Opinion: Great World Cup Except for the Soccer

From a German perspective, it's easy to forget that the World Cup 1990 was considered an absolute low point in World Cup history.

Never before had so few goals ( 2.21 per game) been scored and so many fouls (16 players were sent off during the tournament) been committed during the World Cup as they were in Italy.

Thank God FIFA had ordered players in advance to wear shin guards.

The secret star of the tournament was Guido Buchwald, of all people -- a defensive player with limited talent from Swabia. The finals fittingly ended in 1-0. The winning goal was scored after a controversial penalty kick and two players were shown red cards.

Heading towards a new negative record

With just eight games left to go in the 2006 World Cup, the verdict -- from a sports point of view -- will be pretty sobering.

The passionately celebrated soccer fest could end up with a new negative record. Just about 2.36 goals per game were scored in the 56 games that have been played so far and 19 players have already been sent off.

It was all meant to be different. The entire world was hoping to see some strong, attacking soccer. Coaching guru Guus Hiddink, currently coaching Australia, was counting on a virtual goal feast.

Admittedly, the tournament did get off to a fantastic start. In a first for the World Cup, six goals were scored in the opening game alone. The same was repeated when Argentina systematically dismantled Serbia & Montenegro's defense -- ironically the same defense that is considered one of the strongest and which allowed just a single goal in the qualification rounds.

The Orange disappointment

But otherwise, it's been slim pickings at this World Cup. Trinidad and Tobago didn't manage a single goal in three games, Angola and Togo just one each. Maybe that's all that could be expected from these World Cup debutants.

But even highly-regarded teams failed to deliver when it came to finding the net: The Czechs departed with just three goals and the Dutch, too, were equally shy about scoring. They turned out to be the biggest disappointments of the Cup.

After all, its the Dutch who have been the standard-bearers of the beautiful, attacking style of play since the 1974 World Cup. Considering that Dutch coach Marco van Basten -- considered the best striker of his time -- had promised great offensive play from his side, what followed instead was a swan song for all Dutch virtues.

The Netherlands may have had their three traditional strikers on the pitch, but too often it looked like the worst of lumbering German soccer in the pre-Klinsmann era. Against the Ivory Coast and Argentina, the Oranje even committed the ultimate sacrilege possible in the Netherlands by blocking and sticking to their half of the field.

The Dutch's disgraceful exit in their 1-0 loss to Portugal in a game marked by some nasty fouls completed the sad picture. The four players who were sent off in that notorious game set a new World Cup record under the motto "if you don't find the net, you can at least foul." That was the case in 1990 too.

Special taste in soccer

You have to have a special taste in soccer in order to really enjoy what's on offer in the quarter-finals.

England? Terrible. It's almost fitting that Captain David Beckham threw up on the pitch. Brazil? Smug to the point of apathy. Ukraine? In the World Cup because of a lucky draw.

Portugal? Made an impact only because of their assaults. Italy? Wily enough to wiggle their way through even after being shown red, albeit only with a pounding penalty kick in extra time. France? Has some of the best strikers in the world with Henry and Trezeguet -- but only allows one to play.

There's no doubt that the 2006 World Cup is all about security, efficiency and blocking techniques. Maybe the defensive fest is a poisoned legacy of the 2004 European Championships. Several teams played some fantastic offensive soccer there, but Greece didn't -- and went on to win the tournament thanks to a mysterious quirk of the soccer gods.

Germany, of all teams

And Germany, of all teams, seems to have drawn lessons from that. Klinsmann's attacking tactics really seem to be paying off.

In Germany and abroad, people are rubbing their eyes in disbelief. The jubilant chants of the fans after their amazing win over Sweden have a ring of truth to them: Germany is really the most attractive team of the tournament when it comes to play. It's something that hasn't been seen in a long time.

There's just one team that's scored as many goals as Germany -- Argentina. It's a pity that one of the two strongest teams in attacking soccer will have to leave after Friday's match, and that both won't make it to the finals -- an event that marked the 1990 soccer year.

The finals ended in 1-0 through an unfair penalty kick -- for Germany.