Olympics, Group A Prelims: Argentina vs. Ivory Coast.
I HAVE NOT DONE THIS IN LIKE A FREAKING YEAR, HOMBRES, I'M NOT SURE I KNOW HOW TO ANYMORE.
Watching these games live on the NBC internet feed is a bit of an astonishment: no live commentary, no chatter, no hyperbole beyond crowd reaction, and isn't that something -- the purest noise of all. I believe I even heard gasps of awe when Lavezzi lifted up his shirt to wipe his face and revealed the ubiquitous footie-trash tattoo of a family member. It could also be Maradona, or Jesus. I couldn't really tell. Enlightenment, someone, please?
1. SUP MESSI.
2. It's been way too long since I've seen a Juan Roman Riquelme free kick. His first of the match was not his best, about chest height with an average bend, but you can't imagine the clench of my chest when it first happened. I think this is a tournament where he can relax a little and have a bit of fun, which will be good for him.
3.
Ustari
Zabaleta -- Pareja -- Garay -- Monzon
Masche -- Gago
Roman
Messi -- Lavezzi -- Aguero
It seemed like Zabaleta, though nominally the right back, was playing a sort of box-to-box Zanetti role, although he certainly came back to help Pareja in the defense, which was, um, much needed.
Early on, a dangerous chance saw a long one-touch pass sent up for Aguero to race onto; his left-footed shot was saved well by Ivory Coast goalkeeper Angban.
The Argies controlled the tempo of the game from the first minute on, inflicting their traditional passing game through the four-pronged attack. Aside from a Roman free kick, the most dangerous chances in the early stages were created by Messi and tested out by Aguero, though they could not quite manufacture the final step.
There were some stellar moments of defending too. Although Argentina were definitely out-passing their Ivory Coast, the African players showed off some quick counterattacks, trying to make a difference in the transition game. The somewhat ridiculously coiffed Gago seemed to be outjinked along the left edge of the box twice or even thrice, only to turn on his heels, recover each time, and finally tackle the ball away. He was ... actually quite good today (it hurt me to type that).
A few minutes later, Ivorian captain Gervinho turned away from Pareja on the left wing and galloped into the box, only to send his shot high and wide. His pace and swiveling ability gave the Argentinian defense fits all night, and always posed a viable threat for the Ivorians, who started to wrestle a little more control over the match toward the half-hour mark.
BUONANOTTE SIGHTING ON THE BENCH! Why so wee. :D
Argentina, however, were creating chances regularly, with the darting runs of Aguero and incisive passing of Messi -- the two teamed up to created a chance for Lavezzi right on the goalkeeper's doorstep, but Lavezzi was not in an optimal position to turn the cross into a shot on goal.
On the other end, the Ivorians were doing a remarkable job creating chances of their own, and the relatively inexperienced back line After grazing past Lavezzi yet again, Salomon Kalou was able to scoot a shot toward Ustari, whose initial save seemed to be bundled over the line by Gervinho, but the flag was up for offside.
Roman's second free kick was a beauty, eschewing height for a blade-like shot toward the lower right corner of the net, and Angban had to be sharp to hold onto the ball.
But although he was foiled then, his next touch of the ball was magical. A vectorized pass, long and straight, that released Messi for the first goal of the match. All the kid needed to do was scurry past his defender Diarrassouba, pick out his spot, and Argentina were up 1-0 toward the tail end of the first half. Argentina 1 - 0 Ivory Coast (Messi 43').
Another pacey run by Kalou into the Argentina box and Pareja was wise to withdraw from a challenge. Kalou's dive earned him the first yellow card.
After the break, Kalou, determined to make up for his earlier tomfoolery, drew two bad tackles from Masche in a row, the second resulting in a blistering free kick taken by defenseman Angoua that whistled just past Ustari's post.
Ivory Coast were the sharper team after the restart, and soon manufactured the tying goal for themselves. Bagayoko sent in a high cross from the right wing, and inside the box, Sekou Cisse towered above Zabaleta to send a high header past Ustari for a superb equalizer. Argentina 1 - 1 Ivory Coast (Cisse 53').
They could have had another goal just a few minutes later, as Gervinho blazed into the box yet again, but he was bundled over by Garay along with the ball. Argentina needed to regroup; they were being penned inside their own half, to the extent that Aguero was sufficiently tempted into making a bad tackle which earned him both a yellow and the ire of the Ivorians. The first substitutions were made: Lavezzi was replaced by Di Maria, while Goussan was withdrawn for Dja Djedje.
