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Howard Webb Wins World Cup For Spain

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 11, 2010 at 9:28 pm {no comments}

: Image via Wikipedia

Sadly a rather disappointing World Cup Final will be largely remembered for the controversial refereeing decisions by Howard Webb, which ultimately led to Spain winning late in extra time.

12 yellow cards and a red largely tells the story of a scrappy match with petty fouls and a packed midfield stifling any hope of free flowing football. Holland probably had the slightly better chances but the only real talking point of the game was the strange decisions by Howard Webb deep into extra time when he first missed a clear corner for Holland he must have been the only person in the stadium who thought it was a goal kick. If that wasn’t bad enough and a few second latter Holland should have had a free kick which he again ignored allowing Spain to counter attack and from this Iniesta scored the winning goal. What had been an otherwise good performance by him was marred by these two ludicrous decisions, which will follow him for the rest of his career.

Still overall Spain were probably the better team and they have now added the World Cup to their 2008 European Championship win making them clearly the most successful international team of the 21st Century so far.

Holland v Spain Half Time Report

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 11, 2010 at 7:24 pm {no comments}

Interesting, intriguing, slightly dull, choose your own superlative. Spain opened brightly but couldn’t capitalise on their possession and the Dutch have came into the game more as the half has worn on.

Still anyones game although Holland might just feel they have weathered the storm as they did against Brazil. Overall the chances of a tired mistake or a sending off defining the outcome look to be high.

Here’s hoping for a better second half.

Holland v Spain World Cup Final Preview

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 11, 2010 at 6:30 pm {no comments}

Finally after what has been the quickest four weeks ever (or the slowest according to the numerous World Cup widows out there) the final is upon us and what a final it proposes to be.

First we have the midfield flair of the Spanish who currently have their finest international squad ever. Even the German’s couldn’t stop them and in their semi final they finally showed flashes of the brilliance they are capable of keeping possession for long periods and stifling the German counter attack which had been so devastating against both England and Argentina. It could be they are reaching their peak just in time for the big one.

Then we have the Dutch who have shown they are a match for anyone and although they have been a little workman like in their victories they still have a 100% record both in the tournament and in qualifying which must be a record especially if they lift the trophy. They might not have the total football skills of the Holland teams of the 1970s but they remain a formidable side and in Sneijder & De Jong
they have the players capble of giving Spain’s formidable midfield something to think about.

In terms of squad value this should be a walk over for Spain however as we have seen from Germany’s superb performances perceived value doesn’t always transfer to success on the field and the Dutch have also beaten illustrious players when fighting back against Brazil.

Overall this is a hard match to call and with neither side having won the cup there will be nerves, which can lead to mistakes. However there has to be a winner and if forced to choose its the Dutch who look the most likely to prevail. Spain do play lovely football but have relied on teams running out of steam thanks to their flowing passing and possession. Holland are unlikely to flag and will be more combative in the middle of the park than Spain’s previous opponents. This should be enough to frustrate the Spaniards and I expect Holland to make it third time lucky and become the 8th nation to win the World Cup.

Germany’s Reserves Edge Out Uruguay For 3rd Place

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 11, 2010 at 11:10 am {no comments}

: Image via Wikipedia

Germany made 5 changes for this match compared to the team which played the semi final, but were still too good for a plucky Uruguay.

This was one of the more entertaining games in the tournament and with little to play for both sides opened up and treated the fans to some nice end to end football.

Germany opened the scoring on 18 minutes when the Uruguay keeper Muslera, who was not to have a great game spilled a long range shot, and Muller was the first to react stabbing the ball home. However this lead only lasted 10 minutes thanks to some nice Uruguay football starting with a great tackle on Schweinsteiger and ending with Cavani calmly slotting the ball into the net thanks to a lovely Forlan pass. Uruguay were now firmly back in the match and going into half time it looked like they could fancy their chances.

The second half which was played in heavy rain continued in the same vein and it was no surprise when possibly the player of the tournament Diego Forlan put the South Americans 2-1 up with a well taken volley. This put him level in the Golden Boot competition and with assists possibly counting in the event of a tie he could be in with a chance.

Victory would have been sweet for Uruguay who because of their early success are often thought of as a bigger team than they really are, but alas for them it was not to be and two bits of bad defending cost them dear as Germany took the third place medal for a second consecutive World Cup.

Germany’s final two goals came from Jansen in the 56th minute, when he headed in following a hopeless flap at the ball by Muslera and Khedira who pounced on some defensive hesitancy in the 82nd minute.

As per usual Uruguay refused to give up and with the last kick of the game Diego Forlan hit the crossbar from a free kick.

It has been a great World Cup Finals for both teams and Uruguay Manager Oscar Tabarez’s and his team can look forward to a heros welcome when they return to Montevideo while the German Coach Joachim Loew who was much maligned pre-tournament will probably be able to write his own salary cheque when renegotiating his contract

World Cup 3rd Place Playoff Final Score

Germany 3-2 Uruguay

Venue: Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium
Attendance: 36,007

Germany v Uruguay World Cup 3rd & 4th Place Playoff

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 10, 2010 at 6:31 pm {no comments}

This is not a game any country wants to play in, knowing they were so close but fell at the final hurdle. Still being the third best team in the world is no mean achievement and these games have often been more entertaining than the final.

This time round its the perenial appearers Germany against the pre tournament write offs Uruguay in what will be a replay of the 1970 3rd -4th play off match which Germany won 1-0.

