Good morning, TSFers! Is anybody World Cup-ed out yet? Too bad! The matches will continue until morale improves. We’ve reached the halfway point of the Group Stage. Yesterday, only Germany booked a place in the knockouts, although the Netherlands and Japan should feel pretty comfortable with their four points apiece.
Today’s games are all between teams that drew their opening matches. Groups G and H are open for the taking. You’d expect Spain to bounce back. Probably Belgium too, although their side
seemed unbalanced, and they’re playing Iran, who looked frisky. Uruguay should take care of business against Cape Verde unless goalkeeper Vozinha plays another blinder. New Zealand-Egypt should be an interesting, even matchup.
Today’s action, points in parenthesis:
Spain (1) vs. Saudi Arabia (1), 12 pm ET, FOX
Belgium (1) vs. Iran (1), 3 pm ET, FS1
Uruguay (1) vs. Cape Verde (1), 6 pm ET, FS1
New Zealand (1) vs. Egypt (1), 9 pm ET, FS1
Netherlands 5 – Sweden 1
The Dutch swapped natural striker Brian Brobbey up top for Donyell Malen, who started their first game, and the result was immediate and fantastic. The attack, which was stagnant against Japan, sprung to life in the opening minutes, with Brobbey scoring in the 5th and 17th minute. It was 4-0 before Sweden pulled one back.
Germany 2 – Cote d’Ivoire 1
Breakout star Yan Diomande set up a Franck Kessie goal in the 30th minute to open the scoring. The 19-year old winger is something else. German substitute Deniz Undav scored in the 68th minute to level the scoreline and tallied a 94th minute winner to book Germany’s place in the knockouts.
Ecuador 0 – Curacao 0
Curacao goalkeeper Eloy Room had the match of his life en route to earning the island nation their first point at the World Cup. Ecuador peppered his goal but with some help from his posts, he kept them out. Ecuador have played decently well in both matches but they can’t seem to find the back of the net. They need to beat Germany to advance. Fortunately, the Germans have already clinched the group, so Ecuador might get less than their best.
Japan 4 – Tunisia 0
It turns out the manager may not have been the problem for Tunisia, who followed up their 5-1 loss with a 4-0 defeat against Japan. Their 9 goals against are the most by any country at the tournament so far. Daichi Kamada kept up the MD2 early goal trend, putting Japan ahead 1-0 in the 4th minute. They added goals in the 31st, 69th, and 83rd.
