However, a superb solo effort from West Brom’s Youssuf Mulumbu, who scored five minutes from time with a brilliant shot into the top corner after beating several Blackpool defenders, set up a dramatic finish.

Austria international Paul Scharner then went close to an equaliser for Roberto di Matteo’s side, who remained sixth despite this defeat, when he headed narrowly wide from a free-kick before Steven Reid blasted over the top.

Both promoted sides had chances to score further goals and, in the final minute of the four added on at the end of the game, West Brom forced a corner only for Blackpool to catch them on the counter-attack.

But DJ Campbell shot wide to fray Blackpool manager Ian Holloway’s nerves.

Oliver’s decision to show red card to ‘last man’ Ibanez, who brought down Campbell in the box in the 11th minute, was questionable as Jara was still in close attendance.

But Oliver had no hesitation in pointing to the spot and Adam scored from the ensuing penalty, despite former England goalkeeper Scott Carson getting a hand to the ball.

“I think the game as a spectacle, with the rules the referee has got to apply…I’d prefer a yellow card (to Ibanez) and the penalty,” Holloway told Sky Sports.

“It’s a great move, probably the best of the game, a great ball from Charlie to DJ Campbell, who has turned him. But is it really a sending off?

“I thought that really ruined the game as a spectacle.”

Holloway added: “We are trying to learn to play at this level. I’ve never had that (playing against nine) as a manager before but I’m delighted we’ve won at home, even though we’ve had only four home games this season.

“That’s 13 points we’ve got now and 13 points at this stage of the season, I’d like to say to the people who said we’d only get 10, ‘you are wrong again’.

“We are going to improve and get better.”

West Brom have won plaudits for their passing game this season but there was no denying the brutality of Jara’s two-footed challenge on Varney near the corner flag that saw the Chilean defender sent off in the 29th minute.

“It would have been nice to see a good football game but that was destroyed by the events on the night,” said West Brom boss di Matteo.

“The first incident was a penalty but, in my opinion, it was not a sending-off as we had a player who was close enough,” the former Chelsea and Italy midfielder added.

“The second one, he got it right the referee, it was a sending-off.

“Our player (Jara), he lost it a bit in the head with the first decision and he made a terrible tackle. Then we just had to try not to concede another goal and hit them on the break.”

Despite their seemingly insurmountable handicap, West Brom continued to press and there was a sense of relief among home fans when Varney turned in a cross from Elliot Grandin past Carson just after the hour mark.

Milan now trail Lazio by just two points in second place while Napoli, who were by far the better side for long periods, even with 10 men, remain sixth.

“We exploited our numerical advantage until it was 2-0 but then we struggled with a lack of concentration and some mistakes,” said Milan coach Massimilliano Allegri.

“Napoli had a great desire to equalise, we lost many one-on-one battles and fluffed our final balls.

“We’re on 17 points, we’ve had four (league) wins in a row, we just messed up in Madrid.”

Napoli coach Walter Mazzarri said his team were unrecognisable until they were down to 10 men.

“We need to forget the league table and play with calm, the responsibility of being near the top inhibits. We weren’t us,” he said.

“After taking this ridiculous sending off, paradoxically we played better but I would have preferred to stay with 11.”

Napoli, as ever, were slow out of the blocks and the first chance fell to Milan as Robinho’s low shot was saved by Morgan De Sanctis on the quarter hour.

But on 22 minutes they were ahead as Robinho played a one-two with substitute Massimo Oddo before finishing inside the far corner.

However, Napoli’s disorganised defending was the true architect as they had seven defenders and their goalkeeper in the area but still failed to pick up the Brazilian’s run.

The reaction from the hosts was swift as four minutes later Lavezzi got down the right and crossed for Marek Hamsik, whose near post toe-poke went wide.

Hamsik then crossed from the left but Edinson Cavani missed his shot and substitute Hassan Yebda attacked with the wrong foot, playing the ball almost back to where it had come from.

Andrea Dossena got down the left and crossed for Cavani but he didn’t get hold of his shot and it bobbled wide.

Pazienza was then dismissed, somewhat harshly, for a second yellow card after picking up both for handball offences.

Zlatan Ibrahimovic tried an acrobatic effort from seven yards that De Sanctis parried in stoppage time.

