FIFA World Cup Football Week 3

Week 3 ( yes it has been three weeks ) saw the completion of the group matches and the tournament getting in to Knock out  and Hear break phase.

As predicted , Germany , USA qualified and it was sad to  see Portugal go out from this group. Playing the first match badly cost them the opportunity to move up . You can have the Stars in your team but unless everyone plays well including your star player, you go nowhere .. So much for team work and team dynamics

Greece was the surprise packet from its group along with Columbia.

Italy got dumped by Uruguay but the man of the match was Suarez. How on earth can he be doing what he did ?. Not for the first time that he was found chewing off flesh of his opponent players. FIFA quickly swung in to action and there is not only a ban on matches but a fixed time period of time  that he has to sit out.

Argentina and Nigeria went through from their group as well as France and the Swiss from their groups

The final line up saw Belgium and Algeria go through

After a break on Friday it was time for the knock outs and heart breaks

Brazil Versus Chile
Brazil played exciting attacking football from the start and it was no surprise that they went one up quickly. But the Chile attacked and with Alexis Sanchez weaving his way through the vulnerable Brazilian defence , a poor pass deep in the Brazil half, gave a chance that Alexis fully utilized. This just pumped the Chileans up and they were threatening all the time. While all this was happening , Brazil was denied a goal on a long ball that was chested down or rather shouldered down by Hulk . Howard Webb the English referee is no stranger to controversies. We can continue to debate on this decision. In the end , Brazilians hung on to the repeated attacks by the Chileans and somehow passed the extra time and then won on their goalkeeper  Cesar’s efforts. Alexis Sanchez who played so well  for Chile missed his penalty and that said it all. Not a lucky day for Chile
Columbia Versus Uruguay

Minus Suarez, Uruguay lacked the penetration and the will and way to win. With James Rodriguez striking it rich for Columbia – his first goal was a gem . Long range and his technique was great and the execution perfect. This was probably the goal of the tournament so far. 
Columbia meets Brazil in the Quarter final and my prediction is for a Brazilian win  but not an easy one

Dutch Versus Mexico
Mexico did everything right through this match except for the last ten minutes. Solid defending and ball possession  and moving it forward was the recipe for the Mexicans. They gave no room to Arjen Robben or Van Persie. Anytime the ball reached these guys, there will be at least three Mexicans crowding them. The Dutch looked jaded  and they were in deep trouble when Mexico scored early in the second half. It was an energy sapping game with two Cooling Breaks given due to the heat in the stadium.  The Dutch realized that Mexican defence was strong and resorted to long balls and Set pieces through Corners to see if they could break through. Van Persie was taken off and Huntelaar was brought in. In the 88th minute Wesley Snijder came to the Dutch rescue with a fierce drive off a loose ball from a Corner. And things went worse for Mexicans.Arjen Robben found space and  Reyes the young defender who was in as substitute for the experienced Hector Moreno , fouled him and that was it. Huntelaar scored and that sealed Mexican dreams. The Mexican goalkeeper had done extremely well ,  making saves and being very active. In the end , it did not help.

Costa Rico versus Greece
I did not expect this match to go in to extra time and in to penalties by which the Costa Ricans came up in triumphs, A last ditch equalizer in injury time helped Greece draw level but then penalties settled  it

Expect a very tough match for the Dutch but they will go through in this quarter final against Costa Rica

Most of the South American teams have done themselves proud in this World Cup so far

Comments

CGB said…
If the teams are not able to bear the south american heat..Imagine 8 years from now..Qatar heat..At-least considering the safety of players they should withdraw...by using the weapon bidding corruption...
9:52 AM
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