World Cup 2014

gotta be a Wenger joke in there somewhere

http://i.imgur.com/Kr2eKOW.jpg

anyone watching mls tonight? timbers v sounders

i feel like i need *some* kind of chaser

What channel?

Oh I see ESPN2

Actually went to see the Red Bull last night- Thierry Henry's still got it.

Could also rewatch the final with Portuguese audio.

thierry henry quite possibly the handsomest man in football even though my list changes almost hourly

i bought Fifa 14 for XBox One to keep the party going and in just two hours I already destroyed one of my controllers in anger.

(so it's a good game)

I wonder if North Korea won the world cup last night.

Crowd at Seattle / Portland game louder and more involved than any World Cup crowd.

Oh, it was a hoax.

http://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/worldcup/youtube-users-duped-by-spoof-news-broadcast-announcing-that-north-korea-had-made-the-world-cup-final-9602611.html

xxpost did you see any ivory coast matches? seattle crowd was rowdy but they didn't bring the funk

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/Bse_r7ACUAATuuc.jpg

many xxps

That team of the tournament is a fake.

Think someone just used this website to select their own one:

http://app.globoesporte.globo.com/copa-do-mundo/selecao-copa-do-mundo/

More bullshit on Messi this morning: "he should not be judged on this world cup"

But really he was great in the group stages, pass for Di Maria against the Swiss, and the team kindly repaid him in the SF. He showed more than Muller in the final - who was a prima donna last night.

He kept disappearing - but just when you thought he'd disappear for good there would be a burst of brilliance, and was always dangerous.

Messi at seventy percent was still in the top five for the tournament.

Not expecting a balanced view or anything, although it would be nice.

Ouch:

The 2014 World Cup Final between Germany and Argentina was watched by a reported peak audience of 20.64 million.

The share was split between BBC and ITV with 16.72 million watching Germany win on BBC One, giving the Beeb a 61.4% of the viewers at 10.30pm.

Meanwhile ITV1 peaked at 9.45pm with a reported 3.96 million, just 13.8% of the share.

Felt sorry for Messi last night, having to trudge up to get a meaningless hunk of metal having just lost in a World Cup, I wish he'd given it to fan and said, "Here you have this piece of shit, it means nothing to me." But, you know, everyone has the product to think of.

I watched approx two seconds of ITV coverage - turned on the TV, saw Hoddle and Wright, and turned straight over to the BBC. Was moaning constantly at how irritating Lawrenson was, so other half was all "turn over to ITV then" but decided that the possibility of Andy Townsend was even worse so stuck with it. I did like how Lawrenson cheered up at all the shots of the Redeemer statue, at least things that aren't football seem to enthuse him, even if he does appear to hate everything to do with football.

Ian Wright calling Hoddle, "Gaffer", every 5 seconds, did I not like that?

Meanwhile ITV1 peaked at 9.45pm with a reported 3.96 million, just 13.8% of the share.

I guess the more important point of comparison is with the viewing figures of whatever garbage they normally show at that time on a Sunday evening?

Wait, Ian Wright. In the US they sent us a guy called Ian Darke.
/I Always Get Those Two Mixed Up

> I did like how Lawrenson cheered up at all the shots of the Redeemer statue

"it's like a football now" = one track mind

xxp Sunday 4th July:

On ITV, Despicable Me entertained 2.00m (10.1%) at 7pm (333,000/1.6% on +1), followed by The Nation's Favourite Motown Song with 2.13m (10.3%) at 9pm (190k/1.2%).

Guess that's a win then?

RIP Big Phil btw

Big Fred too

Hulk, Marcello and David Luiz up against the wall next.

like they're going to be able to field a decent firing squad

This whole tournament made me ridiculously happy. V glad Germany won. Love that team. Thought Ozil had a really good tournament. Schweinsteiger was immense. Probably the most unenthused I've ever been for an upcoming domestic season.

oh and I think Neuer should have won the Golden Ball.

Ozil was...ok last night, which is a step up from his performances throughout the tournament which have been notably poor

Think he's had the most key passes/chances created if stats do anything for you.

So I would disagree with you.

only when I can twist them to my own ends. He had one of the worst performances of the tournament in the Algeria game

There are lies and etc etc.

I always forget this feeling, but whenever a WC ends you feel the summer is over even though there are a couple of months left.

I loved this World Cup. Also fuck you all, this season is gonna be great. If Liverpool can replace Suarez's goals somehow and Poch makes Spurs not look like shitty underachievers and buys a few defenders we could have 6 legit contenders for the title. And Everton ain't getting worse either.

http://www.theguardian.com/football/2014/jul/14/diego-maradona-lionel-messi-golden-ball?CMP=ema_1385

there are two contenders to the title

lock thread

God, his thousand yard stare xp

From Tom E:

(I am always very unfairly put off Götze because his name reminds me of a particular internet meme. But you have to admire a player who can seize his opportunity with both hands like that.)

*golf clap*

Right, let's have your teams of the tournament, then.

Felt sorry for Messi last night, having to trudge up to get a meaningless hunk of metal having just lost in a World Cup, I wish he'd given it to fan and said, "Here you have this piece of shit, it means nothing to me." But, you know, everyone has the product to think of

Impressed with your ability to read Messi's mind here, or have you perhaps spoken to him about it?

Neuer
Zabaleta; Hummels; Vlar; Lahm
Mascherano; Kroos
Muller; Rodriguez; Robben
Neymar

Neuer, Lahm, Vlaar, Hummels, Blind, Mascherano, Kroos, Rodgriguez, Robben, Muller, Messi

This is a bit harsh on the French players - Benzema, Pogba and Valbuena all had an excellent start to the tournament.

neuer,
lahm, hummels, de vrij, blind,
mascherano, kroos,
robben, rodriguez, muller,valbuena.

no strikers, they were all rubbish.

“Right now I don’t care about the prize. I don’t care about anything. I wanted to take Argentina to the World Cup for all the people,” Messi told Spanish newspaper AS.

Benzema was far too wasteful imo

That's what he told me when I spoke to him last night (xp).