And before the half-time whistle Christian Abbiati made a stunning one-handed save from Lavezzi’s diving header after Hamsik’s pin-point cross.

Even down to 10 men, Napoli were on the attack after the break and Lavezzi volleyed just over from Dossena’s centre.

But Milan were dangerous on the counter and Ibrahimovic should have done better than curl a shot into De Sanctis’s arms when well placed.

Midway through the second period Milan wasted a two-on-two break as Ibrahimovic’s pass to Pato was too strong and De Sanctis blocked the Brazilian’s shot from an angle.

Napoli paid again for poor defending on 71 minutes as Oddo burst down the right and crossed into the centre where the unmarked Ibrahimovic headed home from six yards out.

Lavezzi was a thorn in Milan’s side all night and a determined run down the right saw him skip past Sokratis Papastathopoulos with a clever back-heel and tee up Cavani who, having an awful night, shot well wide.

But on 78 minutes he went shoulder to shoulder with Papastathopoulos again and after they both fell over, Lavezzi over the ball, the Argentine managed to quickly stand up and flick the ball over Abbiati and in off the bar.

De Sanctis made a late save to deny Mathieu Flamini and even charged forwards for a couple of corners but Napoli were left frustrated despite a stirring fight-back and inspired play from Lavezzi.

However, the current Spain side have got used to making history, topping the world rankings for the first time in 2008 and then equalling Brazil’s 35-match unbeaten run, including 15 straight wins, over a period of 28 months.

Spain also became the first team to win the World Cup after losing their first match, having fallen to a shock 1-0 loss against Switzerland.

Coach Vicente del Bosque said after the World Cup final win over the Netherlands that Spain were still an emerging force and the current, youthful generation could certainly go on to create a dynasty.

“This group is very humble and modest and the World Cup success draws from what we did in 2008,” said del Bosque.

“Almost all the players in the current squad will remain available (for the Euro 2012 finals and 2014 World Cup) and there are also younger guys pushing for a place.”

Barcelona trio Sergi Busquets, 22, Pedro Rodriguez, 23, and Gerard Pique, 23 — along with Arsenal’s Cesc Fabregas, 23 — are still at the beginning of their careers, while Andres Iniesta and Fernando Torres, both 26, are reaching their peak.

Liverpool forward Torres, the scorer of the winning goal in the Euro 2008 final, was only half-fit for the 2010 World Cup so, in theory, Spain should be even stronger at Euro 2012.

The world champions still need to qualify but begin the qualifying campaign as strong favourites to win Group I, which also contains the Czech Republic, Scotland, Liechtenstein and Lithuania.

“We must not underestimate anybody,” warned del Bosque. “Everybody wants to win and we must be aware that we represent a country that is the world champion.

“We may start the group as favourites, given that we’re ranked number one in the world right now, but things can change once you’re on the pitch.”

Spain begin with a trip to face minnows Liechtenstein in Vaduz on Friday in their first competitive match since their World Cup triumph in Johannesburg on July 11.

Spain had a flawless qualifying record for the World Cup with a perfect 10 wins and incredibly have only lost twice — to the United States at the 2009 Confederations Cup and then against Switzerland at the World Cup — since November 2006.

The world champions have played some marvellous football, with their excellent passing game helping them to dominate opponents, and the only real criticism has been their inability to win games by a bigger margin.

At the World Cup finals Spain were 1-0 specialists, beating Portugal, Paraguay, Germany and the Netherlands by that scoreline in the knockout stages of the competition.

But with Torres back fit to link up with new Barcelona striker David Villa, who top-scored with five goals at the World Cup, Spain should have more firepower as they bid to secure early qualification for 2012 and then try to become the first European side to win three successive major titles.

Swede Ibrahimovic was unavailable to new coach Massimiliano Allegri as he has not yet completed the formalities of his move from Barcelona but Milan did not need him as a promoted Lecce chased shadows.

Thiago Silva soon bundled in a corner and Pato netted again on 28 minutes by rounding the goalkeeper after a shrewd pass from Ronaldinho. Filippo Inzaghi made it four late on.

Milan owner Silvio Berlusconi, whose opinion on tactics led to coach Leonardo’s exit at the end of last term, put former Cagliari boss Allegri under immediate pressure before kickoff.

