FIFA 2k10 Conclusions

FIFA 2k10 Conclusions:
The FIFA carnival came to closure with Spain emerging as undisputed kings of world’s football.
The Paulo’s predictions hit cent percent with the results in finals and third place-off match.
Germany won the third place consecutively for the second time beating Uruguay 3-2 in a close game.

FIFA finals:

The most important match of the best sport in the world ended after 120 minute battle between Holland and Spain.
The teams attacked throughout the game but the only breakthrough happened in 116th minute when Iniesta scored for Spain. Robben missed 2 golden chances and erased the hopes of Dutch.

The FIFA fever has ended now, the blogs and journals will also come to an end in a week or so. So this is a small update to my blog after the finals as my FIFA ended after Germany’s loss to Spain in semis. So ending my FIFA marathon here and will expect that these blogs would be used for a quick reference in future(at least for me) .

Will come up with some new topics and updates in the near future ……

Keep checking …

FIFA semifinals synopsis

FIFA Semifinals Results:
It’s again Paulo’s monarchy rule in FIFA. Its predictions are ending the team’s kismet. It’s disappointing result for me but I want to complete the blogging on FIFA, so coming up with a small write-up.

Dutch vs Uruguay: The “Hand OF God” Suarez missed this match and it costed Uruguay to enter the finals. Dutch played splendid football and entered finals of FIFA2k10, who could have expected that Dutch reaches the finals. It was a commendable team performance from Dutch. The first half was tied at 1-1 with the captains Van Bronckhorst and Diego Forlan scoring the first goal for their teams.

The second half was more of Dutch’s supremacy. Schneider and Robben gave early breaks taking the lead to 3-1. Uruguay fought till the last minute and the last minute goal reduced the lead to 3-2, which was not enough for Uruguans. So, Dutch entered the FIFA finals for third time and let’s see how it fares in the Final.

Germany vs Spain:
This was the most hyped match and ended on one side’s brilliance and the awful display from other side. Spain dominated the whole match giving no glimpse of hope to Germany and won 1-0 with Puyol’s header. It was very disappointing to see Germans playing the way they did after their superb performance against Argentina. Germans were never in contention.
Paulo’s prediction came as an eye-opener. So finally Spain entered FIFA finals for the first time.

Forecast:
Now we are left with only 2 matches in this FIFA mania. The first match will be played between Germany and Uruguay. Germany should win this to take 3rd place as a consolation win to all its supporters.

The final is between Netherlands and Spain. I am going 50-50 with this match as both are in good form but Spain could be starting as favorites.

Paulo predicted wins for Germany and Spain. So let’s wait for the new champions.

Introduction to Ragha on his phd achievemnt.

There's a saying, "The devil is in the details." But that's not where you'll find our star. Our star has tackled big challenges, and big opportunities. In fact, over the years, he's been intimately involved in just about every important aspect of research. His record speaks for itself. To mention just a few highlights:
He was born on 1983 and called his mother ala mother-board, and under his leadership we took a giant leap in improving the quality of our C-language and APS assignments He went on to head up the reorganization that streamlined research in IISc and PhD in IITm, so that students are far more efficient and competitive than ever before. And now he's in charge of Computer Architecture in IIT-Madras, getting us ready to make the most of his research as we look to a promising future. He's here today to paint for us a vivid picture of that future. I'm pleased to introduce Raghavendra(The Giant in Research).
He is gearing to hold a new degree PhD which transfixes our imagination on research.
I wondered hearing the 3 letter word PhD, does it mean Piss Head Dude or Piled Higher and Deeper or Doctor of Philosophy. Whatever it means or meant this guy is going to give PhD and research a rollercoaster ride.

The above introduction is for my friend Ragha for his Phd seat ...

FIFA 2010 Quarters Results

FIFA 2010 Quarters Results:

The Quarter-finals had surprises and some exciting matches. The surprising results are Netherlands win over Brazil and Germany thrashing Argentina. For me Germany’s win is obvious. The Global field of 100 Football Fan Economists polled by Reuters mentioned Brazil as favorites followed by Spain and Argentina.

So lets see the results and how the Global field Economists failed with their polls.

Netherlands vs Brazil:


Except Dutch the whole world was expecting that Brazil will win comfortably. But to add spice it was a jolt to all Brazilian supporters. After dominating the first half 1-0, a great goal by Robinho it was a mediocre display in the second half by Brazil. Dutch didn’t play well in the first half but it was a marvel display by them in the second half. Schneider was the match-maker for them in scoring 2 goals making the end result 2-1 in favor of Dutch.

