PSW's Daily World Cup Update: Friday, June 18, 2010

We are now into the second round of matches within the group stage of the 2010 FIFA World Cup, and the goal count is going up as the nerves begin to relax. We\'ve seen traditional powers starting to fall (Spain and France). Will we continue to see the underdog prevail? The United States squares off against Slovenia in a vital second Group C matchup.

See below for Day 8 results and recaps (including video highlights), a preview of Day 9, news from around the tournament, group standings, World Cup viewing parties in the metro DC area, and a TV schedule for the upcoming week.

Be sure to check out our latest column, \'Soccer, the American Way\' by PSW\'s Joe Dougherty about how soccer and the World Cup is perceived in the U.S.

[+ Day 1]  [+ Day 2]  [+ Day 3] [+ Day 4] [+ Day 5] [+ Day 6] [+ Day 7]
Day 8 Results and Recaps:
Germany  0:1  Serbia - Germany looked like they were going to fly through the group stages after crushing Australia, but things changed when striker Miroslav Klose was ejected in the 36th minute against Serbia after receiving a red card (as a result of two yellows). A minute later, Milan Jovanovic scored to give Serbia a lead they would never relinquish. Despite playing a man down for most of the game, Germany had their chances. After a handball in the box, Lukas Podolski had the opportunity to tie it up with a penalty kick. His poor shot was saved by Serbian GK Vladimir Stojkovic. Spanish referee Alberto Undiano had a large influence on the game, giving out nine yellow cards, the most of any game so far.

Slovenia  2:2  USA - It looked to be another upset today, with Slovenia going up 2-0 in the first half. The U.S. got several opportunities, but were not able to put one away in the first 45. A couple of defensive errors that led to the goals showed that our backline is still suspect. The Americans stormed back in the second half, with Landon Donovan hitting a bullet that seemed to scare Slovenian GK for a goal three minutes after the break. The comeback continued as Michael Bradley tied the score in the 82nd to keep their World Cup hopes alive. The feeling of relief quickly became anger as the referee disallowed a Maurice Edu goal four minutes later. The referee called a foul in the box agains the Americans on a free kick, though from the replay, it appears there was no foul (in fact, Bradley was being bear-hugged to the ground). According to U.S. players who aproached him, the referee could not explain why he called the foul. That devastating call took away the valuable win, but it was not the referee\'s only bizarre call of the match (even the British commentator called it awful officiating). Robbie Findley got a yellow card for a hand ball (which actually hit off his shoulder and face unintentionally), his second of the tournament, so he will miss the next match against Algeria.

England vs Algeria - live results

Looking Ahead to Day 9:
Both sitting atop Group E, the Netherlands and Japan will battle to take sole lead of the group in the early match. Ghana and Australia play in the second game of the day, and the result could make for a very interesting mix in Group D after Serbia\'s upset of Germany. The final game of the day sees the pair at the bottom of Group E, Cameroon and Denmark, looking for redemption.

News From Around The Cup:
* Work around the world comes to a standstill as everyone tunes into the World Cup.

* FIFA will monitor the World Cup\'s most vulnerable games for match-fixing threats.

* English midfielder Gareth Barry will return from injury for their match against Algeria on Friday.

* Italy goalkeeper Gianluigi Buffon has been ruled out of the Azzurri\'s match against New Zealand due to a herniated disc in his back - but they are refusing to rule him out of the tournament.

* World Cup organizing chief Danny Jordaan has drawn comparisons between South Africa\'s 3-0 defeat at the hands of Uruguay on Wednesday and the Soweto uprising which occurred on the same date 34 years ago.

* England coach Fabio Cappello has slammed the Jabulani as the worst ball ever. English goalkeeper Robert Green, however, refuses to blame the ball on the goal he allowed against the U.S.

* Former Spanish national team coach Luis Aragones criticized the squad\'s tactics after their shocking 1-0 loss to Switzerland.

* About 600 World Cup security workers and supporters marched on city hall Wednesday in a labor dispute that has spread to half the tournament\'s stadiums.

* The USA v England match was the most viewed World Cup first round match and fifth most-viewed World Cup match ever.

