Memories of the FIFA World Cup 2010, South Africa
The football World Cup might be over but the debate of whether it was the best ever, continues even after the closing ceremony. The mega event that began a month and 64 matches ago curtained in front of a record crowd - present at the venue and glued to their TV sets - in a ceremony that will be remembered for a long time.
If one is asked to point out the key moments of the event, one is certain to include the official song Waka Waka, by Colombian superstar Shakira, because of its association with the tournament. The song was heard wherever football was watched, didn’t matter whether one understood the lyrics or not. All that mattered was that the song represented their love for the game, and nothing else!
The best player of the tournament was Diego Forlan of Uruguay, beyond any doubt. No other played mattered more to its team than Forlan. What if his last official kick of the event missed the goal by an inch, it was still the effort that mattered. He took the Golden Ball award and was one of the contenders for the Golden Boot award, which was eventually won by Germany’s 20 year old Thomas Mueller. If all goes well, Mueller might be one of the stars of the future tournaments, since he has both age and health on his side. Experts have said that he has at least 3 more World Cups in him, and if he keeps on performing, he might do what Miroslav Klose failed to do, and become the leading scorer in the event.
The most controversial moment of the event was the goal that was never given by England’s Frank Lampard. England was two one down against Germany when Lampard kicked the ball over the struggling German goal keeper, landing well inside the net after deflecting from the bar above. Yet the lineman failed to judge whether the ball had landed inside the goal of outside, and his error cost England a place in the next round.
Similarly, the lineman’s error in judging the offside of Carlos Tevez of Argentina in the Round of 16 matches against Mexico shocked the fans all over the world. It was only after a lot of hue and cry was created that FIFA President Sepp Blatter decided to soften his stance on the use of technology in future events.
Jabulani & Vuvuzela were also the inventions of the event. Although Jabulani ball, manufactured by Adidas, meant "bringing joy to everyone" in Zulu, it didn’t bring joy to most of the teams. Jabulani was criticized by all even before the tournament because it was lighter in weight compared to the normal football, and made life difficult for the players who were used to the older version. The Vuvuzela on the other hand was a long horn blown by fans throughout the event. The players complained about the noise it made and claimed it was a distraction but FIFA didn’t take any action against the horns, which were immortalised with the tournament’s success.
No list of memorable moments of the World Cup 2010 would be complete without mentioning English goalkeeper Robert Green. The incompetent goalie tried his best to grab the ball hit by a tired Clint Dempsey in the match against United States. Instead, he let the ball slip through, giving the Americans a chance to draw the match and qualify for the next level. Had Green not mucked up, England might have avoided facing Germany in the Round of 16 matches, and who knows the result might have been different.
Then there was Luis Suarez who defended his handball in the final moments of the quarter final, claiming he thought he was the goal keeper! Not that, he said that since he practiced goalkeeping as well during the practice, he stopped the ball by hand as a reflex action. What could be worse than that? The penalty miss by Ghana’s Asamoah Gyan, who failed to net the ball. His error gave Uruguay a chance to come back into the game, when the match was eventually decided on penalty kicks, Uruguay won, since Ghana couldn’t hold their nerve and crashed out.
Tags: