World Cup Review

Day 20 of the tounement
Friday, July 1

all match review will be from the official FIFA World Cup Site at yahoo.com or at this address fifaworldcup.yahoo.com/06/en/ for more Info.

yes we gone down from 32 team to 16 team and after eight games to cut that in half as well wetre at the elite eight this is it with no draw any more you have to win or go home, a loss in regualion is OK and Bad, A loss in Extra time could be a lot wrose but to lose in a series of PK could be devstating and a team may ask it what may be as they wait four more years to raise the world Cup.

Quarterfinals No.1
Germany vs Argentina

proved impossible to separate these sides, with 120 minutes only able to conjure up a couple of goals, Miroslav Klose’s 80th-minute equaliser cancelling out a 49th-minute opening strike from Roberto Ayala.

That left the match to be settled by penalties, and it was Jens Lehmann who proved the hosts' hero, saving from both Ayala and Esteban Cambiasso, while Oliver Neuville, Michael Ballack, Lukas Podolski and Tim Borowski all successfully dispatched their spot kicks past Argentina’s substitute goalkeeper, Leo Franco.

First Half

7’: After a nervy, niggly opening to the game, punctuated regularly by the shrill blast of referee Lubos Michel's whistle, the first chance fell to the hosts, with Roberto Abbondanzieri spilling a 25-yard Podolski free-kick only to gather nervously at the second attempt.

16’: Ballack passed up a superb chance to give Germany the lead, heading wide of the right-hand post from 16 yards after timing his run to perfection to meet a beautifully-weighted cross from Bernd Schneider.

19’: Argentina, for whom Carlos Tevez was making a lively contribution to his second start of Germany 2006, forced their first and only half-chance of the opening 45 when marauding left-back Juan Pablo Sorin burst through on to a Tevez nutmeg and was only prevented from teeing up Hernan Crespo for the opener by a timely interception from Per Mertesacker.

45': With the action fast, furious but all too often lacking in quality, the teams went into the half-time break without either goalkeeper having been called into any meaningful action for the best part of 30 minutes. The fans’ muted response to the half-time whistle betrayed their disappointment with the first-half fare, which had fallen some way short of expectations.

Second Half

49’: Fortunately, the game was finally brought to life within four minutes of the restart as Argentina broke the deadlock. Riquelme swung in a corner from the right, Ayala got in front of Klose and met the ball with a header, which evaded the dive of Lehmann and Philipp Lahm on the near post.

64’: Germany won two corners in quick succession, with the second leading to a genuine scoring chance for Ballack after Abbondanzieri failed to claim the ball. Ballack’s shot was blocked and then a follow-up header by the Germany captain was claimed gratefully by the goalkeeper.

71’: Abbondanzieri was replaced by Franco in the Argentina goal. Seven minutes earlier, the Boca Juniors goalkeeper had received a blow to his hip from Klose and despite extensive treatment from the Argentina physio, the change had to be made.

73’: Argentina came close to doubling their advantage when Lahm’s misplaced pass was intercepted by Tevez. After the diminutive forward dribbled past the German defence, he slid the ball to Maxi Rodriguez, who fired the ball into the side-netting.

80’: With the Albiceleste looking good to protect their single-goal lead, Germany equalised. Ballack’s ball from the left was flicked on by Borowski and Klose headed home his fifth of the tournament.

89’: Argentina threatened when Luis Gonzalez’s header arrowed towards the right-hand corner of the net. Lehmann made a fine one-handed save at full-stretch, but a goal would not have counted as Tevez, lurking in the hope of a rebound, was adjudged to be offside.

Extra-time

105’: In the final action of the first half of extra time, Gonzalez hit a volley just wide of the target in a 15-minute period without an shot on goal.

106’: Straight from the restart, Tevez long-range effort was gathered the ball comfortably by Lehmann.

