If you can’t quite smell the greatest pop football prize of all yet, you can certainly hear it in the distance. For one of our managers, three more songs will take them through to the world championship.
But we are getting ahead of ourselves. Welcome to the first Quarter Final of the Pop World Cup 2008! First up, Iain F’s Netherlands, whose style so far has been mainly laidback pop slinkery. They take on Carsmile Steve’s Honduran reggaeton monster, growing in size with each opponent it devours. The HEAT is ON.
This match closes at midnight on Sunday 23rd May
NETHERLANDS: Wende – “The Moon Is Out” The Manager Says: “”I’ve been delighted by the success of our tactics to date. However, wary of becoming predictable, and of the folly of taking on Honduras at anything resembling their own game, I’ve decided to switch things up. More urgency, a touch more rock and a powerful striker in the shape of Wende Snijders, whose story takes in England, Indonesia, Guinea-Bissau and an unlikely period of time training in the French Chanson system.”
Audio PlayerHONDURAS: Acidmunky ft Martha Bonilla- “Shake It Off” The Manager Says “Thought we’d mix it up a bit this time, didn’t want to get accused of playing one-pace pop football, so here’s a track from Honduras’s top dance wunderkind Acidmunkey. Bashing beats and a fair bit of hollering from Ms Bonilla, lets see if the Dutch like it up ’em!!! A place in history can be ours!”
Audio Player
Quarter Final 1: which track do you prefer?[ballot]
- HONDURAS - Acidmunky ft Martha Bonilla 58%
- NETHERLANDS - Wende 42%
Total Voters: 53
Poll closes: 23 May 2010 @ 23:59
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Commentary Box Analysis By the look of the teamtalks, both managers are intent on wrongfooting their opposition by changing up their tactics. The Dutch begin in a formation which (by consensus here in the press box) sounds like formulaic rock rubbish but degenerates into something much stranger, and oddly beguiling at that. Half of us are up and applauding by the end. the other half look bemused. Honduras, too, move in a much harder direction than their previous easygoing uptempo reggaeton; surely the manager learned the “kick – punch” tactic during his long years in the lower leagues of English football. Both teams here are flexing between styles mid-song, apparently at will. Both seem a little surprised by the final whistle. A fascinating game. Which scary lady do you prefer to have shouting at you?
Coming up In the second QF we see Chris R’s Korea Republic, purveyors of classy K-Pop in the round of 16, taking on Andrew H’s mercurial German team. No easy games at this level, and no boring ones either.
With a name like Acidmunky, have Honduras fielded a player from the little-known but much-loved Bangface League?
Both teams have adopted an aggressive approach which makes it highly unlikely that the game will end with 22 players on the pitch. The two forwards snarl and groan but HON appear more solid in defence and their synth player makes some darting runs that should cause the NED team some problems. Probably the ugliest match of the tournament but a win for HON.
Netherlands go for an indulgent, experimental formation that doesn’t quite gel. David Bowie and Thurston Moore in midfield form an uneasy partnership but still manage to provide some service to their hopeless striker who keeps hoofing it into the stands.
Honduras have a bark greater than their bite but at least they seem to know what they are for.
Netherlands’ high-strung discord reminds me of classic old cult new-wave bands Die Hausfrauen and Malaria.
Their strategy appears to be rushing forward with the ball then suddenly pulling back and assessing their chances as they collapse on the area. Yet when it finally must be time to slot home a winner the ball squeaks free.
Quite honestly I have never heard anything like Acidmunky. Emo electro trance-hop? A confusing reference to trailblazing PS1 music game “Parappa the Rapper”? A mid-song switch to schaffel???? It’s all over the pitch, playbook thrown out the window, yet when the dust settles the ball has shown up in the net. But whose? We’ve forgotten.
This might be the point in the tournament where squad depth really comes into play but the players appear to be letting the event get to their heads a little, some nasty snarling tackles, players abruptly changing direction for no real reason, neither side quite gel here.
The latter half of the Netherlands’ track is pretty good though, and although Honduras will be overjoyed to get this far they may have done better sticking to the reggaeton, especially against this opposition. Narrow win for Holland would be my guess, although anything could happen.
The Hondurans have channelled Enter Shikari and Brody Dalle here. All the spunk and vim of the angry adolescent, does not necessarily translate to silky skills on the pitch.
Having said that, the Dutch play with two midfield generals and a wayward lone striker. Not all of these people attended the Manager’s team talk.
i am so voting honduras when i get home (some FOOL has voted NED not logged in at my work, so the IP is logged against that vote). it had me from the moment the drums march on to the pitch, but the players swarm around the field darting from formation to formation for the whole match. quite an earful.
Still wending my way through this match. The Dutch sound like a no wave musical comedy c. 1978 scored by a Long Island barband and performed and arranged by the Contortions that I’m sure I’d recall fondly had such a thing ever existed. The twist here is that the regularly scheduled lead singer could not perform on account of having been locked in a closet by her mother, who also happens to be her understudy, and who now is enjoying her moment in the dark Max’s Kansas City spotlight.
As for the Honduran primate, this is the beat the Contortions might have preferred, had they had a choice. The stop-start is totally effective: you’re always wondering if this is going to move forward and then it’ll fling itself into a mosh pit or onto a dance floor, where it discovers twinkle toes. Edge to Honduras in the most unexpected battle since Paraguay versus Italy in the Group Stage.
There comes a point in every tournament when a much-fancied Dutch side collapses into acrimony and in-fighting and I think we might be witnessing just that: in the first half they’re playing like strangers, only waking up to the danger they’re in after half-time and surging forward towards the end. But is it too late?
No it is not – luckily the Honduran discipline – so impressive earlier in the tournament – has also come to pieces and Holland take this narrowly.
Both sides throw a curveball or two here but Honduras are getting better and better and despite the Dutch nodding away to the total football of the 70s and a ‘shocking blue’ kit, it’s HON who may once again spring the biggest shock.
Honduras had it for me, primarily because I didn’t know what to make of the Dutch track. But it is slowly growing on me and the Dutch might just get my vote in the end. Need a few more listens.
um does no one else think the netherlands track sounds like the manics? with a bossa middle eight admittedly, but still…
This match ends at midnight tonight, all votes in by then please!
The Dutch song sounds quite raw, like listening to a live band. It suits the track.
The Netherlands were all energy from the start, but Honduras deep defence had the game under control, soaking up the somewhat unfocussed Dutch pressure and counter-attacking swiftly and effectively. A change-around in Dutch tactics looked like it might change the game for a while, but the goals did not flow. An absorbing game, though, and congratulations are surely due to the Hondurans, little-fancied before the tournament but now in a semi-final dreamland.
Thanks and cheerio to a reliably interesting Netherlands team, who’ve achieved everything which might have been expected of them, maybe more.
OLE OLE
OLE OLE OLE!!!
they’ll be singing and dancing on the streets of Tegucigalpa tonight Brian!
Was unable to vote in this one, but really liked the NED song and am sorry to see them go out.