………………………………………………………………………………….. ………one of …….one of the …. One of the things I like about the rest of the world is that it’s different than America.
No, thank you South Africa, from the rest of us.
In sport here, it’s win or go home. When you capture a championship, there’s a big parade and every little thing each player does is on SportsCenter for weeks afterwards.
To come in second, however, is complete failure. For all that anyone remembers of your season, you may as well have finished last. Never mind a consolation game between two losers. If someone went dancing through the streets of New York or LA screaming, “We’re number three! We’re number three!,” people would think the happy fool was off his nut and, like as not, call social services.
Thankfully, soccer fans in other parts of the globe treat the World Cup more like the Olympics than the Super Bowl. And rightly so. Where is the glory in winning a championship if the teams you overcame were not worth remembering? Thus, coming into their match today, Germany and Uruguay carried the banners of thirty teams who struggled in admirable but vain pursuit of the World Cup Trophy.
The linesman refuses to help Joachim Low discover who stole his 'lucky' sweater.
A young German squad, led by a maverick coach, came to South America to find not much was expected of them, compared to past sides led by such legends as Lothar Mattheus, Gerd Mueller and Franz Beckenbauer. Although, after scoring four goals in each of three matches, including startlingly dominant elimination round dismantlings of both England and Argentina, those expectations quickly rose.
Before defeating Germany, Spain had looked very sluggish in most of their encounters and were thought to be lucky to have reached the last four. In controlling the daunting young Germans, the Spanish reminded everyone of just how strong they were, even when not at their best. Thanks to die Mannschaft’s performance in the matches leading up to the semi-final, no one can claim that the European champions had an easy route to the title match.
The mercurial Uruguayans and their youthful striker, Luis Suarez, had a tournament which will not soon be forgotten, for reasons both good and bad. The handball at the end of the quarter-final with Ghana, along with the brazen pride shown in its aftermath will spark debate for a year and a day at least. Still, as the fifth and last qualifier from South America, their spot only secured after a two legged tie with Costa Rica, Uruguay traveled a long, hard road to South Africa.
The Suarez incident likely will but shouldn’t be the defining moment of their competition. This squad also deserve to be remembered for having the courage and confidence to open up against a strong Mexican side, going for the win to champion the group, when a pedestrian draw would have seen both sides safely through. They should also be celebrated for pushing the Dutch to the death, after the game with Ghana, doing so without the potent fourty-nine goal threat of the precocious Suarez.
FIFA, for its part, is happy to provide a relatively meaningless game at this point in the tournament. After overdosing soccer fans with fifty-six matches in just nineteen days, to start the competition, the weaning process then began in the winding down to the final. Consisting of far fewer contests with ever longer intervals between, the sudden lack of supply has left severely addicted fans with an epic case of the football jones. This match is the methadone, administered by Herr Dr. Blatter, to see us through to tomorrow’s (hopefully) exciting finish.
Historically, too, the consolation matches have been very entertaining affairs. Neither side has anything at stake, beyond their pride, and are thus free to open up, express themselves and show everything of which they are capable.
Today’s game certainly began in that tradition. The early play was up and down the pitch. Dennis Aogo, one of several reserve players handed a World cup start by Joachim Löw, was a little over-enthusiastic. He narrowly escaped a straight red card, coming in hard, studs up on Diego Perez. Happily, the referee chose not to get too involved in the match. On four minutes, Thomas Mueller found the net for Germany but was ruled offside. Two proper calls in a row. How refreshing.
On their first sustained attack, Uruguay earned a free kick from about twenty-five metres, directly in front of goal. Diego Forlan’s first effort went off the elbow of Cacau, earning him a yellow card and Forlan a second unsuccessful try from ten metres closer. Germany would then garner a series of corners in the Uruaguayan end. Mesut Ozil sent one of them deep, to the far post, where Arne Friedrich would connect on a fade-away header that rebounded off the crossbar.
Müller steals the first kiss, as Germany goes in front early.
Certainly a busy opening 10 minutes.
Germany’s strategy was to attack down the left wing. At eighteen minutes, they broke on a counter, with Bastien Schweinsteiger finding Marcel Jansen on the flank. After penetrating almost to the touchline, Lukas Podolski’s understudy sent the ball back out to Schweini, beyond the box, mid-pitch. The Bayern midfielder hit a low swerving shot which confused Fernando Muslera. The keeper managed to get in front of the missile but allowed it to carom straight out into the penalty area. Thomas Müller, back from his harsh suspension, pounced onto the rebound and deposited it into the twine. Germany one, Uruguay nil.
The Germans, emboldened by the gaffe, quickly tested the shaken netminder twice more but Muslera gave no further ground. Uruguay regrouped, probing the German back line for weakness. On twenty five minutes, a cross into Forlan for a half volley, was deflected away by Per Mertesacker and the ensuing corner cleared off the line by Friedrich. Hans-Jörg Butt, in goal for Manuel Neuer, hadn’t yet had much to do.
Cavani is king of the world as Uruguay quickly level.