113’: Another shot from distance, this time from Fabricio Coloccini, but his drive finished well wide of the Germany goal. Two minutes later, the defender threatened again, but his right-footed cross-shot clipped the top of the crossbar.

Penalties Kick Shootout:

Lehmann was the hero for Germany as his saves from Ayala and Cambiasso were crucial in the Nationalmannschaft’s progression to the semi-finals. The hosts had a 100 per cent success rate from the penalty spot, with Neuville, Ballack, Podolski and Borowski all converting.

In conclusion:
Jurgen Klinsmann’s decision to elect Lehmann as his number one for this FIFA World Cup appears to be justified by this result alone. His two saves have given Germany a place in the semi-finals, where they will meet Italy or Ukraine. For Argentina, who took the lead in this game, it will be a long journey home for a team which performed so well in the early stages of this tournament.

Box Score

Argentina - 1-0 - Roberto Ayala (49)
Germany - 1-1 - Miroslav Klose (80)

Shootout
GER - Neuville (pen) 1-0
ARG - Cruz (pen) 1-1
GER - Ballack (pen) 2-1
ARG - Ayala (miss) 2-1
GER - Podolski (pen) 3-1
ARG - Rodríguez (pen) 3-2
GER - Borowski (pen) 4-2
ARG - Cambiasso (miss) 4-2
Germany win on PK

Yellow Cards
GER - Lukas Podolski (3)
ARG - Juan Pablo Sorin (46)
ARG - Javier Mascherano (60)
ARG - Maxi Rodriguez (88)
GER - David Odonkor (90)
ARG - Julio Ricardo Cruz (96)
GER - Arne Friedrich (114)

Match Stats
Shots (on Goal)
Germany - 17 (7)Argentina - 13 (5)
Fouls
Germany - 23 Argentina - 30
Corner Kicks
Germany - 4 Argentina - 6
Offsides
Germany - 3 Argentina - 3
Time of Possession
Germany - 47% Argentina - 53%
Yellow Cards
Germany - 3 Argentina - 4
Red Cards
Germany - 0 Argentina - 0
Saves
Germany - 6 Argentina - 8

Quarterfinals No.2
Italy vs Ukraine

A sixth-minute strike from Gianluca Zambrotta set the tone for the evening and a second-half brace from Luca Toni merely compounded the misery for Oleg Blokhin’s side. Oleg Gusev, Andriy Gusin and Maksym Kalinichenko all went close for Ukraine, but were denied by a combination of the woodwork and some excellent goalkeeping by Gianluigi Buffon.

Italy now turn their attentions to a semi-final tie with the hosts in Dortmund on Tuesday, 4 July, while FIFA World Cup™ debutants Ukraine will return home justifiably proud of their efforts.

First Half

4': Italy began brightly, with a positive, driving run from Mauro Camoranesi ending with the Juventus midfielder going for goal with a right-foot shot that curled just wide of the left-hand post from 20 yards.

6': Within the space of two minutes, the Azzurri had stormed into the lead, Zambrotta gathering possession at right-back, racing down the wing, cutting in on his left foot and lashing the ball low and hard into the back of the net from just outside the box. The unsighted Olexsandr Shovkovskyi will have been disappointed to be beaten at his near post, but the power in the Juventus defender's shot left the keeper with little chance. (1-0)

17': Francesco Totti, back in the starting line-up after his penalty heroics against Australia, tried his luck with a free-kick from 30 yards, but the ball skidded low along the turf and safely into the arms of Shovkovskyi.

27': The oft-isolated Andriy Shevchenko found space inside the box for the first time in the match, but though he rose well, his header was wayward and Buffon remained untroubled.

33': Frustrated by the lack of success of those ahead of him, Ukraine’s midfield dynamo Anatoliy Tymoschuk seized the initiative, bursting forward from deep and unleashing a ferocious 30-yard drive that flew no more than a couple of feet wide of Buffon’s right-hand post.

