Source: Yahoo
June 6, 2006 Author: Some Guy
Brazil will not repeat as World Cup champion, according to a simulation of the tournament.
Electronic Arts, using the simulation engine from its 2006 FIFA World Cup video game, has the Czechs defeating Brazil 2-1 in the final.
Czech striker Milan Baros won the Golden Shoe as the tournament's top scorer with six goals, while teammate and playmaker Pavel Nedved took the Golden Ball as the top player.
Ronaldo and Tomas Rosicky exchanged goals in the first half, according to the simulated final, before Nedved unlocked the Brazilian defense in the 77th minute to set up Baros for the winner.
In other action, England lost to Germany in the round of 16, with the host side eventually losing 2-1 to the Czechs in the semifinals.
Brazil downed rival Argentina in the other semifinal in the only penalty-kick shootout of the simulated tournament. Tied 2-2 after overtime, substitute Robinho knocked in the winning kick after Juan Riquelme shot wide on Argentina's final penalty.
Argentina beat Germany 3-1 in the third-place game.
The simulation had its share of upsets, with Italy and Portugal knocked out in the group stages.
The surprise team was Costa Rica, which made it to the quarter-finals before losing to Argentina.
The United States fared well in simulated play, with wins over Italy (3-2) and Ghana (2-0) and a tie against the Czechs (2-2) in Group E, before losing 3-2 to Brazil in the round of 16.
TARDY ARGENTINA: Mariana Lescano traveled by train and bus for several hours to see Argentina practice. She didn't see much.
Unlike Brazil, which is famous for its open training sessions, Argentina has often practiced behind closed doors at its World Cup camp in southern Germany. And the two-time champions are seldom on time, making things difficult for fans and the 200-plus journalists who cover the team.
"It's horrible," said Lescano, a native of Buenos Aries who lives in Germany teaching Spanish. "I've been waiting here two hours and haven't seen anything. I'm by myself, but families come -- make the long trip -- and they go away disappointed."
The session Lescano attended earlier this week in Herzogenaurach was typical.
An hour after practice was to begin, not a single player had shown up. When they did arrive from the hotel, located 100 yards from the training site, it wasn't stars Lionel Messi or Hernan Crespo. In fact, the players who first appeared weren't even on the team's 23-man roster. They were from the practice squad. The regular team eventually began to practice, almost 90 minutes behind schedule.
When practice finally did start, it made little difference for most fans, who are kept behind a chain-link fence, far from shouting distance of the players.
"There are so many fans who come here with so much hope," Lescano said. "But it winds up disappointing. You can't see the practices, and tickets are unavailable -- or unaffordable -- for regular people."
TUNISIAN TUNEUP: Tunisia will play a final warmup game against a team of players from Germany's lower leagues on Wednesday, a week before its World Cup opener against Saudi Arabia.
German soccer officials are scrambling to put together a squad on short notice after Kuwait, then Iraq withdrew from the planned game at Tunisia's training camp.
"A Bavarian team will play," Juergen Igelsbacher of the Bavarian Soccer Association told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "I don't know which players it will be yet, because many of them are on vacation, but we are sure we will field a strong side."
Tunisian officials asked for help finding an opponent when they arrived in Germany on Monday.
Tunisia, coached by Frenchman Roger Lemerre, will also play Spain and Ukraine in Group H. It is aiming to reach the second round for the first time in its fourth World Cup appearance. The Tunisians won a World Cup match in 1978 against Mexico, but have failed to win since.
North Africa's only qualifier at this year's tournament had sought an opponent from the Persian Gulf region to prepare for the June 14 game against Saudi Arabia in Munich.
Last week in Tunis, a Tunisia team including many of its Europe-based regulars beat Belarus 3-0. A team made up mainly of reserves tied 0-0 against Uruguay.
LIFE IN THE FAST LANE: U.S. goalkeeper Kasey Keller tied on what he said was an honorary police cap he was given after Tuesday's practice at Norderstedt.
"I'm really hoping this gets me out of a few tickets," said Keller, who lives in the northwest German town of Toenisvorst. "It's going to be on the passenger seat of the Porsche, and hopefully when they kind of come in, they're going to think twice about writing me a ticket. I'll wear it so the speed cameras see that, and then they just turn it away."
TOGO PAYMENT: Togo's World Cup players, who have been bickering with the national soccer federation over bonuses and pay, reached a settlement just a week before their opening match against South Korea.
Players had demanded $200,000 each to play in the tournament, plus $39,000 each per win and $20,000 per tie. The federation said the demands were far too high for the poor West African nation.
Togo spokesman Messan Attolou said Tuesday a deal was reached following talks between the players and federation president Rock Gnassingbe.
"We have found a consensus," Attolou told The Associated Press. He said full details would be disclosed Wednesday.
Togo is a rank outsider at the tournament, having failed to score a goal at the African Cup of Nations in Egypt earlier this year. Togo struggled to defeat Liechtenstein, one of Europe's weakest teams, 1-0 on Friday, and lost an exhibition game against Saudi Arabia in May. It is ranked 61st in the world, the lowest of any of the qualifiers for Germany.
The team's first Group G match is against South Korea on June 13, followed by Switzerland on June 19 and France on June 23.
