Meta bad, very bad

I am sitting through ESPN's pre-match discussion of the Germany-Costa Rica encounter. The TV is on mute, and as I keep half an eye on it while my attention is focussed on the computer, a thought strikes me: the amount of time these guys spend talk about something (as opposed to letting one enjoy the actual event) is simply unbelievable. Game plan, win-loss record, who said what about whom, who is hot and who is not, yada yada.

By the time you get to the game, a) your senses are dulled by the sheer amount of commentary you had to put up with and b) you have been fed all kinds of BS predictions which invariably fail to materialise.

P.S. ESPN gave me a fright when they kicked off the match with Hindi commentary; mercifully, this was replaced by English commentary very quickly. Guess somebody had a cojones-in-the-vise moment.