What's up guys. I'm really excited about what I have to show you guys, which you probably see above this post. What that is is a 40 second teaser/trailer for the full Live Breathe Futbol commercial/advert that is coming very soon.

Why the phrase? When I examined what I wanted to do with Live Breathe Futbol as a brand I realized that all the shirts and every design is centered around one specific moment that has occurred in futbol or one specific moment that we as fans of the game can all relate to.  For me and I'm sure for you all that's one of the things we love about the game of futbol.  Those moments that change everything; the moments that change history.  I won't speak too much on that in this post, but we witnessed that today in the QF match between Ghana and Uruguay.  Epic stuff.

Love to hear what you guys think about the video! Leave a comment and catch us on twitter: @LiveBrtheFutbol as we ramble about futbol and other nonsense!!

P.S. I'm considering doing a video-blog (vlog?) series of posts, what do you guys think? Would you rather read or watch a video? Let me know what you think in the comments!

The World Cup continues in the a.m. Germany v Argentina and then Spain v Paraguay. Great stuff!

Earlier today, I was working on this post on my mobile phone, had it finished and when I clicked to post, the 3G signal disappeared and somehow the mobile gods thought it'd be funny to make all my futbol prose disappear.  Anyhow, I will try my best to cover everything I had to say. Here we go.

Today we witnessed two epic matches between four well qualified teams.  England faced Germany and the Argentinians suited up in clashing blues against the Mexicans.  The games were both awesome, there is no denying that, but what tainted them, for me at least, was the two horrible calls made by the referees in both games in regards to goals.

In the England game, Frank Lampard scores a sweet goal that bounces off the crossbar and into the goal.  It is clearly two feet or so behind the line, but the referee disallows the goal.  This would've tied the game at 2-2 and it would've been, arguably, a different game.  Sure the Germans played a better overall game, but there's no denying the psychological effect of such a call on a struggling England side.  What ever happened to the striker getting the advantage in those situations? That's game one.

Game two.  Early in the Mexico/Argentina game Mexico played with a lot of confidence and had two great shots on goal that easily could've gone in and would've left the Maradona-faithful seeking a new deity.  However, Messi had other plans and played the ball into Tevez who heads it in, but is CLEARLY offside.  The referee lets the goal stand and the Mexican players swarm the linesman in fury.  After about a minute or so, the referee sends them back to the pitch and the goal stands.  My question is, if it was clearly a goal, why did the referee run over to the linesman after it had already been called a goal?  This was the paradigm shift in the game as it broke the Mexicans' momentum and it was all downhill from that moment forth.

Both calls will undoubtedly lead to the resurgence of the issue of goal line technology in futbol games.  If you remember correctly the issue was widely discussed after Thierry Henry's handball against Ireland that sent France to South Africa and the Irish back home.

Futbol is a modern game in a modern era and it is the biggest in the world.  Almost every other sport has some form of technology in place to aid officials in making the right calls during matches.  Why not futbol? ESPN as well as other broadcasting stations have cameras on the goal net for crying out loud, why can't FIFA? If you think about the dynamic of a futbol match where we see 1 or 2 goals on average/game, getting a call wrong in regards to a goal is a big deal.

I brought up the question to a smart guy I know and he is against goal line technology.  He says that it slows down the pace of the game and it is anti-futbol in the sense that it leaves us nothing to talk about after the game.  Goal line technology makes futbol a game of absolutes with no ambiguity and room for debate.  I see his point, but I disagree.  Billions of dollars/pounds/Euros/Yen/Pesos are invested in futbol and aside from the monetary aspect of it, we as fans want to see a fair game.  That's what goal line technology does; it makes the game fair.  Now, the issue becomes, if implemented, to what extent is the technology used?  My friend brought up a scenario that what if a foul is committed on the center of the pitch and everyone stops, but the referee lets the play go on and a goal is scored from that, will goal line technology review the foul and thus disallow the goal?  I think goal line technology should be used only in instances like we saw today.  Instances where the ball is over the line, but the referee isn't sure; instances where a player in the box is offside, or could be offside.  These moments won't slow down the game in my opinion.  I'm for goal line technology.  Horrible calls like we saw today taint the game for me and it is a shame that FIFA, or rather, Sepp Blatter, does not favor technology in futbol.  What are your thoughts on goal line technology? Are you for it? Are you against it? I'd love to hear what you think in the comments!! Thanks for reading and as always you can follow us on Twitter: @LiveBrtheFutbol

The Games continue in the a.m. !! Viva Futbol.

I'm once again posting from my mobile phone while on the subway to work. Anyhow, I'd like to apologize in advance to anyone who is looking for completely unbiased World Cup commentary because you won't get that with this post. I'm Nigerian and I had a very big emotional connection to today's match. Carrying on.

Uruguay v Mexico

Not much to say here, because, barring a South African victory against the tumultuous French, both Uruguay and Mexico would advance. Despite the Bafana Bafana victory, Mexico advanced to the knockout round with a better goal difference. Look for Uruguay to be the sleeper team in the next rounds.

South Africa v France

I absolutely love how the Bafana Bafana enter the stadium game after game rejoicing and singing. It shows unity and a togetherness that has been absent in the French camp- and it showed in this game.

