Post by bill vanPost by Alfalfa BillDoes it seem like it is a lot more physical this year?>
That's not my impression. I've been seeing most of the late game every
day and highlights of the early games and haven't noticed more
physical
Post by bill vanplay. It think that has always been there. However, the high-def
camera work and close-up replays are better than they have ever been.
I've been impressed by close-up replays showing subtle contact
bringing
Post by bill vandown a player. Also note that a lot of replays are being looked at by
officials instantly reviewing penalty-area plays; a bunch of penalties
have been called by those officials that the referee on the field
missed. That is being done for the first time, and I think it is made
possible by the improved replay technology.
I don't have a good sense if fouling is up or not -- my recollection is
that the World Cup tends to have a lot of variability, since you have a
lot of guys who don't play together for long and a lot of refs who are
pulled out of different leagues with different standards for how much to
enforce the rules.
But it does seem like games are a bigger slog this year than average.
Except for Russia and Belgium, it seems like teams are having a lot of
trouble scoring and a lot of teams are packing the defensive end of the
field. Those teams are only sending a couple of guys forward on offense
for long counterattacks, and they're getting worn out quickly.
I may be overimagining that, though. Part of the issue is that Brazil,
Germany and especially Argentina have not looked good so far, although
it's still early. It feels like the field is wide open, but more
because nobody has really taken off than because a group of teams are
really excelling. I'm hoping for an improvement.