A bit of an odd one, if I'm honest. It was a bit of a scary day, if you were a player, and a good day, if you're a ref who likes the colour red.
Today began with Slovakia vs. Paraguay. It was probably one of the best games of the tournament - it was attacking, it was quick, and it was very entertaining. Paraguay took the lead in the 27th minute through a beautiful goal from Enrique Vera, who curled the ball into the bottom corner of the net with the inside of his boot. It continued the period of play where everything was Paraguay. There weren't many more shots, just some very skillful football, but Carlos Riveros finished the game off with 4 minutes to go, with a brilliant strike from the edge of the box. The game finished 2-0, and if you want to watch the highlights, click
here.
Next for us were the delights of Italy vs. New Zealand. Now this game would normally have Italy written all over it, but after their poor performance in the first game, and New Zealand's renewed efforts, it was gonna be close. And it was. Having gone ahead through a Shane Smeltz goal in the seventh minute, New Zealand lost their attacking abilities, and became very defensive. This allowed Italy to fight back, and the world champions converted a penalty in the 29th minute, after Daniele De Rossi was hauled down in the box. The game finished that way, but only after Chris Wood very nearly gave New Zealand an unlikely win over the reigning world champions. To watch the highlights, click
here.
Brazil vs. Ivory Coast topped things off tonight, and it was a brilliant, brilliant spectacle. Luis Fabiano kicked things off with a beautiful goal for Brazil in the 25th minute - chipped, kicked, flicked and struck his way into the net. It stayed like that till half time, until Fabiano scored again, with a lovely little effort into the net. Elano picked up goal number 3 in the 62nd minute, and all looked lost for the Ivory Coast. That was, until, Didier Drogba stuck one in the back of the net with 10 minutes to go, but Brazilian coach Dunga shut up shop, and stopped everything from passing. Kaka picked up two yellows, to equal a red, after a shocking and blatant dive and feint from Abdelkader Keita, who ran into Kaka's shoulder, and went down clutching his face. Appalling, and I hope FIFA look into it. But anyway, 3-1 was enough to secure Brazil's place in the second round, and if you want to watch the highlights, you can find them
here.
The first game of the day was Argentina vs. Germany, in what was billed as the finest game to be played this World Cup. And it certainly looked like it was going to be - goals galore from either team should have given us a brilliant attacking lesson. But alas, as is with this World Cup, things don't go according to plan. An early header from Thomas Muller within 3 minutes put the Germans one up, and from there on in, it was difficult for Argentina to recover. Even with 6 of the best strikers in the world in their squad, the defence was poor, and by half time, they were a shambles. The weak link was Gabriel Heinze - a player I used to rate highly, but have realised he is an egotistical, cheating, diving scumbag who should be thrown off the plane home. The second half proved that. After 67 minutes, Miroslav Klose slid the ball into an empty net to make it 2-0, and within 3 minutes, Arne Friedrich put them 3 up as he pushed the ball into the net. With just seconds remaining, Germany made it an absolute riot by putting a fourth in the net, with Miroslav Klose now just one away from equalling the record for the highest number of goals scored at World Cups. 4-0 means the Germans go through, and sends the Argentinians home. To watch the highlights, click here.
The final quarter final was between Paraguay and Spain. It wasn't one for the faint-hearted, that's for sure. A dire first half came to a close with some great Spanish play, but all the action was in the second half. After 57 minutes, Paraguay were awarded a penalty, which Oscar Cardozo put straight into the arms of Iker Casillas, before just 2 minutes later, Spain were awarded one, which Xabi Alonso scored, then was told to retake, then was saved by Justo Villar. Strange stuff. David Villa got them out of trouble though, with a double-post bounce in the 83rd minute, and that's how the game finished. Heartbroken Paraguayans, and the Spanish were rather pleased.... It sets up a brilliant tie between Germany and themselves, so we have that to look forward to on Tuesday. For the highlights, click here.
