Pedro Martínez: My thought after that game was (i only watched the last 10 minutes) :With this game soccer wont win any fans here in America...never seen so many coward chickens before!

Andersp: Right...I originally thought the ref should have added at least 10 minutes of extra time, but as the end of the game came closer and closer, I thought the sooner the game was over the better.

Pedro Martínez: eheh, of course you´re supporting England on next game... We can´t go to the semi-finals...

BTW, it was a tough match, but the referee was the worst at the pitch. The player which injures Cristiano Ronaldo deserved a red card, not a yellow one.

Andre Faria: That's not it, I'd be glad to pay Bruno a membership if Portugal played nice football free of such stupid things which I hate to see, let alone at such a high level as the World Cup. Anyone who calls Figo "the best" 1 hour after the game with the Netherlands is either infatuated with nationalism or nuts.

Pedro Martínez: you´re not seeing the game right...

1 - The referee was guilty of ruining the game, stressing both teams.

2 - Most of the cards were correct, but a match is for MEN, not sissi players like the USA team...

3 - The dutch were the first to be unsportman. They injures Ronaldo in a brutal aggression which deserved a red card, not a yellow card.

4 - The dutch team didn´t give the ball to Portugal, in a wrong decision of the referee who stopped the game when the portuguese player was running alone for the dutch goalkeeper. Then the dutch team must have been fair and give the ball to Portugal. That´s why Deco tackled the dutch player a few seconds later...

4 - Portugal have done a great match, due to all these circunstances, and we deserved to win the game...

Pedro Martínez: For the record Portugal made 10 fouls and had 9 yellows cards (eurosport stats.)
I think Holland played without any fair play since the beginning of the game when his number 3 Boulahrouz made an agression against ronaldo...

Winner: England
Somewhat Italy because now they can get the pronze agains England , that is my prediction

i was deeply ashamed :(

the first yellow card (i think it was the first?) for the attack on c. ronaldo was very bad .. should have been red .. and totally not needed (if a foul this bad can ever bee needed :()

but i was most ashamed of the behaviour of the players after a card was given (again) .. they tumbled over another to start a fight and to earn a new card (this happened on both sides) ... there was so much need for 'revenge' .. it was no fun.
especially the dutch players should have known better .. they were behind in score .. and (for some time) with 1 more player .. so they should have used all the time they had and not throw away fighting like little children.
they lost more than 15 minutes fighting and only got 6 minutes extra .. thats a real loss
but the worst part of it was that it ruined the game .. there were only short moments of soccer .. but thats hard to remember after so many 'situations'

the referees (sp?) have been given orders to be more strict .. the players are trying to take advantage of it .. thats a bad path to go :( .. referees are using their power a lot .. players notice this and try to use it in their advantage ... making the referees take more actions .. etc.

in the old days (and i am not even that old) players were tackled .. but tried to stay on foot and battle for the ball (not for the ground, or worst damage to do to your opponent) .. they would run on ... keep the ball with them .. and try to play the game

on another board i read players nowadays are more like cows .. they see grass .. the dive for it .. and stay down (to eat?) .. or like dogs being given a commando to play dead .. they feel something .. they think it might work .. and they drop dead (and so does the match, dead at once)

soccer isnt about skills with the ball or team play anymore .. its about acting

portugal has more individual class and skills .. the netherlands players are more team players

sometimes the game was exciting .. portugal defended very well .. the netherlands failed to score .. portugal did .. and won :)

my prediction is that portugal will win against england, and then lose against brasil (or maybe spain) .. then the final which either brasil or argentina or spain will win

my dream final will be australia portugal though ;)

Hrqls: Great post. If only I could read some like this from the Portuguese part...

