World Cup observation...

I know the FIFA World Cup 2010 had started and you're all itching to hear my side of the story, isn't it? Well, I must say I do find it interesting to see more play acting getting done in this World Cup competition. If there is an award for Play Acting of Year, Kader Keita from Cote D'Ivoire ( Some fellas pronounced it as Kotek Di Apa! It is not my problem anyway. I'm just writing how they pronounced it, ok? So , don't blame me for it! I heard it from a nearby coffeeshop! ] would win it hands down for sure. Yup, this is the fella who got Kaka from Brazil ejected from the game.

Coming back to the game, I find it interestingly silly for these players to do such despicable acts of cheating and feint injury. I guess, it had become so competitive that you would have to cheat and lie to win at all cost or get some advantage by getting players off the field. Fair play is definitely not the order of the day. I find it despicable and deplorable for professionals to do the playacting and all that while we are not talking about cheap/"sar kar lor" players but players who had been in some of the most competitive football leagues in the world. I guess, that's why acts like these takes off a lot of shine from this year's WC competition.

The other thing I noted is the increasingly annoying handball offences. For crying out loud, it is football, people and the last time I checked, you don't play football with your hands except for the goalkeeper, of course! This mentality of stopping the flow of play at all cost has to stop indefinitely. It kills the beauty of the game. Look, if they, the players, are fitter, sharper and technically better in their skills, you don't need hands to stop your opponents but like all prima donnas of any game, fitness level is low, they turned their backs on training after one guy got sent home, they bitched and caused a hue & cry about the older players, the pitch, the weather, the ball, the referee, the ball boys, the vuvuzelas and what not except for themselves. Their excuses sound familiar, isn't it? Well, some say it is the drama of WC and we all need some drama in our lives one way or another. I couldn't agree more but it's getting tiresome as the matches are played later in the night and eating into our enthusiasm levels to stay awake.

Career threatening tackles are another down point for the game. If you look at the tackles, they are really crunching and could get people seriously hurt,man. With slow mo and good camera angle, you could actually see some ankle getting twisted or some shins/ thighs decorated with boot studs. I have yet to see some players nuts being stepped upon. [ Ouch! ] Well, it's gotta happened sooner or later with such plays being left unchecked, right?

Then there is this jersey pulling thing and hands grappling & blocking nuisance. You see it rampant during games and some people make a meal out of it. Personally, I find it crazy to do such things. Anyway, I have yet to see anyone grabbing someone's tree stump or pull shorts down during games and so on. Now, that would be interesting, wouldn't it? Hmmmnnnn.... what would be the reaction, anyway. Imagine we have a game of football with stomping on the nuts, pulling of the tree stumps, pulling of hair [ Didn't their mothers teach them to cut their hair and look neat? These Africans and Europeans do need some serious personal grooming lesson! ] and pulling down shorts - all perfectly legal in the game? Now, that would be mighty interesting, right?

The other fun is the fumbling and dumbling hands of the goalkeepers of the participating nations. They produced howlers which might raised questions of whether they can actually take care of their own two units! Bah! Like I always say, you win some, you lose some! This WC is without it's bright sparks. For one, the quality of goals scored and the other is the bundles of energy of the Japanese and the South Korean team. Yup, these guys just run, run, run till they drop. That's the spirit of WC, actually. They fight on till the very end - win or lose. That ,to me, is nice to watch and epitome of a good match. We could all learn a thing or two on endurance from these teams. Sometimes, it makes you wonder whether it is the ginseng work or the suppuku [ Japanese suicide act ] threat that is keeping them alive! Definitely, it is not discussion over book read and sex before game-lar, if you really want to know and must know!

To be honest, it doesn't matter who wins the World Cup 2010 because to me, at the end of the day, somebody has to win that trophy on display. You cannot be asking Nelson Mandela to give away the trophy to the team of sweepers or ball boys, right? So, may the best team win and let us enjoy the finest moments in football with the best footballers of the continents strutting their stuff to being honor and glory to the respective teams!
No matter who wins, I still have to go to work on Monday morning,ok?