By DT Charly
June 24 2006

Japanese, Koreans and the USA are out of it deservedly, with both results and performances as undoubted founding for what I've always preached I'm not trying to be arrogant or anything, I just want everyone to know the truth, which is not that I am right, but that Japan, Korea and USA are football lies, weak and talent lacking sides, boosted with unfair positive results and easy challenges, perhaps to exploit the commercial markets of football, thankfully that didn't happen this time and truth has come to the light

Next follows a boring description of each team:

Japan

with a capable attacking-styled Brazilian coach and the typical Brazilian player, showed they lack what it takes to be a good team, and that is natural talent, intelligence and attitude their overrated players like Nakamura, Takahara, Nakata, etc. were mediocre to say the least and never led the team in any ways
against a debutant like Australia, who obviously lack experience and a lot of quality but do have one of the best trainers in the world, which gives them organization and discipline.

They were supposed to be the main agitators of the match, they took advantage of Australia's first minutes of top level football, with anxiety and lacking a lot of ideas, and scored illegally as they fouled the goalkeeper, but then were overrun physically, mentally and technically by the same side that had a lot of limitations they were not awarded a penalty, yes, but they shouldn't have been awarded the goal
Croatia never managed to be a complete team throughout their matches, against Japan they defended well and only had Prso's lone attempts in attack, yet they always looked better than Japan, who never looked dangerous but did suffer in their own goal, Croatia was the main character in this match too
and against Brazil, well, what can be said? The living proof of what happens when a talented side face and 'talentless' one, yet as we all know, Brazil defends badly, which is the reason they allowed the goal in the first place.

All in all they lacked the creativity and the experience a side that has featured in many WCs and got to 1/8s last time should have, with players that supposedly are stars in their team, whatever technique they have, they don't use it well, because they've been carefully and intensely trained to move the legs right, but nothing in the head, and that's ok, in order to have something in the head you need to have football running through your blood vessels, and not in your wallet with the Beckham picture in it, when you see Japanese kids all by themselves in the streets or a in a playground kicking a stone, can or bottle around, even perhaps a ball, clearly having the time of their life and playing with flesh and blood like there's no tomorrow, give me call, that's when they'll be good at this.

Korea

Also with a capable foreign coach, Advocaat, more suited to an organized and balanced game, and who managed even better than Zico to make the message be understood, Korea was fairly kicked out Togo was definitely a more limited side, with no experience at all, little organization, but unlike the other African sides, they also weren't physically or technically better, even their star Adebayor was disappointing, all the problems and scandals with the coach and the money definitely determined their fate.

Korea still, having a vast experience and having reached the 4th place in the last cup, didn't have it easy, and saw themselves down in the score for most of the match, after all, the Africans have a more natural way of playing football, in the end, organization, technique and patience were good arguments and gave them a deserved and justified victory against France, well, there is no doubt that the French are better in all aspects, but they are unlucky to have a crazy coach and ageing players, the draw was a result of France's lack of ideas and the Korean organization implemented by Advocaat and in the important match, against the Swiss, a team that is similar since they both have their clear strengths and limitations.

The most talented team, the one with better attitude and more intelligence got a clear and deserved win, they were always in control, they attacked with efficiency despite not being great on the ball, and defended with aggressiveness and organization, they were always in control as they know their football better than the Koreans, who might be still unfairly angry at the Swiss 2nd goal, which was correctly allowed, while they forget that the only reason they did well in the last WC was because they got an easy group and they cheated all the way to semis, having refs committing astonishing acts of theft against Italy and Spain

to sum up, most of the stated about Japan goes here too, they belong to a same style of society and football culture, with failing stars like Ji Sung Park, Lee Young Pyo, Hwang Ahn or whatever it's written they did better because they have a longer history and a better approach to the game given by the coach, plus its players have been in Europe for longer and in the end they get more suited to the real football, like Lee Chun Soo, but clearly they still lack creativity and intelligence, I'm willing to bet fortune that if, in a duel with an attacking Korean/Japanese player, a defender does his part right (that is: when in front, stand in the right way with some distance, then wait to see the movement the attacker, that will probably pull one of his learned-by-tough-practice tricks and end it by going to the side that he uses best, try to recover the ball anticipating the move through which the attacker will try to get on with the play by controlling the ball with his good side, applying strength, decision and aggressiveness) he will get the ball every time.

The difference with talented players is that despite they have the ball, they know better which moves the defender is doing than the defender knows which moves the attacker is planning, so they have the ability to nutmeg them, or the right timing to go past them with pace, that's a clear example of intelligence and talent that Koreans and Japanese don't have.

finally, USA

They are not such a bad case of hypocrisy like the Asian teams, with the same coach as always, the same style, a mixture of new and old players, what made the difference this time is that they actually played against decent sides and refs did ok, but I'm not exactly against them, they were just overrated and it needed the proper adjustment

But they still have a lot to improve, mind football is not their favourite sport and their commercial approach to sports as a whole is not good in m opinion, still they do like sports as a way of life, and also considering the Mexican and Latin American immigration they have they might develop football with time.

Eddie Johnson, for one, is not exactly a bad player or a fake talent, in fact, he's got the mental and physical attributes needed to play, but he lacks preparation, should he have gone through any European or South American youth system he'd be a much better player, not only having good intentions, but being available to actually do what he thinks, and even be smarter

As a team they are still weak, they have a very different view of football than the rest of the world and in the end that is a weakness, their football institutions and structure of organization are very different from the typical European ones that do their best to produce the best quality possible (except for Real Madrid), and that does play a big role.

If they ever get to treat football like they treat basketball or pay half the attention they put on their "American Football" to real football, they'll be good, but for now, they won't be able to cross that line and stop being mediocre