Barrie's View

Paraguay became the fourth South American nation to qualify for the quarter finals of the 2010 World Cup – the highest number of nations from that continent to get this far. Interestingly, they are all in different matches in the last 8, three of them favourites to progress to the semi final.

In a dull affair, Paraguay and Japan went to penalties after a goalless draw. Paraguay ended their group with the same scoreline against New Zealand as they attempt to defy people’s opinions of the South American attacking flair we have seen in this competition. Yuichi Komano was the unfortunate player to miss as his penalty thumped the top of the cross bar. Paraguay converted all 5 of their attempts, with Oscar Cardozo coolly slotting home the decider.

This game was the first opportunity I had to demonstrate the penalty shootout system, with betting slips displayed below:

With the first two spot kicks converted, I doubled my original stake on the next penalty.  Once that was converted, double the stake went on Japan to miss theirs.

After both of those were converted, I trebled the previous stake on Paraguay missing their third kick.  Once that was converted, I doubled for Japan’s next kick.  Once that hit the bar, the money was in the bag.  In the end a large stake for a small sum.  The earlier the penalties are missed and the more often they are, the better!  Maybe next time.

In the final second round match, the Iberian derby saw Portugal play a very defensive game against Spain, as they had done successfully in their final group game with Brazil, ending 0-0. Spain didn’t look like breaking down the defence in the first half, after David Villa and Fernando Torres both had decent attempts cutting in from the right hand side in the opening few minutes. Portugal wasted two good headed chances in the first half, but it was the substitution of Fernando Llorente for Fernando Torres that turned the game around. His strength and ability to hold the ball up caused the Portuguese defence problems, and five minutes after his appearance saw the only goal of the game when David Villa finished off a lovely move to score his 4th goal of the World Cup.

Portugal lacked ideas as they rarely threatened the Spanish goal. Although I backed a Spanish clean sheet pre-game, their defence doesn’t look assured. Goalkeeper Iker Casillas has looked nervous during this World Cup, despite not having much to do. Right back Sergio Ramos gets caught out of position as he is often in his oppositions penalty box. Left back Juan Capdevila looks vulnerable at left back and a powerful striker may cause the centre backs problems, particularly in the air. They were helped out today by Carlos Queiroz’s poor tactical decisions going forward as Portugal lacked ideas and simply formation. They came into the game looking for their third goalless draw and once they fell behind there seemed to be no plan B.

Netherlands face Brazil in their first quarter final on Friday afternoon, followed by Uruguay-Ghana in the evening. Argentina take on Germany on Saturday, followed by Spain-Paraguay concluding the final eight.

Brazil showed their flair, efficiency and why they are favourites to win this year’s World Cup this evening with a convincing 3-0 victory over South American rivals Chile.

Chile were able to close down their Brazilian opponents for most of the first half, limiting their chances on goal and time in possession. Once Brazil took their lead from an unlikely source in Juan, rising above everybody in the box to head home Maicon’s lead, there was no looking back for the five time world champions. Just a few minutes later they would double their lead with a lovely move involving Robinho and Kaka that slipped Luis Fabiano in one-on-one to round goalkeeper Claudio Bravo and tap in a 2-0 need to take in at half time.

Chile’s Defensive Naivety Proves Costly

While Chile have looked an attractive side to watch in their 3 previous group games at this World Cup, they’ve always looked vulnerable to counter attacks and generally in defence with their three lines of three. Although Brazil didn’t exploit them down the wings very often in this game, they looked like they could score at will after their first goal. Robinho put the game beyond doubt on the hour mark after a bursting run from Ramires to set him up. Ramires and Kaka would fire over opportunities over, whereas Julio Cesar was relatively untested throughout the match as he kept his second consecutive clean sheet. Brazil strolled through this one, as expected by many including myself.

Dutch Haven’t Imploded Yet

Brazil will meet the Netherlands in a quarter final showdown on Friday afternoon after the Dutch eliminated Slovakia 2-1 in today’s early game. Arjen Robben’s solo effort gave the Oranje the lead before half time before Wesley Sneijder settled it late on. Robert Vittek would score a consolation penalty with the last kick of the game; his fourth goal of the World Cup. Yes, that’s more than the England team scored in as many games.

Not Fit to Wear the Shirt

England’s diabolical performance yesterday deserves it’s own blog post. Given that everybody else has wrote one and you’ve talked about it with all your friends and colleagues, I won’t bore you any more. Instead, I’ll attach a winning bet slip from that game for anyone else thinking “I told you Germany would win”!