Nothing went fine for Brazil in the second half. Red card to Felipe Melo and Kaka’s form made it easy for Dutch.

Uruguay vs Ghana:

This is the best match of the quarters. The match between Uruguay and Ghana has proved itself to be one of the most controversial matches in the history. There have been many ‘Hands’ in the history of football but never at this stage of the World Cup and in such a way. The last second goal in the first half by Muntaro gave the initial lead to Ghana in the first half 1-0.
But it was again Forlan for Uruguay whose free-kick outside the D-box equaled the lag 1-1. There after it was an even match with both the teams trying for the lead. The most gripping part of the game is the last minute of Extra-Time. Ghana got the free kick and after the kick the ball stayed jammed in the “D” for a while after which a header that was crossing over Luis Suarez was sent back by firm tow hands. Only that those were not the hands of the keeper.


Though he stopped the goal he was sent off for the foul and Ghana were awarded a penalty which Asamoah Gyan took. Unfortunately he missed the penalty hitting the top bar in the process which led the ball outside.
Uruguay won the match from there on penalties. Suarez is now seen as a cheat by almost everyone, but what is actually sad is that in his own country of Uruguay, he is seen as a hero.

Germany vs Argentina:



A lot of buzz was created for this match naming it as the best match of world cup and so on. But the Superior Germans thrashed Argentina. The result shocked Argentina fans because they were completely overshadowed by their European rivals Germany. They were routed 4-0.
The 3rd minute goal from Mueller gave the initial lead to Germany and from then Argentines were never in the game. Klose’s 2 goals and Freidrich’s goal made it 4-0. Schwansteiger, Podolski, Khedira, Oezil, Neuer and Lahm also played exceptionally well. Nothing went fine for Argentina and Maradonna.

Spain vs Paraguay:


Spain won the match comfortably and it was again David Villa who scored the only goal of the match. It was heartbreak for all the Paraguay supporters who played exceptionally well.
Spain will be facing Germans and Dutch will be facing Uruguans in the semis. So let’s wait for Paulo’s pick and matches to see the finalists.

An unsual day in Hyderabad.

It was in the month of March,2010 when I was planning for shopping in Hyderabad. The occasion for shopping was my brother’s marriage. The situation in Hyderabad was dampening with Telangana issue.
On March 6th, the OU students and Telangana JAC triggered “Chalo Assembly” movement for the separate statehood of Telangana. My blog is not to comment on the movement of Telangana but to share my bizarre experiences on that day.

Phase-1 (Journey from Kacheguda Rly stn to my home):


It was around 6am, when I got down from Kacheguda Express in Kacheguda. Those are the days when I used to spend some rigorous time in GYM( don't think of any action in this episode). My home is in Himayat Nagar, around 4kms from station. So I started to take a brisk walk to my home, at that point I don’t have any idea of this movement.

I reached Barkatpura Junction in no time(around 6 20 AM). There I was amazed to see the police battalion blocking the roads and not allowing vehicles and commuters to go towards Narayanaguda. Then I enquired about the movement and came to know that all the roads leading to Assembly were blocked till the assembly sessions are completed (till 2pm). So it gave me a clear picture that Himayat Nagar was completely blocked.

I waited there for 20mins and went straight towards Chikkadpalli, then went to Narayanaguda Circle. It was blocked completely. Then I urged the police people and crossed one side to reach Deepak Theatre. As I am from the same place I know all the routes that leads to my home. I took a small road adjacent to Deepak Theatre and went to Himayat Nagar junction. It was an entertaining walk with the people throughout the road talking about the issue and its effects.

I reached Himayat Nagar Junction and it was no surprise that all roads were blocked. Its again the time to urge police and went to home around 7 30AM, ending the marathon after 90mins covering around 6+ kms.

My parents warned me to skip shopping after listening to my marathon. But I convinced them and started to Hyderabad Central (Panjagutta) around 9AM. Its around 7kms from my home.

Phase-2:


Its again time to walk and started to do the same and reached Liberty. As it was office time its good to see a lot of people on roads which gave me a hope to reach Central. Liberty Circle is fully blocked by police personnel. People going to office got fumed up seeing the blockage and started to criticize the police and government. I was a observer there seeing and listening to all the tantrums. Then after some time I started to move though a small passage as commuters are allowed to pass. Then the tantrums turned violent as they started to throw stones on police and I was lucky to sneak though and the passage was also blocked.

