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FIFA WC - Gp C: Argentina/Netherlands/S & M/Côte d'Ivoir

Rotblatt Jun 05 2006 11:02 AM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jun 16 2006 10:11 AM

The (Second) Group of Death FIFA World Ranking Argentina 4th Côte d'Ivoire 32nd Serbia and Montenegro 46th Netherlands 3rd While the Dutch & the Argentinians look to be the favories, both Serbia and Montenegro & the Ivory Coast looked stunning during qualifying. S & M allowed just one goal in 10 matches, and the Ivory Coast's upset of Cameroon has observers drawing comparisons to the 2002 "Cindarella Story" Senegal. Recent injuries to the Dutch team (including a thigh injury to star midfielder Phillip Cocu) after a physical friendly with Australia yesterday (1-1 draw) could further level the playing field for the two underdogs. Each match in this group looks to be a good one.

Edgy DC Jun 09 2006 10:22 AM Edited 2 time(s), most recently on Jun 10 2006 06:09 PM

Elephants by the Numbers: Jersey No. Name of the Player 1 Jean Jacques Tizie 2 Etienne Arthur Boka 3 Kanga Gauthier Akale 4 Kolo Toure 5 Didier Zokora 6 Blaise Kouassi 7 Emerse Fae 8 Bonaventure Kalou 9 Arouna Kone 10 Gilles Yapi Yapo 11 Didier Drogba 12 Abdoulaye Meite 13 Marc Zoro 14 Bakary Kone 15 Aruna Dindane 16 Gerard Gnanhouan 17 Cyrille Domoraud 18 Abdul Kader Keita 19 Gnegneri Yaya Toure 20 Guy Roland Demel 21 Emmanuel Eboue 22 Ndri Koffi Romaric 23 Boubacar Copa Barry Didier Drogba in action (above) and (lower) getting his KISS on. Death is such a harsh word. There's always a group of death. But a litle respect is nice. Côte d'Ivoire (don't name us in the language of your damned English imperialists, but that of our damned French imperialists, thank you very much) appreciates it, and the opportunity to live up to it. Every team from Africa gets treated as a Cinderella when they perform well, but every time one does, the continent gets its share of qualifiers expanded. And the expansion of berths has led to more success, and it's high time football fans have come around to the fact that the dark continent has more than a few pockets of talent but a depth of it as well. When it comes to raw talent, many soccer fans agree Côte D'Ivoire, a World Cup first-timer, is one of the most talented teams around. The Elephants made it into the World Cup finals by out-qualifying Cameroon (the team that opened the door for them and their like) and Egypt for the top spot in their World Cup group. Soccer fans enjoy watching the Elephants play live. This year marks the first time in eight consecutive attempts that the team has made it to the World Cup finals. Fans attribute victories in the qualifying rounds to the exceptional play of Chesea FC's Didier Drogba. (Yup, he's got an official website.) During the playoffs, he scored an astounding nine goals. Other outstanding players include Ibrahima Bakayoko (Italy's Livourne Club), Arouna Kone (Holland's PSV Eindhoven), and Kolo Toure (Arsenal). The team enters the World Cup competition with a ranking of 41. Of all the African teams in the World Cup, Côte d'Ivoire is considered by many to be the very best. Henri Michel, the former manager and captain of the French team, manages the Elephants. Other African teams to take part in the World Cup include Angola, Ghana, Togo, and Tunisia. Many experts predict the Côte d'Ivoire team will perform quite well, some even predict a final eight performance for the 2006 event. They're selling the big men short, I tell you. Listen, punks, don't dig this team with any patronizing attitude that third world atheltes bring speed and flair but not higher teamwork-type virtues. They have athelticism all right, but look at these guys. There's a reason they're called Les Éléphants. These are big fellas, and they have speed, sure, but more likely in short bursts, they'll beat you with power, stamina, and outheading you. They'll stampede you. Ibrahima Bakayoko Arouna Kone Kolo Toure Trivia: The Côte d'Ivoire team is notable for having participated in (and won) the two highest-scoring penalty shoot-outs in international football competition - the 24-shot shoot-out in the final of the 1992 African Cup of Nations when Ghana was defeated 11-10, and the 24-shot shoot-out in the quarter-final of the 2006 African Cup of Nations, when Cameroon was defeated 12-11. Go Ireland! Go Côte D'Ivoire! If you're an Irishman or an Irish-American that likes to root for the Irish football team, don't be forlorn that you're un-represented in World Cup 2006. Just turn your flag around and fly those same colors for Côte D'Ivoire. Below you see Drogha returning a national hero after leading his team to qualifying. Let us all celebrate together when the next plane lands and Drogha emerges with the cup. Know thy Elephants Manager:: Henri Michel Goalkeepers: Jean Jacques Tizie, Gerard Gnanhouan, Boubacar Copa Barry. Defenders: Cyrille Domoraud, Blaise Kouassi, Abdoulaye Meite, Kanga Gauthier Akale, Kolo Toure, Emmanuel Eboue, Marc Zoro. Midfielders: Didier Zokora, Emerse Fae, Kanga Gauthier Akale, Ndri Koffi Romaric, Gnegneri Yaya Toure, Guy Roland Demel, Gilles Yapi Yapo Forwards: Bonaventure Kalou, Arouna Kone, Didier Drogba, Bakary Kone, Aruna Dindane, Abdul Kader Keita Greatest of the Elephants Laurent Pokou: the African Cup highest scorer of all time Yousouf Falikou Fofana: "The Black Diamond of Monaco" and a great guy to use in the Name Game song. Abdoulaye Traore: named as one of the greatest forwards in the world several times in the 1990s.

