World Cup Day 5: Red Viper Ronaldo Meets the Lannisters of Football

We've reached the stage, in this recap-every-stage-of-the-World-Cup adventure, when I no longer feel the obligation to explain the meaning of each match. I warned yesterday of the so-called bore draws between uncreative countries, the kind of 0-0 game that used to dominate the first round before the 21st century superhuman strikers came on the scene

Well, we had our first bore draw of the 2014 World Cup Monday, thanks to Nigeria and Iran, playing it safe and playing it scared, forgetting that they were here to listen to their better footballing angels and entertain the planet with risky plays. The game shall live in no memory, especially when compared to the two other fixtures of the day; two of the most jaw-dropping displays of football I've seen in a while, each with a profound tale to tell Read more...