“It’s clear that with this squad Allegri has to win,” said the Italian Prime Minister, whose side’s last scudetto was in 2004.

Juve lost 1-0 at Bari as their problems from last term were again exposed despite a

spending spree.

First-half substitute Massimo Donati blasted in for Bari with his left foot from outside the area two minutes before the break.

Juve, Italy’s most successful domestic club who finished a poor seventh last term, have already been in competitive action this season in Europa League qualifiers but still struggled.

Injuries meant Juve gave a start to striker Fabio Quagliarella, who signed from Napoli on Friday, as well as league debuts to six other new recruits who failed to gel.

“Clearly we have a lot to do,” new coach Luigi Del Neri told Sky TV. “It will be a difficult season because everyone will battle especially hard against us.”

Soccer’s never ending de-bate over the use of technology was fuelled by debutant Edinson Cavani giving Napoli the lead at Fiorentina despite replays showing his early header bounced off the bar on to the line, not over it.

Gaetano D’Agostino’s rocket grabbed a 1-1 draw for the hosts before both sides finished with 10 men.

Sampdoria, knocked out of the Champions League qualifiers in midweek, beat Lazio 2-0 while Sicily’s Palermo drew 0-0 with Sardinia’s Cagliari.

On Saturday, last season’s runners-up AS Roma drew 0-0 with promoted Cesena.

Champions Inter Milan, hurt by Friday’s European Super Cup defeat by Atletico Madrid, visit managerless Bologna on Monday as Serie A completes its first round of matches as a breakaway division from the rest of the league.

RESULTS
Bari 1 (Donati 43) Juventus 0

AC Milan 4 (Pato 16, 28, Thiago Silva 23, Inzaghi 90) Lecce 0

Chievo 2 (Moscardelli 14, Pellissier 83-pen) Catania 1 (Ricchiuti 22)

Fiorentina 1 (D’Agostino 50) Napoli 1 (Casani 7)

Palermo 0 Cagliari 0

Parma 2 (Bojinov 11, Morrone 45) Brescia 0

Sampdoria 2 (Cassano 60-pen, Guberti 71) Lazio 0

“Everyone wants to see open football and we played very quickly,” Dunga said. “The Netherlands play a quick game too, they are a good technical team, a bit like South Americans. The quality of our players allows me to be calm about what comes next. This group has been built up over three years, all I have to do is look or say a few words to communicate. The players are mature, they understand quickly. Three years of effort have gone into what you see today. That’s why we look relaxed. We are used to being favourites but that doesn’t win games for you. We can still improve in all sectors.”

Chile began with every sign of attacking intent, with Humberto Suazo showing a couple of smart turns and an eye for an opening, though within minutes Brazil had them pinned back on the defensive. Gilberto Silva brought the finest save of the game from Claudio Bravo with a fiercely dipping drive from 25 yards, after Luís Fabiano had dragged a shot wide following a wonderful defence-splitting pass from Daniel Alves. When Chile did get a look-in, after almost a quarter of an hour, Suazo stayed onside and with more time than he seemed to realise could have done better than popping a virtual back?pass into Júlio César’s arms.

The game could not continue at such a pace and it had settled into a midfield stalemate by the mid-point of the first half, with both teams congesting the central area and neither making use of space on the flanks. Kaká occasionally drifted out wide to pick up the ball for Brazil but was hampered every time he tried to bring Robinho into the game by the former Manchester City player’s careless attitude towards possession. When he was not giving the ball away with over-ambitious flicks or audacious attempts to beat defenders who were not going to fall for it, he was attempting passes that no colleague could read or reach. Kaká was booked after half an hour, back in his own half trying to help out his defence but only succeeding in tripping Arturo Vidal.

Just as it was beginning to look as if it would take something special, Brazil took the lead in the most mundane fashion with a headed goal from a corner. There was nothing wrong with Juan’s header – rising to meet Maicon’s cross from the right he planted the ball firmly past Bravo – but one hardly sees such straightforward goals from corners in club football any more, let alone from Brazil in World Cups. The Chilean marking had to be at fault, not least because the only person Juan had to beat to the ball was Fabiano, his team?mate.

