Review: Day 14

Group E

     Holland   2-1   Cameroon

      Denmark   1-3   Japan

Final Standings:

1. Holland

2. Japan

3. Denmark

4. Cameroon

Japanese expertise with the dead ball was enough to hep the Blue Samurai qualify for the last 16 outside their own country for the very first time. In many ways this World Cup has been a disaster for African teams but for the the Asian representatives it has been an undoubted success even at this reasonably early stage.

Japan are the only group runner up so far to have won two of their three games. Even a couple of group winners have failed to record two victories. One of those two sides is Paraguay, who are up next for the Japanese next week.

Only four goals have been scored direct from free kicks thus far. Three have been by Asian players and the other came for Nigeria rather fortuitously. Two came last night for Japan against Denmark and their was nothing Thomas Sorensen could do to stop them.

Firstly Keisuke Honda shot spectacularly from 35 yards out. His piledriver swerved and dipped beyond the hapless keeper and it wasn't too long before Yasuhito Endo bent his effort around the Danish wall and into the bottom right hand corner. Thirty minutes were gone and the game was already over. Denmark needed three to progress.

The best was still to come however. A combination of quick passing, sharp movement and good balance saw Shinji Okazaki slot home a third from 12 yards out.

Honda is fast making a name for himself. Is excellent early year form with CSKA Moscow has been improved upon here and the forward was the best player on the pitch in Rustenburg. His pace, free kick ability and quality on the ball will all be needed if the Blue Samurai are to outdo the South Koreans this year.

Denmark went into the game as favourites and started well but after two sucker punches before the half hour mark they were dead and buried. More was expected of Olsen's Eleven having qualified so impressively, even beating Portugal in Lisbon. Ultimately, they have been a disappointment and it's the first time in their four World Cup appearances that Denmark have failed to progress to the Knockout stages. 

The Netherlands finished off a clean sweep of group victories against Cameroon in what was a more entertaining performance than what has gone before. Robin van Persie is off the mark and Arjen Robben is back from injury so the Dutch will take a lot of satisfaction from their nights work.

With Cameroon already out and the Dutch practically assured of top spot this was the closest thing to a dead rubber that was on offer in the first round. All of the other 15 final group matches have a defining purpose, bar perhaps North Korea versus Ivory Coast but the miracle may transpire.

When the Indomitable Lions look back on their campaign they will know that this was an opportunity missed, much like Nigeria will be feeling. They were lifeless in losing to Japan and should have beaten Denmark. Chances were spurned and somehow they lost all three games. Paul Le Guen has already announced his intention to quit after two weeks of dressing room upheaval.

Holland march on to face Slovakia in yet another game in which the opposition will try to stifle their attacking variations. Robben may prove to be the spark and finally brings the Oranje to life.

Group F

           Italy   2-3   Slovakia

    New Zealand   0-0   Paraguay

Final Standings:
1. Paraguay
2. Slovakia
3. New Zealand
4. Italy

Italy experienced their most embarrassing campaign since 1974 but at least they were involved in the game of the tournament. With an hour played both the Azzurri and the Slovaks forgot how to defend and started playing at 100 m/ph, although it could be said the Italians had already forgotten how to defend.

The game opened up in the blink of an eye as Slovakia sought after a decisive second goal and Italy chased the equaliser they needed to progress. Once Robert Vittek made it 2-0 after 73 minutes the game was up for the Italians. A triumph for youth over experience was only a quarter of an hour away.

The Slovaks were a let down in their first two games. They played defensively even against New Zealand and clearly played for a draw in the 2-0 defeat to Paraguay. A win was the only way forward in Soccer City though and it was fully warranted for their lively, enthusiastic performance here.

The Slovaks would have found some new supporters for the manner in which they dismantled the world champions if not for the dramatics late in the game. A series of incidents saw the eastern Europeans feigning injury on the floor. Luckily Howard Webb is not so easily fooled and didn't put up with any theatrics.

For all their time wasting the Italians had their chance to score the crucial equalizer but Simone Pepe was wasteful at the back post in the 94th minute. The resulted goal kick ended Italy's reign and brought a halt to this team. Revolution is in the air.

In all three displays they conceded first and were clearly lacking in ideas in how to break down their opponents. The cream of Serie A is certainly not Italian.

Note: Fabio Quagliarella scored the best goal of the tournament so far in the final minutes.

Slovakia will be joined by Paraguay in round two. Their game with the New Zealand All Whites was played out in the shadows of the amazing events in Johannesburg but a draw was enough to both see them top the group and forge the All Whites reputation as heroes at home despite their elimination.

Paraguay will be hard to break down for anyone and preserves South America's unbeaten record in this World Cup, while New Zealand's three draws is an astounding feat for a team expected to be soundly beaten in all three of their games.