Luis Suarez Doesn't Learn

Luis Suarez, to many people, is a scumbag. Despite currently being one of the world's best strikers, he does things that make you say "What drugs is this guy on". Before today, he was previously suspended twice for separate biting incidents when he was playing for both Ajax and Liverpool, respectively. You would think that he wouldn't be stupid enough to do it again, would he? Well, unless you were living under a rock, it happened again.

Near the end of the World Cup group stage match between Italy and Uruguay, there was an off-the-ball incident in the Italian 18-yard box where Luis Suarez apparently bit the shoulder of the Italian defender, Giorgio Chiellini and then fell down clutching his teeth. The referee and his assistant didn't see the incident and didn't issue a booking to Suarez, despite Chiellini showing a clear bite mark on his shoulder.

Two minutes later, Uruguay scored on a corner to win 1-0 and advance to the Round of 16.

When I was watching the match, I initially thought that Suarez tried to headbutt Chiellini, but the replays have shown that there was some sort of biting motion that was going on. Luis Suarez, you just don't learn, do you? This is the third time you've bitten someone in a match. Even Mike Tyson only ever bit one person in a boxing match. You knew you got lengthy suspensions for your previous biting incidents. Why would you even think that it was a good idea to do it again? Is biting someone a Uruguayan custom for showing respect?

With your past behaviour, I'm not even shocked or surprised. I would just like to know what went through your head when you sank your teeth into Chiellini's shoulder. Were you trying to win a penalty? Because that bite (and your subsequent dive) was a terrible way to get one. Were you trying to get in the head of Chiellini? What you did could work, but it is a very slim chance. I don't know what was going through your head, and I most likely never will.

There is no defending your actions, and to those who say that Chiellini rammed his shoulder into Suarez's mouth (lets face it, most Liverpool fans will try to defend him), you're a colossal idiot. Watch the replay. As for his punishment, I really hope that FIFA investigate this incident and hand Suarez a strong punishment for being a habitual biter. He has to be thrown out of the World Cup, and be banned 1-2 years from all football-related activities. Also, make sure that Suarez gets the help he really needs, because with all his incidents, surely there must be some deeper issues he is facing.

This is going to go down as the biggest moment of the 2014 World Cup. Already I've seen hundreds of Suarez-related memes about biting and hunger in general, and I've seen food companies jump on the Suarez bandwagon sending tweets mentioning Suarez in order to get clicks.

Overall, to sum up what I said above, I'm not surprised that Suarez did something like this, because of his past behaviour. He's already my most hated footballer, and this incident has sent my hate for him into the stratosphere. I hope FIFA has some balls, and suspends him for a very long time. Honestly, I hope they suspend him for this upcoming season, from all footballing activities.

I didn't think he would do it again, but guess what?

Brazil 3-1 Croatia: Post-Game - World Cup 2014

The World Cup is finally back after four long and grueling years, and I couldn't be any more happier to see it, despite the socio-political issues surrounding Brazil. The first game is an interesting encounter between the hosts Brazil and Croatia.

The biggest question surrounding Brazil going into their first match in the World Cup is if they will be able to handle the immense pressure that will be put on them by the media and the fans. From what I've seen at the Confederations Cup and with the warm-up friendlies, I think that Neymar and the rest of the Brazilian national team will handle the pressure quite well and use the support of the fans to will them on. With Croatia, I think the question is whether Luka Modric will be able to be the big influence for the Croatian national team. Modric has had a stellar season with Real Madrid, and the hope is that he will be able to replicate his form for his country. Along with the free-flowing Ivan Rakitic, Modric should be able to pull the strings and dictate the play with Croatia. Another question with Croatia that will be answered when the match is played is if the suspension of Mario Mandzukic will negatively affect Croatia going forward.

1st half: Croatia started out very organized in its defending. They were almost methodical in their way of trying to dispossess Brazil. On the other hand, Brazil started out the more cautious of the two teams, building from the back and feeling out the opposition. In the beginning 15 minutes of the 1st half, it was Croatia who looked more likely to score, in which they relied on their wing play to create chances. Ivica Olic was the player who started strong for Croatia, running down the flanks and causing Dani Alves some problems. It was through Croatia's wing play that gave them a goal, which was an own goal my Marcelo.

