Thursday, April 30, 2009

Quarterfinals

ROI vs. Poland- ROI 3-2. Not many people expected Poland to put up a fight, but those people haven't payed attention to what's happened in this tournament. ROI was up 3-0, and looked comfortable, but Poland never gave up and scored twice in the second half to make it 3-2. They had a chance to tie it in the end, but it went off a crossbar. Poland played a great game, and they've been a fantastic surprise this tournament.

Laos vs. El Salvador- El Salvador 1-1(PK win). Laos encountered their second tough game after a relatively easy group stage. From the opening kickoff, El Salvador definitely looked like the better team. Laos was constantly making poor decisions and giving up the ball in simple passes. El Salvador just had to wait for Laos to screw up, then take they'd take the ball down the field for a chance. Luckily for Laos, their defence was still playing fairly good and they managed to hold El Salvador off. It was only a matter of time though, as El Salvador got the first goal off a free kick. Laos, trailing for the first time in the tournament, started playing better and better, getting themselves to their usual level, though still making some bad decisions. Laos got one back off of a misplayed corner kick, but neither team could break through for the rest of the game. Overtime solved nothing, but you could see Laos was starting to wear down El Salvador with their superior speed and hustle. So, on to penalties we go. Laos was the first to miss, and El Salvador could have put it away, but hit it high. After trading saves and goals, El Salvador had another chance to win and put it away for good. A great game to watch.

Portugal vs. Northern Ireland- 6-3 Portugal. Portugal always looked like the better team in this one. They are a goal-scoring machine right now, and it will be tough to stop them unless your team can match their offensive firepower. Northern Ireland played good, but when you allow 6 goals, it's very tough to win. The semifinal is now between Portugal and El Salvador, and we can expect a very high scoring game. Should be a good one.

France vs. Saudi Arabia- Saudi Arabia 4-0. In another shocker, France got hammered by Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia is a good team, and it's not surprising that they won, but more so that France lost so bad. With a crowd that got behind them more and more, Saudi Arabia kept giving them something to cheer for, with goal after goal. France had one of those nights where nothing goes right, hitting posts all over the place. But plain and simple, Saudi Arabia outplayed them.

Women's Final preview- Chile vs. Germany. No upsets in the women's side, where the two best teams in each pool will face off in the final on Saturday. Both teams are very good, so tune in Saturday at 2:30 to check it out.

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