Saturday, June 10, 2006
Yes! The World Cup started yesterday!!! Well, at 11.30pm at my time. I watched the match, Germany against Costa Rica first, before watching the opening ceremony. I went to sleep at 3.00am today. I think they screened the match first to ensure the match being "live". Cuz I think they figured out that the match was more exciting than the opening ceremony, hich was actually true...
The score as 4-2. It was amazing and exhilarating from the start till the end. Just six minutes into the game, Philipp Lahm, the left winger, dribbled down to the left corner of the penalty area, before unleashing a powerful curve shot into the top corner. It was very well done and the 'keeper was caught unawares. It was Lahm's second international goal. And I think I'm gonna buy him for my Football Manager game, he's very good. The problem with Costa Rica was their lousy possession and first touch. They gave away the ball too easily in the first half, and even though it was better in the second half, it was still not good. The statistics showed it all. Possession %: Costa Rica 41%, Germany 59%. They are somewhat like a one-man team also. Their attack all depended on Paolo Wanchope, the striker who played in the EPL.
Anyway, after just six minutes, Costa Rica equalised, through Wanchope. Wanchope displayed good vision and anticipation when he scored the goal. It looked offside at first, and the Germans were very furious, but looking at the replay, you can see that one defender was behind him, at the opposite side of the field, far from the action area, so the Germans never saw him and thought Wanchope was offside.
The action had not ended yet. In just five minutes, the Germans struck again to restore their lead. This time, Klose, the striker scored.I remembered Klose. He scored many goals in the previous World Cup and his finishing is very good. He scored the third goal as well! After halftime, the game remained uneventful with Costa Rica losing possession often. You could see how tall the Germans were compared to the Costa Ricans and thus the Germans won headers easily. Lukas Podolski, who was said to be a clinical striker, remained anonymous throughout the game even though he had a few chances. There was one chance at the last few minutes of the game in which the right winger who replaced Schneider, the captain, crossed and Podolski could have scored easily. But instead he missed the ball and kicked a Costa Rican defender.=_='''
The third goal of the Germans as by Klose, as I have said. It was a corner and a Costa Rican player headed it, but Klose was there to receive the header and the Costa Rican 'keeper could only parry it away, allowing Klose to follow up his shot with an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net.
3-1.
But the Costa Ricans ere determined and Wanchope once again broke free of the last defender with the 'keeper to beat, and received the pass. When it looked like one German player was going to tackle it away, he flicked it to the right corner of the net.
3-2. A silver lining?
Apparently not. The last German goal sealed the victory in the 80-something minute. A screamer from outside the penalty box by the replacement captain for Schneider, wo's name I think as Frings or something like that, broke into the net like a charging bull. You should have seen how Ballack, the real captain of the Germans, reacted. He jumped out of his seat in the dugout. The rest of the Germans wre hugging each other. Ballack was out with a injured thigh which did not heal in time and even though he did not get to play, he looked happy enough with the win. Unlike him, Oliver Kahn, the previous German 'keeper No. 1, was slouching and looking glum. But when Lehmann let in two goals, his face as like saying, "See what happens if you don't choose me?" So, it as over. A thrilling starter to the World Cup. But still will not make you forget how France lost to Senegal surprisingly in 2002.
The Costa Ricans wre more of an attacking side, and you could see their defence all over the place, not marking and allowing the Germans to make killer passes. When the Germans were up 4-2, they were taking as many shots as they could take to get moe goals. It was amazing to see that even the right winger took his chance and tried to score from the right area of the quarter of the field.
Let's hope we can catch a glimpse of Theo Walcott in action today against Paraguay!
