealand scored in the 93rd minute to get the point. Not surprisingly, this apparently wasn't a great match. I'm not even going to bother watching highlights.

Portugal 0-0 Cote d'Ivoire

me: Portugal 1-0 Cote d'Ivoire. Wrong result, half-wrong score. Portugal looked annoyed, Ronaldo called foul after foul against the Ivorians, and there were very few real scoring attempts. Note to Portugal: lofting high balls to Liedson, your sole striker who stands at 5'9", is maybe not the best tactic. The Ivorians played well, creating some chances, and if they play this well against Brazil, they could get a result.

Brazil 2-1 North Korea

me: Brazil 3-0 North Korea. Right result, wrong score. Well done to the North Koreans. I'm so impressed I'm starting a new series called North Korea at the World Cup. They held the Brazilians at bay for the first half, only to be undone by a stunning goal from Maicon and then a wonderful pass from Robinho to Elano, who passed beautifully into the net (goal on that linked clip). Disappointing for the Brazilians, who were expected to win handily, though as anyone who has studied this North Korean team will tell you, the South Americans should have expected a tight defensive performance.

Tidbits

I really don't like Ronaldo. As my friend so eloquently wrote: "Can someone please punch Cristiano Ronaldo in the face? I'll pay money." He really just inspires the worst in some fans. He whines, he complains, and he plays like he deserves to get what he wants. He wasn't even the best player on the pitch this morning; that honour goes to Gervinho, who caused problem after problem for the Portuguese. This is him and his hair, for your enjoyment:

North Korea at the World Cup

So little is known about this North Korean team. Here's what I found out in a few short minutes in the depths of the internet:

1. They qualified with relative ease in the Asian Football Confederation, which has a bizarre multi-multi-stage process. Here are their results:

First qualifying stage: Mongolia 2-9 North Korea.

In the first group stage they went 3-3-0 (W-D-L), with 4 goals for and 0 goals against. They drew 0-0 twice against South Korea, beat Jordan twice and beat and drew Turkmenistan.

In the second group stage they qualified above Saudi Arabia (on goal differential) and Iran, with a 3-3-2 record and 7 goals for and 5 against.

2. Their squad is relatively young: only thee players are over 30.

3. All except three play their football in North Korea. Two play in Japan and one in Russia.

4. Their star striker, Jong Tae-Se, has been called the North Korean Wayne Rooney. Yowzah. Eight of his international goals came in two matches, against Mongolia and Macau, so his strike return of 15 in 22 isn't quite as impressive as at first glance. He has scored against Japan, South Korea, Iran, and in NK's last three matches, against Taiwan, Greece and Nigeria. Watch this clip of one of his goals.

5. According to ESPNSoccernet, they play extremely defensively. Great.

World Cup Days Four and Five: results, Kim Jong-Il, and predictions for tomorrow

Day Four Results
Netherlands 2-0 Denmark
me: Netherlands 2-0 Denmark. Right result, right score. In our early game, the Dutch needed an own goal to get into the match before a late Kuyt goal settled things. Robben is injured and didn't make an appearance, the Danes were well organized and threatened at times though they never really tested Stekelenburg in the Dutch goal. It wasn't a convincing performance from the Dutch, and they'll have to kick it up a notch before the knock-out rounds.

Japan 1-0 Cameroon
me: Japan 0-1 Cameroon. Wrong result, wrong score. Full credit to the hard-working Japanese. They played the Cameroon forwards off the pitch. Star striker Samuel Eto'o barely saw the ball, though I would argue he was played out of position on the right. At times it looked like there was only one player in the Cameroon midfield, probably a function of a poorly organized 4-3-3. This result means Denmark have to step it up against both these teams if they want to go through.

Italy 1-1 Paraguay
me: Italy 1-0 Paraguay. Wrong result, half-wrong score. Paraguay defended well and except for one goalkeeper error may have won this. They looked a threat going forward at times (though only had the one shot on net) and will be happy with the point. Italy, again, disappointed. They always look like they think they shouldn't have to work very hard to win. Their squad lacks creativity, and it showed as they struggled to break Paraguay down. Di Natale should start (he was the leading scorer in Italy's Serie A this season), and they really need Pirlo in the midfield directing traffic. Newcomer Riccardo Montolivo did well and De Rossi was as impressive as usual, but they missed some creativity.

