Holland 2, Chile 0; Spain 3, Australia 0; Brazil 4, Cameroon 1; Mexico 3, Croatia 1

Yesterday I failed to write about these games.

For me the most notable game was Mexico’s. Rafa Márquez scored a vital goal in a third consecutive World Cup.

Injuries

World Cup warm-ups. … We played one a few weeks ago, against the Netherlands in Amsterdam (1 to 1); and this afternoon, in Arlington, TX, Mexico defeated us, 3 to 1. … It was among the most unsettling games I’ve watched. Segundo Castillo and Mexico’s Luis Montes badly collided; Montes’s leg was broken, and Castillo may have hurt his ACL. … Later, Mexico’s Rafael Márquez also was taken to the hospital. …

A few tactical notes. … We didn’t use our regular forwards, and we didn’t try to pressure our opponents on their side of the field, as we usually do. A very odd experiment. … All that carnage, to no clear purpose.