Edgy DC Jun 09 2006 10:50 AM

Not for nothing, and its been said of teams in the past, but one good reason to root for these guys is that a fine people have been torn apart by a bloody civil war, and this tournament is a great opportunity to help them re-forge a national identity.

Edgy DC Jun 09 2006 11:42 AM

Fans unite.

metirish Jun 09 2006 04:10 PM

Edgy that's cool work on the KTE, I didn't know Ireland and The Ivory Coast had the same flag....

Edgy DC Jun 09 2006 04:17 PM

No huh-way! Really?

metirish Jun 09 2006 04:19 PM

Yeah I didn't know that, there must be a story behind it.

Edgy DC Jun 09 2006 04:51 PM

Yeah, they have some Irish support also. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nIvBOuU5v2c&search=ivory%20coast This 20-year old Ivorian commercial shows how they kill bugs with soul: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pkKEiOmOTD4&search=ivory%20coast

Elster88 Jun 10 2006 04:46 PM

Argentina up 2-1 over Ivory Coast late in the game.

Rotblatt Jun 10 2006 05:07 PM

And it's a final. Argentia wins, 2-1. The Ivory Coast turned it on too late--they were on fire for the last 15 minutes, but it just wasn't enough. They consistently were able to create scoring chances, but couldn't capitilize and they looked lacksidasical in the midfield and on set pieces. The Ivory Coast got jobbed of a penalty kick when Drogba got nailed in the penalty box. Could've been the difference in the game right there. I don't understand how a foul wasn't called there. In all, this was a pretty loosly called game--in stark contrast to the England-Paraguay match. I was rooting heavily for the Ivory Coast, but this was a fine match. Argentina's going to be hard to beat.

Frayed Knot Jun 10 2006 05:53 PM

metirish wrote: I didn't know Ireland and The Ivory Coast had the same flag.... Actually, they're not the same ... they're mirror images of each other. Which means that if a ship from one of those countries is in distress and flying it's flag upside to signal others ... no one would know it! They'd just think it was a ship from the other country sailing along with no problems at all!

Edgy DC Jun 10 2006 06:12 PM

Not quite. They're horizonal mirrors. Not vertical mirrors. The vertical mirror of the Irish flag looks like the Irish flag, and an Irish flag upside down appears no different from that flying rightside up.

Frayed Knot Jun 10 2006 06:17 PM

Which is why a distress signal is not simply a flag flipped upside-down, but rather one that's been rotated 180-degrees. Ours, for instance, would have the star field in the lower right, not the lower left. Otherwise a distress signal would be undetectable for all those vertical stripe countries.

