France España: an angst a minute

4:47 GOOOOOOOOLAAAAAAAZOOOOOOOO!

Zizou! Superbe!!!!

Bye bye Spain!

4:41. Gooooooooooollll!!!!! But I must say that the fault taken by the umpire was a bad called that favored France. In fact, the umpire is too nice to the French and I am not afraid to say it.

A head by Vieira in a very crowded goal area.

4:32. The game has lost its excitement. Both teasm are good but not as dashing as they were earlier.

Meanwhile: To reach for the impossible star (from the Man of La Mancha, in honor of Spain). Casillas and Thuram.
4:10. Raul is out of the game, the team captian! Now Casillas gets the sash! Spain waking up to reality?

4:02. Second half starts.

Earlier: Unfortunately with Quico gone who knows where and work, the simultaneous broadcast will not take place. I only made it to the TV set a couple of minutes before the penalty in favor of Spain. But what was a French supporter sadness was a fan benefit: the 20 or so minutes that followed that penalty were perhaps the best football that we have seen so far, a brilliant contrast between Spanish energy and French experience, experience that allowed the team not to flounder, hold together and score after a great escape by Ribery. Fabulous game. It was so good, I suppose, that the FIFA site publsihes this rarest of montages minutes after Ribery scored, with a Casillas floored in probably more ways than one.

And we start the second half on a tie, with the French showing quite a different team from the past three games.