Diego Maradona’s in Charge

Later on Sunday evening Argentina showed us why they are many people’s favourites for this World Cup. Their attacking talent was on display yet again as they cruised to another country, once again without Lionel Messi getting his name on the scoresheet. I continue to question their untested defence and Diego Maradona’s tactical know-how, but if no one is ever going to get a chance to test their defence then I suppose I shouldn’t write them off. Germany will be a real test for Argentina on Saturday. Joachim Low is tactically astute and being German, his side know how to win games. Another exciting quarter final prospect for us to look forward to.

Only the third knockout game of the tournament and two of football’s power houses are meeting in the second round of the 2010 World Cup. For the winners, they go on to meet either Argentina or Mexico on July 3rd. The losers will see the fans of either England or Germany left disappointed.

Despite not producing a single convincing performance to date in the World Cup, England come into this match as narrow favourites. There is much belief in this country that after showing some promise against Slovenia that England should be able to beat Germany.

Germany, far from their strongest looking side in recent tournaments haven’t matched their opening game performance when they beat Australia 4-0. Since then they suffered an unfortunate 1-0 defeat at the hands of Serbia that saw Miroslav Klose harshly sent off in the first half and Lukas Podolski have a penalty saved. Then we saw an efficient display from Germany in a 1-0 win over Ghana that saw them top Group D and setup this second round clash.

Both nations will be looking for their key players to perform and here’s how I see the two nations matching up:

Wayne Rooney v Arne Friedrich

Coming off of his best Premier League season, Wayne Rooney has failed to score in 3 games at this World Cup, extending his run to 7 World Cup games without a single goal. He has been far from his best since picking up an injury in the Champions League against German side Bayern Munich. After bad touches in his opening two games, Rooney showed promise in his final group game and was denied his first goal by Samir Handanovic’s smart save. Arne Friedrich is quietly having a solid tournament at the back as the German’s have conceded just one goal so far. He and Per Mertesacker give Manuel Neuer strong protection in front of his goal and are likely to limit Rooney’s opportunities in this game which may see him frustrated and resorting to long range efforts.

Steven Gerrard v Bastian Schweinsteiger

There are doubts concerning Bastian Schweinsteiger’s fitness going into this game, but I am confident the Bayern Munich midfielder will play in this game. Despite being a talented winger, Joachim Low has played Schweinsteiger in a holding midfield role in the absence of Michael Ballack. Schweinsteiger has held his own admirably, with strong challenges breaking up a number of opposition attacks so far. It’s limited his attacking opportunities, for which he is a great crosser of the ball. Only look out for Bastian Schweinsteiger to attack if Germany fall behind. Otherwise he will stick to his task of limiting Steven Gerrard’s possession and creativity. Steven Gerrard made a good start to his World Cup, scoring inside 4 minutes against the USA. Then he was out of position in a horrible performance against Algeria. Expecting him to play behind Wayne Rooney and Jermain Defoe, he will likely be man marked by Schweinsteiger. If so, I don’t see Steven Gerrard being a great influence in this match, subject to the fitness of the German number 7.

Frank Lampard v Sami Khedira

Frank Lampard has had another quiet World Cup so far but has this big match on Sunday to win over the England fans. While the attacking midfielder has scored for fun at club level with Chelsea in the Premier League, his performances have been questioned by some section of the English support. Lampard’s record for England still reads 20 goals in 81 appearances. He’s not going to fancy Sami Khedira’s tough tackling in their midfield battle, but Lampard could find space in midfield when the VfB Stuttgart player pushes forward. Generally a defensive minded player, he has got in and around the opposition box during this tournament so far. Ideally Lampard needs to win this battle for England. For him to do so, we need to see a determined effort for him that has been lacking to date.

Gareth Barry v Mesut Ozil

Another matchup that favours Germany comes in attack. Mesut Ozil has been one of the best performers in the tournament to date. Gareth Barry was sloppy against Slovenia and cannot afford another performance like that when he comes up against Ozil. Fortunately from an England perspective, Barry is usually a solid player, so don’t be surprised to see him bounce back. Even still, Ozil’s runs off the ball have seen him find a lot of space in this tournament, while when he’s on the ball he’s played a lot of his teammates in. He added a spectacular strike against Ghana to complete his group stage performance. It’s a big ask from Barry to keep Ozil quiet all game. Expect the German to play a big role at some point.

