It started with a message from Viki about whether I am following the match tonight. Just coming back from a great dinner with AD, I was quite uncertain of which teams are playing. AD confirmed it was Ger vs Por. Something exciting!! Clash of contenders!!
Got home. Turned on the TV and Portugal was down 2-0. WWT? Is it for real. I thought I read it with a drunkard's eyes. But the reality refused to budge even when I rubbed my eyes twice and focused on the score board. Germans were ruling the defenseless star-studded Portugal side.
Half time and Germans charged 2-0. And then the rather lame side started looking a bit more aggressive. And then it happened the first goal from Portugal side. A brilliant one scored by the band-wagon of the team. A ray of hope, crowned the face of Scholari, Mr. experienced coach. He was delighted and punched the air more than the times he would have punched his pillow on a rather bad day. While he was deeply submerged in the hopes, Ballack had a perfect position for a goal that would provide a bigger lead. Ricardo had nothing else to do but to watch at the passing checked black and white bullet.
Germans had increased the pace of their attack. Though Portugal had maximum possession in the second half, Germans had capatilised on majority of the opportunities. The passes from Petit, Ronaldo, Deco, Nani were close to perfection but what lacked was application. A day when they would have scored easily over Germany they played like a disintegrated unit. A team which had all the big names of the game, was not a team anymore. And when Germans were leading 3-1, the 2 replacements worked magic. With around just 7 minutes remaining Germans were shocked with the 2nd goal from Portugal. However, with less time remaining, and in spite of 4 minutes of stoppage time, Portugal failed to find the equalizer. They were knocked out by the Germans, in a game that they thought they ruled. With sad faces on Portugal side, Germans had the last laugh.
Who's next???
1 comment:
Yeah....a nice match.
My sacrifice of sleep for a couple of hours was worth...good show by teams.
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