Cristiano Will Always Be CR7: Cup Qualifying "Handily" Concluded, Bart Beckham, Gourcuff in the Gour-buff

First things first. Portugal won 1-0 thanks to Meireles' goal. Portugal qualified. Greece beat Ukraine to advance. Greece qualified. In a shocker to Guus Hiddink's Russian men, they won't be traveling to South Africa this summer. The underdog Slovenian's sent the 9-man Russki's packing, 1-0. Perhaps that is fitting that one of the "minnows" beat a ranked team to slap the face of FIFA for this qualifying debacle. Slovenia qualified.
Maintenant. For shame. For shame. For shame. Quelle horreur. I can't imagine how many drunken Irishmen will be rubbing their heads tomorrow morning after suffering a horrendous blow to their World Cup dreams. They played like champions in Dublin for the first tie. They played even better today for the second tie in Paris. Unfortunately, the most deserving team does not always win.
I was cheering for France because I am a fan of Zizou. I was cheering for France because I'm a fan of United left back, Patrice Evra. I was cheering for France because the sight of Yohann Gourcuff removing his shirt after matches is something every female fan should experience at least once per week (see photo below...be seated before you do...). I will not be cheering for France in the World Cup this summer (unless they are playing the Germans or Italians...yuck).
On 33 minutes, Tottenham Hotspur and Irish hero, Robbie Keane leveled the aggregate 1-1 with a great strike. Away goals are more important than home goals, and France had scored in Dublin. Keane's strike put the Irish back in the Cup hunt. Level at full-time, they played on to settle the tie and at the 103rd minute, former World Player of the Year, Thierry Henry handled a ball (see the photo below...he is looking directly at the ball) to keep it in play, then passed to William Gallas....who scored. France 2-1 Ireland. The Irish players were screaming for a handball, but the "official" did not see it. So...the Irish eyes were not smiling.

!Quelle horreur! C'est travesti du Foot!

Of course the calls for instant replay have been bellowing for years, and especially in recent months by EPL managers, whose sides have suffered from "theatrically-enhanced falling."

The infamous "Hand of God" goal by Diego Imatroll Maradona in the 86 World Cup win over England was revisited with some headlines across the world:

HandGaul (referring to France as Gaul, of course...for you history illiterates)

Some other choice headlines:

Francia se mete con una mano clamorosa de Henry (from as.com)

Hand of God II: Thierry Henry confesses he cheated to rob Irish of World Cup place (from the Daily Mail)

Cheats never prosper? Well, France certainly did against Ireland (Daily Mail)

One thing I will say...Karma has a way of biting you in the rear. France played horribly throughout the qualifying process and today's match was no better. I don't see them advancing in the Cup.

One photo item that I cannot leave without comment: (Keep scrolling down to see the photo of Yohann sans chemise)

As David Beckham's MLS LA Galaxy beat the Houston Dynamo to advance to the MLS Final against Real Salt Lake (stay away from the TV if you speak Spanish, as "Real" is not pronounced like "Ray-al", but like the idiot American way of, "ree-al." I suppose they will be playing the "unreal" LA Galaxy), I couldn't help but post a pic of the former Manchester United number 7. David, only Bart Simpson looks good in that haircut!