The Croatia goal came as a shock to Brazil, and it was after the goal that they started to attack with some intent. Brazil relied a bit more on attacking through the middle, but they also caused problems on the flanks with Hulk and Oscar making themselves a nuisance. In the first half, Brazil were also determined to get scrappy in midfield, which proved successful, when after a scrap for the ball, Neymar picked the ball up and drove a low shot past Croatian goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa to get the equalizer.

2nd half: Brazil kept up the pressure on the Croatian goal while Croatia resumed their organized, methodical defending which gave them some success. Brazil's bright spot in the match was Oscar, who's skill on the ball drew the Croatian defenders towards him and opened up space for the other Brazilian attackers.

The big moment in the match came in the 69th minute when Fred was apparently fouled in the box and the referee called a penalty, to the anger of the Croatian players. Watching the replay, there was minimal contact made on Fred, and it looked like Fred embellished the fall as well. Neymar dispatched the penalty, and the match became more open, as Croatia were searching for the equalizer, and Brazil were looking to put the match away. Brazil finally did put the match away as Oscar ran towards the Croatian defence and shot the ball past Pletikosa into the back of the net.

Overall: Brazil managed to start on the right foot, despite the initial scare, but they didn't look like the polished Brazil we were used to seeing. It was an entertaining encounter, and an entertaining first match of the World Cup. It was a shame to see the winning goal happen the way that it did. There were some people that proclaimed that there was a fix for Brazil to win, but I think it was just a bad call by the referee, who maybe succumbed to the fan pressure.

With that penalty call, it could be possible that we could see more games decided in this matter, and it could be possible that it could be an issue in the World Cup. Maybe there could be talks of instant replay in the future to settle calls like this, or maybe retroactive punishment on divers. It's too early to talk about it now, but it is something to keep an eye on.

My World Cup Bracket

The World Cup is only days away, and I've been wondering for a while who I think will be the teams to progress into the various rounds of the tournament. A week ago, I created a preliminary bracket for the 2014 World Cup, and it has went through many changes. I flip-flopped on which teams will make it out of the group stage, and I had an even harder time trying to figure out which "dark horse" will progress the furthest in the tournament. Back in December of last year, when the groups were announced, I made some picks as to who would get out of the group stage, but those picks have changed a bit. To say that determining my bracket caused much frustration is an understatement.

So, after much deliberation, I'll present my own World Cup picks that I will rely on throughout the tournament. If you're not sure about your own bracket, feel free to use mine for the tournament. I won't be posting any explanations on this post, just my picks. If you would like my explanation on some picks, feel free to contact me on Twitter, or leave a comment on this post.

So, let's do this.

Group Stage

Group A: Brazil, Croatia, Mexico, Cameroon

Brazil will win the group.
Croatia will finish second.

Group B: Spain, Netherlands, Chile, Australia

Spain will win the group.
Chile will finish second.

Group C: Colombia, Greece, Ivory Coast, Japan

Colombia will win the group.
Japan will finish second.

Group D: Uruguay, Costa Rica, England, Italy

Italy will win the group.
England will finish second.

Group E: Switzerland, Ecuador, France, Honduras

France will win the group.
Switzerland will finish second.

Group F: Argentina, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Iran, Nigeria

Argentina will win the group.
Bosnia-Herzegovina will finish second.

Group G: Germany, Portugal, Ghana, USA

Germany will win the group.
Portugal will finish second.

Group H: Belgium, Algeria, Russia, Korea Republic

Belgium will win the group.
Russia will finish second.

Round of 16 (winners in bold)

Brazil vs. Chile
Colombia vs. England
France vs. Bosnia-Herzegovina
Germany vs. Russia
Spain vs. Croatia
Italy vs. Japan
Argentina vs. Switzerland
Belgium vs. Portugal

Quarter-Finals (winners in bold)

Brazil vs. England
France vs. Germany
Spain vs. Italy
Argentina vs. Portugal (my surprise of the tournament)

Semi-Finals (winners in bold)

Brazil vs. Germany
Spain vs. Portugal

3rd Place Match (winner in bold)

Germany vs. Portugal

World Cup Final (winner in bold)

Brazil vs. Spain

Brazil will beat Spain and win their 6th World Cup.