Uruguay, as always, refused to let up and, a moment later, broke on a counter. Suarez, coming down the middle, found Edinson Cavani racing down the left. Cavani outpaced the lanky Mertesacker and drilled a shot passed an onrushing Butt, into the far side netting. Germany one, Uruguay one, with less than a half hour gone. If only the final is played at this pace!
After Cavani’s strike, the skies over Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium opened up and the rain came down as heavily as the attacks on goal. Both sides continued to be aggressive. The linesmen were well exercised, raising their flags for offsides several times. Then with less than five minutes to the break, Forlan put Suarez through on a diagonal run to the right. Suarez curled back towards goal and released a laser that beat Butt (hehe, he said beat butt) but was just wide of the outside post.
At the other end, Schweinsteiger blasted an inviting free kick off the wall after Diego Lugano was booked for at first unintentionally and then intentionally handling the ball. Soon after, Uruguay were able to launch one more raid into German territory but the score remained knotted at one at the half time whistle.
Forlan cuts into Germany, scissoring the ball into goal.
Early after the restart, the Germans dominated possession but had no joy. Suddenly, the Uruguayans broke on a counterattack. Edigio Arevalo sent a waist high ball into the top of the box towards a waiting Forlan. The Atletico striker executed a perfect scissor kick to put the ball past a screened Hans-Jörg Butt. The lead was short lived, though. Minutes later, at the opposite end, Jerome Boateng crossed into the box and Marcel Jansen put his header past an awkward looking Muslera.
Jansen's kung fu is strong, though, and the goalward ball pulls Germany even.
Forlan’s goal, by the way, was his fifth of the tournament, drawing him level with Golden Boot contenders Wesley Sneijder and David Villa. Ten minutes into the second half, the goal output had doubled. Nor did it look like that would be the end of the deluge.
Shortly after the equaliser, Germany stormed up the pitch again, led by Boateng. The Ghanian born defender fed the ball to Mesut Ozil on the left but the German of Turkish descent tried to dribble past two defenders rather than return the favour. The attack fizzled and Uruguay went on the offensive. Suarez unleashed a cannon to the far post, parried well by Butt. Forlan couldn’t get everything behind another opportunity and Butt was up to the challenge, again.
Several more chances for both sides went either wide or over the bar. Then Stephan Kiebling, on for Cacau, split a pair of defenders on the left side of the box, moved in and forced a tough save from Muslera with fifteen minutes remaining.
Khedira follows the bouncing ball...
Ozil continued to try to beat multiple defenders on the dribble. He did it late against Spain, too. His skill is a great thing to see and frightening on a German side. Still, he must learn to use his teammates.
On eighty minutes, Ozil found himself in a situation wherein he had to pass the ball. He took the corner kick and sent it into the box. Uruguay was unable to clear and the ball pinballed to Sami Khedira, whose cross-net header sailed over an outstretched Muslera and nestled in the far upper ninety. Germany three, Uruguay two was the score, with closing time fast approaching.
... and Muslera sings a sad tune.
As Ozil came off for the previously unused Serdar Tasci, the camera cut to a shot of Miroslav Klose. The Bayern striker, tepid for club but talismanic for country, was declared fit before the match, after a back injury cast his chase of Ronaldo’s World Cup goal scoring record in doubt. He did not play today, because the Germans, as is their wont, took the team route and granted several reserves the opportunity to shine, if only for a moment, on the world’s greatest stage. Klose is thirty-two and, so, unlikely to be a canditate for Brazil in four years. He has had a great World Cup career and, hopefully, will be content with having matched the great Gerd Müller’s tally before bowing out.
Uruguay became desperate in their assault on the German goal. They rushed their efforts and Germany were able to handle matters easily. With even more space opening up in the Uruguay rearguard, Kiebling blasted another chance, a very good one, which he wasted over the bar.
Next time, Basti may have to wait an extra day to collect his medal.
Then, at the death, Arne Friedrich served up a helping of karma to the Uruguayans. As Suarez ran under an enticing long ball, the centre back wrestled him to the ground. It wasn’t as severe an infraction as Suarez’ handball but Friedrich was booked by the official as Forlan stood over Uruguay’s last chance of the match. His effort was heroic. It curled over the wall and the outstretched right hand of Butt, before dipping towards goal. Unfortunately, it struck the bar and bounded harmlessly away. Ironically similar to the conclusion of the match versus Ghana, only with Uruguay this time on the short end of the stick, Forlan’s miss, like Asamoah Gyan’s spot kick, also off the crossbar, was the last act of a very dramatic contest.
The Uruguayans scrambled to set up a corner but the referee felt that it was time to get out of the rain and his shrill whistle, rather than the deeper peals of a bell, tolled the end of the South American’s surprising and event-filled World Cup run.
The final score was three to two for Germany and, despite an uncharacteristic lack of attention to defense, on the day, the Germans were once again the number three team at the world’s greatest tournament. There will be people celebrating in the streets and good on ‘em, I say.
Both teams opened up from the start and went after the match throughout. With much more at stake, that is not likely to be the case tomorrow. Hopefully, though, Spain and the Netherlands will be bold enough to take some chances and treat us to a memorable final. If that happens, today’s match will serve as a consolation for the players only and not for World Cup fans.
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