Great World Cup Moments #8

Since these memories seem to become mostly fouls and other acts of gamesmanship, I suppose it's time for some "proper" football.

This goal by Cambiasso ranks somewhere with Milan's second in the 1994 Champions League final as the best goals of this sort (long passing movements involving every outfield player) I have ever seen. Obviously, this goal required technique, vision and patience, and although it is taken as a 24 pass move, the end of the movement, which is where it actually becomes dangerous is more like a series of quick 1-2s involving Saviola and Riquelme and then Cambiasso and Crespo. This goal is like the encapsulation of the kind of football that Argentina, Spain and of course the neutral's darlings Barcelona seek to play: dominating possession, keeping the ball on the deck, switching play, diagonal dribbles. This kind of aesthetic seems very popular, Barcelona have become everyone's second team, and it's fairly hard to claim that you don't want to see football played by skilful players, passing the ball to one another in order to create space and score goals.

However, I can't help but compare it unfavourably to this sort of team goal, scored a year later by a player equally as annoying as Cambiasso himself. And the reason is this: you cannot watch this kind of football whilst slightly drunk.

I spent a lot of afternoons drinking during the 2006 World Cup (actually, scratch the words "the", "World" and "Cup" from that sentence); this was one of them. I recall this game, and I enjoyed it, principally because it's always great to see a proper battering in the World Cup (I even enjoyed Germany vs Saudi Arabia in 2002 at the time). But I do not remember realising how long the passage of play was until they showed it in full at half time, and told me that there were 24 passes involved. Sure, the last five passes to make a chance were great, and enthralling. But it is simply not possible to quickly drink three or four cans of premium lager and be expected to pay attention every time a team starts passing the ball methodically to each other around the team, just in case they end up, 20 passes later, with a man free in the penalty area.

Football watched by men drinking beer needs to be quick and to the point. Which, to be fair to them, Argentina understood, judging by this effort two games later. Much better: ball launched into the box, chest down clearance, kibosh. Not much chance of drifiting off during that one. A far superior goal.