Amidst the incessant buzzing of the vuvuzelas, the first three days of the tournament are in the history books with a mixed batch of impressions and a couple of mild surprises. Concerns continue to float on and off the pitch, causing FIFA anxiety about the course of a competition that is perceptibly unfamiliar in some regards. Whatever the circumstances, the action is now in full swing and all that matters going forward is the quality of play. One aspect that FIFA can feel good about is the work of the referees: they have been fairly on point to date, perhaps with one or two exceptions (ask Australia about that).
The opening ceremonies seemed a bit odd at times, particularly FIFA’s choice of Patrick Vieira to hand the World Cup to South African officials. Vieira was on the losing side four years ago and was not selected for the French team this time around. Nevertheless, Friday’s opener between Mexico and the host country finally moved speculation to here and now. The match itself? After missing good opportunities in the opening half hour, Mexico delivered a soft performance, marked by a timid sense of confidence and urgency. Mexico’s step back allowed South Africa to pick up courage and create more in the second half. While it’s fair to say that Mexico dropped two points, in the end the result was equitable as South Africa could have taken all three but for the injury time goalpost.
Uruguay and France treated the audience to the poorest match of the week-end, predictably confusing from the French side but more to be expected of Uruguay. Overall, Group A matches seemed mediocre, but the quality improved on Day 2. Argentina and Nigeria provided a spectacular display of end-to-end action to collective global applause. Unlike in qualifiers, Maradona’s men performed coherently, with purpose and pace, validating the team’s pre-tournament preparation. Messi had a very good, not excellent, match, creating excitement with speedy incursions and putting to rest reports of his state of exhaustion, but it was a team effort for Argentina. For their part, Nigeria looked good as well. The Eagles played with determination and with a little more concentration could have taken at least one point out of the encounter. Nigeria will battle a surprisingly solid South Korea team, winner over a lifeless Greece, to advance past group stage.
Two hours later, the Anglo-American showdown started promisingly, only to fade in intensity during the second half and finish in a stalemate, a draw that brings the English back to earth and bolsters American optimism for the second round. “Hand of Clod”, “Cock-up Keeper Green Wrecks Dream Start,” “Stars and tripe”, “Tainted Glove” were some of the tabloid headlines in London, but England’s problems go beyond the blunder. Surprisingly, even under Capello, England reverted to a loosely organized bunch of over-hyped names. The pattern is incredibly consistent. England – players, fans, media, the entire country – enters every tournament with the conviction that in fact England is the team destined for glory and only tangential or incidental events can prevent it from achieving such superiority. This arrogant approach was deflated once again by a disappointing performance in line with reality, one that raises the pressure on Capello who, ironically, just signed an extension to remain England manager for a few more years. Can you imagine if England crashes out in the first round?
USA on the other hand played its chances well, even dominating stretches of possession. The Americans could have stolen all three points, but in the end the result was just. The only point of concern for the US is the health of goal-keeper Tim Howard, who performed excellently against England, though even in his absence the Americans are well covered at the position. A win against Slovenia might be sufficient for the US to advance, but a loss will effectively eliminate them.
Ghana provided the first African success of the tournament with a deserved, narrow victory over a truly disappointing Serbia. Ghana looked great from a conditioning point of view, quicker to the ball, speedy and athletic. With a Serbian coach who looked totally disheveled and refused to smile during the exuberant celebrations at the end of the match, Ghana seems to have overcome its poor recent form and should advance with a win over Australia. Serbia, who had a couple of chances but overall generated a dull performance, must now win against Germany for a chance to qualify. That seems like mission impossible judging by Germany’s sharp performance against Australia. It could have been much worse for the Aussies, their fragile chances entirely destroyed by Tim Cahill’s unwarranted send-off. Without Cahill and injured Harry Kewell, Australia lacked the power to challenge and was lucky not to have given up many more.
Asamoah Gyan converted a penalty to give Ghana a memorable victory.
Yet to emerge are Italy, Brazil, Portugal, Holland, Ivory Coast and Spain in what promises to be a week of low productivity in the corporate world. As an aside, non-football related incidents continue to cause uneasiness. New Zealand journalists were robbed of $100,000 of equipment stored in their hotel room (inside job fellows). The Uruguayan team safe was also emptied while the team played on Friday. Police used tear gas and rubber bullets in a fight with 500 stadium stewards who were protesting their wages, apparently. And the talk of the day was banning the annoying vuvuzelas, the local favorite, atmosphere-killing buzzing that has become a nuisance to most non-Africans and to viewers around the world. Songs are drowned out, players can’t hear each other, etc etc, but the real problem is that it doesn’t stop. A piercing sound like that for two straight hours, three times a day, is enough to say let’s do without them for a change.