World Cup 2006 - Bottom 10

Ok, let's move on to the not so pleasant things about the past World Cup. And let's not confuse this with anything else, these are my bottom 10, feel free to disagree. ;-)

1. Italy winning it all. Well, what can I say. I am German and was hoping for Germany to capture their fourth titel.
2. Diving. Too much diving, play the game and only fall down if someone makes you. The worst teams: Italy, Portugal, Argentina. The worst individual offender: Christiano Ronaldo from Portugal.
3. Brazil has to be the biggest disappointment of the tournament. No team chemistry, lackluster performances. I didn't mind at all seeing them leave the tournament early. Most overrated team.
   
4. Overrated and overhyped players: David Beckham, Ronaldinho, Wayne Rooney. None of them showed that the hype about them was justified. Beckham had one goal, so what? Seemed out of shape to me. Wayne Rooney should have stayed home.
   
5. England sucked (Most overrated team after Brazil). Not one of the games they played left you with an impression that they are one of the stronger teams. Thank god the English fans behaved.
   
6. Zinedine Zidane's red card. I love Zidane as a player and what he can do with the ball and I always liked that he wasn't a diver. But his behavior in the final was wrong, regardless of what the Italian player (Materazzi) said to him.
7. Materazzi, the Italian defender who provoked Zidane. First he claimed he didn't do anything and then he admits he provoked him. What they really said to each other we probably will never find out. But when Materazzi's soccer carreer is over, he will make a fine actor, as most Italian and Argentinian players will.
8. The scenes after the PK shootout between Germany and Argentina. I am sure some German players weren't innocent in this but Argentina came across as poor losers.
   
9. FIFA suspensions. What are they thinking and what footage were they watching? The Italian defender De Rossi gets 4 games after elbowing the American McBride who required stitches in this face. He could play again in the final. The Argentinian third goal keeper kicks a German player into the midsection after Argentina's loss to Germany and gets 3 or 4 games. They suspend the German player Frings after reviewing fishy footage. In that same incidence, teh Argentinian Maxi Rodrigues leaps in teh air to punch a German player from behind gets the two games. Wayne Rooney gets a two game suspension as well. They apprently don't compare and go by the book. De Rossi should have been suspended for the rest of the tournament.
10. Players demanding yellow or red cards for their opponent. I say, any player who does that should be given a yellow card. Play the game, stop complaining and try to score honest goals not by diving and whining. Overall, it was amazing to see how many players returned from the dead in too many games after being barely fouled.