Bad day for Bombers but other legends lift off (Fat Eck’s World Cup Diary - day 19)

Peter Drury: “And Ronaldo is now the greatest World Cup scorer of all time”.

Is he fuck! Ronaldo has now scored more goals in World Cup finals than anyone else - a highly laudable achievement and one in keeping with his truly legendary playing career - but Gerd Muller, even with his record of 14 now beaten by one, retains still a greater claim to the title with which Drury was so keen to annoint the chubby Brazilian.

Just pan down to my rant on Muller v Ronnie in the wake of last week’s equalling of the record during the Brazil-Japan match. That way ye can get all my SOUND, WATERTIGHT reasonings on why Muller is still the greatest. I don’t want to harp on about this topic anymore - I’m boring even myself now. At least Ronaldo did it in his signature style - created when he was a stranger to coca-cola, mars bars and pork - rounding the keeper to roll it into an empty net when others would shoot on sight.

Okay, I know I said this was a domestic football-free zone during the Wrold Cup but I’m sorry. Something happened today which just can’t go without a mention from a Bluenose who loves German football.

On the day I heard John “Bomber” Brown was leaving Rangers, Ronaldo beat Gerdy “Der Bomber” Muller’s World Cup scoring record.

Two of my all-time fav legends taking sore ones on the same day. Neither have anything to be ashamed of - if anything these moments allow us to reflect on their greatness - but it must be emotional for them and, it’s certainly sad stuff for Yours Bluely.

Gerd Muller, by the way, was almost the opposite of a Bomber. It’s been established that his nickname was created for him by a Glasgow journalist on one of Muller’s scoring trips to Scotland and there is little doubt this journalist remembered the second world war - he was probably from clydebank. Gerdy rarely shot from far enough out to “bomb” the ball in. The tone of maniacal, fatal aggression set by the name “Bomber” is inappropriate to Gerd Muller’s playing style.

John “Bomber” Brown, on the other hand …

In brief, I was at Dens Park when John Brown scored a hat-trick for Dundee against Rangers. I was in the Govan stand in 1985 when he scored the only goal of a Scottish Cup tie versus Dundee - he ran up to where I was sitting and, in his nice Dundee strip, told us all to gerrit right up ourselves. And then he signed for us and he later played alongside Richard Gough in the greatest Rangers team I ever did see and he scored possibly my favourite ever Rangers goal at Parkhead (Outside Neil Mccann’s on 2nd May 1999) and it was suich a favourite goal for all of us BECAUSE Bomber scored it. I was at his testimonial against Anderlecht, sat in the fornt of the Govan, pretty near where I was that day he pumped us oot the cup. At full time he ran round the pitch and, as he paased me, I made sure he couldnae fail to see me telling him he was a fucking legend.

All the very best, John - you were my vote to play alongside Gough in the Greatest Rangers XI of all. True Blue, Nine-in-a-rower, Champions League semi-finaler.

And then there were the Black Stars of Ghana, who singularly failed to give Brazil a game - well, not in the second 45 minutes which I saw in the pub anyway. A lot of friendly, sycophantic head-patting and eventually a silly sending-off to reduce the last African side at the 2006 World Cup to ten men. They looked just happy to be on the same pitch as the reigning champions of corporate superstardom and Brazil look like they’re still happy to do only as much as they have to.

I hope Argentina or Germany get them in the final and rip them to fucking shreds.

I also hoped Zinedine Zidane would return to prove his critics wrong in tonight’s game against Spain. I hoped but I wasn’t sure France, in general (de Gaulle), were up for it.

Spain, I also conflictingly hoped, might finally give a World Cup a treat by finally exploding onto the biggest stage of all. They didnae - France coped with them then, late on, blew them away. Zizou got the sealer in stoppage time and you just had to love it for his sake - unlike the previous ninety minutes which, to be fair, had been pretty tepid.

So it’s 8 teams left and six of those nations are six of the seven past winners of the World Cup. Portugal have more of a chance of breaking the mould than the Ukraine but, to be honest, I think England will finally come out their shell just enough to slaughter the suspension-ravaged Portugese.

And that’s the hope for all the former winners, all the main contenders, other than Germany who - in truth are already excelling beyond what their previous couple of years promised (but don’t they always!) and Argentina who HAVE hit the heights this month but were chastened by Mexico’s pluck and guile on Saturday.

Eng-er-land, Italy, Brazil - they’ve all a lot more to give. France probably have too although they had to tap into it a bit tonight: It’s as if they’ve been saving it for each other, the favourites, the usual faces. Saving it for their big, big push for the trophy. Only Argentina-Mexico so far has approached Classic Game status but I think 70% of the players left in this tournament can’t help holding back their best efforts til they’re really needed: Just as there’s so many goal-every-two-games players at this world cup and just as there’s a new record been set today for one man scoring at world cup finals, this is the year in which most teams, more than ever, know what it takes to win a tournament.

The quarters are gonnae be fucking electric.

Predictions for Wednesday:

No goals.