Cup of Upsets

First it was Italy, and then Spain followed by Germany and finally Italy again. Everyday the punters lose money and the bookies make more money. This edition of the Copa Mundial keeps true to its tradition of springing surprises not unlike 1982 when Algeria defeated the mighty West Germans only to be cheated out of a place in the second round.

I (and probably the rest of the world) predicted Germany, Italy and Spain to ease through the group matches and I (and probably the rest of the world) have been proven wrong. I must admit I hardly support the underdogs, and was quite frustrated with the heroics of the Kiwis against the Italians and the Swiss against the Spaniards. Parking the bus in the box has always been the game killer, and I often accuse (with proof) the smaller teams for packing the box with 9 players but then again how else would you contain attack after attack, without sending everyone back to defend the goal?  

I have nothing against the Kiwis or the North Koreans but they are ranked 78^th and 105^th respectively by FIFA so I wonder if their participation is justified when teams like Croatia (10^th) and Russia (11^th) are watching the tournament on TV. Whatever it is, the system has brought them to South Africa and they have proven their capability of holding their own in the company of the world’s top teams, its only fair to congratulate them for making the show more interesting.

Despite the upsets and especially the unconvincing display by the Spaniards, my money is still on them. Given the current state of affairs, I won’t be at all surprised if Italy, France and maybe even England get dumped at the group stages.