Four Remain

July 2nd, 2006 | by: WC Bob |

The dust has settled from the quarter-final matches and we now know the four teams that are each just two wins away from lifting the World Cup trophy in Berlin on July 9. Saturday we saw a masterful performance from Zinedine Zidane and the France team as they played like it was 1998 all over again, taking out a Brazil side that had the weight of the expectations on their shoulders. We saw another game end in a shoot out and once again it was England on the losing side of the cruelest, yet most exciting way to end a match.

On Friday we witnessed the cruelty of penalty kicks again with Argentina left feeling the pain and all of Germany erupting in celebration thanks to the hands of a man named Lehmann. We also saw an Italy team play a beautiful game against a Ukraine team that got by on will and not beauty.

Four teams remain and so do four games. Here’s hoping the best is yet to come.

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Kevin

Just noting my genuine suprise that a sentence that had the words “weight” and “Brazil” in it wasn’t in any way about Ronaldo.
Keyser

I go for france. ZZ is showing his skills for the last time and we should be able to celebrate this.
After the first round I was convinced that france was the crappiest team of the last 16.
once again, an idiot comment on my side. I bet my autopsy will show that my mouth was too big.
OilerFan

I hope France or Portugal win, moreso I hope France win b/c i just love watching Zidane play. I have a feeling though that this is Germany’s WC. I hope Italy takes them out even though i’m not an Italy fan, but if Germany win in the Semi’s, they’ll surely win the WC.
jmh

with you on that one, Keyser. Thought Brazil would walk all over them, especially after seing France perform in the opening round. Then they pull this off.
ZZ was awesome. watching him play today was an enormous treat.
Don’t know if the Germans can get past Italy. If they do, should be them and France in the Final. No disrespect to anyone, just not that crazy about Portugal.
Aarash

my prediction (but don’t hold me to it)

it seems to me that italy isn’t as strong as they seem, they had the easiest of the quarterfinal games and got a huge break in their round of 16 game (dive anyone???)

germany on the other hand blew out a swedish team that tied england and beat the “best of the tournament” argentinians (which i thought would win), plus germany has…well germany behind it

france has been getting better and better, they’ve taken out the favorites and zidane and viera are showing they aren’t the dinosaurs some pundits have made them out to be

portugal on the other hand, has gotten through two wild games (5 games in total in the two games) that i can’t really tell if they’re for real or not

france v germany on june 9th
Carlos

Be careful with Italy. Most people don’t like how they play. But they are very competitive,organized, team-players and quite effective. If someone has beaten Germany in World Cups it has been Italy. Remember Mexico 70 and Spain 82.
Rino Sciani

I love to see brazilains cry.
michel platini

i was quite dissapointed to see the english fall today in such a manner. a heart-wrenching spectacle to say the least. however, if there is a positive, i enjoy the brand of football the french are employing right now and zizou looks 10 years his junior. ribery has been a delight, while claude makelele and william gallas has regained their previous international form.
heman

My tears for the English as Crouch struggled mid field without No.7 and No.9, too ’short’ a task for those long legs! Agonising finish in shoot-out esp. with Lampard who I reckoned would have secured a winning goal(gues you watched him score for Chelsea)

Pekerman probably misjudged Riquelma’s crunch time plays,so to say (Erikson refused to substitute Beckam even when he struggled, now we know why seeing England slumping without 7!)Tough luck too with the regular goalie dropping injured,the end game was clear.
Sauron

France is the team now for us. They did such a good job against Brazil. Good for Zinade and Le Bleus!
Sauron

I agree with Rino Sciani.. Brazil was so confident with winning that they could not even imagine that there was a chance of losing!.. They were flying too high in sky .. now the falling is so hard..
sara

WHAT IS THE POINT OF THE WORLD CUP IF BRAZIL ISN’T IN IT!!
THEY DON’T EVEN HAVE A SLIGHT CHANCE OF WINNING NOW AND THAT IS JUST SO DEPRESSING! PRETTY SOON FRANCE WILL BE PUT THEN ITALY THEN PORTUGAL THEN THE NETHERLANDS OH MY GOD THIS IS THE WORST WORLD CUP EVER!!!:(