and even knowing when to just let the action do the talking. But Harkes really showed he may be able to play at this level, as he offered both strong analysis and a true respect for the event and how the story unfolded. Great start for this team.
The third match of the day gave me yet another reason to scream about some sort of goal-line technology, as about 15 minutes in Argentina almost scored against the Ivory Coast, but the ball was ruled not to have crossed the line. The call looked to be correct, but those don't need to be left to chance anymore.
Argentina looked fun in beating a game Ivory Coast side 2-1, and Glenn Davis and Shep Messing gave an energetic performance, but wow were there a lot of analogies to other sports flying around (what network are the NBA finals on?). And Shep was throwing out Oh Baby's like they were going out of style. Back in the studio (as opposed to Brent Musburger, Julie Foudy and Alexi Lalas at Belmont?), Eric Wynalda's analysis was spot on, calling England disappointing and saying Argentina was the best team we have seen as of yet.
Saturday night the Wizards left it late in a Hunt derby (that's pronounced dar-by for all you rookies), while the Red Bulls ... wait for it ... drew.
SUNDAY
Up at 6 a.m. for the much-anticipated Holland-Serbia & Montenegro match, and it didn't disappoint, as it is the best-played match from a technical standpoint yet. The Dutch look solid and Chelsea's Arjen Robben is the most dangerous player we have seen yet in the tournament. Most comedic moment is instead of a towel, Dutch gaffer Marco van Basten pulls out this gigantic, industrial-strength sponge to dry the sweat from his face, then hands it to his assistant coach. Gee, thanks.
Quick note to ESPN about a graphic they used multiple times over multiple matches: This is the fifth consecutive World Cup appearance for the USA, not the fourth. Ask the analyst in your booth, John Harkes, and he'll tell you about a fun summer in Italy back in 1990.
In between games a flip over to Setanta Sports reminds us that the USA still are not that well known. Proof comes when the narrator of a highlight package of pre-World Cup friendlies touts the U.S. goalkeeper, Kelley Kaser. That guy's awesome.
A 30-minute pregame show before Mexico-Iran is strong. Musburger is a pro, Alexi is always good on air and Julie Foudy has been solid, and I'll be the first to admit I wondered why they wouldn't use someone else with (men's) World Cup experience.
As I said last week, the Mexico-Iran game is a tough one to decide who to pull for. It's kind of like choosing between a root canal and a plate of tofu. Three minutes in Bob Bradley falls off his couch when he finds out Omar Bravo has been transferred from Chivas to Chivas USA. Oh wait, just a mistake from O'Brien, who later corrects himself. Sorry, Bob.
Balboa pulls out his crystal ball and predicts Mexico's first goal, as they convert on a dead ball right after Celo says Iran is going to get punished for giving away so many set pieces. Celo then pulls it out again at the beginning of the second half when he questions Ricardo Lavolpe's double-switch, saying an injury would mean no more subs. A few minutes later, Jared Borgetti strains his hamstring cheap-shotting a baby seal and is forced to come off. Celo, who do you like in the seventh at Del Mar?
Mexico wins 3-1, and just like that the three high-profile managers most under fire coming in (Klinsmann, van Basten and Lavolpe) all have opening-game wins. That'll learn us.
The final match sees Portugal almost score about 11 seconds into the match, then open their account not long after, then somehow only win by a goal to nil. Not good enough.
But soccer fans on Planet LA weren't done yet, as both of the local MLS sides were in action. First Chivas USA, sans Omar Bravo, obviously are no match for the Hoops, who win 2-1 despite another nice goal from Razov. Think that guy is enjoying his football this year? Then the Yallop-led Galaxy battle back from a sweet Christian Gomez strike to earn a 1-1 draw thanks to a late Cobi Jones equalizer.
And we can't forget the wonderful turn of events in Bridgeview, the cherry on top of a fantastic weekend. Up 2-0 over the Revs with three minutes to play in the unofficial opening of their new stadium, the deadbeat Fire gave up a goal and then scored again to make it 3-1 one minute into stoppage time. Then Chicago went on to give up two goals in the next couple minutes to completely collapse for a 3-3 draw. Spectacular.
So, there you have it. If the U.S. game is the only match you have seen as of Monday, you can at least talk like you have seen them all, courtesy of your old pal Tino.
As for championship contenders -- Argentina and Holland looked the part while Germany, England and Portugal all won, but none of them came close to impressing.
During the season, The Clean Sheet runs each week on MLSnet. Views and opinions expressed in this column views and opinions are the author's, and not necessarily those of Major League Soccer or MLSnet.com. Send any questions and comments to tcsresponses@yahoo.com.