That setback appeared to affect Chile’s confidence as well as their concentration and Brazil went further ahead five minutes later with the sort of flamboyant goal they tend to score against opponents who are momentarily reeling. Robinho’s cross from the left was good but it was transformed by Kaká’s first?time touch into Fabiano’s path, one that instantly put the centre?forward in on goal and required him merely to step around Bravo before slotting the ball in from an angle. Considering Fabiano stayed onside by a matter of inches, it was a remarkable piece of instinctive invention from Kaká. What was left of Chile’s morale began to wilt visibly. Chile managed to be competitive for half an hour but two goals in five minutes left Marcelo Bielsa with a rebuilding job to do on his team at half-time.

He made two attacking substitutions then, though Jorge Valdivia, in particular, kept running up against Gilberto or Ramires, the two Brazilians screening the back four. Kaká proved he does not have magic in his boots all the time just before the hour by spotting Robinho’s run into space on the right but badly over-hitting the pass. Lúcio went on one of his famous charges forward next, and this time did find Robinho. Though the Brazil captain kept on running into the box, the cross back to him never arrived.

The third goal came in somewhat similar fashion. This time it was Ramires who went on a run, leaving his defensive duties for a while and showing that even the discipline Dunga has brought to the Brazilian rearguard does not preclude the swagger of old. Intercepting his umpteenth pass of the evening exactly on the halfway line, he strode on unchallenged before parting with the ball on the edge of the area to allow Robinho to sweep a curling shot past Bravo.

Valdivia and Suazo were unlucky not to get on the scoresheet before the end, both hitting shots just over the bar, though Robinho could have had a hat-trick with a little more application. He played well here but never seems to realise he could be better. Perhaps he is saving himself for the final. “I am happy with my goal, but the team is more important,” Robinho said.

Bielsa, quite reasonably, said there was no disgrace in going out to Brazil, even if Chile have lost their last eight matches against them. “We made it to this match in an appropriate way,” the Chile coach said. “Perhaps the result could have been closer but the superiority of Brazil was too much for us. We were unable to slow them down.”

Source: Guardian.

With Mexican players imploring Roberto Rosetti to check the replay of the first goal on the big screen, and the referee officially unable to do so even though the facility was obligingly showing the crowd pictures that proved the goal was invalid, the day’s events appear to have moved the debate towards a tipping point.

“In a split second referees can spoil everything,” the Mexico coach, Javier Aguirre, said, although he stopped short of demanding a rematch or a replay recourse for referees. “Everyone is human but we lost concentration because of that decision, it hit us hard. The error for the second goal came because of that, and that was what changed the match dramatically.” Diego Maradona, unsurprisingly, was less concerned. “It’s only the same thing as when Messi gets kicked around and the referee doesn’t act,” the Argentina coach said. “We won a great match. It had high tension and both teams played well, but whenever we decided to attack them we knew we would trouble them.”

When the dust had settled on an eventful encounter, Maradona’s assessment was fair. The clear winners even without the aid of dodgy refereeing decisions were Argentina, who again proved they do not rely on Lionel Messi to bamboozle opponents. Messi nearly broke his duck in stoppage time but Carlos Tevez, with two goals to break Mexican hearts, was just as important here and, with a wealth of talent untapped on the bench, Maradona’s men are going to take some stopping.

Messi’s first run, a typical carry to the edge of the area for a shot that was blocked, seemed to concentrate Mexican minds and prompt them to remember they were likely to need goals of their own. With two attempts in quick succession they twice went close to taking the lead in the first 10 minutes. First Carlos Salcido rattled Sergio Romero’s bar with a thunderous shot from 30 yards out, one the goalkeeper did not know too much about and had in fact missed by the time it slapped against the woodwork behind him. Then Andrés Guardado came forward and played a neat one-two with Giovani dos Santos, collecting the return and sending a shot narrowly wide of Romero’s upright.

Both sides became more cautious after that, with Argentina passing the ball from flank to flank and Mexico happy to let them, until the game exploded into controversy midway through the first half. Messi ran on to a knockdown through the middle to set up a chance for Tevez and, when the Manchester City striker was blocked by Oscar Pérez’s dive, the rebound came out to Messi and he sent the ball goalwards. Tevez was now standing in an offside position in front of Messi, which would not have been too bad had he not nudged the ball over the line with his head. That made him active and the referee was immediately besieged by Mexican protests when he awarded the goal. A long chat with a linesman followed, after which the goal was allowed to stand, much to the evident disgust of Aguirre and his players.