Now it’s the time to see the drama on secretariat road. This was the moment I seriously thought to go back to home but some crazy thought told me to move on. Commuters are also blocked here and only Secretariat employees are allowed to pass by. One personnel stopped me and asked me to show ID card as I was trying to sneak through. I showed him my PAN card to castigate him and told that I was a software employee. He shouted at me that only Secretariat people would be allowed and later allowed me (I was lucky there). I was laughing at myself for the PAN card one and entered the Lumbini Park road.

This road is one of the best roads in Hyderabad but it was a surprise to see it empty with no life on it. I could see only military and police people with AK-47. I started to head towards Khairtabad. I was terrified with the military people over there. It reminded me scenes from movie BOMBAY. It was like a curfew situation and I started to pray God to not give me any more surprises for the day. I reached Necklace Road circle and entered Khairatabad flyover to cross Khairtabad. After that there was no blockage for me as I am moving away from Assembly.


I thought of taking an auto to Central but later avoided it to complete my journey with my own mode(walking). I completed the next 3kms walk and reached Central around 10 30AM. It was an exciting journey throughout in my favorite place Hyderabad.

Then I met my friends Prasad and Pavan and did shopping and reached home around 8pm. This was my unusual experience in Hyderabad.

Hyderabad is always a happening place for both good and bad, but sad to see that the bad is dominating now-a-days. But it’s just like a spice to add more flavor to the city and lets hope for the redeem culture to be revived with full peace in the next few years.

The Bharat Bandh on July5th, over fuel price rise prompted me to write this blog.

Preview of Germany vs Argentina match

Argentina vs Germany Preview:

Both the teams had a controversial route to this match benefiting from the referee decisions. But the margin of win masks the controversy.
Argentina and Germany are facing each other on 3 July at Green Point Stadium, Capetown which is going to be a mouth-watering tale.

Argentina so far:
Argentina stormed to three wins and maximum points in their group games and did it with a flair and style that cannot have failed to impress. Their most cautious game was the opener against Nigeria, which they won through an early goal by Gabriel Heinze. But Argentina ran riot against South Korea, with Gonzalo Higuain scoring a hat-trick in the 4-1 victory. In the final group match against Greece, Martin Demichelis and Martin Palmero gave Argentina a 2-0 victory.

Not to forget Messi and his creation of chances for goals. The opposition teams are bringing him down whenever he gets the ball, which was a concern for Maradonna.

The pre-quarter bash started with the controversial goal by Carlos Tevez that should not have stood on twenty-six minutes. The Mexican players were still reeling from the decision when Argentina added a second through Gonzalo Higuain just five minutes later. Carlos Tevez scored with an indisputable wonder strike early in the second half and Manchester United’s new signing Javier Hernandez pulled one back for the Mexicans, but it was too little too late.

Germany so far:
Germany have scored four goals beating Australia 4-0 in the first group game before losing 1-0 to Serbia and then beating Ghana by the same score.

Klose’s exit against Serbia facing red card was a turnover. Two minutes later Serbia registered its first goal. Adding to the woos was Podolski’s bizarre form who missed a Penalty-Kick. After an impressive start over Australia this was never expected.
Ozil’s blinder against Ghana made them to enter round 16.

Germany outplayed England 4-1 but the first half was clouded in the controversy over England’s goal that was not allowed.

Betting odds:
The bookmakers have Argentina as favorites to progress, but fifa 2006 quarter-finals should be remembered when both sides ended with penalty shootout. Germany won the penalty shooutout.

The Paulo(Octopus) picked Germany as the winners for the match so lets wait for the result. It predicted correctly all the Germany matches so this pick is very interesting.

Players views :


Mueller said “Beating Argentina would be a great job certainly. Who doesn’t want to win against a team that has Maradona as coach and Lionel Messi and Carlos Tevez as forwards?”
“The Argentine coach, I believe, is criticising the referees for not being able to pull up the defenders for fouling Messi. That’s unfair on the defenders. Messi keeps the ball for long periods. So, what are the defenders supposed to do? You can’t ask them to stop tackling Messi,” said the lanky midfielder, Schweinsteiger.


“We are in the quarterfinal but also know that Germany is a different team than Mexico. It’s stronger but we’ll field the right players in order to beat Germany,” Maradona said.

"I was more afraid of Mexico than Germany, Because the Mexicans play better football. They took the ball from us in the first minutes of the first half and at the start of the second. We would have suffered more if we hadn't struck at the right moments.", Tevez said.

FIFa 2010 continuation ... round 16 ...

Round 16 :

Continuing with my updates on round 16 ….

Uruguay vs South Korea:
The start was good for Pre-quarters with a splendid match between Koreans and Uruguay. Suarez double blow at 8th and 80th minute after Koreans equalizer at 68th minute was a detonation on Koreans.

