If somebody were to tell me, 1 hour before kick-off, that Brasil would outplay Argentina and put 3 in their net, with the help of a Roberto Ayala, own goal, I wouldn't have f*cking believed them. But, Brasil showed that they may not be able to Joga Bonito against Argentina, but that they can beat them and beat them, without the help of Ronaldinho and Kaka. They totally proved my predictions wrong.

             Something went completely and horribly wrong in the Argentine camp. Messi, Tevez, and Riquelme were ABSOLUTELY subdued and put in their places. Personally, being a Barcelona fan, I think Messi plays better for CLUB, rather than for his country. On the other hand, I thought it would be 3-0, Argentina. But, that wasn't the case.  

             O Seleção have a decent record against the Albicelestes. I don't remeber much, but back in 2004 they looked (Brasil) like they were going to get beat by the Argiees in the '04 Copa Final, only to see Adriano, the Inter Milan striker, equalize in the last minute and eventually, win on penalties. And then, just last year, in August, they also beat Argentina 3-0, in a friendly played at Arsenal's Emirates Stadium. Kaka played in that game, while Dinho was in the stands, injured.

             Well, my predictions were COMPLETELY WRONG and I refuse to make excuses for Argentina because when it comes down to that, they didn't give it their all. Indeed, Brasil DON'T need their best players to win a Copa and become the champions of CONMEBOL! CONGRATULATIONS BRASIL, FOR BECOMING THE CHAMPIONS OF SOUTH AMERICA!!!!!!!!!!!! 

I only have one thing to say. Brazilians all over the world better be thanking 3 things. God, the goalpost, and, what my Uruguayan friend calls, some "crooked" referees.

          First off, if God wasn't watching over the Brazilians, they probably wouldn't have advanced. Secondly, if it wasn't for the goalpost, yes, the Brazilians wouldn't have made it to the final.

         When Pablo Garcia, the former Madrid player, struck the ball for his penalty, I thought Uruguay had knocked off Brazil and made it to the final. But, thanks to the goalkeeper's best friend, they didn't. 

       And when the last pk was taken by a Uruguayan, who had to make the penalty in order to keep his country alive, AS Roma goalkeeper, Doni, had taken at least 3 steps out of his goal, before the ball was kicked.

      That is a no-no, according to FIFA rules and regulations. So, I thought that Uruguay would have to retake the penalty, but the head ref said no. That moment, reminded me of the 2005 Champions League Final between Liverpool FC and AC Milan. One of Milan's players had a to take a penal, but, then Liv'pool keeper, Jerzy Dudek, had also taken 3 steps off his goal-line to block the penalty taker and make Liverpool the Champions of Europe for 2005.

What are your thoughts on this whole situation?

Nery Castillo is becoming more and more known throughout the world, due to his great performances in the Copa America. Nery was born in Mexico, in June 1984, but supposedly, both of his parents were Uruguayan. His club is Olympiacos, of Greece, and he is a regular starter, thanks to his playmaking abilities, his aggression, and his speed. His performances at the UEFA Champions League level, caught the attention of Juan Ramon Carrasco, then head coach of the Uruguayan national team, but Carrasco wasn't the only one to spot Castillo. The Mexican press were praising his performances and said that Castillo was eligible to play for Mexico, since he was born there. When he had to make a choice, Nery Castillo picked Mexico over Uruguay and, soon enough, became a regular starter on the national stage, as well. BUT, in FIFA 07, the widely-known football video game, Castillo is put under Uruguay. If you have the game, no matter for what game system, if you check "International Selections-Mexico", Nery will NOT be there. If you go to "International Selections-Uruguay", he WILL be there. The people at EA Sports will have to fix that, come FIFA 08. But, for now, FIFA 07 lovers will have to play with Nery Castillo, as a Uruguayan.

What do you make of that? 

Ok, so I was proven wrong. I said in my other post, that Brazil looked like they were beaten and dead. But, with the 6-1 win over Chile, I see the truth. Brazil are back, no doubt, and if they go all the way to the final, the 6 goals they scored earlier today, will be looked at, as the turning point. By the time Vagner Love scored the 6th goal, I had forgotten who scored the first. Brazil have proven to me that, yes, they can play without Ronaldinho and Kaka, if they concentrate and not be too casual. Yes, indeed, Brazil still have the Ginga!

         Argentina are the team to beat in 2007. They topped their group in the Copa America, with 9 points, which is 3 perfect wins. And the Under-20 team has topped their group in the U-20 World Cup with 9 points, 3 perfect wins. Don't get me wrong, Italy are the World Champions for the next 3 years, but Argentina look like they are, already, threatening to take the Italian's crown.

       Brazil, on the other hand, are not doing so well. In the Copa America, they lost their first game, 2-0, to Mexico, but since then, have had a resurgence, winning their last 2 games, though, some might argue that they didn't bring a full squad. BUT, for the U-20 team, boy, are they having some trouble.

      They lost 1-0 to Poland, in a shock that shook the host nation, Canada, and drew a lot of criticism from the fans and the press. They also lost 2-1 to the USA, of all teams. I like the US, but they might have produced the fluke of the century. Believe this or not, but Brazil's U-20 team are in danger of getting eliminated, BEFORE THEY EVEN GET OUT OF THE GROUP STAGES!!!!!!!

      The senior and the Under-20 teams, of both countries, have had their ups and their downs, but, to me, this kind of seems like the twighlight zone! Argentina are doing great, but Brazil better pick up the slack or they might lose their reputation of being the "hardest team to beat".

What do you think?