Di Maria seemed to make an immediate impact, redirecting a pass from Messi into Aguero's path, but the tap-in was miles offside, and ruled as such. Still, a sign of the possibilities.
Both sides pushed forward for a second goal, and Roman nearly created it with Free Kick #3. Aguero snuck in behind the defense and couldn't quite get a foot on the delivery, which bounced right in front of Angban, who did well to hold on. Otherwise, both Aguero and Messi were on hand to receive the rebound.
The goalscorer Cisse made way for Moura-Komenan, who immediately got into the action. An iffy free kick was given outside the box, Roman earned himself a yellow for dissent, and Kalou sent the free kick high.
Argentina's defending was getting suspect (more on this at the end), and Gervinho was able to dance his way around Pareja for the Nth time, unfortunately sending the final shot wide. Bagayoko was next to have a go; again the effort was wide. Aguero made way for mocasines's boy Acosta.
Despite the fresh legs, the Ivorians barracked nicely in their back field until Monzon won a free kick on the left. Messi put it into play quickly, exchanging a one-two with Roman and then unleashing a low angled shot from near the goal line. Angban parried the shot but only as far as Acosta, who was waiting at the near post to tap in the winning goal in the 86th minute. Argentina 2 - 1 Ivory Coast (Acosta 86').
The remaining time was worked off by a combination of directionless passing, time wasting, somewhat desperate containment, and the hilarious late substitution of Messi for Sosa. The undisputed MOTM (for me, at least) walked off to a great big roar. Despite the loss, I think the Ivory Coast played exceptionally well, and probably deserved a point. Judging from their performance today, and the tie betwen the Aussies and the Serbs, they are strong candidates to move out of Group A.
The defense needs a buttload of work. Maybe this is a result of having Burdisso removed from the equation so close to the competition, but Argentina could definitely use a senior presence in that back five. Today they faced an attack with pace and creativity, and suffered to keep up at times. Pareja probably had the worst of it, as he had to deal with Gervinho all night. Masche could not quite keep Kalou in check, especially in the second half, but for the most part the defense did what they had to, with a couple of touchy incidents inside the box, but survival was the name of the game. Survive, and give Roman and Messi the ball whenever possible.
As far as strategy goes, it wasn't a stroke of genius, and it could have easily turned on Argentina with a more possession-oriented team, but not today, thankfully.
Watching these games live on the NBC internet feed is a bit of an astonishment: no live commentary, no chatter, no hyperbole beyond crowd reaction, and isn't that something -- the purest noise of all. I believe I even heard gasps of awe when Lavezzi lifted up his shirt to wipe his face and revealed the ubiquitous footie-trash tattoo of a family member. It could also be Maradona, or Jesus. I couldn't really tell. Enlightenment, someone, please?
1. SUP MESSI.
2. It's been way too long since I've seen a Juan Roman Riquelme free kick. His first of the match was not his best, about chest height with an average bend, but you can't imagine the clench of my chest when it first happened. I think this is a tournament where he can relax a little and have a bit of fun, which will be good for him.
3.
Ustari
Zabaleta -- Pareja -- Garay -- Monzon
Masche -- Gago
Roman
Messi -- Lavezzi -- Aguero
It seemed like Zabaleta, though nominally the right back, was playing a sort of box-to-box Zanetti role, although he certainly came back to help Pareja in the defense, which was, um, much needed.
Early on, a dangerous chance saw a long one-touch pass sent up for Aguero to race onto; his left-footed shot was saved well by Ivory Coast goalkeeper Angban.
The Argies controlled the tempo of the game from the first minute on, inflicting their traditional passing game through the four-pronged attack. Aside from a Roman free kick, the most dangerous chances in the early stages were created by Messi and tested out by Aguero, though they could not quite manufacture the final step.
There were some stellar moments of defending too. Although Argentina were definitely out-passing their Ivory Coast, the African players showed off some quick counterattacks, trying to make a difference in the transition game. The somewhat ridiculously coiffed Gago seemed to be outjinked along the left edge of the box twice or even thrice, only to turn on his heels, recover each time, and finally tackle the ball away. He was ... actually quite good today (it hurt me to type that).
A few minutes later, Ivorian captain Gervinho turned away from Pareja on the left wing and galloped into the box, only to send his shot high and wide. His pace and swiveling ability gave the Argentinian defense fits all night, and always posed a viable threat for the Ivorians, who started to wrestle a little more control over the match toward the half-hour mark.
