Sudáfrica 2010 - FIFA.com

Spain v. Portugal 1-0 (0-0)
This match, which would decide Iberian World Cup bragging
rights, started at a frenetic pace with Spain carving out three
clear-cut chances in the fi rst fi ve minutes, only for Eduardo
(1) in the Portugal goal to be equal to them all. Portugal
were set up rather defensively, but they still had two good
chances to open the scoring late in the fi rst half. The only
goal of the game came after an hour, with Llorente (19)
bringing fresh energy to the Spanish attack in place of the
substituted Torres (9). Spain immediately had three excellent
opportunities in just as many minutes. David Villa (7)
capitalised on the last of those chances to score his fourth
goal of the tournament after a beautiful lay-off from Xavi
(8). Portugal were unable to fi nd a way back into the game
in the time that remained.
Quarter-fi nals
Netherlands v. Brazil 2-1 (0-1)
At the end of the fi rst half, nobody would have believed that
Brazil would fail to reach the semi-fi nals. They had taken the
lead as early as the tenth minute, Felipe Melo (5) releasing
Robinho (11) on goal with a wonderful throughball. The South
Americans then had a number of chances to increase the lead
as the Dutch found it hard to fi nd a foothold in the game
against the dominant Brazilians. Then, in the second half,
Felipe Melo and goalkeeper Julio Cesar (1) got in each other’s
way as they tried to a clear a cross from Sneijder (10), but they
failed as they saw the ball nestle in the net. It was a goal that
knocked Brazil out of their stride, and Sneijder capitalised by
heading home from a corner kick in the 68th minute to give the
Dutch a 2-1 lead. The fi ve-time world champions were now
behind for the fi rst time in the tournament, and it got worse in
the 74th minute when Felipe Melo was sent off for serious foul
play. Now that they had the advantage of the extra man, the
Dutch were able to keep hold of possession and see out time.
They could even have made the scoreline more emphatic if
they had exploited the space on the counter-attack.
2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa
Uruguay v. Ghana 1-1 a.e.t. (1-1, 0-1), 4-2 PSO
The hopes of the entire African continent were now on
Ghana’s shoulders as they were the only African team to
advance past the group stage. Shortly before half-time,
Muntari (11) unleashed a shot from 35 metres to give
Ghana the lead that all of Africa had been waiting for. The
South Americans were quick to reply, however, as Forlán
(10) scored directly from a free kick to level the game
at 1-1. It was the Uruguayans who then had the better
chances to win the game, but at the end of 90 minutes
the two teams were still locked at 1-1. The closing stages
of extra time were dramatic to say the least. In the fi rst
minute of stoppage time, Suárez (9) handled the ball on
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