The most beautiful goal BY FAR was the amazing shot by Van Bronckhorst (Netherlands) against Uruguay in my opinion. Really amazing shot! So I don't agree with this Top 10.
It's close to my favourite team too. However, I don't agree with the coach and would also like to see Müller instead of Lahm. So it would be a 3-4-3 formation with Müller instead of Lahm.
Schweinsteiger played a very good tournament, I agree. Of all top midfielders on World of Goals, he is on position #9. In the overall list, he is on spot #27. Mesut Özil received more points than Schweinsteiger based on his performance and thus ranks higher.
I think the referee did a very very poor job. Why did FIFA assign him to the final? Very bad decision. The Netherlands should have received a corner after the free kick by Sneijder in extra time. Iniesta was offside too when the first pass was shot towards him. The second time he received the ball, he was not offside and scored the goal, but it was offside before that, so ref needed to blow the whistle.
I sincerely hope FIFA will introduce technology to assist refs, because...
I think Spain was the better team and deserved to win. Too bad for Germany, they played very well up until the semi-finals. Maybe it was the tension and their confidence was too low. I didn't understand the Boateng substitution though. He is an excellent defender and played superb!
I think The Netherlands will play against Germany in the finals. Looking at the overall performance during this World Cup Germany has the best chance to win, but we should not underestimate The Netherlands at all. They have the players to beat Germany too!
Brazil played a great game against Chile. Ramires showed his skills, too bad he will miss the quarter final match against The Netherlands. On the other hand, Melo should make his return too. The only Brazil players who are disappointing so far are Kaka, Alves Nilmar in my opinion. They can do much better than this.
Özil is an excellent player and he ranks in the top 20 on spot number 16. From the German team, he is just behind Müller and Podolski, who in the end scored more goals and gave more assists.
Özil personally impressed me a lot with his play - very creative player and he's also extremely fast. However, he should have also scored more goals. He's had many big chances, which he missed. On the other hand, the goal against Ghana was superb!
Good match by Brazil and I also have respect for Chile and their attacking play. Unfortunately for them Brazil has more top players. Ronaldinho and Pato should be there too, as I'm not impressed by Nilmar, but Dunga has proven he has made the right decisions so far. That could change soon though.
I think Bastos is going to struggle against Robben, with his immense speed and dangerous moves. Bastos is not a strong defender, while Robben is one of the most dangerous wingers.
I'm not sure if Di Maria is a good fit for Real Madrid. He is a good player and Real is a great club, but the match between the two is not strong in my opinion. Di Maria is a skilled and creative player, but when he's under a lot of pressure, his skills tend to fade. It's the same with Kaka, who has been struggling at Real too. I think the pressure will be too much for Di Maria.
The Netherlands has a strong and balanced team. I predict they will meet Germany in the World Cup 2010 final and beat them.
Messi played OK during the match, but his performance could be a lot better. He hasn't scored a goal yet, but he has the qualities to do so. Let's see how he will perform against Mexico. Should be an interesting match.
Forlan is currently on spot number 24. His teammate Suarez ranks higher and is on the 14th place. I expect a lot from both strikers and think Uruguay will make it to the quarter finals easily.
I'm really looking forward to the Portugal vs Brazil match this Friday. After this monsterscore against North Korea I think the Portugese have received a serious confidence boost. On the other hand Brazil is still one of the strongest teams during this World Cup. Let's hope for some fireworks!
Just a note: this list is not based on an editorial piece or the opinion of a journalist. It's calculated based on statistics.
Spain should focus 100% on World Cup 2010. They have performed extremely well in the last months and years, but this is the current reality. They should be more result orientated and play with both Torres and Villa. I'm still confident that Spain will make it to the next round.
No individual player should get a personal treatment in my opinion. The rules are there for everyone. Christiano Ronaldo should worry more about his own play and team than the refs.
Maicon just made it in the top 10. If Brazil would not have conceded a goal, then Maicon would make the top spot together with Heinze from Argentina.
Klose is currently on rank number 15. Podolski ranks higher (number 5) because of a succesful assist.
That's a great goal! Too bad he did not play during World Cup. I think Argentina would be a better team with Zanetti, Cambiasso and Aimar.