PORTUGAL-2 0-IRAN
With some flashes of briliance from Cristiano Ronaldo, pretty boy date rapist, and midfield general Deco back in the line-up, Portugal had no problem rolling over Iran. I have both players on my Fantasy Team, so this was a good game. Snatches of the action were caught between housecleaning chores. A long day of scrubbing, vaccuuming and absentmindely rubbing possesions with a cloth while in front of the TV.
CZECH REPUBLIC-0 2-GHANA
Totally sweet! African team wins. Ghana played a helluva game, capitalizing in the second minute of the match and adding another tally very late in the game. A missed Ghanian penalty shot could have made the score that much worse for the Czechs, who I’m sure were planning to see Ghana’s advancement hopes off. It’s hard not to feel happy when that prick Nedved loses. Between him losing, the Czech Republic (Italy’s closest adversary in Group E) losing, and my Fantasy League adversasries with their Czech players coming up dry, things were starting to look up.
Chiara and I made it out of the house just in time to head down to Isola Tiberina to catch the match on the big screen there. I have been suffering withdrawals from teh glorious big-screen raucous flag-drenched crowds of Germany, so I was keen to touch with that spirit of sport again.
Instead
USA-1 1-ITALY
The worst game of the World Cup so far, by far. Gone were the Italians from the match against Ghana, with their delightful, inventive passing and dangerous runs, to be replaced by a team that hardly ever looked dangerous. The shitbag Americans that got trounced by the Czechs played strong and hard. Tenacious, even. The game lacked rhythm, pace and excitement. Although I suppose 3 red cards in one match, tying a world Cup record, is kinda exciting. Daniele De Rossi a favorite amongst some of my football afficionado friends here, dropped a flying elbow on American striker Brian McBride, breaking his face. For that he was ejected. Rightly so. Shortly thereafter Totti was subbed off, because for no apparent reason he received a yellow card early in the match. It was now 10 men against 11. Fortunately a couple idiot Americans jumping two-footed studs-up slide tackles into the feet of the Italians caused the Americans to end up with only 9 men.
Still, Italy couldn’t add to it’s measly single goal. Though tchnically Italy scored 2 goals, because the American goal was actually an Italian own goal.
The ugliness on the big screen was matched by the ugliness of the Tiber vibe.
The crowd was fine, but the monkeys running the circus chose to let people in bit by bit before the match, and waiting until they had found seats before letting another cluster of attendees in. This seemd like an emminently sensible policy until they stopped letting people in entirely, 5 minutes before the match. Italian football fans, having made the trek to the Isola on the promise of big screen football, were left outside the doors drooling at the big screen inside. And all the space. with standing and sitting room everybody could have easily been accomodated in the space, but some shithead policy made that a no-go, and the vibe was the worse for it.
It was made even worse when 15 minutes into the match these militant pricks kicked out some people who had managed to get in and had sat themselves on the side to watch the game. I can only imagine how pissed they were. I was super-pissed and I had a seat.
Anyway Fuck those Assholes at the Tiber Island, Fuck the Americans for playing so dirty, and Fuck the Italians for only managaing a draw with a way weaker side. Fuck the ref for handling the game like he was somebody’s drunk uncle. Fuck him for giving Totti a yellow card for no reason. Fuck Luca Toni for doing nothing in the game (yet again). What alot of bullshit. Bad Bad game.
Me and Chiara’s temporary Italian supporter tattoos just couldn’t put this right. Nothing could.
