Paraguay vs Spain

The Paraguay 'goal' was correctly disallowed - Cardozo was offside when the cross came in, and he was certainly actively involved in the play during the entire move. Ergo, no goal.

The ref was a bit weird - think he got the offside/penalty calls spot on, but was weird how he spotted one encroachment and not the other. Maybe he'd been alerted to it after the first peno. Yeah, Fabregas was taken out by Villar, that should have been a peno too. Also, probably should have sent Santana off for the elbow on Busquets. And the best Paraguay chance late in the game came after Iniesta got chopped down in the Paraguay half and looked on incredulously as the play continued.

As for the game, I can't believe how del Bosque can't (or refuses) to see that Torres is just holding his side back. Spain have looked much, much better both times Torres came off in the last two games, and only took charge of the games after that. So del Bosque, grow some and drop him. You can't play guys into form in the closing stages of a World Cup.

No foul? Clear dive? He first got pulled back, and then the guy ran into his legs from behind. Two fouls really.

EG, agree with basically all of that. The problem for del Bosque, is that Torres can produce one moment of magic that can change a game- something that Llorente doesn't quite have. However, I'm really only defending Nando. He's been awful. Hardly done anything good at all. He never plays well with Spain because the Spanish style doesn't play to his strengths. And all they would do is put Villa up front and play Cesc or Silva or something, not Llorente. But I want Torres to score. But all good, as long as Villa keeps doing it.

 

Yeah, I know that del Bosque is hoping Torres will come right and give him something special, but I think he's making a huge risk wasting 60 minutes of a game waiting for something that's unlikely to happen. The problem also is that with Torres on the field Iniesta doesn't have as much space to exploit in the attacking third, and has to drop a bit deeper which makes it easier to defend against him.

Good 30 minutes worked against Portugal and Paraguay, but may not be enough against the Germans.

Villa was well in front of the Paraguayan defender, who tried to pull him back and eventually ran into his legs from behind and took him down.el grapadura2010-07-04 12:52:12

Great second half to the game. First half, not so much.

Spain is yet to put together a performance that shows they can compete with Germany. They've certainly got the players, but I think they've got to lift their game to make the final.

Yeah you mustve been tired . Clear penalty mate.

As for Paraguays disallowed goal for offside. It was possibly a little harsh,but probably fair. The ref ruled that the player in the offside position jumped for the ball,putting pressure or even causing the defender (I forget who) to miss the ball which then fell at the feet of the onside striker.

There wasn't just the tiniest infringement in the first attempt of the Spanish penalty, the commentator said that "one player half a foot in the box", did he not notice the 3 Spanish players in the D when the penalty was taken! It's not just the penalty box that is 10 yds from the penalty spot, stupid commentator!

I don't know why everyone (including the TV commentator) is saying the encroachment on Xabi Alonso's first penalty was minor.  liverpoolfan12010-07-04 16:17:53

As a side note, the Spanish team doctor (or whoever it was treating the Spanish defender in the 90th min) is probably the first team medic at this level of football that i've seen treating a player without latex gloves in about 15 years

Ah yeah had forgotten about the penalty encroachment. They really need to teach commentators basic rules before letting them loose on rants like a few times in that game...

Yeah that annoyed me.  They'd encroached by metres.  The commentator was a muppet.

With regards to the disallowed goal, personally (from memory of the replay) I didn't think the Paraguayan player who was offside had much to do with it.  He jumped for the ball, yes, but didn't touch it and none of the Spaniards around him seemed near it or looked like they'd have got it had he not been there.  If anything it would have put off his own player.  Like I said, though, that's just my memory and chances are next time I see it it'll be completely different.

Oh well, maybe just a flash of mammaries?

Do you know San Iker was pointing to Reina after he saved the penalty? Dedicated it to the wonderful man that is Pepe Reina because he had told Casillas that Cardozo would shoot that way. Hero.

LG, I know you hate Spain, but you're fighting a losing battle here. Cardozo is in an offside position (quite clearly) as the cross is coming in. He then goes to meet the cross and challenges for the ball in the air, which instantly means he's actively involved in the play having come from an offside position. The AR's flag goes up immediately at this point, and anything else that happens afterwards is completely irrelevant, because the officials will award an indirect fre kick to the defending team for the offside offence.

Watched the replay and fair enough, Cardozo's opponents were a lot closer to him then I'd remembered and his being there and trying to get to the ball constitute an offside under the 'interfering with an opponent' part of the offside section in the Laws of the Game.  I still don't think that leaping for the ball from an offside position is in itself an offence. loyalgunner2010-07-05 10:31:46

But it is - an attempt to play the ball from an offside position (whether on the ground or in the air) from an offside position constitutes an offside offence.

Anyone notice the attack/scramble on the left hand side of the goa in the second halfl, Villa dribbles close to the left goalpost, goes to pass which is intercepted by a Paraguayan falling over.

Admittedly I haven't finished reading the latest copy of the Laws of the Game so I'm prepared to be proven wrong, but I have covered the whole offside section so think I am safe to disagree.  All it says is:

'A player in an offside position is only penalised if, at the moment the ball touches or is played by one of his team, he is, in the opinion of the referee, involved in active play by:
- interfering with play or
- interfering with an opponent or
- gaining an advantage by being in that position'

I certainly can see how a ref could interpret a player making a go at the ball (and failing) from an offside position as being offside, but in every case certainly not.

I mean, say there was a breakaway.  Team A is 1-0 up in the 93rd minute and Team B have a corner and have pushed all 11 players up in and around the opposition penalty area.  Their corner fails so someone in Team A gathers the ball and passes forward to where he sees two players.  One is in his own half and one isn't.  The one not in his half leaps to head the ball but misses by a solid foot and a bit but the guy from his own half runs past, gathers the ball, and scores.  Would you call that offside?  I seriously doubt many refs would but by what you're saying it must be.

Well, that's a higly hypothetical scenario that would pretty much never happen in a game.

The point being is that attempting to play the ball from an offside position generally means 1) interefering in the play, and 2) interfering with an opponent.

He deserves to get a IFK awarded against him for being stupid enough to be in an offside position when there was no defence to play him onside

If he hadn't of jumped for the ball,the defender wouldn't have challenged. The defender instead wouldve been under less pressure and stepped back to get a touch instead of challenging.

yeah, the spain para commentator is terrible. been irritating me all tournie. boring, obvious (often wrong), kinda patronising, generally innane comments.

and how could that valdez goal not be offside? the guy who jumped for the header was obviously in offside position and had to be interfering with play (yet that didnt even occur to the commentator as a possibility!)

I went to school with an exchange student who use to play in our first XI and after the went back home he became a model and today�he posted pictures on his facebook of himself�with this lovely lady...topless�before a photoshoot�(her). I'm his new best friend.TopLeft072010-07-06 14:55:31