Day Five predictions

Slovakia beat New Zealand 2-0.

No one is getting up for this early match. Slovakia may surprise if neither Italy nor Paraguay take control of Group F.

Portugal beat Cote d'Ivoire 1-0.

Cote d'Ivoire are no pushovers, and this could easily be a draw or a win for them, but Portugal have too much quality, and a stellar defensive record, to not get out of this group.

Brazil beat North Korea 3-0.

Will this be the easiest result to call the whole tournament? NK are such an unknown entity that it would almost be fun to predict a result for them. Sorry, Kim, not this time. Better luck at the ol' nuclear intimidation thing.

Did you know...

that North Korea featured at World Cup 1966, and made it to the quarter-finals? The World Cup finals only had 16 teams then; they were drawn in a tough group with the Soviets, Italy and Chile. They beat Italy 1-0 to make it through the group stage, Italy having lost to the Soviets earlier. They lost 5-3 to Eusebio's Portugal in the first knock-out, with Eusebio scoring 4 to bring Portugal back from 3-0 down. Nothing to be ashamed of. So, underestimate this Korean team at your peril, Brazil.

Feel like showing your support with a vintage 1966 North Korea shirt? Look no further than The Old Fashioned Football Shirt company, or TOFFS.*

Italy are old. Or bored with the group stage already.

That's the rumour heading into the tourney. And they showed it today, for the first half anyway. That or they're so cocky they don't think they should have to run. This, of course, is an overstatement. Simone Pepe was everywhere today, De Rossi cleaned up in the middle, Montolivo roamed the midfield, and Iaquinta switched flanks seemingly for fun.

But at times they stood around, happy to let someone else do the running. Against a fast attacking side they could be exposed.

*Thanks to Chris LaRoche, Korean expert, for the tip.

World Cup Day Four: predictions, and a new segment, Did you know?

The Italians are known for their style of play known as the catenaccio,
or door-bolt. You can guess what that implies.

My predictions

Netherlands 2-0 Denmark
The Dutch have all the attacking talent they could dream of (though apparently Robin van Persie is now hurt... again...). Robben will take shots from everywhere. Kuyt will work really hard. Babel will dribble into trouble and lose the ball. For the first time in years the Dutch don't have a solid keeper, though their defensive frailties are nothing new. The Danes will be organized and will be a threat on the counter and on set pieces.

Japan 0-1 Cameroon
Cameroon are the highest ranked African team at the tournament, with a good keeper, solid defence, a strong midfield and scoring talent. They haven't impressed much lately, struggling to qualify and losing to eventual winners Egypt in the quarters at the Africa Cup of Nations. Japan aren't as strong as they were in 2002, when they lost in the Round of 16 to Turkey. They've also lost their last four matches, all friendlies.

Italy 1-0 Paraguay

Italy don't have much in the way of creativity in their squad right now, and they're getting old, but they are talented, hardworking and organized, and have just enough to get through an easy group. Paraquay impressed in qualification, including wins over Brazil and Argentina. Star striker Roque Santa Cruz struggled with injury this year, and his striking partner Salavador Cabañas will miss the tournament after being shot in the head in a Mexican nightclub.

Did you know...

In this segment I'll bring to your attention an interesting or little-known fact about the World Cup, the teams, or the players. In today's segment, keeping to the theme of footballers and guns, we take a look at the unfortunate Andrés Escobar.


In the 1994 World Cup held in the US, in a group-stage match against the US, Colombian defender Escobar deflected a cross into his own net. Colombia lost the game 2-1 and were eliminated. Escobar was shot and killed ten days later in Colombia, purportedly because his own-goal led to huge gambling losses for some Colombian drug lords or gambling syndicates (the same thing?).

He was known as the Gentleman of Football and his funeral was attended by 120,000 people.