Toronto FC vs. Columbus Crew: The Soul is Real

I went to the Toronto FC match against the Columbus Crew last Saturday, and what was supposed to be a nice day out hoping for a comfortable Toronto FC win, turned out to be something completely magical.

I'm not going to talk too much about the match itself, but rather talk about the two big moments of the match. Before those two moments, Toronto FC were on the back foot, as the Crew were dictating the play. By the way TFC were playing, it didn't look like they were going to win the match. Ryan Nelsen put on Gilberto and Dwayne De Rosario in the hopes of trying to get the tying goal.

The first big moment was the wonder strike from Jermain Defoe to tie the match up 2-2 in the 81st minute. It was pure world-class instinct from Defoe and an unbeatable strike into the back of the net. At this point, I thought TFC would just take the draw, considering they had to battle back twice to equalize, but TFC was surging for a winner. What transpired next was something I didn't think would happen at BMO Field, in the way that it did.

It was the 92nd minute, in stoppage time. TFC had a free kick outside the Columbus 18-yard box. Dan Lovitz whips in the cross and it meets the head on Doneil Henry. He heads the ball into the net and BMO Field goes absolutely mental. I'm glad that it was Doneil Henry that scored the header, and he needed that more than anyone else. He has faced some rather harsh criticism (myself included) over his tendency to lose focus and foul players in the box, and so hopefully that goal can end the chatter for at least a little bit. Usually, it would be Toronto FC that would get scored on late in a match, but this isn't the old Toronto FC anymore. TFC had to dig deep to find a way to win, and that is what they did. Playoff bound teams would win these kind of matches.

I have two feelings about the match winner, one feeling about Toronto FC and the supporters, and another feeling that affects me personally.

When the winner was scored, it felt like the dormant soul of Toronto FC and the supporters awakened itself in a moment of pure and unbridled jubilation. It felt like all the negativity and criticism surrounding the team, the squabbles between the supporters groups and the Toronto FC front office, and the constant wonder whether this Toronto FC team was good enough to make the playoffs, was all completely forgotten. In that moment, I think we all, as supporters, realized and reinforced why we support this team. I witnessed the soul of Toronto FC. Over the years, it felt like there was no soul in the stands. The supporters sections weren't as lively as the first couple of seasons of Toronto FC's existence. Even now, with the signings and the hype surrounding the team, the supporters sections couldn't capture the essence of what made Toronto FC so special, as supporters were more interested in bickering with each other and complaining about tourists. For those moments, when the winner was scored and for the rest of the match, the essence was back. It felt like everyone was unified in song, and it was beautiful. It was completely and utterly beautiful.

On a personal level, it was a release of everything I ever had built up inside me, on an emotional level. I've long since stated that I don't go to Toronto FC matches just to support the team. I go because it is a kind of therapy for me. I go because I want to escape the pressures of life, whether it's the monotony of school, where I am going to get my next paycheck, and trying to forget about the one girl whom I really liked, but only sees me as just a friend. I don't know if a lot of people knew about this, but going to Toronto FC matches has helped my anxiety disorder as well. This year, I have particularly felt the pressures of school, jobs, and friendships in negative ways. I thought the only true way of escaping all of that was going to Toronto FC matches, if only for 90 minutes. When TFC scored the winner on Saturday, I went ballistic. It felt like my soul was rejuvenated, not just in the sense of supporting Toronto FC, but in the sense that I can deal with whatever has been ailing me. If I ever need to get away, I can just go to BMO Field and just be me, yelling at my heart's content. Despite my criticisms of Toronto FC, Toronto FC has been there when I felt the absolute worst. The role Toronto FC has played in my life as a means of escape, trumps the feelings I have toward (the old management of) MLSE and its greed. From the Danny Dichio chants to the pyro-fuelled celebrations outside Gate 3, I am glad to be a part of it all.

In the match last Saturday, the soul of Toronto FC was present, and I am more than happy to be a part of it.

Sidenote: I took some video of the match after the winner, and the celebrations at Gate 3.