For all that, I supported their opponents Italy in an epic semi-final. Unfortunately I couldn’t
give it my full attention because at the time I was in a large garden marquee
on the lawns of a Cambridge college in the middle of a Radio Festival quiz! My
colleagues and I did cast frequent furtive glances at the big screen TV to note
an entertaining game heading for penalties until the Italians conjured up a
late brace, the second by the evergreen Del Piero, to win 2-0.
A few weeks earlier, Italy had won their group, just ahead
of World Cup debutants Ghana. I was seeing a Ghanaian woman at the time so my
antennae were twitching whenever the Black Stars were mentioned. They weren’t
given much hope of progressing but surprised everybody by defeating the highly-fancied Czechs, who boasted Nedved,
Rosicky and Podborsky in their pomp. Driven by Chelsea’s Michael Essien, Ghana
brought a sense of fun and attacking flair to the party and only Petr Cech
prevented an absolute rout. If only Asamoah Gyan could learn how to take
penalties, of which more later….
England had a promising young side, managed by their first
foreign coach, Sven Goran Eriksson. David Beckham was by now an elder
statesman, but with Gerrard, Lampard, Owen, Rio Ferdinand and Wayne Rooney in
the side, much was expected. We reached the quarter-finals and met Portugal in
Gelsenkirchen on my birthday. Mum and Dad had taken me to their favourite haunt
of Hyde Hall gardens so we missed the first half. I was present, though, to
witness the infamous Rooney red card, deservedly brandished for plunging a boot
into Carvalho’s unmentionables. The 21 year-old Cristiano Ronaldo was
castigated for his subsequent wink but Rooney only had himself to blame. We
lost on penalties – of course – with Owen Hargreaves the only man on target.
Mr Ronaldo would go on to even bigger and better things but
2006 would be the last chance for Portugal’s ‘golden generation’ to secure international success. They had missed out in their home Euros to Greece two
years previously so beating England was vital for the likes of Deco, Luis Figo,
Carvalho et al. They were so determined that they played Holland in Round 2 and found themselves involved in what became known as the Battle of Nuremberg. They won 9-7 – in terms
of yellow cards! There were also four reds after a succession of stupid, sly or
plain reckless fouls. The Russian ref was criticised for losing control but,
quite frankly, it was the players who lost control amidst the cascade of cards.
The final had its moments of excitement but will be
remembered less for the football than for Zinedine Zidane’s heinous head-butt
on Marco Materazzi.
And so the great man departed for retirement in disgrace. Another disgrace was
the FIFA decision to make him the Player of the Tournament. He had one good
match, was suspended for another and sent off in the biggest game of them all.
In my humble opinion, the best on
show was no galactico but the Italian
captain and centre-back Fabio Cannavaro: only 5 foot 9, but a giant in defence
alongside another Italian legend Alessandro Nesta. His reward for winning the
Cup was a big-money transfer from Inter to Real Madrid, the alma mater of Zidane.
The goal of Germany 2006? For once I agreed with those who
decide these matters. It wasn’t a 30-yard blockbuster, nor a devilish dribble
and drive. No, it was a patient 25-pass move in the group stages. The Serbs
could merely watch as Argentina pushed and probed for a full minute before
Cambiasso finished decisively. It was the second of the
South Americans’ six that day. The last was scored by a teenage substitute
called Lionel Messi….
The young Barcelona superstar returned in 2010 as part of an
Argentine squad brimming with talent. After whistling through the group stage
they were many people’s (including mine) favourites for the title. This was the
first World Cup to be staged on the African continent, with South Africa the
chosen hosts. While the incessant blaring of the vuvuzela horns became tiresome in the extreme, the organisation
passed all the tests with flying colours. The same could not be said for some
of the top footballing nations.
Both the previous finalists failed to reach the knockouts,
and Spain lost their opener to Switzerland who themselves experienced the
extraordinary achievement of being eliminated without conceding a goal!
Meanwhile, Holland and the aforementioned Argentinians didn’t drop a point. But
in the ‘round of 16’ the tournament dynamic shifted sharply at Bloemfontein. It
was there that England, still bearing fond memories of their 2001 annihilation
of the Germans in a qualifier, met their frequent nemeses and found them in
superb form. While many tried to use the incorrect disallowing of Lampard’s ‘goal’
as an excuse, the truth was that England were simply outclassed.
The Germans maintained this momentum in their quarter-final
against the hitherto all-conquering Argentina. Instead of a tight contest,
Joachim Low’s young guns were, in my contemporary words, ‘scintillating’.
Despite fielding an attack boasting Messi, Higuain and Tevez, Argentina were
ripped apart. Klose and Moeller put the ball in the net but Mehut Ozil and
Bastian Schweinsteiger in midfield were outstanding.
That summer, I didn’t watch many games in the first
fortnight. I’d moved to Somerset two years earlier but already my personal life
had plunged into a deep bucket of shit. I had alternative priorities such as
searching for somewhere else to live! However, things settled down slightly by
the end of June and I felt free to seek solace in the footie.
I’d retained a soft spot for Ghana so I, and millions of
neutrals, backed them to the hilt against Uruguay. Win, and they’d become
the first African nation to reach the last four. At one-all in a pulsating
game, Ghana attacked at the death in extra time. A penalty area scramble
resulted in a goal-bound header. In a split-second, a certain Luis Suarez pawed
it off the line with both hands. Off he went but I was disgusted to hear ex-players praising
his "quick thinking". He‘s a cheat! Anyway, all Gyan had to do was convert from
the spot and Ghana were through. He went for power – and rattled the top of the
bar. I was screaming like a madman at the telly. Needless to say, Ghana lost the shootout and probably their last chance of global success. It was
heartbreaking.
To their credit, Uruguay showed their footballing quality in
the 3rd/4th place ‘final where they and Germany put on a
genuine show. I described it as the best match of the World Cup. The result didn’t really
matter, the pressure was off, and Sami Khedira’s late winner made it 3-2 to the
Germans.
The next day, Spain would meet
Holland in the final. I was delighted that there would be new champions this
time. However, I was unsure whom to support. By the interval, my mind was made
up: the Dutch were so dour and dirty, desperate to break up Spain’s ‘tiki-taka’
rhythm by any means possible, that I was firmly in the Spanish camp. Ref Howard
Webb flourished umpteen cards and, in my own blunt word, it was “crap”.. Eventually
I cheered my lungs out when Andres Iniesta volleyed an extra-time winner. Back
then Iniesta was to me an unknown quantity, but from that day forward he was my
favourite player. Forget Ronaldo, Messi, Neymar, Rooney et al: the little graduate
of La Masia academy became my
modern-day idol.
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