John Terry v Miroslav Klose

Coming back from suspension, Miroslav Klose has had just over 100 minutes of action in this World Cup so far. He scored in Germany’s first game as Klose continues to show his goalscoring pedigree at international level. 5 in each of the last two World Cup finals, he will be Germany’s target man. John Terry may be remembered in his World Cup for throwing his head in the way of a shot against Slovenia, but he has been beat in the air too. Klose, having scored 7 of his 11 World Cup goals with his head will fancy his chances against the former England skipper on Sunday. Should Terry lose this battle and England go out, expect the critics to get on Terry’s back once again this year.

Ashley Cole v Thomas Muller

Another one of Germany’s successful youngsters in this tournament, Thomas Muller has been very creative hanging out on the right hand side of midfield. Off the back of a very successful first senior season with Bayern Munich that saw him part of the domestic double winning side and Champions League runners up, Muller is comfortable on the ball, taking players on and setting up chances. He scored a fine goal against Australia after setting up Lukas Podolski for the first. He also assisted Mesut Ozil’s goal in their victory over Ghana. With Gareth Barry busy with Ozil in this game, Ashley Cole cannot afford to be caught out of position in attack because Muller will be a threat on the counter with Cole out of position. He will also be hoping for James Milner to in front of him to track back and offer help in defending against Muller. Steven Gerrard would be a nightmare choice for the left wing again, but surely Fabio Capello won’t make that mistake again. Muller also has support in Philipp Lahm from right back.

Glen Johnson v Lukas Podolski

The same problem England have down their left, they have down their right. Glen Johnson is a very attack-minded full back who has been caught out of position a number of times for England. Lukas Podolski is a great counter attack option for Joachim Low’s side in this match. I expect him to have lots of space down Germany’s left wing in this match. Since scoring in the eighth minute of their opening match, Podolski has had a poor tournament. He’s made some poor decisions in good positions with the ball. His finishing was particularly woeful against Serbia, including becoming the first player to miss a penalty for Germany in normal time since Uli Hoeness in 1974. A club that consists of two players, the same number of players to miss in a penalty shootout for Germany. Hoeness being half the members of that club too. Will Podolski have the chance to join him?

David James v Manuel Neuer

Both England and Germany were unsure of their number 1 selections heading into the World Cup. David James was sitting on the bench when Robert Green made a howler against the USA. Since then he has deputised and to date, at 39, he has never conceded a goal in the World Cup. He also comes into this game very confident, saying at a press release he is confident England can beat Germany in either normal time or if not, penalties. He done what he had to against Slovenia, but hasn’t been tested in either game. Expect the German’s to put a lot more balls into the box and that is where David James is at his most vulnerable. With a ball that has deceived goalkeepers, a drop of a cross is on the cards. Manuel Neuer, still relatively inexperienced at international level, only 23 has been solid for his club side Schalke 04, domestically and in the Champions League. Has been linked with Manchester United previously and is set for a big future. There was little he could do about the only goal he has conceded during this competition, but I still think he makes his defenders nervous at times. Could he be the goalkeeper making a costly mistake in this game?

The Jabulani

Having tested this ball myself, I can tell you it really does swerve and bounce unpredictably. Goalkeepers have backed that statement up with some performances in this tournament. Slow motion replays have shown the ball swerve on a number of occasions already during this tournament. The more the players use it, the more they have got use to it. Germany have had that advantage since December last year when the ball debuted in the Bundesliga. The whole German squad in this World Cup play in Germany and therefore have an additional six months experience under their belts. That is a narrow advantage to Germany. Hopefully not one that decides the match. The notably poor deliveries from set pieces by England need to improve. The Germans have shown how to use it.

Winning Mentality

One big difference between these two nations is that Germany have that winning mentality. When you write them off, they win. When their squad is considered the weakest for a few decades, they get to a World Cup final. England on the other hand don’t do victories over major footballing nations. Not since 1966 have England defeated a major footballing nation in the knockout stages of a World Cup. Keep that in mind tomorrow. Some of this Germany team are from the Under 21 side that defeated England 4-0 last year. A game that many English fans and pundits alike thought England would win. We’re heading into this game under similar circumstances. Joachim Low and his German players know how to win. England have struggled to this point – what makes you think tomorrow will be any different?

Value Bets

I won’t deny, I have money on Germany to qualify from this match at evens. The odds were too good to turn down, even if I am expecting a close match. Odds of Germany winning to zero were also too good for me to turn down also. Germany have kept two clean sheets in three games, while England have scored just two in their three games; one of which the goalkeeper should have saved. If this turns out to be a tight battle that both countries are capable of playing out, then Germany are 50/50 to knick the winning goal.  Germany are also 19/10 to win in 90 minutes and 10/1 on penalties

Looking at the half of the draw Group C winners USA have had, you would be right to think England could make the semi finals for the first time in two decades here in South Africa.

