World Cup 2010 live blog: 9 July

Howard Webb rejects an appeal from Chile's Alexis Sanchez during the World Cup match against Brazil. Photograph: Andre Penner/AP

OK we are enjoy this World Cup 2010 live blog: 9 July

11.13am: Jorg Hendrick-Bach wisecracks :"I never really understood why they're called "tentacles" when there's only eight of them..." And I do have some breaking news on not knowing about octopus ink. Judging by a phone call taking place next to me the Olympic javelin ace Steve Backley may also have been unaware of this. This is unconfirmed though.

11.10am: Here's some interesting World Cup news from the wires: "Germany midfielder Thomas Muller, Mexico forward Giovani dos Santos and Ghana midfielder Andre Ayew have made the three-man shortlist for the young player of the World Cup." Muller is favourite. Any views? Neuer the German goalie impressed me. He's 24. But he's also a goalie. Er... Wayne Rooney?

11.09am: More wildlife shame. Alex Papakyriacou: "Owing to an ill-judged layout in a book about animals I had as a child, I thought a gazelle was some kind of crocodile until I was in my mid twenties. Still think the animal naming committee got that one wrong. I mean... "gazelle" just sounds vicious, doesn't it?"

11.06am: More embarrassing wildlife mishaps: Ritchie Dunfunk notes "I heard somebody say that a buffoon is some sort of chimp." It could be. It could be a particularly stupid chimp. And Ivan Milatovic confesses: "Embarassing wildlife lapses: until last year, I thought gherkins were cucumbers that grew in the sea. I did not realise about the pickling process. And I am 36..."

10.51am: Another newsflash. Paul Doyle did not know that an octopus can squirt ink. General bafflement at this. Surely this is the one thing everyone knows about the octopus/squid world. Why not send in your own most embarrassing wildlife knowledge lapses? I'll publish the best of them. A prize of a shot glass of octopus ink to the most banal.

10.49am: Shall we just not bother playing the game then?
Good morning and welcome to the guardian.co.uk's daily live World Cup blog, wherever you are in the world ...
We hope this blog will provide news, predictions, pontifications, colour from our team in South Africa, plus lots of pointing outwards; to your comments below the line, to the best things we've seen on the web and to various World Cup randomania.

The plan is to update the blog from now until around 5pm UK time.



Let's kick off with a rather splendid video of Queen Sofia's post-match appearance in the Spain dressing room following their semi-final win. Lucky Carles Puyol had a towel on ...

Coppied by Guardian News and Media Limited 2010