Rude awakening on big day
- 10 Jun 06, 08:21 AM
FRANKFURT - What is the first sight you like to gaze upon when you pull back the curtains in the morning?
Well maybe we won't actually pursue that one too far, but for me at my hotel in Frankfurt I was greeted by the faces of Michael Ballack, Kaka and Lionel Messi.
Not a nightmare about the biggest threats to , but a giant signal that World Cup fever has now officially taken hold and the big day has finally arrived for Sven-Goran Eriksson's side.
Those three stars adorn a giant high-rise office building just yards from my bedroom window. A swift reminder that at last we have some football to be played.
Once again Eriksson was in amazingly good form at his press conference, with a nice line in humour - black humour as well when he was asked "would he like an honorary knighthood if England win the World Cup?".
"I hope to leave the job alive" was his response.
, with a giant screen placed in the middle of the river, with seating on the banks, for those who want to watch the matches.
And a part of the city centre was taken over with a giant party for all last night, complete with rock band, stalls serving every dish imaginable and a South American cocktail bar serving up concoctions that were probably best avoided.
The serious business got under way earlier, and the feeling among the world's media was that England would have been heartened by the early skirmishes.
at the back, while neither Poland nor Ecuador looked special - although the cheering from some sections when Costa Rica scored was unsporting in the light of the hosts being so generous.
So now it is up to England.
We've followed every step of the build-up. How are you feeling? Can they back up the talk with results?
Off to the .
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And I just thought we had to worry about Ronaldinho!
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As a scot, I can honestly say I awoke excited by the prospect of the game. The question for me is not whether England can win, but whether victory can be achieved without the loss of key players to injury, given Paraguy's notorious reputation as a tough-tackling side.
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I'm feeling nervous, and excited! I cannot wait to see how this goes. England's team is impressive, we all know this. But the Paraguans will be a tough challenge. I'm gonna stick my neck out a bit here. I believe England will struggle and maybe conceed, but our quality will over power tired Paraguan legs.
Prediction:
England 3 - 1 Paraguay
Crouch will get two and Gerrard will score another.
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as a Scot myself, i can honestly say cmon Paraguay from the majority of Scots. the constant arrogance of the english and there derisory comments about other nations are a disgrace. the England team are very boring, why any scotsman would support them is beyond me and there fellow countrymen.
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As an englishman muself....
If scotland were playing in the world cup and england were not I'd certainly be supporting them,even if england were Id support scotland over everyone else.Its not the footballers who are boring, I blame it on sven!!we're not arrogant, we just know we're good ;)
football is about competition and friendly rivalry, every other nation makes comments about eachother, It is a shame some have to fight and ruin it but a brit should be behind england all the way!!
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Got that same old feeling - we lose to Paraguay, scrape a win against T&T and hang on for a desperate draw against Sweden. Qualifying only on the results of others, we'll stagger through to an heroic knock out due to a referee's howler. Oh it's terrible being an Englishman - truly awful....eh Jock?!
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so much for the poles in the second round eh? bring on ecuador after what should be a easy win today (hopefully no injuries) and we should prove too strong for T&T after there dire performance against Wales and all the other warm up games by all accounts we should go into the Sweden game full of confidence but it should be a meaningless game just the 2 best teams in the group fighting it out for top spot. by the way i can't wait to see the german "defence" against a great strike force if wanchope can tear them to pieces imagine what rooney or ronaldo can to to them.
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Come on lads! We can do it this time.
Agree that perhaps the main concern over the game today is that we get through it without injuries. Paraguay are a useful bunch, but we have quality all over the pitch - although some of the back up isn't as reassuring as some would have us believe (Jenas, Hargreaves, James etc - average at best).
But with so many Chelsea players in the team, we can't go wrong.
COME ON ENGLAND!
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It's going to be an awesome game. Pity i can't avoid a crucial cricket match for my club. There is no doubt we have the talent to win it, but we all know how unpredictable the world cup is. In regards to us being boring, look at Frankfurt right now!
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I am very nervous, had trouble sleeping last night. Compounded this morning around the streets of Wavertree, Liverpool, with a band on a float making one heck of a racket. If anyone was oblivous to the World Cup yesterday, they can't have helped noticed something is going on today !
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With so many ex East London lads in the side we can't go wrong. West Ham win the World Cup and England reign supreme.
fortune favors the brave, good health and a sprinkle of luck.
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The atmosphere is building here on the Island of Bali. Lots of supporters around from every corner of the globe.
I am nervous about this first game. It is one - nil to South America over Europe so far and I don't want to see 'us' go futher behind!
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Had the greatest party with England fans all night last night. Frankfurt was one giant cross of St. George! I'm sure all of Frankfurt will support "Ingerland" today. I sure will!
Andreas, a Frankfurt local resident
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I'll be supporting England and I'm an Aussie. This is the strangest World Cup ever. I'm peeping at the 主播大秀 sport website so often you'd think it was Pamela Anderson's left nipple. Football fever is raging through my veins. England want to win it so much that I even told a mate today that I think I'd support England in an England-Australia match. And I was gutted when we lost the Ashes and not so impressed by our loss in the rugby World Cup. Weird!
Dicko
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What's up with choosing walcott over defoe? Am I the only one who think that defoe deserve better? Sven is trying to screw our chance of winning innit?
If we really gotta worry, its the strategist's head! he's got screwed wrong somewhere upthere.. and down too!
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cmon the paraguay, you have great support in Scotland. England are a predictable, boring and have no flair. im no brit, im a scotsman. why would i support a team that has only won the cup once with a bad decision in the 60s. the overated english will lose as usual, hopefully. we are a separate nation on the football field and 90 percent of scotsman would never support the english.
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cmon the paraguay, you have great support in Scotland. England are a predictable, boring and have no flair. im no brit, im a scotsman. why would i support a team that has only won the cup once with a bad decision in the 60s. the overated english will lose as usual, hopefully. we are a separate nation on the football field and 90 percent of scotsman would never support the english.
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cmon the paraguay, you have great support in Scotland. England are a predictable, boring and have no flair. im no brit, im a scotsman. why would i support a team that has only won the cup once with a bad decision in the 60s. the overated english will lose as usual, hopefully. we are a separate nation on the football field and 90 percent of scotsman would never support the english.
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hey guys,
you will supporting your team?
shoot the goals here!
go go go ...
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Every first match of every big team is a bit of getting nervous and it does not need to know with which team they are going to play. So, here the clear difference between England and Paraguay does not help the English players and fans to become relax. I think Argentines are also facing this problem though they have that quality to turn the match for their favor. On the other hand, the underdog teams can feel some relief as they have nothing to loose with these teams rather if they can do something it can be a bonus for them and they have also proved their quality in the qualifying round to make something.
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Every first match of every big team is a bit of getting nervous and it does not need to know with which team they are going to play. So, here the clear difference between England and Paraguay does not help the English players and fans to become relax. I think Argentines are also facing this problem though they have that quality to turn the match for their favor. On the other hand, the underdog teams can feel some relief as they have nothing to loose with these teams rather if they can do something it can be a bonus for them and they have also proved their quality in the qualifying round to make something.
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I wrote yesterday about the studio panel and how bad I thought they were.
At half time today Martin O'Neil forgot what he was talking about whilst talking and Gary Linekar said that Theo Walcott could not come on as a substitute because he had to have his afternoon sleep..........They really are pathetic and I would say you need to make an apology for wasting MY money on this lot. I wiil watch the action but will not listen to thei drivvle.
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