They fought bravely and swayed the hearts of the people. On the other hand Uruguay is continuing their dream run and entered the quarters and a lot will be expected from their front-run players Forlan and Suarez.


Ghana vs USA:
Ghana won the match after a late goal from Gyan in 93rd minute. USA played brilliantly but it was not their day and lost to Ghana.


Ghana’s win prolongs Africans hope but it will be a tough match for them in quarters playing Uruguay. One more win will make Ghana to enter semis and it will be a pleasure to Africans. So let’s wait and watch whether it is going to be Safari’s ride or South American’s ride to semis.

Germany vs England: Ohhhh!!! This was the most prominent match of this round as it goes back to 1966, where the rivalry started.

Germany’s youth team made a striking statement by overwhelming old rivals England 4-1. The controversial decision by line referee for Lampard’s kick at 2-1 can’t be taken as an excuse after their loss 4-1.

In 1966 World Cup finals England got the advantage from the referee and they won the World Cup. The result haunted Germans till date and this historic win will make England to go home facing the defeat from their old nemesis.
It’s again Klose who gave the initial lead and then by Podolski which turned the tables for Germany. Second-half goals by Mueller were breath-taking for Germany and heart-breaking for England. A lot was expected from Rooney who again disappointed the English people and his supporters.

Argentina vs Mexico:

The result was not a surprise as Argentina made it easy with 3-1. The first goal from Tevez was a controversial decision to not give it as an off-side, but the result was always obvious. Tevez ruled the Argentina’s hearts and became a nation hero.
It’s sad to see Messi not scoring a goal. But riveting to see Argentina’s play and undoubtedly they are the favorites now in this World Cup.
So, gear up to see the quarter final clash between Germany and Argentina.

Netherlands vs Slovakia:

It’s a one-sided match and Dutch won comfortably. Robben’s early goal gave them the lead and they won 2-1 after a last minute goal from Vittek to give Slovakia some relief.
Dutch were comfortably placed in quarters and their real challenge will be to face Brazil in quarters.

Brazil vs Chile:

Again a one-sided match with Brazil winning comfortably 3-0. Chile did not have a clue to break the Brazilian defense and lost miserably. Robinho finally scored for Brazil and gave some relief to Dunga. Kaka’s pass fetched the third goal but yet to see a goal from best player of world.

Paraguay vs Japan:


It was the first match which was decided on penalty shootout. It was a dull 120 minute game until penalty shootout was offered. Japan lost the penalty shootout and ended the hopes of Asians. Honda played magnificently in this World Cup but it got restricted after Japan’s loss.

Spain vs Portugal:

One more interesting match which ended with Villa’s goal paving way to Spain to enter Quarters. Ronaldo’s miserable play in the World Cup ended the hopes of Portugal. So finally Spain entered Quarters to face Paraguay which should be an easy draw for them.

Forecast: Finally the exciting matches are going to start. It will be a revelation to most of the teams to show their powers.
The most exciting match is undoubtedly between Germany and Argentina. It reminds us fifa 2006 when both the teams faced each other and match ended with penalty shootout. Argentina doesn’t want penalty shootout as they are aware of Germany’s record in shootouts. So they would pray to finish the game early.


But the Paulo(Octopus) picked Germany as the winners for the match so lets wait for the result. It predicted correctly all the Germany matches so this pick is very interesting.
The other matches are not tenacious unless there is some surprise in the outcomes. Most probably it could be Brazil vs Uruguay and Spain vs (Arg/Ger) in semis.

So lets wait for 1 more week to get the results ……

FIFA 2010 Group Stage synopsis.

Group Stage:

The FIFA2k10 grandeur was kicked off on 11th June, 2010. The first match was played between hosts South Africa and Mexico. South Africa has drawn the first blood by scoring first goal of FIFA2k10. But the end was not encouraging for them as the match was drawn by a late goal from Mexico.



Group A: It has France and Mexico as favorites to start along with hosts and Uruguay. Uruguay are the stunners as they entered round16 in panache topping the group.


The turnaround match was between France and Mexico when Anelka lost his temper on coach and was sent back to France. Adding to the distress, French team didn’t participate in the training on the next day, keeping their personal ambitions before the country’s pride. This resulted in 2-1 loss against hosts(Africa) and the runner-ups bowed out of the tournament without a single win.
Uruguay and Mexico qualified for the round 16.
Group B: Its Argentina all the way in the group B. Messi mesmerized with his ball passing skills and creating chances for his team’s goals.
.
But the only disappointment is not to see the best player on the planet to not score a single goal
South Koreans impressed with its play and cruised to round 16. It was a disappointing end to Greece and Nigeria.