Uruguay who have not had much success against European teams over the years must be thrilled to have made it this far and for a country of only 3.5m people its no mean achievement these days. They showed a lot of pluck against Holland and a never say die attitude which was refreshing after so many cautious matches in this years finals. In Forlan they have a player who can score from nothing and Suarez will be back from suspension, which will be a big help for them up front and possibly in their own penalty box should the “new hand of God” be called upon.

Germany seem a lot less botherd about this game with Lahm and Neuer both being dropped and seem to be treating this as a chance to give a few players a teste of the tournament. Its nice they are giving some of their second string a run out, and the experience will be of great benefit to them as Germany prepare for their assault on the 2012 European Championships, for which they will be close to favourites.

Overall this will be a close game and despite Uruguay never having beaten a European side in the World Cup Finals since 1970 I just have a feeling they will end their drought here and take them to win by the odd goal.

A New Name Will Be Added To The 2010 World Cup

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 8, 2010 at 11:16 am {no comments}

: Image via Wikipedia

Thanks to Spain’s narrow win over Germany last night it is now assured that a new name will be added to the illustrious list of World Cup Winners. Prior to this years tournament only 7 countries had ever won the competition these being: Brazil, Italy, Germany, Argentina, Uruguay, France & England.

So now either Holland or Spain will join this list with the Spanish being quite strong favourites to add this to their recent 2008 European Championships win. Who ever prevails it will be good for football to see another nation on the winners list.

Spain Drop Torres From Semi Final Starting Line Up

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 7, 2010 at 6:33 pm {no comments}

: Image via Wikipedia

In what is probably not a major surprise given his sub standard performances of late, Spain have elected to change their formation slightly dropping Fernando Torres and replacing him with Pedro who is more of a winger than a striker.

The main surprise for me is that they haven’t started either Fernando Llorente (right) or Cesc Fabregas in his place either of whom could add a new dimension to the Spanish play.

Germany are at near full strength with the only notable absentee being Thomas Mueller who is suspended.

Holland Edge Past Uruguay To Reach World Cup Final

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 7, 2010 at 1:51 pm {no comments}

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Holland v Uruguay World Cup Semi Final Preview

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 5, 2010 at 9:09 pm {no comments}

: Image via Wikipedia

The first of the World Cup Semi Finals Pitts the last remaining South American side Uruguay against the Dutch who sneaked into the quarter finals somewhat under the radar before announcing their intentions in no uncertain way with a battling win against Brazil. On paper this looks quite a one sided tie, but the beauty of these one off games is that anything can and often does happen.

Uruguay came into the finals largely written off being stuck in a fairly tough group with France, Mexico and the hosts South Africa. The only really recognisable member of the squad was Diego Forlan and although he has been a revelation in Spanish football he was best remembered by many as a Manchester United reject. Thus the expectations for them was an early trip home. However France decided to self destruct and Uruguay defied the critics with some nice compact defensive football capped off with great attacking flair from Mr Forlan and the hitherto little known Luis Suarez, who is suspended for this game.

To be fair Uruguay have had a pretty easy ride to the Semis beating South Korea and Ghana but they could only beat who is put in front of them so they remain something of an unknown quantity.

Holland who still have a 100% record in the 2010 competition, including winning all their qualifying matches have had things much tougher having to overcome a better than expected Slovakia side and then fighting back to beat then tournament favourites Brazil. On all form they should be good enough top win this match and probably the final too. However they will be without Nigel De Jong who although somewhat unsung has been a key part of their success.

Still despite this it will be a major surprise if Holland dont progress to their first final since 1978 where they will be hoping its third time lucky.

World Cup 2010 Semi Final Germany v Spain

Filed under World Cup by tuppence on July 5, 2010 at 8:51 pm {no comments}

: Image by Getty Images via @daylife

This will be the most anticipated match of the tournament with the devastating counter attacking of the Germans coming up against the stylish passind and ball control of the Spanish. It goes without saying that whoever grabs the first goal in a game like this will have a huge advantage and this could either lead to a cautious start or a German Blitzkrieg like their opening against Argentina.

Germany have been one of the surprises of the tournament, largely written off by most pundits as being too young and lacking any big star names. this is possibly true as if you put a transfer value on the German starting line up they would cost a fraction of what the Spanish team would command, and they would even be valued below the teams they have already soundly beaten in the second stages, namely England & Argentina. But as has been shown so often in the past it is the “better team” who wins rather than the better collection of individual players and in this respect Germany are one of the best this World Cup. If Germany do have a weakness it is in the centre of their defense and this could be a worry against a neat passing team like Spain.

Spain by comparison have a team stuffed with household names and in David Villa they probably have the player of the tournament. The rest of the squad is strong too and they seem to be able to retain possession even when they are being pressurised as shown in their surprisingly tough match against Paraguay. They will be at full strength for the game unlike Germany who will be without Thomas Muller due to suspension.

Spain have never reached a World Cup Semi Final before (their 4th place in 1950 was the result of finishing botom of the final group) while Germany and regular last four competitors, however this should count for nothing as this Spain side are full of confidence following their 2008 European Championships win when they beat Germany in the final.

Overall this is going to be a close game and although Germany will make things tough for spain I just feel that finally this exciting Germany team will sucumb. Thus the prediction is for Spain to advance to the final by the odd goal possibly in extra time.

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