41': As Ukraine grew in confidence, Shevchenko again drifted away from his marker on the edge of the box, but on this occasion Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro closed in quickly and took the sting out of the Chelsea striker’s left-foot shot, which bounced safely through to the alert Buffon.

45+1': With half-time approaching, Ukraine coach Blokhin was forced into his second substitution of the opening half, replacing the injured Andriy Rusol with Vladyslav Vashchuk.

Second Half

46': Italy started the second half as they had the first, attacking. Toni led the charge, bulldozing his way down the inside-right channel and into a good shooting position only to scuff his effort into the side-netting.

50’: Ukraine enjoyed their best spell of the match, forcing Andrea Barzagli into a near-disastrous sliced clearance and then calling Buffon into his first save of note. Gusin must have thought that he had done enough by directing a powerful downward header just inside the left-hand post, but Buffon has rescued the Azzurri on countless occasions and he did so again, diving to tip the ball on to the post and wide.

58': Italy survived, but only just, after Buffon produced another remarkable save to deny Gusev at point-blank range. In truth, the Ukraine midfielder should have scored, and so too should Gusin on the follow-up, but his shot was straight enough to allow Zambrotta to make a desperate goal-line clearance.

59': Ukraine were made to pay for their profligacy inside a minute. With play having flowed to the other end, Totti flighted in an inswinging cross so inviting that Toni, stooping low, only needed to get his head to the ball to send it flashing beyond the statuesque Shovkovskyi from seven yards. (2-0)

62': If they had not already realised that this was not to be their night, Ukraine saw this confirmed when the luckless Gusin saw his looping header come crashing back off the face of the crossbar with Buffon, for once, beaten.

69’: Any lingering doubts about the outcome of this match were removed altogether when Zambrotta, this time popping up on the left, sprung the Ukraine offside trap and slid the ball across for Toni to score the simplest of second goals, tapping into the empty net from all of three yards. (3-0)

79': Shevchenko attempted to make his mark on proceedings with a powerfully-struck 30-yard free-kick, but Buffon was always behind it and comfortably fisted the ball to safety.

86': Ukraine substitute Oleksiy Belik found space inside the area to divert Gusev’s cross goalwards, but Italy's ice-cool keeper simply reached up to his left and plucked the ball coolly out of the air.

90': Toni was presented with a golden opportunity to complete his hat-trick, but after breaking clear of the Ukraine defence, his attempt to flick the ball beyond Shovkovskyi was unconvincing and the keeper was able to gather comfortably.

In conclusion:
Italy produced, arguably, their most accomplished all-round performance at Germany 2006 to date, firing a timely warning to the hosts ahead of their semi-final meeting in Dortmund on 4 July. From the very offset, Marcello Lippi's side always looked the more menacing and potent of the two, and though a only a combination of ill luck, Buffon’s brilliance and poor finishing prevented Ukraine pulling a goal back in the second half, there can be no doubt that the best side march on to the semis.

Box Score
Italy - 1-0 - Gianluca Zambrotta (6)
Italy - 2-0 - Luca Toni (59)
Italy - 3-0 - Luca Toni (69)

Yellow Cards
UKR - Viacheslav Sviderskiy (16)
UKR - Maxim Kalinichenko (21)
UKR - Artem Milevskiy (67)

Match Stats
Shots (on Goal)
Italy - 14(9) Ukraine - 15(4)
Fouls
Italy - 14 Ukraine - 24
Corner Kicks
Italy - 1 Ukraine - 3
Offsides
Italy - 2 Ukraine - 2
Time of Possession
Italy - 59% Ukraine - 41%
Yellow Cards
Italy - 0 Ukraine - 3
Red Cards
Italy - 0 Ukraine - 0
Saves
Italy - 4 Ukraine - 4

Semi-finals
July 4 - 3:00 PM
Germany v Italy

Tomorrow Other Semi-Final
11:00 AM on ABC
England v Portugal
LET GO THREE LIONS
3:00 PM on ESPN
Brazil v France