World Cup Group Standings (as of 6/18/10):
Group A
Uruguay (1-1-0; 4pts)
Mexico (1-1-0; 4pts)
France (0-1-1; 1pt)
South Africa (0-1-1; 1pt)

Group B
Argentina (2-0-0; 6 pts)
South Korea (1-0-1; 3pts)
Greece (1-0-1; 3 pts)
Nigeria (0-0-2; 0 pts)

Group C
Slovenia (1-0-0; 3pts)
England (0-1-0; 1pt)
United States (0-1-0; 1pt)
Algeria (0-0-1; 0pts)

Group D
Germany (1-0-1; 3pts)
Ghana (1-0-0; 3pts)
Serbia (1-0-1; 3pts)
Australia (0-0-1; 0pts)

Group E
Netherlands (1-0-0; 3pts)
Japan (1-0-0; 3pts)
Cameroon (0-0-0; 0pts)
Denmark (0-0-1; 0pts)

Group F
Italy (0-1-0; 1pt)
New Zealand (0-1-0; 1pt)
Paraguay (0-1-0; 1pt)
Slovakia (0-1-0; 1pt)

Group G
Brazil (1-0-0; 3pts)
Ivory Coast (0-1-0; 1pt)
Portugal (0-1-0; 1pt)
North Korea (0-0-1; 0pts)

Group H
Chile (1-0-0; 3pts)
Switzerland (1-0-0; 3pts)
Spain (0-0-1; 0pts)
Honduras (0-0-1; 0pts)

World Cup Viewing Parties for Group Stage games in DC Area:
(We will add others soon via advertisers - click here to advertise with us)

Friday, June 18 - 9:30am (USA v Slovenia)
BlackFinn - 1620 I Street NW, Washington, DC
Fado - DC - 808 7th Street NW, Washington, DC
Pour House - 319 Pennsylvania Ave, SE Washington, DC

Wednesday, June 23 - 9:30am (USA v Algeria)
BlackFinn - 1620 I Street NW, Washington, DC
Fado - DC - 808 7th Street NW, Washington, DC
Pour House - 319 Pennsylvania Ave, SE Washington, DC

TV Schedule for upcoming week (all times are EST):
Friday, June 18, 2010
Germany v Serbia - 7:30am - ESPN (Group D)
Slovenia v USA - 10:00am - ESPN (Group C)
England v Algeria - 2:30pm - ESPN2 (Group C)

Saturday, June 19, 2010
Netherlands v Japan - 7:30am - ESPN (Group E)
Ghana v Australia - 10:00am - ESPN (Group D)
Cameroon v Denmark - 2:30pm - ABC (Group E)

Sunday, June 20, 2010
Slovakia v Paraguay - 7:30am - ESPN (Group F)
Italy v New Zealand - 10:00am - ESPN (Group F)
Brazil v Ivory Coast - 2:30pm - ABC (Group G)

Monday, June 21, 2010
Portugal v North Korea - 7:30am - ESPN (Group G)
Chile v Switzerland - 10:00am - ESPN (Group H)
Spain v Honduras - 2:30pm - ESPN (Group H)

Tuesday, June 22, 2010
France v South Africa - 10:00am - ESPN2 (Group A)
Mexico v Uruguay - 10:00am - ESPN (Group A)
Greece v Argentina - 2:30pm - ESPN (Group B)
Nigeria v South Korea - 2:30pm - ESPN2 (Group B)

Wednesday, June 23, 2010
Slovenia v England - 10:00am - ESPN2 (Group C)
USA v Algeria - 10:00am - ESPN (Group C)
Australia v Serbia - 2:30pm - ESPN2 (Group D)
Ghana v Germany - 2:30pm - ESPN (Group D)

Thursday, June 24, 2010
Paraguay v New Zealand - 10:00am - ESPN2 (Group F)
Slovakia v Italy - 10:00am - ESPN (Gropu F)
Cameroon v Netherlands - 2:30pm - ESPN2 (Group E)
Denmark v Japan - 2:30pm - ESPN (Group E)