Sure it's not the other way around? Knowing Beckham's issues with hairdressers and all... :D

It would be disgrace for football if Korea actually becomes worldchampions. All the so called big teams would have something serious to think about if that happens, starting with those eleven assholes wearing orange !

Well - if South Korea keep having the referees so obviously on their side - then anything can happen.

First against Italy - now against Spain - perhaps Germany will have a few goals disallowed in the semi-final.

Just a quick note regarding Spains "disallowed" golden goal.

I don't know if the naysayers were watching or not, but the ball went into the net well AFTER the flag was up and the whistle was blown.

The goalkeeper wasn't on his game.

Players often plop the ball into the net after the whistle blows just for the heck of it. Unlike in Italy there's not the same furor regarding decisions. Same with Portugal. As Mario said the Portugese were horrifyingly undisciplined.

Here''s something though. Why did the Portugese not advance? Because they LOST TO AMERICA IN GAME 1.

You can't afford to lose any games in the world cup. Portugal underestimated the US and paid the price. Where are the naysayers saying that the refs helped the US?

I agree that it's just sour grapes to be claiming corruption at this stage. This has been an incredible world cup with many upsets that shows the game is truly spreading. People are basing their "conspiracy" theories on the good play of lesser nations.

Another thing regarding South Korea. There fitness is legendary. Back in USA 94 the Koreans came back from 2:0 vs Spain to draw 2:2 bacause they had superior fitness.

So, what do we see?

Twice over an eight year period Spain were unable to beat the South Koreans.

Doesn't sound like a conspiracy to me.

It would be disgrace for football if Korea actually becomes worldchampions. All the so called big teams would have something serious to think about if that happens, starting with those eleven assholes wearing orange !</font>[/QUOTE]*giggles*

Actually, I was pretty sad when you guys diddn't qualify. Davids and Van 'The Man' Nistelrooy are great players to watch. [img]graemlins/thumbsup.gif[/img]

"Gimme an S! Gimme an O! Gimme a U! Gimme an R! Gimme a G! Gimme an R! Gimme an A! Gimme a P! Gimme an-"

:D

Sorry mate, I just find all this bleating from Europe about referees to be hilarious. [img]graemlins/laugh2.gif[/img]

Actually, how funny would it be if South Korea beat Brazil to become world champions. I've decided to adopt South Korea as "my team" now that Spain is out - the bleating, squealing and whinging from both Europe and South America (conspiracy theories, lawsuits, etc) would make for some hilarious entertainment over the next few months. [img]graemlins/laugh3.gif[/img]

This article captures my thoughts about all this refereeing whining perfectly. Please see the humor in it, although Italians might not find it so funny. ;)

<font color="lightgreen">
The Daily Telegraph
Edition 1 - StateTHU 20 JUN 2002, Page 058
Good riddance to the Gucci set - WORLD CUP 2002
By JEFF WELLS

HAIR today, gone tomorrow.

Oh the joy of seeing preening prima donnas like Italy, a team picked by a committee of Milano barbers, players who are required to dip their heads in buckets of designer axle grease before they take the field, bundled out of the World Cup by a bunch of battlers like South Korea.

It may have saved us from the spectacle of Italia playing their next match in Gucci sunglasses.

What next? In the big one against Brazil does David Beckham blow the game by having a header slice off the ridge of his Mohawk? Does Ronaldo then win it with a perfect missile off his No.1 cut and then grace us with one of those pricelessly unstylish gap-toothed grins?
Will we look back fondly on this World Cup as the one in which by the final, there wasn't a white boot left standing?

Having half of the final eight made up of the USA, whose soccer players are the decent guys who labour in anonymity compared to their drug-crazed, trash-talking, egomaniac counterparts in American football, baseball and basketball; South Korea, who have picked a lot of home leaguers to create a never-say-die all-for-one squad; Turkey, who have quietly built themselves up on a solid no-nonsense technically sound game; and the creative bolters from poverty-stricken Senegal, is a sensational result for the truly world game.

So is the dismissal of arrogant, over-hyped outfits like the Italians, France, Argentina and the disgraceful Portugal.