Rotblatt Jun 16 2006 10:17 AM

Argentina is putting on a clinic for Serbia and Montenegro. 3-0 going into the second half. Pretty darn impressive, considering that S&M held a pretty strong Holland side to just 1 goal. And they're doing it without phenom Messi, who is expected to be fit for the next match. They could go very, very far in this World Cup.

Edgy DC Jun 16 2006 10:39 AM

Lucio, an Argentina supporter.

Edgy DC Jun 16 2006 10:40 AM

So, I've got work to do, but I've got follow the Elephants today. What time is the match and what sites can I best follow it through?

metirish Jun 16 2006 10:48 AM

5 nil to Argentina....

Rotblatt Jun 16 2006 10:48 AM

Messi in the game as a sub and his assist leads to the fourth goal for Argentina with 10 minutes left to play. Just dominant. Of course, it helps that S&M are a man down after a red card. Edge, the match starts at 11:55, I think. I'll probably follow the action [url=http://www.bigsoccer.com/forum/showthread.php?t=370568]here[/url] or [url=http://www.worldcupblog.org/category/liveblog/]here[/url]. The first is a fan IGT that's pretty informative; the second is a live blog by one dude and is a little more play-by-play. Argentina with yet another goal. This is a rout.

metirish Jun 16 2006 10:50 AM

Willets has a link to a couple of English geezers doing live PbP on radio...

metirish Jun 16 2006 10:52 AM

And Messi( the new Maradonna, by some people's count he's the 100th new Maradonna) scores...6 zip.

Rotblatt Jun 16 2006 10:56 AM

Messi scores. Holy shit. 6-0 is your final. This could be Argentina's year. If the Ivory Coast can manage a draw against the Netherlands today, they could make it through to the next round with a convincing victory of S&M. A win against Holland will all but assure it, as I don't see how the Netherlands can beat Argentina, and the Ivory Coast should be able to take apart a demoralized S&M.

Edgy DC Jun 16 2006 11:00 AM

The thing about Argentina is that they won with Maradona by uncharacteristically playing on their heels. Now they're pounding it like an Argentinian team should.

Elster88 Jun 16 2006 11:03 AM

S&M. What an unfortunate nickname.

metirish Jun 16 2006 11:07 AM

From the Times of London " live match commentry".. ] Slavo Milosevic trots off after gaining his 100th cap.It's probably the quickest he has moved all day"

metirish Jun 16 2006 11:37 AM

I can't wait to see the goals from this game, sounds like a clinic.. http://football.guardian.co.uk/worldcup2006/matchreport/0,,1799515,00.html

Edgy DC Jun 16 2006 12:03 PM

The blogger writes: 1:02 Mercifully there is no shadow today. The German commentator's name is "Fritz von thurn und Taxis." Seriously.

Edgy DC Jun 16 2006 12:26 PM

Holland strikes first. Sounds like Les Éléphants have been soggy, looking like they're playing for a tie.

metirish Jun 16 2006 12:28 PM

Holland strike again,Van Nistelrooy scores .

Rotblatt Jun 16 2006 12:29 PM

And now it's 2-0. Prospects grim for the Ivory Coast.

Rotblatt Jun 16 2006 12:35 PM

Zokora with a shot off the post! Still 2-0 Netherlands. IMO, IC needs a goal before the half if they want to stay in this.

Rotblatt Jun 16 2006 12:41 PM

And it's a goal for Kone! Ivory Coast back in it just before half-time, 2-1.

Rotblatt Jun 16 2006 12:43 PM

Ouch. Drogba given his second yellow card of the Group, meaning he's inelligible to play against S&M. Of course, it won't matter if the Ivory Coast can't pull out a tie here.

Willets Point Jun 16 2006 01:35 PM

Elster88 wrote: S&M. What an unfortunate nickname. Maybe that's why they voted to split Serbia & Montenegro into two seperate nations. The link for the British radio commentary is here: http://clients.mediaondemand.net/theSun/?Channel=1 I think they're actually watching the game on TV and commentating on it, but hey it's live.

Willets Point Jun 16 2006 01:41 PM

Yapi Yapo is an awesome name.

Edgy DC Jun 16 2006 01:56 PM

Snuck out for the game. Great second half. Until the last few minutes, anyhow. Thanks for the fun, elephants.

