USA 1 (Donovan 90+1) - Algeria 0
Ghana 0 - Germany (Oezil 60) 1
Australia 2 (Cahill 69, Holman 73) - Serbia 1 (Pantelic 84)
Matchday 13 proved unlucky for Australia, as the Socceroos were elimiated from the World Cup desipte a glorious 2-1 victory over Serbia. Instead a 1-0 win by Germany over Ghana was enough to see both teams advance from Group D. In Group C, a dramatic injury time winner from the United States saw them beat Algeria 1-0 and top the Group. England also advanced after they defeated Slovenia 1-0.
The 2010 World Cup will go down as a tournament of opportunity missed for Australia, after the Socceroos put in a stunning display to defeat Serbia 2-1. Unfortunately it was not enough for Australia to advance as Germany’s 1-0 win over Ghana meant that Australia finished only third in the group, behind Ghana on goal difference. But for 5 magical moments the dream of a miracle Australia was well and truly alive. In the space of just five minutes, a pair of goals from Tim Cahill and Brett Holman saw Australia take a 2-0 lead over Serbia, and combined with Germany’s slender lead over Serbia, Australia had turned around 3 of the 5 points of goal difference it needed to advance. However, a 1-0 result was enough for both Germany and Ghana to advance and neither side bothered to press forward after the goal. That left Australia having to score 2 more unanswered goals to advance. They pressed forward in a valiant attempt to reach that mark but in doing so opened themselves up at the back. The result was a late Serbian goal that killed of all hopes of Australia’s advancement. The Serbs then rushed forward as a draw would have seen them advance at Ghana’s suspense, but despite claims for a handball and a goal ruled out for offside (correctly!), they too would go home heartbroken. In summary, Australia were absolutely fantastic, and in my opinion were easily the second best team in the group. They deserved to advance but were unfortunately made to pay for their terrible opening game against Germany.
In a night of pure excitement the USA managed to top Group C (and avoid a second round clash with Germany) thanks to an injury time winner from Landon Donovan which procured them a 1-0 win over Algeria. They will advance alongside England, whose 1-0 win over Slovenia sets up a mouth watering second round clash with Germany. The English looked better than they had in their opening two matches at this tournament, but apart from a 20 minute spell mid-way through the first half (which included Jermaine Defoe’s goal), they still seemed to lack the quality and class of some of the better sides we have seen so far at the tournament. Wayne Rooney still looked to be well below his best and will rue a golden chance at getting his first goal of the tournament when he hit the post with only the goalkeeper to beat late in the second half. Still the English did look better with Defoe up front in place of Heskey, and Milner’s return to the side on the wide right provided more attacking thrust than Aaron Lennon had in previous games. Of concern will be the back four, with Matthew Upson looking a shaky replacement for Jamie Carragher at the back. On form, it would be hard to see England defeating Germany in their round of 16 game, and it remains to be seen whether a second round exit would be enough to see English manager Fabio Capello keep his job.
Second round matches – USA ($1.88) v Ghana ($2.00), Germany ($1.98) v England ($2.00)
What We Learned – That Australia would be made to pay for its opening game nightmare at the hands of Germany. From that match on Australia played some superb attacking football. They should have beaten Ghana (and probably would have with 11 men), and were more than a match for Serbia who had beaten Germany in their previous game. The tournament is a shattering lesson that every match should be played to win, no matter the opposition.
The Falcon’s Spud Of The Day – Nemanja Vidic (Serbia) – Admittedly he is one of the best defenders in the world but by god he complained and whinged whenever anyone went near him in the game. Timmy Cahill was clearly fouled by the Serb on a number of occasions yet Vidic felt it necessary to complain to the referee. Just another whinger (one of many) at this year’s tournament.
Tonight’s Games – Tonight sees matches in Group E and Group F finalised. In Group E, Denmark and Japan play a virtual knockout game with the winner advancing – I like the Danes. The other game sees the Netherlands (already qualified) take on Cameroon (already eliminated) and the Dutch should be far too good. In Group F, all four teams still have hopes of qualifying. Paraguay should be far too good for New Zealand and will win to top the group, while Italy should finally get the win they need to advance when they meet Slovakia.
Suggested Investment – At this stage of the tournament I prefer to back teams that have something to play for. Given that, Denmark and Italy both have to win to advance so I will be taking them to both win in a multi.
Prices courtesy of Betfair. Photo courtesy of SMH.
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