England Underperforming Again

England could have won their group in either of their games. A victory over USA in their opening game would have set them on their way. Failing to beat Algeria in game 2 was bad enough, leaving England needing to beat Slovenia in their last game to progress. A victory against Slovenia came, but by failing to score more than 1 goal left England to finish second in their group and setup a tie with Germany as early as round two. The prize for the victors in Sunday’s game will see them face either third favourites Argentina, or Mexico in the quarter final.

England have underperformed for the second consecutive World Cup. Despite the strong belief that England will magically increase their performance all of a sudden, the German squad have played well and efficient already in this tournament. They too can play even better.

Who’s Writing Germany Off?

The odds on Germany in this match are crazy. Nearly 2/1 to win in 90 minutes, evens to qualify, 7/2 to win to nil. If all goes to plan, I expect the sensible gamblers to be making big profits on this match. Germany won their group, a tougher group than the one England finished runners up in. They have Miroslav Klose returning, whom will keep John Terry busy. That leaves Lukas Podolski, Mesut Ozil and Thomas Muller up against the likes of Ashley Cole, Matthew Upson, Glen Johnson and Gareth Barry. That is not a good match up for England, despite Lukas Podolski’s lack of form so far.

Group C Winners

USA on the other hand face the last remaining African side, Ghana this evening for a place in the quarter final. It’s not an easy game for USA, no game at this stage of a World Cup will be. But facing a side who’s only 2 goals in this tournament have come from the penalty spot and against 10 men, USA have every right to enter this match feeling confident. Whoever reaches the quarter final between these two will enter their match as the underdog, facing Uruguay who beat South Korea 2-1 in the first second round match, today.

Here we are at the knock out stages of the World Cup finals. The tension has increased, the expectations have got higher and for 16 nations they truly believe they can be the winners of the World Cup.

For some, the cruel fate on penalty shootouts is how your nation go home. Being English, I know this all too well.

Since the last World Cup, I have constructed my very own Penalty Shootout Betting System. And it’s not one of those “pay us £50 and we’ll pretend to guarantee you a winning system strategy”. It’s free.  It’s a genuine way to make money from penalty shootouts.

Check it out, as the bookmakers were expecting 3 penalty shootouts during the competition and a World Cup is just not the same without one!

When people find out who I am in down the pub, in the supermarket, on the streets, wherever I get the usual “what’s the best bet today?”, “what is the best betting system?” etc etc.

Getting deeper into conversation with people who want to be a professional gambler, or just those who stick £10 on a long shot every now and then, there’s a wide range of gamblers out there. Working with a small team here, I know the different strategies because we all have our own approaches.

The one thing I have had to repeat to people a lot recently is “know your bets”. I understand the Asian Handicap can be confusing to some, but there’s no excuse for getting the basics wrong.

I remember at the last World Cup having to explain to one punter why he lost his bet on Argentina to beat Mexico, because he backed them to win, which means win in 90 minutes. Unfortunately for him they won in extra time. In that scenario, backing Argentina to qualify, at much shorter odds would have been the winning option.

Now we have reached the knock out stages of the competition, where the tension and excitement builds, and if you’re English, where the disappointment comes. At this stage, many punters get caught out on the straight bet, whether on purpose or by not knowing the rules. Sometimes backing the nation to qualify turns out to be the better option, even if the odds are shorter.

Myself, I will continue to look for the sensible bets, the good prices and hope to continue this large winning spree of the past two weeks.

After their opening game performance, a 1-0 defeat to a well-disciplined Switzerland side, Spain came through as Group H winners this evening after a 2-1 victory over Chile.

David Villa curled home a left-footed shot from distance after the Chilean goalkeeper, Claudio Bravo needlessly rushed out of his goal to tackle Fernando Torres who was heading towards the corner flag. This left Villa with an open goal from a long way out which he coolly took first time. Up to that point, halfway through the first half, Chile had been dominating in possession and looked the better side.

The first goal settled Spain down as they started to maintain possession better, and then they doubled their lead with a fine move that saw Andres Iniesta rolling the ball into the bottom corner of the goal. Marco Estrada was sent off for Chile in the process for a feint clip of Fernando Torres’ heels. The Liverpool player made the most of it, although Estrada had been fortunate to avoid a second yellow card only a few minutes before for a reckless challenge.

