World Cup Results: Day 15

by John Boschini

Brazil 0, Portugal 0

Brazil topped the proverbial “Group of Death” with relative ease with Portugal following them into the knockout rounds courtesy of a 0-0 draw.

It was a day when two of the most prolific offenses in the game created a fair amount of chances and half-chances but couldn’t finish them off. Brazilian striker Nilmar’s close-range effort was pushed onto the post by Portugese goalkeeper Eduardo for the only close call of the opening half.

But what the first half was full of was yellow cards, seven players were cautioned during the opening period as these longtime rivals played physical soccer.

The second half offered a few chances but Brazil’s Julio Cesary and Eduardo showed why they are two of the best keepers in the world.

Brazilian manager Dunga was not impressed by Portugal’s defensive setup “”We played to win, but our opponent didn’t,” Dunga said. “We always tried to attack, but they only tried to take advantage of our mistakes.”

Ivory Coast 3, North Korea 0

The Ivory Coast was unable to overcome near-impossible odds to qualify for the round of 16 but ended their World Cup campaign on a high note with a 3-0 defeat of already-eliminated North Korea.

The Elephants knocked in two early goals. Yaya Toure opened the scoring in the 16th minute with a fantastic shot from the top of the box. Romaric added one two minutes later on a rebound when Didier Drogba’s bullet ricocheted off the post. The Ivory Coast couldn’t score again until the 82nd minute when Salomon Kalou scored his only goal of the tournament.

“Our World Cup is over today,” Ivory Coast captain Didier Drogba said. “But I think we can be proud of what we did against Portugal and against Brazil, even if we lost, and today.

Spain 2, Chile 1

Spain survived their first-round scare to win group H and avoid a second round date with Brazil with a 2-1 over Chile, the first South American team to lose in the tournament.

David Villa capatalized on a Chilean goalkeeping error with a shot from 45 yards out into an open net in the 24th minute. Andres Iniesta added one 37 minutes later to double Spain’s lead.

Marco Estrada was sent off during the goal celebration for a second yellow card for tripping Fernando Torres and Chile was reduced to 10 men.

Rodrigo Millar’s shot deflected off Gerard Pique’s shin and into the net to bring one back for Chile but that was the last offensive moment of the game as both teams knew they would advance with a 2-1 result.

Switzerland 0, Honduras 0

Switzerland could not conquer Honduras and both teams are going home in the first round despite Switzerland’s surprising defeat of Spain.

Switzerland needed a two-goal win to advance out of group G but showed their offensive ineptitude when they are unable to counterattack. Hondruas salvaged some pride by finishing the World Cup with at least a point. It was a game of few chances with neither team looking like they wanted to make an offensive push.

“We had an incredible Diego Benaglio who kept us in the game,” Switzerland coach Ottmar Hitzfeld said. “But as far as our creative play, that’s not something I can be happy with. I’m not happy with my strikers, either.”