No real surprising upsets in the second round, even Cisse was a very strong 8 seed. Like one of those 8 seeds that just killed their moderately strong non-conferencee schedule, but started dropping games at the end of the year and then got bounced in the first round of the conference tourny. Maybe Fernando Torres making a late comeback over the weekend to take a commanding victory over David Beckham was an upset to some, but FT has too much talent to have it considered as such. I'd be willing to bet that was directly related to pretty much everybody wanting to vomit over Beckham-mania hitting its peak before the Chelsea friendly Saturday night. It's almost a shame, I was digging the platinum blonde with the black pseudo-beard. I think it's only a matter of time before Tom Cruise starts showing up at red carpet premiers with the same look and his own personalized Galaxy jersey. And instead of a number on the back, it will have a big picture of L. Ron Hubbard's mug.
The Roundup:
North Bracket
Mexes v James: Like there was any other possible outcome. Although we're erasing all pictures from training camp from the internet. Philou has obviously had a lapse in judgment.
Davids v Perlaza: Thanks for showing up, Jose. Here's your lovely gift basket and have a nice life. Not even fair.
FT v Becks: The future is now.
Gattuso v Xavier: Rino dominated the matchup quite easily, which was relatively surprising considering Abel pitched the only shutout of the first round. It's quite obvious he isn't ready to play with the big dogs.
South Bracket:
Nedved v Cisse: I don't think anybody thought Cisse was actually an 8 seed, but being married to a hair artist will knock you down quite a few spots. However, still a mild upset considering the awesomeness of Pavel's mane.
Ramos v Ljunberg: SHABR took this one down easily, which was obvious punishment for Freddie's future signing with West Ham United. I don't expect the marriage to last long, I don't think Calvin Klein will approve of those purple and blue kits.
Coloccini v West: Taribo has many more fans than I originally anticipated, but Fab Colo is a far cry from Francesco Totti.
Totti v Cesc: Like there needed to be a vote.
Quarterfinals Bracket:
North Bracket
1. Philippe Mexes CB AS Roma
5. Edgar Davids CM Ajax
3. Fernando Torres ST Liverpool
2. Gennaro Gatusso CM Milan
South Bracket
8. Djibril Cisse ST Marseille
5. Sergio Ramos DF Real Madrid
11. Taribo West DF Julius Berger
2. Francesco Totti ST AS Roma
The matchup of the 3rd round is easily Fernando v Rino. It hasn't gotten much easier for FT, but he really showed his unquestionable talent in the last round versus Mr. Herbalife. The two most lopsided matchups involve the two Giallorossi in the crowd. Whaddya know? Cisse is still staying strong like 1985 Villanova, but Ramos might have a few aces up his sleeve. Hard to predict these outcomes.
The polls worked pretty well so we're going to continue with them this round. Mexes v Davids will be up sometime later today. One each day this week and then we'll let them run until Sunday evening. Then the Final 4 will commence Monday.