Two more sides saw their 2010 World Cup dreams come crashing down last night over in South Africa, as the second round of the tournament came to a close and the world waits for the quarterfinals to start.
It was a 1-0 win for Spain which sees them through to a quarterfinal clash with Paraguay on the 3rd of July at the Ellis Park Stadium.
Kicking off the action last night was the fixture between Paraguay and Japan at the Loftus Versfeld Stadium in Pretoria.
While we tipped it as being a close one, the game went to the wire after a goalless score line at both the 90 and 120 minute mark with the dreaded penalties the decider.
It is widely regarded as one of the toughest ways to exit any sporting tournament, let alone the prestigious World Cup, and will no doubt see the Japanese left wondering what could have been had they capitalised on missed opportunities after losing 5-3 on spot-kicks.
The tension between the two – both never having reached the quarterfinals of the world cup, was apparent as neither wanted to appear vulnerable, however after 20 minutes of sussing each other out, the goalkeepers became including in the match.
Both sides had their chances, with Roque Santa Cruz shooting just wide of goal awakening the Japanese defence who replied with an opportunity of their own down the other end of the pitch through Keisuke Honda.
Despite a barrage of attacks by the South Americans in the second half, the gallant performance by Japan’s back four and Eiji Kawashima in goal kept them in the match, and took them to extra time, which saw no real opportunities from either side.
The game then turned to penalties, and saw just one man from nine miss – Yuichi Komano, who saw his strike hit the cross-bar and rise to the rafters, capitalised on by Oscar Cardozo who kept his cool when he stepped up to the mark with the pressure of a top eight place, and converted the winning penalty to rapturous scenes from his teammates, while the Japanese were left to wipe away their tears.
Paraguay then looked to the second fixture of the evening to see who would be their opponent in their first ever World Cup quarterfinal.
It was between two European heavyweights at the Green Point Stadium, as neighbours Spain and Portugal went head-to-head.
It was just a single goal which ended the dream of the Portuguese, as another moment of David Villa magic took Spain on to the quarterfinals of the 2010 World Cup.
From the kick-off it looked to be a high-scoring affair, although fantastic performances by both keepers ensured it was more a spectacle of attempts boiling down to who could manage the break through.
Fernando Torres proved he is back to his former fitness with a fantastic strike which Eduardo did well to push off the backline, while Tiago then responded with a fast paced shot from 30 metres which Iker Casillas could not control, the ball rebounding into the path of an oncoming Hugo Almeida. However, the Spanish skipper managed to get back into place.
The score was goalless as the sides broke for half time, thanks to superb saves down either end, and Spain came out looking more threatening, showing glimpses of a World Cup winning team for the first time this tournament.
It was just after the hour mark where the game changed, with Villa once again stepping up to the table for his nation as he capitalised on his own rebound to lift the ball over the keeper and into the goal via the crossbar.
The flow was then dominantly with the Spanish whose main goal was to keep possession, which they managed while absorbing some half decent attacks from the Portuguese.
It was a 1-0 win for Spain which sees them through to a quarterfinal clash with Paraguay on the 3rd of July at the Ellis Park Stadium, as a side which has proved they have a contender for the Golden Boot in Villa, and a man who can take the game by the scruff of the net to turn it around in Xabi Alonso.
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