Is anyone else watching the Asian Cup? I know there are a lot of Chinese fans and I believe soccer is the #1 sport in China. I have to say, with all due respect, it was a distasteful win for China over Iran. The refereeing was absolutely horrendous, and every single one of my sattelite channels echoed that sentiment. A player dribbles 3 opponents with only the goalkeeper ahead of him and gets taken down from the back.... That is a red card. There is absolutely no debating this. Even if you are in your OWN penalty box, getting taken down from behind is a red card. But when it's full speed and right infront of the penalty box? Unbelievable. Congrats, I'd much rather have China take it than Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea or Bahrain... But the best team did not win today. I want to say that this referee was not entirely honest to the game... But I will save it till his official punishment is anounced.
I haven't kept up with it as I don't have a dish but a family friend has been telling me about some of the games. I heard two Iranian teamates got into a fight during the match against each other Is that true? I am half Iranian so I hoped for Iran to win but it's all good.
Depends on whether the defender got the ball before he took the player out. If he gets ball first....no foul. DD
That doesn't matter when you go in from behind someone. You could get the ball solidly and clip the players legs, but if you tacked him from behind, it's an automatic booking. Given the placement described above, one might also suggest it was a professional foul, which is an automatic dismissal.
What's wrong with South Korea winning the cup? Iran had a great run this year, they just got robbed blind. But that's the way it goes in Asian sports, I guess...
i was watchin the game too and it was definitely rigged. i wonder how much the lebonese official got paid. its too bad Iran didnt overcome it though because they still could have won if they played even decent. hopefully we will do better in the world cup.
I've been very disappointed by Japan and South Korea. For all the parity that's come to exist in the world today, and for all the criticism of the European Championships, the quality of play was much better in the European Championships. I think the big difference is defense. Very few of the goals that were scored in the Asian Championships would have amounted to anything in the EC this summer. Do these players simply not know how to defend? The organization is terrible.
Well, first of all you're wrong... Even if he gets the ball, it's an automatic dismissal. This rule was introduced a few days before the 1998 World Cup if I recall correctly. Regardless, he didn't touch the ball, he didn't have a chance at the ball. I hate to see Iran lose time and time again against teams who use their power or money. BTW, yes, two Iranian players did get into a fight early on in the tournament, both were dismissed but made it back for the last game.
To be fair, South Korea was never all that. They had tons of home support and a bit of good luck in the World Cup. Coupled with some organized football, they made a good run out of it. As for Japan, they're missing Nakata, Ono and Inamoto just to name a few and they're still in the final. That's pretty good IMO. The problem with Asian sports is that it's still corrupted, it's not preoffesional yet. For example, the Iranian team brought two strikers to this tournament, a 36-yr old Ali Daei and some other young guy. Two of the brightest young stars didn't attend because Ali Daei refuses to step down in order to break the world caps and goal scoring records. The coach won't leave him out because he funds a large part of the team - jerseys, water, plane tickets, etc... So there are orders from the Iranian FA not to leave him out of the starting 11. So now Iranian players like Vahid Hashemian, the new Bayern Munchen striker mind you, is sitting at home and watching when Daei was absolutely useless throughout the tournament. The talent is there, especially in Iran. Hashemian plays for Munchen, Daei used to as well. Mehdi Mahdavikia was named among the Bundesliga top 11 players and was just named the Asian Footballer of the year. Then there's the tragic story of Ali Karimi - probably one of the most talented players in the world, but too stupid and greedy to make a real career for himself. He gets paid millions to play in Dubai against poor competition and dominate, and he's fine with that. If you've seen this guy play, you know what I'm talking about. I've been watching soccer for a good 12 years now, and I've watched a LOT of soccer, believe me. He is one of the most creative soccer players I've ever seen, and I'm talking international standards. Such a shame. The FA wants money, the players want money, the fans are happy just MAKING the World Cup. Hopefully things will change, but they will never improve in the current conditions.