The Bafana Bafana got on the score sheet first with a beautiful header from Bongani Khumalo. Had the circumstances been different, this would've been considered by most to be a shock lead. However, Les Bleus have seemed more interested in drama than actually playing futbol in recent times. As if being 1-0 down isnt enough of a kick in the behind, the French find themselves down 2-0 after Mphela scores a scrappy goal. Determined to qualify and riding on the sound of the vuvuzelas blown by their home fans, the Bafana Bafana keep their fingers on the trigger but are unlucky as they find the post a few times and Tshabalala fails to elevate the home crowd with his left foot once again. Les Bleus manage to crush the S. African fairytale when Ribery finds Malouda in the box on a well orcestrated attack that comes far far too late.

Well done by the Bafana Bafana, its truly sad to see such a well spirited team go, or rather, stay home. and I bet Les Bleus are feeling pretty blue right now. No sympathy there from me.

Argentina v Greece

Needing only to tie to secure their spot atop Group B the Argentinians had no intention of settling for a tie. At least Messi did not. Although Messi has perhaps the most shots on goal in this tournament, he is yet to find the back of the net. However, I don't see this as an issue because I see him as more of a playmaker for Argentina than the prolific goalscorer he has become at Barcelona. He draws defenders, makes them look silly before dishing off a pass to a teammate. The game ends two nil and Greece returns home.

Nigeria v South Korea

In order for the Super Eagles to advance to the knockout stages they needed a victory against South Korea and some help from Messi and co. The game begins and 12 mintes into the game Odiah muscles his way past two Korean defenders and fires a beautiful cross into the box and poor defending gives Kalu Uche the positioning he needs to find the net. 1-0 to the Super Eagles. I'm elated, but a bit worried because Nigeria has a terrible habit of going up by a goal only to lose the game. The referee seemed to have a penchant for awarding free kicks at the slightest touch and the Koreans used this to exploit Nigeria's weakness scoring both goals from set plays. Game is at 2-1 and Nigeria, once again, finds themselves playing catch up. Kanu goes off and finally the fast-as-hell striker Obafemi Martins comes on. Obasi switches to the left and becomes more dangerous as he constantly attacks the South Korean box. He finds his way through, gives Yakubu the easiest pass he will ever receive and somehow, Yakubu misses from half a yard from goal. There is no excuse for a fail like this other than Yakubu clearly not being focused. Should be 2-2. Odiah draws a penalty and the penalty master Yakubu redeems himself by scoring and avoids the wrath of the Nigerian people being currently felt by Sani Kaita who watched from the stands. 2-2. The Nigerians continue to press and almost find victory when Obasi plays a beautiful ball through to Martins who goes for a cheeky chip, but puts it wide of goal.

Obinna fancies two long range efforts that are very close, but only cigars see you through the next round.

Personal commentary:

Here is where I, as a Nigerian, let out my feelings about the Super Eagles. Reader discretion is advised.***

1. Decision making. It is horrible. Nigeria's woes are beyond the field of play and the mistakes made on it. NFA needs to be overhauled and we need a Nigerian coach. Yes I said it. Lagerback couldnt qualify Sweden for the World Cup so how in the hell is he going to help Nigeria do well in South Africa? Lagerback is no Westerhoff and seems very timid and quite uninterested in Nigeria's success in the World Cup. Westerhoff still lives in Nigeria for crying out loud- thats because he truly cares about the Nigerian people and our way of life. The closest you'll get to that is a Nigerian coach.

2. Team selection: where is Ikechukwu Uche? why is he not on the squad? Why does one of the fastest players in futbol start the game on the bench? Sure Martins didn't do so hot during this past season, but anybody with his speed is always going to be a threat. And why didn't Odemwingie play this match at all?

3. Defensive errors: This issue is what has plagued all of the African sides in the World Cup so far. They are generally stronger and bigger than their asian, european and south american counterparts, but they forget simple defensive tactics like closing down strikers around the box. Too many goals have been scored by allowing the strikers too much space.

4. Fitness: These guys all look terribly out of shape. Maybe it is because most of them are in their late 30s claiming to be in their mid 20s, but come on, there's no reason for you all to be getting cramps so often.

5. Midfield: Nigeria thoroughly missed Mikel Obi in South Africa. Our midfield lacked creativity and strength. Etuhu was way too jumpy today and committed very stupid fouls.

6. Finishing: see Martins and Yakubu. Also, see the first game against Argentina. Absolutely no attack whatsoever and we were saved from being routed only by Victor Enyeama.

7. Composure: Save for the latter stages in today's game, Nigeria was not composed at all. In their second game against Greece, they fell apart once Sani Kaita was sent off. Playing down a man is not the worst thing that can happen as long as you compose your team and play together. Nigeria successfully accumulated a single point in 3 matches. Dismal. Your success should never hinge on another's. There was no need for us to find ourselves needing an Argentina victory in order to qualify with THREE points! Rubbish.

I have a ton more to say, but I will stop here. Nigeria: lets fix these simple issues and we will once again become the African powerhouse we were in the 90s.

Thanks for reading and I'll be back tomorrow with another post. the US takes on Algeria and England take on Slovenia in a must win for both English-speaking cousins. Should be exciting. Follow us on twitter: @LiveBrtheFutbol