Beautiful Reading on the Beautiful Game

Thanks to my friend for passing on the following links, which I'll gratefully pass on for anyone else to check up on. Here's an article from Slate on why we should root against the Dutch, a Vanity Fair piece by David Winner (he of the fantastic book Brilliant Orange) on the changing Dutch and German rivalry, and a really interesting blog post, a little older, on Barcelona and the Idea of the Beautiful Game.

It's always a pleasure to read good writing, and good writing on football is an even greater pleasure (makes me realize I'm not so good of a writer, at least not when I'm just posting randomly here and don't have much time to really compose something worthwhile).

The Barca piece was particularly interesting but I'd argue it wasn't entirely accurate in describing Madrid as existing solely to win without regard to aesthetics. Clearly Real doesn't try to sustain a moral idealism through their style like Barca, and they truly do exist to win more than anything else. But my friend who is a lifelong die-hard madridista would argue that there is a constant tension between that desire to win and the desire to do so beautifully, and it's a much greater aspect of the Real Madrid psyche than the article wants to give credit. It's the reason Capello was constantly pilloried for his pragmatism and was fired despite winning La Liga, while the madridistas looked longingly upon the previously unsuccessful galactico era simply because they played more adventurous football.

As for the Slate article arguing that we should root against the Dutch, well beside the fact that I'll be rooting for Spain because they attack better, don't have dirty midfielders, and I have Spanish blood, I sort of do think that there's something endearing about the image of the Dutch as the "almost" team, the purveyors of skillful football that can't quite win the big one. A loss by this team, even if they are far removed from the long deceased total football, would keep up the image of the Netherlands as everyone's favorite team that hasn't won the World Cup and would add another layer on top of the already complicated interrelationship between the Dutch philosophies regarding football, the desire to win and win beautifully, and the growing recognition of the benefits of pragmatism and the desire to simply win for all the lost opportunities of the great Dutch teams of yore (thereby also alleviating those past national traumas from the collective psyche).  Not to mention the psychological intrigue that would result from losing to what is probably the closest relative to the total football ethos (as the article correctly notes, this Spanish team's style is largely based on Barca's style, and that style is largely the offspring of it's one-time star and ex-coach, Cryuff).

On an somewhat tangential note, it'd be nice if people would stop overplaying the angle of the Spanish as being historical underachievers.  Yes the Dutch teams underachieved in the past.  But Spain? The reputation of Spanish football is largely built on the reputations of its great domestic clubs, and those clubs built their reputations on foreigners from Puskas and di Stéfano (he's Argentine, let's not consider him Spanish please) to Zidane and Messi.  Sure the Spanish have had good teams in the past that underachieved relatively, but as far as I can remember, and I've never really read otherwise, Spain has never come into a tournament as big favorites.

This version of la furia roja are favorites however and I expect them to keep up that artistic tiki-taka and win one for the lifelong lovers of the beautiful game and newcomers alike.  You know there is something great about them because even the people who don't follow soccer and are just caught up in the spectacle of the World Cup appreciate Spain because they really do manage to create sudden coherence and eloquence out of chaos.

Need further reasons to cheer for Spain.  I give you... paella and sangria v. Gouda and Heineken (does anyone who's not from the Netherlands even know a Dutch dish?).  The defense rests.

The Dutch Back In the Finals

With today's victory over the Uruguayans, the Netherlands are a step closer to winning their elusive first World Cup title.  Awaiting us is a possible classic rematch of the 1974 World Cup final with the Germans or a matchup with Spain that would guarantee a new country will win its first title (not too mention a great matchup of possession oriented attacking teams).

It's hard to root against the Dutch, but I think the best sentiment I've heard is that if the Netherlands wins the title this year it will be the equivalent of Martin Scorsese's "lifetime achievement" best director Oscar win for The Departed.  I really really enjoyed the Departed, more than a lot of people, but it clearly wasn't Scorsese's best work and it was an injustice that he hadn't won a statue before. 

Well, this isn't remotely the best Dutch team (would it even crack the top 5?), and there still seems to be something about them that is underwhelming.  Their defense and Skelkenburg in goal don't exactly inspire tons of confidence, and despite their very good attack they've yet to really seem completely in sync and in a groove for a full 90 minutes.  They've played wonderfully at times, but I haven't been truly awed at any point.  But maybe that's what's needed to finally reach the summit.

