The grand finale of FIFA 2010 world cup is just few hours away. Watching Mark Webber conquering Brits GP and waiting the clock ticks to Midnight to watch last hour of intriguing soccer with friends and drinks. Looking back at last one month, its a massive success for a nation like South Africa for producing such a beautiful tournament.Reading some reports prior to the start of the tournament, you could have been forgiven for thinking that Sepp Blatter and FIFA had gifted the World Cup to a country in collapse.
Jotting down some of the off field memories that will be there for next four years of this gala celebration of beautiful game;
Paul the astrologer, I have been watching sports with passion for last few years but I never freaked out more when one after another prediction of Paul, the Octopus turned out correct. I have my fair share of superstitions when it comes to supporting Indian Cricket Team, but this was outrageous for me at first to give space to Octopus who picks the team which will win the next match. Boasting the prolificacy of David Villa, the accuracy of a Gio van Bronckhorst 40-yarder and the sheer star quality of Diego Maradona, there is no doubt that Sea Life Oberhausen's Paul has captured the imagination over the past four weeks with his spookily accurate World Cup predictions.
Under-dogs outperforming the heavy-weights, Eouropean historical power house,France Imploded dramatically, Italy was ineffective, Englands rank ineptitude ensured was disappointing but we saw Ghana's romantic ride to the quarter-finals, Uruguay reaching the last four - through means foul or fair - and Slovakia sneaking out of the group stage. Even the South American royalty of Brazil and Argentina failed to reach the semi-finals, helping ensure that a new name will be etched onto the World Cup trophy on Sunday.Japan and South Korea both reached the second round for the first time on foreign soil and special mention should go to New Zealand who, if Netherlands are defeated on Sunday, will be the only team to end the tournament unbeaten.
Vuvuzelas
vuvuzelas are part of South Africa culture and a legitimate way to express delight at a sporting occasion, but they are, in a word, annoying. Drowning out chants and songs from supporters inside the crowd, the constant drone from the dreaded horns came to infuriate television spectators as well. They were especially irritating when played in unison to create a pulsing sound; like having a particularly nasty migrane while sitting in a beehive.
The Jabulani
The advent of every major tournament sees goalkeepers complain about the state of the official ball, no doubt looking to get their excuses in early when a shot squirms under their body, but this year was different. Goalkeepers, outfield players and coaches all lined up to lambast the Jabulani. Brazil midfielder Felipe Melo described it as "horrible", Iker Casillas said it behaved like a "beach ball" and, perhaps most damning of all, USA 'keeper Marcus Hahnemann simply said: "Scientists came up with the atom bomb, doesn't mean we should have invented it."
FIFA's Black Sunday
As staunch opponents to the introduction of technology, FIFA's bigwigs must have been shifting uncomfortably in their executive seats, prawn sandwiches left uneaten, when two glaring mistakes from match officials left a black spot on the competition on June 27. Firstly, and most notably, Frank Lampard's shot clearly crossed the line against Germany, only for Uruguayan referee Jorge Larrionda to wave play on, sparking confusion in pubs across England. Replays confirmed the horrible truth, and surely moved the game a step closer to welcoming technology, rather than fearing it. However the suspicion remains that Sepp Blatter will continue to be the John Connor to Hawk-Eye's Skynet.
In the evening kick-off, Carlos Tevez then scored a blatantly offside goal as Argentina defeated Mexico 3-1. Somehow, the replay was broadcast live to the Soccer City crowd so referee Roberto Rosetti immediately knew his assistant had made a horrendous call. Aware of the grievous mistake but bound by the rules to ignore the evidence in front of his eyes, the Italian had no option but to ignore Mexico's pleas to disallow the goal. Not a great day for the governing body.
The Heart-breaking Ghana's Exit ( A cheat became a hero at the same time)
Luis Suarez had a reputation-enhancing World Cup until he stuck out his hand and became the spawn of Satan for denying Ghana, the darling of the tournament, its rightful place in the semifinals. Even though Suarez did what just about any soccer player in his position would have, he made the mistake of not showing any remorse when Asamoah Gyan's penalty kick clanged off the crossbar and Uruguay went on to win the game. Instead, he acted as if he had just scored the winning goal of the World Cup final, allowing his teammates to parade him around the field on their shoulders. Although karma caught up to Los Charruas in their defeat by the Netherlands, Suarez's postgame bravado turned a simple act of gamesmanship into a morality play. He now gets a starting spot on the All-Hands Team lineup, joining Diego Maradona, Thierry Henry and Paul the oracle octopus.
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