Tevez may have got lucky because two Mexican defenders had just about overtaken him by the time he headed the ball, meaning that, even though he was goalside of Pérez, he still may have been technically onside at the point of contact, though he was a mile off when Messi played the ball to him. Rosetti could not have been surprised to see an angry Mexican bench erupt at half-time.

At least, as with England earlier in the day, any sense of injustice was overtaken by subsequent developments before it had a chance to rankle. There was nothing remotely controversial about Argentina’s second goal, after a hideous slip by Ricardo Osorio invited Gonzalo Higuaín to steal in and round Pérez to score. The goal was Higuaín’s fourth of the tournament and takes him one above David Villa in the scoring list, though he could never have imagined scoring a World Cup goal would be so easy. Higuaín had another chance just before the interval, only to miss the target with a header. Javier Hernández could not get on the end of a promising cross moments later, though he did make full contact with Gabriel Heinze just before the whistle went, and was lucky to get away with blatantly pushing his opponent off his feet and over the touchline.

Both the first-half controversy and Mexico’s World Cup ambitions were consigned to history by the authority of Argentina’s third goal, a screamer from Tevez that most have had both City and United fans rubbing their eyes in disbelief. Not much looked on when Tevez took a wrong turn into two Mexican defenders, untilthe ball rebounded kindly from the unfortunate Osorio and prompted a snap shot from 25 yards that fairly flew past Pérez. If Higuaín will never score a simpler goal, Tevez may never hit a sweeter one.

Pablo Barrera looked quite sharp when he came on, on one run beating both Nicolás Otamendi and Maxi Rodríguez before flicking a shot into the side-netting, and it was his attempt that Gabriel Heinze just about cleared off the line. Yet after Tevez’s second goal Mexico were playing for pride alone.

They won a certain amount back when Manchester United’s Javier Hernández elegantly turned Martín Demichelis to score a wonderful solo consolation goal, though going out to Argentina once more was scant consolation for resigned Mexican supporters. Hernández’s sparkling finish probably caused more excitement in Manchester. Mexico put up a better show against Argentina in the last World Cup, and at no time in this game did they look as if they believed they had a chance of winning. Germany can always provide an obstacle to World Cup progress but Argentina look as if they believe they can go all the way.

Source: Guardian.

Capello’s defense were a collection of hesitant strangers, his midfield painfully less than the sum of their celebrated parts and the attack anonymous.

England lacked heart, shape and, particularly, a holding midfielder with the expertise of Owen Hargreaves to stand in the way of German breakaways, to pick up Bastian Schweinsteiger when he charged so menacingly upfield, to get tight to Mesut Özil when the No 8 pulled the strings.

Gareth Barry’s attempts to tame Özil resembled an ageing nightwatchman trying to keep pace with an elusive urchin.

England can play 1966 in reverse all they like, lamenting the ball over the line, bemoaning the blind fates and berating the officials. Clearly goal-line technology needs to be brought in now that the second decade of the 21st century is being traversed.

Yet video evidence of most of this game would simply highlight the fact that the contenders for man of the match included Thomas Müller (the sponsors’ winner), Schweinsteiger, Sami Khedira, Miroslav Klose and Özil before an Englishman, probably Lampard for his attacking work, could legitimately be mentioned.

It had begun in familiar fashion, in the sturm und drang of a sporting conflict between England and Germany. Duels broke out all over the park: Philipp Lahm versus Steven Gerrard, Müller against Ashley Cole, Barry versus Özil, and the Germans soon began edging them.

Özil embodied German confidence, demanding an early save from David James. Schweinsteiger underlined their belief with a neat drag-back to whisk the ball around Jermain Defoe. After all the Germans’ oft-expressed fears about Schweinsteiger’s hamstring, here he was in imperious form. They should rename Bloemfontein the City of Ruses. England defiance flowed mainly from the stands, with Rule Britannia drowning out the vuvuzelas.

