After four years mesmerising opponents and fans alike with
their Guardiola-inspired possession football, Spain immediately came crashing
down to earth. Their fellow 2010 finalists Holland gained revenge with an
amazing 5-1 drubbing. Del Bosque’s dream team were given a lesson in finishing
by Louis van Gaal’s formidable side featuring skipper Robin van Persie, Arjen
Robben and their wing-backs Janmaat and Blind. Spain were eliminated in the
groups and the Dutch eventually finished third. After that, the side seemed to
disintegrate but will surely rise again.
Argentina and Belgium had flawless groups and Brazil dropped
points only against Mexico. However, it was three other Latin nations which captured
the imagination with fast, free-flowing attacking football. Chile took the hosts to penalties in Round 2
while Colombia, boosted by the goals of James Rodriguez were possibly the most
entertaining of all. They, too, were drawn against Brazil, losing 2-1 in the
quarters.
However, Costa Rica were the surprise package of 2014. They
served notice of their talent when beating both Uruguay and Italy and held an already-
humiliated England to a goalless draw. Pirlo apart, this was a weak Italian
squad and they joined England in the disgrace race to the airport. At least
Chiellini left Brazil with Suarez’s gift of bite marks on the shoulder. A
half-time orange was never enough for the Uruguayan. Nevertheless, I had to
admit his class as a striker was the difference against the English, a game for which I gladly
stayed up late.
In the middle of the World Cup, straddling my birthday,
Angie and I spent a week at the Hotel Jacaranda on Tenerife. Amidst the intense
worry over her Mum’s health, we did watch a few matches in the Piano Bar or in
our room. The most memorable were the Round of 16 clashes between Costa Rica
and Greece (“cracking”) and then the highly-rated Belgians and the spirited USA. I’ve never seen such an
enthralling nil-nil. The end-to-end battle continued into extra time when de
Bruyne and Lukaku combined to take Belgium through 2-1. The true man of the
match was undoubtedly the American goalie Tim Howard who was credited with an
incredible sixteen saves, but his oppo Courtois was also kept busy. Like Costa
Rica, though, Belgium’s run ended in the quarters.
Meanwhile, the Germans were once more on the charge. A
Thomas Muller hat-trick had tamed the Portuguese 4-0 in the group opener but
they struggled to defeat Algeria over two absorbing hours
in the knockouts. Their best was yet to come. After getting the better of
France in the last eight, Germany travelled to Belo Horizonte where the hosts
and red-hot favourites lay in wait. Everyone was predicting an all-South
American showdown in the final but that didn’t materialise. Argentina fulfilled
their part of the bargain against Holland but Brazil collapsed in the most
astonishing manner.
I’ve never in my life witnessed such an electrifying first
half, during which the masterful Germans ripped the Brazilian defence to shreds. Having endured all the
usual pro-Brazil media hype, I cheered every goal they conceded, five in the
opening thirty minutes alone. The bewildered expression on David Luiz’s face
was a joy to behold, on its own well worth the TV licence fee. It seemed a
cruel twist, in the last minute, that Oscar should spoil Manuel Neuer’s deserved
clean sheet. 7-1. SEVEN-ONE! Brazil had never suffered such a devastating
defeat, and on their own turf.
Luiz wasn’t the worst player, either. The
ludicrously-monikered Hulk had possibly the worst match of any individual in
World Cup history and was substituted to a chorus of boos. Nevertheless, let’s
not forget how brilliant Ozil, Muller, Kroos, Kedira et al were that evening,
and they reaped their rightful reward in the final when substitute Mario
Gotze’s extra-time chest and volley secured the trophy. They would go on to be the team to beat for the next four years but could they retain the World Cup?
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