BUONANOTTE SIGHTING ON THE BENCH! Why so wee. :D
Argentina, however, were creating chances regularly, with the darting runs of Aguero and incisive passing of Messi -- the two teamed up to created a chance for Lavezzi right on the goalkeeper's doorstep, but Lavezzi was not in an optimal position to turn the cross into a shot on goal.
On the other end, the Ivorians were doing a remarkable job creating chances of their own, and the relatively inexperienced back line After grazing past Lavezzi yet again, Salomon Kalou was able to scoot a shot toward Ustari, whose initial save seemed to be bundled over the line by Gervinho, but the flag was up for offside.
Roman's second free kick was a beauty, eschewing height for a blade-like shot toward the lower right corner of the net, and Angban had to be sharp to hold onto the ball.
But although he was foiled then, his next touch of the ball was magical. A vectorized pass, long and straight, that released Messi for the first goal of the match. All the kid needed to do was scurry past his defender Diarrassouba, pick out his spot, and Argentina were up 1-0 toward the tail end of the first half. Argentina 1 - 0 Ivory Coast (Messi 43').
Another pacey run by Kalou into the Argentina box and Pareja was wise to withdraw from a challenge. Kalou's dive earned him the first yellow card.
After the break, Kalou, determined to make up for his earlier tomfoolery, drew two bad tackles from Masche in a row, the second resulting in a blistering free kick taken by defenseman Angoua that whistled just past Ustari's post.
Ivory Coast were the sharper team after the restart, and soon manufactured the tying goal for themselves. Bagayoko sent in a high cross from the right wing, and inside the box, Sekou Cisse towered above Zabaleta to send a high header past Ustari for a superb equalizer. Argentina 1 - 1 Ivory Coast (Cisse 53').
They could have had another goal just a few minutes later, as Gervinho blazed into the box yet again, but he was bundled over by Garay along with the ball. Argentina needed to regroup; they were being penned inside their own half, to the extent that Aguero was sufficiently tempted into making a bad tackle which earned him both a yellow and the ire of the Ivorians. The first substitutions were made: Lavezzi was replaced by Di Maria, while Goussan was withdrawn for Dja Djedje.
Di Maria seemed to make an immediate impact, redirecting a pass from Messi into Aguero's path, but the tap-in was miles offside, and ruled as such. Still, a sign of the possibilities.
Both sides pushed forward for a second goal, and Roman nearly created it with Free Kick #3. Aguero snuck in behind the defense and couldn't quite get a foot on the delivery, which bounced right in front of Angban, who did well to hold on. Otherwise, both Aguero and Messi were on hand to receive the rebound.
The goalscorer Cisse made way for Moura-Komenan, who immediately got into the action. An iffy free kick was given outside the box, Roman earned himself a yellow for dissent, and Kalou sent the free kick high.
Argentina's defending was getting suspect (more on this at the end), and Gervinho was able to dance his way around Pareja for the Nth time, unfortunately sending the final shot wide. Bagayoko was next to have a go; again the effort was wide. Aguero made way for mocasines's boy Acosta.
Despite the fresh legs, the Ivorians barracked nicely in their back field until Monzon won a free kick on the left. Messi put it into play quickly, exchanging a one-two with Roman and then unleashing a low angled shot from near the goal line. Angban parried the shot but only as far as Acosta, who was waiting at the near post to tap in the winning goal in the 86th minute. Argentina 2 - 1 Ivory Coast (Acosta 86').
The remaining time was worked off by a combination of directionless passing, time wasting, somewhat desperate containment, and the hilarious late substitution of Messi for Sosa. The undisputed MOTM (for me, at least) walked off to a great big roar. Despite the loss, I think the Ivory Coast played exceptionally well, and probably deserved a point. Judging from their performance today, and the tie betwen the Aussies and the Serbs, they are strong candidates to move out of Group A.
The defense needs a buttload of work. Maybe this is a result of having Burdisso removed from the equation so close to the competition, but Argentina could definitely use a senior presence in that back five. Today they faced an attack with pace and creativity, and suffered to keep up at times. Pareja probably had the worst of it, as he had to deal with Gervinho all night. Masche could not quite keep Kalou in check, especially in the second half, but for the most part the defense did what they had to, with a couple of touchy incidents inside the box, but survival was the name of the game. Survive, and give Roman and Messi the ball whenever possible.
As far as strategy goes, it wasn't a stroke of genius, and it could have easily turned on Argentina with a more possession-oriented team, but not today, thankfully.