Rotblatt Jun 16 2006 02:14 PM

I did the same thing, Edge. The bar across the street from me had a decent crowd. Some Japanese businessmen seemed to be rooting for the Netherlands but the rest were leaning IC, I think. The Ivory Coast showed some incredible resiliance and flat out dominated the second half. They had a remakable number of chances (especially given how conservatively the Dutch played in the second half) but just couldn't finish it. Van Persie with a great stop on the IC corner kick. Not so much what he did (stick his chest out) but for his intelligent positioning. Some defenders will come off the line to challenge--if he'd done that, it would've been a goal for sure. The Netherlands with some very physical play. Lots and lots of fouls called by a ref that was too jumpy in the middle of the field and way too lenient in the boxes. It's clear that the refs aren't going to call any fouls in the penalty area throughout this tournament. There were two blatant fouls that should have resulted in an IC penalty kick, and at least a couple no-calls in the other matches I've seen. I think you'd have to literally tackle someone to get a PK call. Prediction: the US will play agressive in the box tomorrow, having witnessed the reluctance of the refs to call PKs, and will be the first--and only--team to give up a PK. And it will be a bullshit call. You heard it here first. Anyway, it's a shame the IC are out. They played extremely well in both games and just couldn't find the net. ESPN commentator was saying that they'll be a real force to be reckoned with in 2010, and I agree, but it's just plain unfair that England, who's played like shit in both matches, will advance and the IC won't. Not to take anything away from the Netherlands--they played well and got some incredible defense in the second half--but the IC outplayed them today.

metirish Jun 18 2006 09:07 PM

Great article on the player of the world cup so far....Riquelme http://football.guardian.co.uk/worldcup2006/story/0,,1800201,00.html It's amazing to read the different opinions on a great player.

Rotblatt Jun 21 2006 04:53 PM

Crazy "playing for pride only" game going on right now. Ivory Coast v. Serbia/Montenegro in the rain. S&M up by two goals on defensive miscues by IC within the first 20 minutes, but IC'er Dindane hits a PK (handball in the box) in the 37th minute to bring the IC within 1 by half time. S&M'er Nadj given his second yellow card of the game right at the end of the half, and S&M have to play with a man down in the second half. After 20 minutes of relentless attacks, IC break through again on a header by Dindane, who has had a beast of a game, to equalise. In the 85th minute, ANOTHER PK for IC on yet another hand ball, and Kalou rifles it in. IC up 3-2 and we're in stoppage time.

Elster88 Jun 21 2006 05:00 PM

Two handballs in the box? What were they slapping at the ball?

Willets Point Jun 21 2006 05:02 PM Edited 1 time(s), most recently on Jun 21 2006 05:05 PM

This group is closed. What's up with the playing for pride game being exciting and the game between two of the top contenders being a scoreless draw? Team MP W D L GF GA Pts Argentina 3 2 1 0 8 1 7 Netherlands 3 2 1 0 3 1 7 Côte d'Ivoire 3 1 0 2 5 6 3 Serbia and Montenegro 3 0 0 3 2 10 0 Argentina plays Mexico on Saturday and Netherlands plays Portugal on Sunday.

Rotblatt Jun 21 2006 05:03 PM

Meanwhile, the winners of the group, Argentina & Netherlands, play an uninspired clunker and wind up in a draw, 0-0.

Elster88 Jun 21 2006 08:08 PM

Willets Point wrote: What's up with the playing for pride game being exciting and the game between two of the top contenders being a scoreless draw? I don't blame them. Those games must be exhausting. They've got bigger fish to fry.

Edgy DC Jun 21 2006 09:37 PM

Play the B-teamers then. Way to go, Elephants.

metirish Jun 21 2006 09:43 PM

Part of the problem today in the Holland and Argentina game was that not only were both teams through but both teams had several players on yellow cards and sat a few of them so they wouldn't get booked again and miss the knock-out game.

Nymr83 Jun 21 2006 11:21 PM

good point, but i have a question... if walking around with 1 yellow card is like having a dagger hanging over your head why not just "earn" yourself a 2nd one in the final minutes of the previous game, get tossed then, and miss the meaningless 3rd game of group play?

Willets Point Jun 22 2006 08:53 AM

That's not very sporting.