A week of football splendour, joy and tears
Contrary to the sense of foreboding which existed in the lead up to the football World Cup, the action in Brazil has stayed largely within the dimensions of the playing field and has frequently touched heights commonly unexplored in the group stages of many of its previous incarnations.
The opening week of this FIFA World Cup has also produced a surge of severe shocks, the biggest of which was suffered by the defending world and double European champions Spain, who were sent crashing out of this year’s tournament, their first exit from a major competition in eight years.
Ivory Coast's goalkeeper Boubacar Barry jumps to block a shot on goal during the Group C football match between Colombia and Ivory Coast at the Mane Garrincha National Stadium in Brasilia. - AFP
Spain’s misery, which began during a 3-0 thrashing at the hands of Brazil during the finals of the Confederations Cup last year, grew exponentially in their world cup opener against the Netherlands. Although a replay of the previous world cup’s finals, the script was vastly different on this occasion.
This time Arjen Robben latched onto his chances, thumping in two goals to complement a pair from Robin Van Persie and one from Stefan De Vrij to give the Dutch a 5-1 win after the Spanish got onto the scoresheet through Xabi Alonso.
The whisperings of an end to Spain’s glorious football dynasty were made true at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, where Chile ripped to shreds the famous tiki-taka brand of football employed by Spanish manager Vincente del Bosque’s charges. By the end of their 2-0 loss, Spain’s fans looked more despondent than stunned, perhaps lamenting the end of their team’s chokehold over world football.
In stark contrast, the Netherlands have emerged as one of the teams to beat at this tournament. They followed their 5-1 slaughter of the Spaniards with a gutsy 3-2 victory over Australia after going down 2-1 early in the second half.
The Dutch will now confront the Chileans in an enticing clash which will decide who will finish at the top of Group B after Chile blitzed the Australians 3-1.
Another tournament upset was created when England, who were widely expected to get past their Group D cohabitants, suffered two losses and were sent spiraling to the edge of a precipice they will in all likelihood fall off. Their first 2-1 loss to Italy, despite disappointing fans, was nevertheless lauded for its offensive panache. They had gone toe-to-toe with one of the World Cup’s big guns and had not been bullied into submission.
However, they failed to draw any similar compliments in their defeat to a Uruguayan unit welcoming back its star striker, Liverpool’s Luiz Suarez, who missed their opener due to an injury he sustained in the run-up to the World Cup. After watching helplessly from the sidelines as Uruguay fell 3-1 to Costa Rica, Suarez was palpably eager to prove both his fitness and skill. He did both exquisitely, striking two goals which broke a million hearts back in Britain.
Despite Spain and England’s misfortunes, not many neutral fans have pinned their hopes on European teams, give that none has ever won a World Cup in South America. However, Germany are fast making a case against this argument with a brand of football which is as exciting as it is effective.
Their 4-0 drubbing of Portugal, will serve notice to everyone else in the reckoning for the FIFA World Cup Trophy that they are the side to beat. Heading into the competition, this tag lay securely with the host nation, but the Brazilians are turning out to be more fallible at the back than was first expected.
They were unconvincing and devoid of their usual creative verve in their win against Croatia despite the 3-1 scoreline and faced all kinds of problems in their 0-0 draw to Mexico. In their defence, both the Croatians and the Mexicans have shown themselves to be strong sides, with Mexico securing a clinical1-0 win over Cameroon and Croatia trouncing Cameroon 4-0.
But Brazil’s over-reliance on Neymar may prove to be their undoing, especially if their superstar striker has an off game or injury, a very real prospect in a long tournament being contested by merciless defenders in still more unforgiving conditions.
In the opening week’s other World Cup fixtures: Colombia beat Greece 3-0, Ivory Coast beat Japan 2-1, Switzerland beat Ecuador 2-1, France beat Honduras 3-0, Argentina beat Bosnia-Herzegovina 2-1, Iran drew against Nigeria 0-0, the United States beat Ghana 2-1, Belgium beat Algeria 2-1, Russia drew 1-1 with South Korea, Colombia beat Ivory Coast 2-1 and Japan held Greece to a goalless draw.