Briefly. England had been hoping to silence Franz Beckenbauer for his comments about kick and rush. Those who maintain Der Kaiser’s proud tradition conjured up a goal that was more kick and Ian Rush. Goalkeeper Manuel Neuer hoofed the ball long, Matthew Upson faltered and Klose flicked the ball past the slow-reacting James.

England had some hope, Defoe heading against the crossbar but wrongly judged to be offside, before Germany’s gem of a second. Özil laid the ball right to Klose, who placed it into the path of Müller. Having raced into the box, Müller lifted the ball across to the unmarked Lukas Podolski, who fired an emphatic shot between James’s legs.

Two-nil down, staring at humiliation, England dragged up enough character to respond when Upson made amends by heading in Steven Gerrard’s cross. Controversy then ensued, Lampard’s strike hitting the bar, bouncing over the line and spinning out.

England fans were up on their feet, celebrating. So was a jubilant Capello. Somehow the linesman, Mauricio Espinosa, did not see it. Somehow the referee Jorge Larrionda did not spot it. England were enraged. The Free State Stadium reverberated to chants of “cheat, cheat’’ and “the referee’s a ******’’.

As Larrionda blew for half-time, England players followed the fans’ lead and voiced their fury. Rooney remonstrated with Espinosa. Defoe confronted Larrionda, who walked off to catcalls, and was ambushed by David Beckham near the tunnel.

England stirred briefly at the start of the second period. Lampard drilled one free kick against the bar and another into the wall. As this second effort spilt loose, as England cursed their ill-luck, Germany went through the gears.

Jerome Boateng’s touch was key, the defender quickly transferring the ball to Müller, who whipped it left to Schweinsteiger and took off as if testing a new sports car on the autobahn. Schweinsteiger hurtled down the right, soon sliding the ball back across for Müller to ram the ball in off James’s left fist.

England continued to erect their own scaffold. Joe Cole’s cross was picked off, Özil raced away from Barry and centred for Müller to apply the coup de grace.

England went out in undignified fashion. John Terry screamed invective at the German bench. Joe Cole caught Boateng.

As the final whistle went and the shadows stretched across Bloemfontein, England began another retreat from another World Cup and the years of hurt stretched to 44.

Source: Telegraph.

“We’re not getting up for practice, that’s for sure,” the U.S. goalkeeper said. “That part’s sad. It’s disappointing. It’s hard. It hurts.”

Then he paused.

“It’s hard to put your emotions into words,” he said, his voice catching. “We are going home.”

And for the second time in as many World Cups, they’ve been sent there by a speedy and resilient team from Ghana, which earned a 2-1 victory Saturday on a memorable goal from Asamoah Gyan three minutes into 30 minutes of overtime.

Four years ago, Ghana knocked the U.S. out in a first round in which the Americans went winless. This time the end came in the second round, which the U.S. entered unbeaten.

And although that might qualify as progress, it doesn’t make the result any easier to take. Especially because this was a game the U.S. thought it should have won.

“The finality of it is brutal,” said Landon Donovan, who spent several long minutes alone on the U.S. bench after the final whistle. “When you realize how much you put into it, not only for the last four years, but for your whole life.

“There’s no guarantee there’s another opportunity at that. It’s disappointing.”

Also disappointing is the fact the U.S. was its own worst enemy in South Africa, constantly finding itself having to come from behind. In four games the Americans led only once — on a Donovan goal in stoppage time that beat Algeria in group play.

“We got behind the eight ball too early too many times in this tournament,” captain Carlos Bocanegra said. “At this level when you give up this many goals, you’re not going to go very far.”

Saturday’s game followed the same script, with Ghana going in front in the fifth minute after Ricardo Clark was stripped of the ball at midfield, leading to a goal by Kevin Prince Boateng.

That marked the third time in its four World Cup matches that the U.S. gave up a goal in the opening 13 minutes.

“We put a lot of pressure ourselves when we do that,” Howard said. “We just gave ourselves too much of a mountain to climb.”

With former President Clinton, one of U.S. soccer’s newest fans, looking on, the Americans tied it in the 62nd minute on a penalty kick by Donovan, who scored three of the five U.S. goals in the tournament. But the climb proved exhausting, and the best the U.S. could do after that was hold on for the tie. And because this was an elimination game, that meant two 15-minute overtime periods.

