England v. Ecuador, 10:00 CDT

Listos!

Oye, tres, cinco, uno!/ Listen up! Three, five, one! Sven's midfield-heavy line-up for the match. Let's hope Lennon and Gerrard are starting, though I understand Carrick will be coming in. As for Beckham. . .

Tu, al banquillo! / You, to the bench, unless you plan on defending today.

On the flip side, England must play aggressively and score. Don't let the match go to penalties. (Ach!)

Post-match comment (11:52 CDT): Exhale. Going in into half-time, it did not look good. A shout out to Captain Becks for the special teams free kick -- but do we have to wait until he is vomiting on the pitch to sub him? That Lennon kid -- boy's a bit special. Get him in sooner. Thankfully, the team was energized by the Beckham goal, and played much better thereafter. Oye, Lampard?! Get where you need to be -- you were off pace in several plays. Finally, note to Sven: 3-5-1 is not going to cut it from here on out. You need someone to get Rooney -- no looker, but truly brilliant -- the ball.

Onward and upward. For those watching this afternoon: Portugal v. Netherlands should be a great match. And I can't wait for Argentina v. Germany. . .