The New Republic

And so it is now proven that you cannot win with two idea-free thugs in the midfield. Van Persie, besides being unusually clumsy, was isolated, few passes coming his way--and, predicably, only from Sneijder. Even when van Marwijk took out De Yong and put in van der Vaart it didn't work, because the Tottenham midfielder had to play in a much deeper position. And van Huntelaar made van Persie perfectly useless--which van Marwijk ought to have known, as that was exactly what happened in a warm up game against Bulgaria, which they lost 2:1. READ MORE >>

It is hard to think of the two more cynical and destructive players than the Netherlands’ Van Bommel and De Jong, who acquired dubious eternal fame for the karate kick into the chest of Xabi Alonso. Apart from their brutality, they’ve played as two holding midfielders, which slowed down transition and isolated Van Persie. That is why Sneijder was their top scorer in the World Cup. Both of them are playing today, which is to say that we can expect the same ugliness as in the World Cup. It will be interesting to see how Germany will respond to the Dutch bullying. READ MORE >>

¿Quién va a ganar esta cosa ? This is the Goal Post. We don’t need no stinking octopus. I can predict the outcome of the match without Paul. The mollusk seems quite nice, has been perfect in his predictions, but he’s only predicted six games before the final, all of them German. I can do better than that. He might be loveable and edible, but I’m cuddly and he ain’t. READ MORE >>

Best Player: Schweinsteiger has been the best so far. Tip of the hat to Forlan, who’s been incredible. However, Schweinsteiger’s control of the game, his play on both sides of the ball gives him the edge, in my opinion. The tournament isn’t over yet, though, and my favorite player, Iniesta, shined in today’s game. If he plays as well in the final, then I’ll give it to him. I know that a couple of games does not a tournament make, but I am biased. READ MORE >>

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