Little Dutch boy leads Holland to victory over never-give-up Uruguay
Wesley Sneijder snagged his fifth goal of the tournament as Holland beat Uruguay in Cape Town to reach the World Cup Final for the third time in the country’s history. But this was no tiptoe through the tulips for the Dutch.
Both sides started the match with key men unavailable. Uruguay were missing defenders Lugano (knee) and Fucile (suspension), as well as the now notorious striker Luis Suarez, whose handball save off the line against Ghana ultimately proved his team’s salvation in the quarter-finals, but earned him a red card and a suspension.
The Dutch, on the other hand, were missing midfielder de Jong and defender van der Wiel, both through suspension.
Dutch strike first
Left fullback Giovanni van Bronckhorst put Holland out front in the 18th minute with a thunderbolt of a left foot wallop from 35 yards. Such was the power and accuracy of the shot that Uruguay keeper Muslera was simply unable to elongate himself sufficiently to reach his top left corner, though he tried mightily. 0-1 Holland.
The Dutch lead, however, only encouraged the South Americans to emerge from their conservative shell. Their attacking efforts gained them the momentum and they looked the better of the two sides for the remainder of the half.
Uruguay’s endeavor was rewarded in the 41st minute when skipper Diego Forlan took control of the ball
and cut into the middle from where he unleashed a curling left foot shot from 30 yards. The bend deceived Dutch keeper Stekelenburg and Uruguay were back on level terms. The half ended 1-1.
The South Americans nearly extended their lead in the 51st minute when a poor back pass by Dutch fullback Khalid Boulahrouz caused a moment of panic. Stekelenburg was forced to come out and challenge for the ball. It rebounded to Alvaro Pereira who attempted to chip into the goal. It may not have been goal-bound, but it was a close call and the Dutch were surely relieved to see van Bronckhorst there to head the ball clear.
In the 70th Holland took the lead for good when Sneijder’s shot flicked off two defenders and inside Muslera’s far post. 1-2 Holland.
Questions of offside against van Persie might have caused more controversy had the Dutch not scored again just three minutes later on a fine header by Robben off a cross from the left by Kuyt. 1-3 Holland.
But Uruguay were not to be beaten easily. They pulled a goal back when Maxi Pereira ran onto a free kick and beat Stekelenburg with a fine low shot from the edge of the penalty box. Despite adversity, Uruguayan tails were up; they clearly believed in themselves. Time ran out, though, as desperate Dutch clearances soaked up time in the waning moments. Uruguay 2-3 Holland.
Whether or not you admire the manner in which Uruguay dispatched Ghana to get to the semi-finals, few would question the honesty of their effort tonight against Holland.
Wednesday's semi: Germany vs Spain
Spain will try to follow-up their Euro championship of two years ago with a World Cup, but they’ll have to overcome a speedy and enterprising young German squad.
Spain has allowed only two goals in the tournament so far. There’s a possibility, however, that key defender Carlos Puyol may be unavailable due to injury.
In the Spanish attack David Villa is in the running for the Golden Boot, the award to the highest goal scorer. Villa has five goals. Liverpool’s Fernando Torres, however, has been a flop so far. Yet Spain boss Vicente Del Bosque has suggested he’ll stick with El Nino for the Germany game. (For how long? That would be the question.)
In contrast to Spain’s miserly defense, the Germans have been cutting through opposition defenses lately like a knife through butter. Key striker Thomas Muller, however, is suspended for the semi-final, the result of a harsh refereeing decision. Still, Miroslav Klose is now second on the all-time World Cup goal scoring list with 14, and will be seeking to beat the Brazilian Ronaldo who has 15.
Lukas Podolski is a proven scorer too, and with Bastian Schweinsteiger and Mesut Ozil both in fine form the German scoring threat is still very real.
Terrible news for the Germans, however…
Paul the prophetic octopus has picked Spain to beat Germany in Wednesday’s other semi-final clash.
All is not necessarily lost, though. It is reported that although Paul’s World Cup 2010 predictions for Germany have been 100% accurate so far, he apparently only achieved an 80% success rate in Euro 2008.
(See our World Cup Round Up for July 1 for more about Paul https://www.livesoccertv.com/news/1180/world-cup-round-up-for-july-1-2010/)
Holland’s previous appearances in a World Cup Final
1974: Lost 2-1 to West Germany in West Germany
1978: Lost 3-1 to Argentina in Argentina
Germany’s* previous appearances in a World Cup Final
(* Through 1990 it was West Germany)
1954: Champions with a 3-2 win over Hungary in Switzerland
1966: Lost to England 4-2 in overtime in England
1974: Champions with a 2-1 win over Holland in West Germany
1982: Lost to Italy 3-1 in Spain
1986: Lost to Argentina 3-2 in Mexico
1990: Champions with a 1-0 win over Argentina
2002: Lost 2-0 to Brazil in Japan
Spain’s previous appearances in a World Cup Final
It hasn’t yet happened mis amigos!