Ghana didn’t need nearly that much time, scoring three minutes in on an unusual play that started with a long ball into Ghana’s end. After the ball was headed back upfield, Andre Ayew got a boot on it, hoping to do nothing more than clear it across midfield. Instead his long, arching kick hit found Gyan in full stride.

Gyan then outran two U.S. defenders, chested the ball down while shielding it from Bocanegra, his club teammate with Rennes of France’s Ligue 1, and fired a left-footed shot over Howard for the winner.

“That’s too easy of a goal to give up. Just a clearance right down the heart of our team,” said Bocanegra, whose World Cup came to an end in the same stadium where it began two weeks earlier. “At the moment it’s kind of frustrating and sad that we’re going home, because we were so close to pushing on to the next round.”

Instead it’s Ghana that’s going on, becoming only the third African team ever to reach a World Cup quarterfinal. It will play Uruguay in Johannesburg on Friday.

By then, Howard said, he’ll still be trying to get over the loss, a process that will take “a long time. A few months.”

“We’re going home, so there’s an opportunity missed. We should have won the game,” the 31-year-old said. “It’s time to take stock and figure out where to go from here.”

For the 28-year-old Donovan, who shortly will return to the Galaxy, this World Cup had more good times than bad. And that figures to make Saturday’s bitter pill a little easier to swallow.

“I think we can hold our heads high at how we did,” he said. “Obviously, you hate losing. Obviously, the feeling is bitter.

“But the effort, the energy, the attitude, we had. The belief. I have no qualms with that. Sometimes you lose games. That’s part of soccer.”

Source: LA Times.

In a physical match that saw Brazil star Kaka ejected with two late yellow cards, the five-time champions showed they can deal out the rough stuff with the pretty plays. “It’s true, the ball really touched my hand and then my shoulder,” Luis Fabiano said of his second goal. “But it was involuntary. It was one of the greatest goals I’ve scored in my career.”

Luis Fabiano got his first goal in six matches for the national team with a powerful right-footed shot in the 25th minute after a perfect pass by Kaka between defenders. He jumped over defender Kolo Toure before firing into the top of the net from a difficult angle.

Luis Fabiano added to the lead in the 50th with his left foot from near the penalty spot after beating two defenders inside the area — helped by his sleight-of-hand.

Ivory Coast coach Sven-Goran Eriksson was livid that that the second goal counted.

“It shouldn’t have been allowed,” Eriksson said. “They got a goal free. That’s a 2-nil goal — that changed everything.

“It’s even more difficult if he’s allowed to use his hands. Of course it’s a hand ball. It’s not once, it’s twice.”

Elano scored Brazil’s third goal in the 62nd after another setup by Kaka. Elano hurt his right shin a little later and left the field on a stretcher.

Kaka then received his two yellow cards late in the game and will be suspended for Brazil’s next match, against Portugal. The first yellow was deserved, but the second one seemed unfair, as replays showed Ivory Coast’s Keite was seen wildly exaggerating the impact of Kaka’s shove by falling to the ground, dramatically clutching his face.

“The red card was completely unfair,” Brazil coach Dunga said.

Kaka did not want to talk about the ejection, but complained of rough play by the Ivory Coast players.

“It was a tough match,” he said. “It got violent in two or three plays there.”

Didier Drogba, playing from the start for the first time after breaking his right arm in a warmup game, scored the lone goal for Ivory Coast with a header in the 79th.

The victory gives Brazil six points from two matches, and left the Africans with one point and in difficult position to advance from the group stage. Portugal and North Korea play Monday in Cape Town.

It was a physical match at Soccer City, with hard fouls from both sides and players confronting each other at times. Brazil had plenty of chances to scores more, but mistakes on the final pass cost it on a few occasions.

Brazil has won all six matches it played against African nations at the World Cup. The last was 3-0 over Ghana in the round of 16 of the 2006 tournament in Germany. Drogba’s goal was the first Brazil conceded to African nations in soccer’s biggest showcase.

“I think Brazil can go all the way,” Eriksson said. “To beat Brazil you must be almost perfect.”

Luis Fabiano hadn’t scored in more than nine months for Brazil since connecting twice in a victory against Argentina last September in a World Cup qualifier.

