Alas England has been knocked out of the competition by their quarterfinal opponents Portugal. Despite what the US commentators said it was a very exciting match. It sure had me on the edge of my seat. Sadly it was the penalties that did it for us again. The good news was that even though England played with 10 men in the second half, Portugal still couldn’t beat them even after overtime. In fact being down a player seemed to inspire them and they threw everything they had into scoring a goal. It was not to be, ce la vie.
Else where in the competion, Italy beat Ukraine 3-nil, which flattered the Italians more than they deserved. Germany were lucky to beat Argentina on penalties. Argentina looked the better team but the luck ran Germany’s way. As for Brazil versus France, well the French seem to be getting their act together and beginning to look like possible champions. They played with great skill and passion and made the Brazillians look like also rans. The Brazillians were the most disappointing team in the tournament as the final ten minutes of this game proved. Whneen the crunch came and they got serious about trying to score they looked magnificent but by that time it was too late.
So we have an all European pair of semis. I’m expecting we’ll see a Germany vs France final.
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