Chile v. Switzerland 1-0 21/Jun/10

Second Round, Third Game, Group H, Day 11. (31 of 64)


As in the previous EURO, Frey goes out.
[Photo: AP via Daily Mail]


This was an interesting match in the statistical world. Today at Nelson Mandela Bay, the Swiss imposed a new long-life standing record of 559 minutes without conceding (yes I know the penalties against Ukraine doesn't count) during the course of three World Cups. While the match was rispid, due to the sent off of Valon Behrami, the Swiss imposed certain pace and style while defended in a similar fluid fashion as they did in their last game. Chile are still on the top and with a combination, certainly the EURO champions could leave the competition earlier than expected.

The following game, Spain against Honduras, will be crucial for the efforts of all four teams and this again will prove to be another treacherous group in which nothing is decided yet. Both games will be played at Pretoria and Bloemfontein on the 25th. Probably the most expected match will be the one of Spain but if you ask me, my football hunch tells me that the other one will prove to be the decisive one.



Offside.
[Photo: EPA via Daily Mail]


During the course of the match there were five bookings and one straight red card. In what appeared to be the dirtiest of matches in this World Cup, the Saudi referee Khalil Al Ghamdi did not manage well the situation from the beginning. It is a bit harsh that the note is on the disciplinary thing rather than the sportive. For example Arturo Vidal shot, which was countered by another fierce shot, were kept aside as Benaglio responded well. Carmona got booked on the 22nd, after making a harsh foul on Behrami. Probably this sparkled some of the near violent acts that got both teams into deliberating kicks and tackles: the best example was Behrami who punched with his elbow a Chilean player and got sent off with nearly fifteen minutes remaining.


The interesting stuff came with the next forty five minutes and naturally the game opened itself up due to the different things both teams tried to achieve. Despite a real interest of both squads in taking the three points the tackles remained the same with Inler and Fernández getting booked in the 60th minute. The goal was a beautifully woven masterpiece which was in offside position, hard to tell for the linesman since it was a close close call. Substitute Valdivia made a beautiful pass that split the defence that for the moment worked. Paredes, Fernández sub, crossed to find a lonely Gonzáles who hammered the ball and gave the late lead to Chile.

The opportunities that follow were clear but not enough to see a Chilean team securing their victory. Paredes, after a great set, missed the opportunity and took off wide. Valdivia also had his moment when he cut from the inside and shot after a great counter. The Swiss team were attacking fully and as they deployed their depleted arsenal cracks appeared in their defensive line due to the missing men. In the end Derdiyok shot wide after a great build up and the chances of a resurgence came all to a ghastly end for the European team.