The comparisons and points raised in that article range from the very few that I agree with, to the many that are laughable and I really do not agree with.
He sounds on the whole that he has never kicked a football in anger or with any meaning in his life.
But ignoring that, a few points remain valid. FIFA do need to take a more active role in making the game fairer, and it actually sounds like by the time the 2014 tournament in Brazil come round that we will have some sort of tech involved to take the presure off refs and linemen, which can only be a good thing.
I watched every match of the world cup, and an opinion that the refereeing was poor is bullshit. The first week of the tournement especially showed some of the finest refereeing and touchline calls I have seen in an international tournament.
People are quick to forget that most of the recent world cups have had red cards and bad decisions made almost instantly from the word go. Sure there was bad calls in this world cup. My team being dealt probably the worst one when Lampards shot was clearly over the line by a mile.
But we move on, it is all part of football. And the powers that be will hopefully change it for the better.
For years before this world cup I heard complaints that South Africa would mess it up, too much crime, bad infrastructure, transport issues, the locals prefer rugby, stadiums will not be finished in time.
Well all that was a load of bollox, the colour, passion and love of the finest game on the planet was there for everyone to see.
I read an article saying there were not many goals in this tournament, 145 were scored, the 3rd highest in the history of the World Cup. I agree the ball was flawed in design, and hopefully in the next world cup it will be just a good old fashion ball, nothing sexy about it. But great goals were scored, I watched great games, and the most important point is...
I enjoyed the World Cup, it was not the best in my memory, but maybe this was due to England not showing up at all.
I love the 32 team format, it does give lesser teams the chance to shine. The above article calls teams like Cameroon and Switzerland pointless addition!!! They are good teams, that just did not get it right at this tournament. The Swiss beat the Spanish for gods sake, which is more than anyone else barring the USA have been able to do since they lifted the European Championship Cup in 2008.
I could rattle on for hours over this, but my final point is the World Cup brings people together, cultures and races that would otherwise not mix so heavily, it makes the world a better place, and leaves a legacy that can continue this.
We all would have liked a better final, and less teams playing defensive football, hopefully this will be addressed by 2014. But I was never bored, when a game was stalemate, it was more intriguing than boring.
Onwards to 2014