Kaka, coming off a season plagued by injuries, again was far from his best, but showed his poise on Sunday by setting up Luis Fabiano’s first-half goal and Elano’s third in front of 84,455 fans.

Brazil made some uncharacteristic passing mistakes in the beginning and was not able to take control of the match, allowing the Ivorians to threaten on counterattacks and free kicks. Yet Ivory Coast put nearly all its players on defense when Brazil held possession, leaving Drogba alone up front. The striker is playing with a special protective cast approve by FIFA.

Source: MSNBC.

Real Salt Lake after six goals in a single half

Rio Tinto Stadium in historic match scoring six goals in a single half made revolution on Home team dominates.
It was a historic night at Rio Tinto Stadium as Real Salt Lake notched six goals in the second half to beat a depleted New England Revolution side by a score of 6-0. That was only the 3rd time in league history that a team scored six goals in a half. In addition, the 29 shots by Real Salt Lake shattered the team record of 24.

New England came into the match missing key players such as Steve Ralston, Chris Albright and Taylor Twellman. Those are three all-star level players. The effect of missing those players showed early on in the match as RSL dominated possession right from the start of the match and never let up.
First Half

However, the storyline in the first half was one that was all too familiar for RSL as they dominated play and the shot totals but were unable to put one in the net. The half was particularly frustrating for forward Yura Movsisyan who managed to find the ball at his feet in and near the box often but couldn’t get one past the keeper.

Movsisyan’s best chance came in the 37th minute when midfielder Javier Morales sent a ball nicely over the top to him and he managed to get ahead of the defender. As he entered the area free on the right side of the box, he appeared to try to shoot from 15 yards out through the legs of the keeper who easily corralled the shot.

The Revs best chance of the half came a minute later when they got numbers forward on a counter attack and funneled the ball to midfielder Sainey Nyassi who took a blast from just inside the area, but the shot went right to keeper Nick Rimando who easily handled the shot.

The end of the half was ragged as both teams suffered some hard fouls. Just before the end of the half a scuffle ensued with several players from each side involved. Both Movsisyan and New England defender Jay Heaps received yellow card cautions as a result of the fracas. The yellow’s were in addition to three others handed out in the half.

Second Half

The second half started out in similar fashion with Real Salt Lake again dominating possession. In the first 10 minutes of the half, RSL created several chances but were not able to put one into the back of the net until the 54th minute when a corner kick by Morales was headed home nicely by Jamison Olave who easily drove the ball past reserve New England keeper Brad Knighton.

Just two minutes later another corner kick resulted in a spectacular goal by midfielder Clint Mathis. The corner kick was a low, driven ball to the back post where Mathis was completely unmarked. Mathis measured the ball as it came to him, and took a one-time blast with his left foot, redirecting the ball in mid-air to the upper left corner of the net away from a helpless Knighton.

The stellar play of Mathis continued as he played a wonderful diagonal ball to Movsisyan who was held just onside on the play. Movisyan easily slotted the ball to his left past Knighton for his first goal of the season.

RSL made several substitutions over the next seven minutes as Ned Grabavoy, Luis Escalada and Andy Williams came in for Morales, Mathis and Movsisyan. Those three players would all enter the score sheet in the final ten minutes of play.

The first goal after the changes came at the 81st minute as Grabavoy slid a ball forward to Escalada who crossed in front of him to the right side of the goal. Escalada’s first shot of the game resulted in his first goal in Major League Soccer as he placed the ball nicely just inside the far post.

Next came a nice ball from Williams who lived up to his reputation as “Bomma” with a free kick rocket from 25 yards that appeared to catch Knighton off guard as it soared right past him at the near post.

The final goal of the night was created by a long diagonal pass from Mathis who spotted forward Robbie Findley streaking down the left side. Findley outran the defender and found himself one-on-one with the keeper and calmly tapped it past him to the left.

New England came into this match undefeated in four matches. They remain at 8 points after 2 wins, 2 draws, and now 1 loss. The Revs face Houston next Sunday at home for only the second time this season.

Real Salt Lake improved to 9 points with 3 wins and 2 losses on the season. They play at Colorado next Saturday after a US Open Cup match at Seattle on Tuesday.

(News Form Goal.com)