Half the Semis Settled

Friday's matches between Germany and Argentina, as well as the other quarterfinal, Italy and Ukraine, were about as opposite as two matches can be.

Italy cruised to an easy 3-0 win to advance to the July 4th semifinal in Dortmund. To date in the tournament, the Italians have allowed only a single goal, that to the U.S., in the Group E draw that was the lone point for the U.S., in this World Cup.




In an effort to deny the U.S. any credit for playing 'the world's game', though, that goal, a powerfully driven free kick by Claudio Reyna and sheparded in by a waiting-if-needed Brian McBride, was credited to Italy as an own goal, despite the defender's incidental contact with the shot not really making any difference on its ultimate destination. Oh, but there I go sounding bitter again....and without even mentioning again the Italian hand ball in their penalty box later in that match the officiating crew chose to overlook (oops).

In Germany's semifinal with Argentina, all the pieces were in place for a World Cup classic. The first half did not live up to those expectations as it was a plodding affair with neither team making an all-out offensive effort. It was Argentina which broke the scoreless match open with a 49th-minute, Roberto Ayala header off a corner kick, putting the pressure on the hosts to stay in the tournament.

A crunching mid-air collision with Argentinian goalkeeper, Roberto Abbondanzieri, and a German attacker would end up being one of the match's turning points. Unable to continue after a playing a few more minutes in obvious pain, perhaps from broken ribs, the Argentinian netminder was replaced by his substitute, Leonardo Franco, who was making his World Cup debut in the match's 71st minute. Given that sense of hope, and the additional lift of Argentina strangely taking off their two best players in Juan Riquelme and Hernan Crespo, perhaps to bolster the defense one can only suppose, the Germans were bouyed with a renewed energy.

Finally, in the 80th minute, German playmaker Michael Ballack scrapped possession of a ball onto the left flank, from where he served it high into the box on the back post. Attacker Tim Borowski found it with his head and sent it in the direction of the tournament's leading scorer, Miroslav Klose, who one-timed a second header just out of reach of the diving goalkeeper to level the match.

Playing through the remaining regulation and two 15-minute overtime periods, the match went to penalty kicks. Germany went first and successively made their first three alternating kicks. The Argentinians ran into problems when German 'keeper Jens Lehmann saved the second Argentinian shot, by Ayala, low to his left. With Germany converting their fourth spot kick, the pressure was on Argentina. The only place you don't want to put your kick is where the German 'keeper just made his save, but, you guessed it, the last-gasp Argentinian attempt, by Esteban Cambiasso, was low and to the Lehmann's left, into the waiting arms of a Germany victory and the home team's advancement to their 11th World Cup semifinal.

As with all the content of this blog, written and photographic, Copyrighted 2006, All Rights Reserved, Perry McIntyre, Atlanta, GA - USA.