Pedro Martínez: :) figo is a good player .. but not much better than some dutch players

deco is the really dangerous guy on the portugese side though .. i hold my breath each time he is on the ball (and if he is playing against a team i favor ;))

Hrqls: Both Deco and Figo are excellent players, as well as vd Sar, Cocu, vd Vaart, Sneijder. For some reason, I don't like the way C. Ronaldo plays. I wouldn't want him in my team. :)

BTW, I think Vennegoor of Hesselink should decide what he wants his last name to be, LOL. It almost didn't fit the back of his jersey.

Pedro Martínez: lol true :)

they should use just the first letter of all parts of his name :)

Pedro Martínez: what do you mean by the portuguese part. What I posted was the general opinions of the more important newspapers in the word.

The referee ruined what could have been a good game. Of course there were some unsportman behaviors from both sides, but I think we deserved to win because we defended well and were lucky to score a great goal. Holland players failed because they still are unexperienced. Though, they are very talented, and they will achieve a very good team in 2 years...

Andre Faria: And the referee was against us, that ********... Deco's red card is a joke!

Gabriel Almeida: I think that the referee was not in favour or against any of the teams. He was just bad, and ruined the whole match...

Gabriel Almeida: there were more bad calls or cards not given .. for example the kick to the shoulder of (i think) robben after someone else was tackled .. that should have been a yellow card (or maybe even red for a kick that high), and a penalty kick (it was in front of the goal, although the referre had already whistled for the other foul)

Andre Faria: All I've heard from Portuguese guys here was "They are the bad boys, we played clean and nice, we were provoked, they deserved what they got, referee was against us" and similar piece of you know what. Excuses and defences of the Portuguese team. Hrqls said he was ashamed for his own players and that's what I appreciate. The game was not ruined by the referee and the Dutch players, it was ruined by the referee, the Dutch players and the Portuguese players.

Pedro Martínez: I´m sorry to say that you´re wrong...

At minute 2 of the match, a dutch player have seen an yellow card for tackling Ronaldo. At minute 6 another dutch player have seen a yellow card for tackling and injuring Ronaldo. Van Basten orders were to injure Ronaldo on the first minutes of the game. They accomplished their mission.

It was Van Basten who told the dutch player not to give the ball to Portugal, going against the code of honour every team signed before the world cup... Deco just had payback tackling the dutch player.

The portuguese players reacted to all the unsportman conduct from the dutch players. They are no saints, and they had payback. Two wrongs doesn´t make one right, but since the referee was doing nothing to stop the dutch players being unsportman...

I was happy to see Figo giving an header on the dutch guy. I know it was a bad action, but it was fair for all the circunstances of the game.

Our players were warriors at the battlefield and they have won the war. I´m proud of them...

Andre Faria: I pity you and hope you'll grow up soon.

Pedro Martínez: You´re saying that because it was not your team. I would like to see how would you react seeing Nedved being injured on the first minutes of the game, seeing it was premeditated, and seeing that the referee was going to ignore it... :(

Hrqls: And how about the red card to Deco, think it was fair?

Gabriel Almeida:

WatfordFC:

Gabriel Almeida: i dont remember exactly .. it was a second yellow card wasnt it ? i forgot what caused the second card though :(
by then i was annoyed by the whole acting of all players (ok not all, but most :))

btw was there announced a 'man of the match' ?

Hrqls: Yeah probably the referree LMAO

WatfordFC: :) (or the english coach :)) .. no i mean .. isnt there a 'man of the match' after each match ? (officially declared)

Hrqls: Yes there is lol

Hrqls: yes, it was Maniche...

Andre Faria: ah .. because of the goal (and no yellow or red card ;)) .. sounds fair :)

Hrqls: Nope, Maniche ended with a yellow card. It was our first yellow card...

I think the 2nd foul on Ronaldo by Boulahrouz (the one wich injured him) was the worst...

Andre Faria: was the second foul of boulahrouz the one after which you could see the print of his shoe in his leg ? or was that the first ?

i think the one which showed the print afterwards was the worst .. it made him limp for real and leave the field (he might limp if it might profit, but he wont leave the field to get an advantage :))

Hrqls: yep, it was the second one.