I guess it also doesn't help that I still detest van Persie, van Bommell (and Nigel de Jong, though he was suspended today) continues to hack and foul at will, while Robben writhes in agony at the slightest breath blown his direction.  Not to mention Dirk Kuyt is so ugly you almost want to root against him so he'll stop being shown in HD.  Oddly enough the player I like the most is Wesley Sneijder, someone who was widely believed to be a rotten apple prior to leading Inter Milan's treble this season and now the Dutch World Cup run.

Couple all the above with Diego Forlan's brilliance -- it was quite amazing that he kept stepping up in the clutch and dragging Uruguay with him, an admiral feat even if you don't like the Uruguayans or if you felt wronged by the Most Infamous/Greatest Red Card in History -- I almost found myself rooting for La Celeste.  But the Oranje wouldn't be denied, and neither are we denied one of the superior finals matchups that we've all been rooting for, and that ultimately left me happy with the day's result. 

They won't be favorites in the Final, but bravo to the Dutch -- they've deserved all their victories, they brought style to the tournament, and they are worthy finalists. 

The Nike Ad Curse

Nike's "Write the Future" advertisement was a brilliant campaign, a continuation of the long history of great spots Nike has created for the World Cup.  However, this year it seems they may want to re-consider their casting agency.

Let's see:

-Didier Drogba broke his arm before the games even started and Côte d'Ivoire never looked like going through their difficult group.

-Fabio Cannavaro looked like he was already in retirement and hitting up the talk show circuit, a step to slow for every attacker that came his way.  Still, Italy probably should have had enough quality to qualify but were completely uninspiring.

-Wayne Rooney barely bothered to even show up.  Was he still injured? Probably.  At the least he was worn down from carrying Man U on his back all season.  Not even Atlas probably beared such a burden. England were less inspiring than Italy, only they managed to get one round further before being humiliated by the Germans (controversial goal or no goal).

-Franck Ribéry... well, the less said about the French the better. Who is that player in the background of the play marking Theo Walcott (who didn't make England's roster)... that's right, Patrice Evra!

-Ronaldinho, as everyone knows and regrets didn't even get a plane ticket to South Africa.  At least the Brazilians are still playing though.

-Cristiano Ronaldo was mostly anonymous save for his preening and grimacing after either diving or being fouled but not getting a call in either case, and now Portugal is out thanks to their superior Iberian neighbors.  By the way, why does Portugal play such a horrible, defensive system?  They actually have good defenders, so they should play creative, attacking football knowing the defense is solid behind them.  I blame Carlos Queiroz (who proves that anyone looks like a great coach while assisting Alex Ferguson, but doing it yourself is a different matter... maybe it's leftover stink from his stint with the New York MetroStars).

On the other hand, three teams getting only minor cameos had better fortunes. OK, so the USA lost, but Landon Donovan was the only player of the entire commercial who truly "wrote the future" by scoring the goal against Algeria that so far is still probably the moment of the tournament.  But maybe the US disappointment (I'd say failure) in losing still tied to this commercial?

The Spanish players also get a brief cameo (even though the Spanish team itself is sponsored by Adidas, which is why you only see Iniesta, Fàbregas, and Piqué wearing blank warm-ups with no logos) and they are still on course for a potential dream semifinal with Argentina/Germany and final against Brazil. Brazil, as mentioned before, are still in it, and looking pretty much locks to advance to the final, with only one threat in their half of the bracket, the Netherlands... who also happen to have a cameo in the Nike ad! That's them fouling Ronaldo.

The Dutch are impressing most people but honestly, do you think their D will hold up against the Brazilians?  And of course they're up to their old tricks again, the Dutch, what with Robin van Persie acting like the spoiled arrogant brat (I'd also call him a certain name that rhymes with witch) that he is -- shocker considering he's coached by Arsène Wenger -- and showing hints of the internal dissension that has derailed so many better Dutch squads in the past. No matter what the Dutch camp says about unity and harmony within the team, don't buy it. 

Adidas doesn't have any ad remotely as good right now, but at least they can tout Leo Messi and David Villa,  who just keeps on scoring (god, how scary will Barcelona be next season).

It's not quite the Madden Curse or SI Jinx, but funny nonetheless.

USA-Netherlands Fallout

The big news from the US game against the Netherlands yesterday was Stuart Holden's fractured fibula that will keep him out for six weeks. The current long-term injury list for the US includes Charlie Davies, Oguchi Onyewu, Clint Dempsey, Steve Cherundolo, and now Stuart Holden.

On the plus side, all (including Davies, according to reports) will be back on the field in time for the World Cup. The bad is still that five potential starters (at least three being locks) will be coming off injury layoffs and will not have the type of match sharpness and form heading into the World Cup that US fans would prefer.

