2014fwc_tsg_report_15082014_neutral

14
Story of the tournament
David Luiz scored with a powerful direct free
kick to add a second goal in the 69 th minute.
Ten minutes later Rodríguez scored from the
spot to close the gap and the momentum
swung in favour of Colombia; they pressed
forward for an equaliser, sensing an upset
could be on the cards. Brazil were forced to
defend in numbers and were dealt a blow
when Neymar was injured seriously enough
to rule him out of the rest of the tournament.
Despite the further setback of losing captain
Silva to suspension, Brazil marched on to the
semi-finals.
France v. Germany 0-1 (0-1)
combined well and tested the Belgian
defence. Belgium upped the tempo in the
second half, with Mertens (14) in particular
causing the USA problems and bringing out
an astonishing performance from Howard
who made a World Cup-record number of
saves to hold the Red Devils to 0-0 until the
end of normal time. De Bruyne scored soon
into extra time and substitute Lukaku (9)
doubled the advantage before the end of the
first period. The Americans battled hard and
Green (16) pulled one back, but they were still
unable to escape elimination.
Quarter-finals
Brazil v. Colombia 2-1 (1-0)
Brazil adopted their usual attacking style in
this contest against Colombia. They went all
out and were rewarded with an early goal
in just the 7 th minute: from Neymar’s corner,
skipper Thiago Silva (3) tapped in from close
range. The goal drew an instant response
from Colombia, although Rodríguez, the
leading scorer, struggled to impose himself
on the game as the Brazilians harassed and
restricted him every time he had the ball. Hulk
(7) had a couple of scoring chances but they
were denied by keeper Ospina (1). The second
period offered up a great deal of drama.
As expected, the first half was a closely
contested affair, with both sides aiming to
nullify each other’s attacking threats. It was
the Germans who started the brightest and
threatened early on when Kroos (18) had a
shot blocked. France hit back with efforts
from Benzema (10) and Valbuena (8), but they
never really tested Neuer. Kroos then sent in a
curling free kick in the 13 th minute that found
Hummels (5), who headed home to give the
Germans the lead. France desperately chased
the equaliser but their attempts either missed
the target or were kept out by the keeper.
They continued to push forward but the
disciplined and organised German defence
proved difficult to break down and Neuer
was rarely called into action. The best chance
arrived in the 77 th minute, but Matuidi’s (14)
powerful shot from a tight angle was not
good enough to get past the keeper. German
substitute Schürrle twice went close to adding
his name to the score sheet but it mattered
little that he did not as Germany sealed their
place in the semi-finals.
Netherlands v. Costa Rica 0-0 a.e.t.,
5-3 PSO
Dutch coach Van Gaal set out an attacking
3-4-3 formation and his side enjoyed plenty
of possession early in the game, but it was
not until after the quarter-hour mark that
the Costa Rica keeper was tested. Having had
success in the group stage and the round of
16, the Ticos kept their 5-4-1 formation and
were once more very organised in defence
and dealt well with the ever-present threat