Martin Tyler discusses the Galaxy 11 and World Cup semifinals

Over the past year we’ve seen one of the most unique and unusual soccer campaigns unfold from electronics company Samsung. It centers around their line of mobile devices, in particular the Samsung Galaxy smartphones.

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I’ve enjoyed the GALAXY 11 campaign and think it is an unusual, yet fun and engaging campaign. What did you think when it was first presented to you?

I think pretty much what you said to me really. It’s not something I do a lot of. It doesn’t have to be a commercial enterprise to me, I have, I suppose, to have my imagination captured by it. It is a logical extension perhaps where in my time the game has gone from being very home spun to being a global sport. All the technology that has come in the last 40, 50 years which also businesses, football is one of them, that have grasped the potential to spread the word and joining people together to having competitions like the World Cup where I am now. And it is not too much of a leap of faith to imagine a scenario, at least where we’re playing the game on another planet. The seriousness of it, of course, I hope would never happen, but that is all part of the story of the campaign really.

Were you given a script to follow or did they allow you to call the game as you would in real life?

There was a little bit of script, it wasn’t a big script but it came with “this is what we’re describing,” this is what actually happens and it was more of a storyline than a script. I was very grateful that I was given license to call it as I saw it, really. There were certain points that needed emphasizing. I was just saying earlier that I only get one hit at the live game and I often wish sometimes I’d get a few more hits so I can repair some wrongs. This was different and clearly I’m a football commentator, I’m not somebody who has success at writing and what is required so of course I took direction but the words are pretty much mine.

What do you think of the heavy focus on offensive players on the team?

I thought there was a heavy focus on offense, yes. It was the first thing that struck me and I thought how on earth are we going to keep a clean sheet and shut out the opposition. It is going to be a basketball score if we’re going to win. As we often say in the real world these players can play anywhere, they’re real footballers. They’re obviously used by the coaches to what is perceived to be their very best talents. They also got other talents and often players play different positions as they work their way into the top levels of the professional sport. That’s part of the fun as the commentator, “he started as a striker and now he is a defender,” and “how well he has adapted to this.” Players get moved around a lot. It was a first reaction, obviously we are dealing with other factors.

One of the reasons that attracted me to it, was working along side, maybe in caricature form, these are top players and they’ve given their blessing to this campaign. Messi and Ronaldo, and Rooney from my country, a spread of stars from around the world. Tough story for [Iker] Casillas, as to whether he gets any protection, but then again he didn’t get much protection in the World Cup did he? I guess these games… there is more than a hint of reality in the fiction as well.

It certainly was an issue at the beginning but once you get underway you sort your team out. I coach and something you learn is that you work with the hand you’re dealt. If you’ve got those players, you work out a best way to plot them. Obviously in Franz Beckenbauer we had a coach in which we all trusted.

So they go into the half and they’re down 3-1 and they look like their getting dominated to a certain extent. What tactical changes do you think Beckenbauer has to make to get them back in the game?

I would like to add one thing to what I said earlier, one thing that was slightly different for me. I really pride myself on being an impartial commentator. I’m English, so when England play I never say “we” or anything like that. In this cosmopolitan world we live in, there is always someone who lives in the country you’re broadcasting to who will support the other team. I always thought that being impartial is a key to the way I try to do my job, I’m not saying it is for all broadcasters. I’ve always been brought up on “the team that deserves to win, should win.” You like to have justice in sport really.

So I think it was one of the harder parts for me. Clearly my planet was dependent on the team, my family, all of us. I think that was the hardest things for the producers to get out of me, that sort of desire. Well these are good guys, they’re playing well you know, they deserve every thing.

To answer your specific question, I think it is more about how they’re receiving their messages on their devices, the Samsung side of the operation, to try and improve the team. I guess what you’re feeling as the commentator, you’re thinking well this isn’t over yet, look at the players we got, look at the coach we got and look at the technology that they’ve got.

About the World Cup semifinal, with Neymar out, who do you see stepping up to replace the goal-scoring for Brazil?

Well I think there might be a change in role for Oscar, who has it in him to play a more Neymar-like role. This is the difficulty with looking at players being injured, exact replacements are hard to find particularly in the creative elements of the game. It would be easier for Dante to come in and play for Thiago Silva. I think in defense you can be more similar in the things you’re required to do and perhaps less subtle if you’d like. Whereas Neymar is Neymar, and to say someone can replace him… the team is going to have take on the burden. It might bring the best out of the other players who’ve been struggling a little bit on the attacking side for Brazil. Obviously Neymar’s got his goals, and the last three goals have been from center-backs I think. David Luiz against Chile and against Colombia and Thiago Silva scored in that game as well.

It has been a little disappointing in other aspects of the forward play except for Neymar. Fred has had a rough time, Hulk has had his moments but hasn’t quite delivered yet. I’m expecting the responsibility to be shared, but I think in terms of just tweaking a little bit Oscar might be the one. Of course I have no inside information on that, it is just my own personal opinion.

With Argentina and Netherlands playing heavy on offense, do you think the game could come down to either who plays better defense or who wins set pieces? What do you think is going to make the difference in that game?

Well there is a lot of individual talent, obviously Messi can be the difference in any match that he plays in and he is having a good World Cup. What did [Argentina coach Alejandro] Sabella say? “He provides water when we’re in the desert?” Which i thought was a colorful way of looking at it and a phrase I wish I had come up with myself. With [Arjen] Robben being the main man for the Dutch, Robin van Persie hasn’t quiet sparkled. He scored that fantastic first goal for them to equalize against Spain, but he has just looked a little bit off the pace. They’re very strong teams as well this is a perfect element really of whether a team can sparkle, whether you make the star individuals the stud in that game.

Does Messi carry the rest, or does the rest set up the platform for Messi? I’d like to think it is more of the latter because we are talking about a team game. The very first World Cup final I went to was Argentina against Holland in 1978 and you know it is a lot of memories from then, which was the previous World Cup in South America before this one. Now it is a semifinal. I don’t even know who put this out, but obviously the games are coming soon, I can tell you that Argentina really want to play Brazil in the final and beat them because of the rivalry and inflict more pain, like Uruguay did in 1950. If you know the history of the last Brazilian World Cup, the only other Brazilian World Cup, when Brazil only had to accept a draw to win the World Cup and lost to Uruguay, a country of three million people against a country of what wasn’t 200 million then but headed that way.

There is a lot of history about it. I think the greatest thing about this World Cup, Mike, is the level of competition has been staggering. There has been no “gimmes,” there have been no easy hits in games really. You look at the knockout phase in that 12 games, half of them have gone to extra time and three penalty shootouts, and no one has won by a big margin. So it is really competitive and I’m no nearer, having watched a lot of games, to tell you which of the four is going to win it.

Who do you see it making to the final? Which match up do you see in the final?

Honestly, I’m not trying to duck you. If I had any strong views I would tell you. I think you can make a case for Germany because obviously Neymar is out and the Germans are a strong unit. But I guess you could make that 55-45 Brazil. Probably 51-49 Argentina.

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