This on top of the fact that potential US man Jermaine Jones is unlikely to suit up for the USMNT this summer either. Interesting, however, were reports that Jones was seen with the US team in Amsterdam wearing the US team gear. Clearly both he and Bob Bradley have spoken and wish for him to be around the team because the plan is to get him in the squad if he's ever healthy and they'd like it to be as smooth an introduction into the locker room as possible.

Back to Holden, despite his injury, Bolton manager Owen Coyle has stated his intent to extend Holden's option for the next season. Definitely good news that the Bolton manager see's the talent in Holden and views him as a key player for the future, "because of the belief I have in him, and the quality he has shown since he came to the club."

The injury occurred on a pretty bad foul by Nigel de Jong in midfield, but I disagree with anyone who puts particular fault with de Jong or thinks it should've been a red. Ref's have given reds for worse, but it wasn't necessarily malicious.

The thing that de Jong and midfield partner Wesley Sneijder did best was completely control the midfield and outclass their American counterparts. This is to be expected, the two being key players for Manchester City and Inter Milan respectively, versus the starting duo of Michael Bradley and Jose Francisco Torres.

Despite the Dutch pretty much controlling the entire match, the consensus is that there were a lot of positives to take from the game. Those positives include:

-The central defense, with the help of Bradley and Maurice Edu, after his second half introduction, more than held their own and weren't particularly bothered.

-Jozy Altidore, despite getting little in the way of good service, acquitted himself against the Dutch defense and threatened a late leveler.

-DaMarcus Beasley has gone from purgatory to being a lock for the World Cup roster. He was lively and the best American attacker, assisting on Bocanegra's goal.

-The US stayed compact and organized while continuing to show the type of spirit and fight that they showed last summer by never giving up, fighting back to score a goal and nearly tying the game late. This identity, borne in the Confederations Cup and solidified in the final match of World Cup Qualifying, is the most notable trait of the USMNT and surely their best hope for this summer. That and Tim Howard (what a save at the end!).

Still, this all masks some glaring trouble areas:

-Landon Donovan was a huge disappointment. If ever you needed proof that the US offense is entirely reliant on him being the midfield fulcrum, last night was it.

-Torres was even worse than Donovan. He played himself right out of any future starts and and he's now further down the list of substitutes, especially considering Bob Bradley never seemed to want to play him in the past anyway.

-Bornstein was torched. He had a rough night with the penalty and the deflection on the second goal. But every time the Dutch threatened on his side you never thought he could handle himself. Not good. He's a favorite of Bradley's but he's also allowing Heath Pearce to stake a claim to that problematic left back. For the thousandth time... Cherundolo on the right (when healthy) and Spector on the left. Please.

-Michael Bradley has horrible distribution. His defensive work remains strong, for the most part, but he needs someone who can distribute better. That was supposed to be Torres but he was not good. Edu is a much better distributor than Bradley, which is why I think Bradley's starting spot could eventually be threatened. Edu should be starting in his place with an attacking mid like Benny Feilhaber or eventually if Jermaine Jones is put on the team you pair Jones with Edu, since Bradley senior loves playing two d-mids.

-The US has absolutely no second forward options to play with Altidore other than injured players Davies and Dempsey, or Donovan. In fact, I'd say the next best player is Brian Ching because he's proven he can hold up the ball, distribute ok, draw fouls, and at least presents something of an aerial threat from set pieces. If the above three aren't starting up top, I'd rather have Ching than Robbie Findley or Jeff Cunningham, or god forbid the awful Eddie Johnson. Ching and Altidore may not be the best pair in terms of complementary talents, but you get the players out there who will help you the most and have the least amount of downside.

-Lastly, and I fully admit this is total nitpicking, but is Tim Howard any good at penalty kicks? He always seems to guess wrong and never comes close. Is there an example that I'm just not remembering? If so, let me know. Because even though it's not really good form to pull out your unquestioned #1 ahead of penalties (and you usually don't have that substitute luxury anyway, having subbed for field players and maybe one sub for a penalty kick taking specialist), I'd have to say that the US would rather have Brad Guzan. Guzan's turned into something of a penalty saving hero at Aston Villa. Not meaning in anyway to demean Howard, who I said earlier is probably the number one key to the US World Cup hopes, along with Donovan, but am I wrong to worry about that?

Still, I'll take some heart at a 2-1 defeat to the Netherlands in Amsterdam, and just keep hoping that sometime in the future the US will have a healthy roster to choose from. Because as much as I have high hopes for this team, it's safe to say those hopes rest on a very narrow pool of players.