Group C: It has England (All Star team) to start as favorites.


But USA’s comeback after going 2-0 down in the first half against Slovenia was the highlight. This made them to cruise to round 16 along with England (lucky to sneak through). Slovenia would be disappointed to miss the round16 and Algeria’s dismal performance earned them only 1 point.

Group D: It’s Germany all the way in this group to start as favorites.


They started as terminators outplaying Australia 4-0 but tumbled against Serbia and came back with 1-0 win over Ghana. Klose, Podolski, Ozil, Lahm and Mueller are the turnaround players for Germany. Ghana and Germany marched to round 16 in style.

Group E: This group was on a low profile with Dutch, Cameroon, Denmark and Japan.

Cameroon and Eto’o disappointed Africa with their gloomy play. Japan impressed everyone and entered round 16. It was disappointing end for Denmark. Dutch with Robben (turning late due to injury) had an easy go to round 16.

Group F: This group has champions Itlay without their champion goalkeeper Buffon(injured).


It was a gruesome display by them to stand last in the group stage. They couldn’t even win over New Zealand. Paraguay and Slovakia entered round 16.

Group G : This group has all time favorites Brazil, Ronaldo’s Portugal, Drogba’s Ivory Coast and North Korea. This group can be termed as toughest group. But Brazil was all the way through, Portugal 7-0 win over Nkorea made it easy for them.


The disappointment was for The Elephants(ivory coast) who ceased out after a great display. Drogba’s phone message ended a war in Ivory Coast after they got selected for world cup during qualifying phase. But they couldn’t prolong the exuberance of their football crazy nation.

Group H: Spain, the cup favorites and Chile are the favorites in this group. Swiss amazed Spain in the first match with 1-0. Can we hope such a result in French Open final between Federer and Nadal?? I would love to see it.


But the Spaniards came back strongly with the sublime touch of David Villa who made it for Spain. His 30 yard goal against Chile stands out. It was disappointing that Swiss didn’t qualify after defeating Spain, but Chile made it to round16.

Highlights: The highlights of group stages are :




Messi Messi Messi all the way …. He mesmerized everyone and Maradonna slammed the critics with his passion, tactics and gameplan.
Klose and Podolski impressed with their gameplan along with Mueller, Ozil and Lahm.

Drawbacks:
The main disappointment was France and Italy. The way they were ceased out was a shame to the two nations.

FIFA 2k10

It’s riveting to see the world going gaga over the FIFA2k10. India which is usually a cricket loving nation is also equally driven to this fifa-mania.

The tournament starts with Spain as favorites who amazed the world with their 1-0 win over Germany in Euro Cup 2008 final. Though it was Torres magic in the euro final the names David Villa, Sergi Ramos and Casillas also swayed the world.

Brazil as usual came to the tournament as favorites under Dunga’s management. He led Brazil to world cup victory in 1994. All eyes are set on him who dropped Ronaldinho from the squad. Kaka and Robinho are the pillars of the team.

Argentina, the team hitting most of the headlines is under Diego Maradonna’s charge. Not to forget the mesmerizing Messi who is the backbone of Argentina squad along with Tevez. Can eccentric Maradonna do it again for Argentina??? is the question haunting the people. Pele and other legends already started to castigate Maradonna’s capabilities.

England is always a team of superstars but never find its footage in the recent world cups. Though Beckham is out of the tournament it still has the names of Rooney, Gerrard, Lampard, Terry and Cole. The team is of superstars and is considered as one of the best teams from their performance in world cup qualifiers.

Germany, my favourites are always on low profile and are coming up with the youngest squad in the last 40+ years. Michael Ballack is out of the tournament with injury. Striker Klose, midfielder Podolski and captain Lahm should ride the Germans to further rounds.

Italy, the 2006 champions are in tournament with no expectations from media and people in Italy. So let’s see how the champions fare at the world cup.

France without Zizou can do some magic or not???? is the question in everyone’s mind. Without Zidane France didn’t fare well even in 2002 world cup. They are ousted without scoring a single goal.

Portugal, Ivory Coast and Cameroon are mostly dependent on their crunch players Ronaldo, Drogba and Etoo respectively and much is not expected from these teams.

South Africa, the hosts should elate the public and football followers of South Africa.

There are other teams who are coming all the way to Africa to show their pride and win the biggest sporting even on the planet.

So this is my preview on fifa 2k10.

I will update my views on the results in future.