Any sympathy I might have had for Italy -- a country I love to visit -- started to evaporate when I saw the TV footage of their moronic sore loser dummy-spitting fans rioting in Melbourne.

It vanished completely when I heard Italian supporters bleating about the game being rigged to get the host nation through.

Then I got incensed when I heard Johnny Warren -- whose judgment I normally respect enormously -- insinuating the same thing on radio yesterday, like Tuesday night's game was some sort of crime that should be investigated.

Come on, John, SBS is supposed to be proud of its world perspective.

And from here it looked like the Koreans gave the Azzurri a start and a hiding.

When it got down to the real gut-wrenching stuff, the Armani Italians unravelled like cheap suits.

Johnny, like the other whingers, was complaining about Totti getting a red card for a dive in extra time.

Glamourpuss Totti was one of the most over-rated underachievers in the tournament, his head swelled by a ridiculous push to have an Italian labelled as the world's best, with Portugal's Figo and France's Zidane out of the way.

He was hardly touched in that tackle and went down with a crucifix with pike stolen from a Best of Greg Louganis video.

He knew he already had one yellow card and that the referees are under instructions to put a stop to the sort of fraudulent histrionics that are the chief threat to the extraordinary credibility that this World Cup has given the game.

But he was so full of himself that he took the chance anyway, trying to win it the easy way. He got exactly what he deserved.

In fact, Panucci's mugging of Seol Ky-Hyun that led to the early penalty should probably have been a red card. I have hardly seen a player bulldogged to the ground, like a calf at a rodeo, so blatantly all tournament.

It was therefore a pleasure to see Panucci floundering in defence when Seol slotted home the equaliser in the 88th minute. It looked like he had slipped over on a grease spot -- possibly the drip from his own hair.

And a minute later Vieri had the easiest chance in history to equalise from six yards out. But he had to go for the big flamboyant swing at the ball instead of side-footing it in like any grandmother in a street game in Naples would have done.

The conspiracy theorists are also blustering about a disallowed goal, for offside, by Tomassi in the 110th minute. It looked like an average offside decision to me. The Italians copped it with hardly a whimper. If it had been a really bad one we would have seen more ham acting than a week at La Scala.

And ultimately the winning header from Ahn Jung-Hwan was a one-out duel in the box with the fabled defender Maldini.

Italy had the tight shirts. South Korea won it because they had a skinful of courage. Long live the underdog! The world game is finally embracing the workers.

wellsj@dailytelegraph.com.au
</font>

I'm with you, Memnoch. :D
And great post, Yorick! I completely agree with you. ;)

well, actually memnoch, i think it would be bad for football if south korea beat brazil. thats because it would make the world cup some sort of a joke, where the local team (no matter how bad they are) can win the thing. btw, i think that if they play brazil they will be creamed. well, unless brazil gets 2 or 3 goals disallowed, a player sent off and a penalty against, but you cannot fight that, can you?

and not to be picking on anybody. but its not bad losing or sour grapes (i reckon argentina lost fair and square). its the love for football, its innocence, the innate ability of players and many things that makes us rebel against what we have seen in the world cup. there is no denying that south korea has been favoured by referees! intentional or not, wether the other teams didnt perform or not, nobody can say otherwise and it cannot change the facts that the decisions were poor and for them. i know its easy to root for the underdog, but in this case s.korea is not one. at least not for fifa... i really want to make you understand that its not a case of bad loosers. hell, i rooted for everybody that played against spain cause they gave me hell when argentina was out! (dont tell that to anybody, though). [img]tongue.gif[/img]

its a matter of fair play. the best team should win, or the luckiest one. but not the one that has the referees on their side because its good for fifa that at least one of the organiser countries reaches the final four. i hope nobody takes offense by this, cause im really trying hard to get the point across. of course, if you are going to disqualify every argument with a "bad loosers" sentence, this will not be worth much. btw, ive talked this over with friends from england, spain, germany, argentina, brasil and senegal and they all pretty much agree about the referees being disgraceful and a major influence in the scores of some games.