Rodrigo Millar’s deflected goal in the opening minute of the second half gave 10-man Chile a life line, but in the end it lead to the last 15 minutes of the game being played with no intentions of either scoring. Switzerland were drawing 0-0 with Honduras at the time and needing 2 goals to eliminate Chile. Spain were heading through as group winners and the game became a shorter version of West Germany’s 1-0 victory over Austria in 1982.

As group winners, Spain will face Portugal in round two after they played out a 0-0 draw with Brazil. Only the third game in which a South American side hasn’t won at this World Cup; Chile became the first to lose. Portugal have yet to concede at this World Cup (Uruguay the only other nation to match them) and had Eduardo to thank for two excellent saves. One from Nilmar in the first half, the other in stoppage time from Ramires’ deflected effort in stoppage time.

Brazil and Spain remain the bookmaker’s favourites for the World Cup, closely followed by Argentina. The Brazilians face Chile in round two having beat them 3-0 and 4-2 in qualifying. Chile also have 3 players suspended for that match.

As for betting, Honduras’ point means I missed out on correctly picking them to finish with 0 points. Backing Spain was my biggest winner of the day.

France going out of the World Cup on Tuesday was one surprise to many, but Italy’s shock defeat and elimination today was something else. The defending champions, widely expected to win the group and qualify comfortably for the knockout stages went out finishing bottom of their group.

Heading into their final group game against Slovakia, a score draw realistically would have seen them through, while a victory would have given them a chance to win Group F. Instead they were outplayed by the European minnows who recorded their first ever victory at a World Cup today.

Robert Vittek finished off a nice move halfway through the first half. The score remained the same at the break as Marcello Lippi sent on Andrea Pirlo and Fabio Quagliarella at half time, taking off Gennaro Gattuso in the process. This opened up the game and made for a thoroughly entertaining second half. Both sides had chances to score before Robert Vittek doubled the Slovakian’s lead with little more than 15 minutes remaining. But when Antonio Di Natale pulled one back inside the final 10 minutes you could have been forgiven for thinking the Italians would find an equaliser. And with 5 minutes to go they nearly did, but for a tight offside decision to rule out Quagliarella’s effort. Darren Cann’s flag frustrating the defending champions. Substitute Kamil Kopunek wrapped up the game in the final minute with his first touch, chipping the ball over the helpless Federico Marchetti. The opportunity came after a bad backpass conceding a throw and then allowing Kopunek to run unmarked towards goal. Fabio Quagliarella would score a spectacular consolation goal as some of the Italian players were left crying after the full time whistle.

Brave New Zealand Eliminated

Slovakia qualify as runners up after New Zealand were held 0-0 by Paraguay. Paraguay’s failure to score a goal may have cost me a bet, just another bet the New Zealanders have cost me during this tournament. They have overachieved significantly in my opinion and go out of the competition with their heads held high and undefeated.

Japan Look Good

Winners of Group E Paraguay will face Japan in the second round after the co-hosts of 2002 beat Denmark 3-1 this evening to book their place in the last 16. The talented Keisuke Honda got the scoring underway with a spectacular free kick that fooled Thomas Sorensen in the Denmark goal. Yasuhito Endo added a second free kick before Honda’s great skill set up Shinji Okazaki late on.

Many Fancy the Dutch

The Netherlands continued their 100% record in World Cup 2010 and 100% record in competitive matches under Bert van Marwijk as they beat Cameroon 2-1 this evening. Robin van Persie scored his first goal to get them underway, before Samuel Eto’o equalised from the penalty spot. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar scored the winner late on after he coolly rebounded Arjen Robben’s post-struck shot into the net. The Dutch are looking good, but haven’t been tested so far. Slovakia in round two shouldn’t be a problem, but it may just be too tough for the Oranje when it gets to the quarter finals and beyond.

Despite their best performance so far at the 2010 World Cup, England were only good enough for a 1-0 victory against Slovenia today. Jermain Defoe had put England in the lead halfway through the first half. A John Terry header from a corner and Wayne Rooney’s one on one were both well saved by Samir Handanovic in the second half as England failed to score a second goal that would have won them Group C.

Instead it was USA who won Group C thanks to Landon Donovan’s goal in the second minute of stoppage time, eliminating Slovenia in the process. Slovenia had chances themselves towards the end, denied by a tackle from Matthew Upson and then a block by Glen Johnson.

England Need to Improve

Grateful for England’s performance and victory today, they must improve further if they are to progress further than the second round. Set piece deliveries need to improve. And when England played the ball down the wings each time today, it often resulted in nothing more than a throw in. The build up was slow and won’t put much feat into the German defence on Sunday. The German attack should also fancy their chances against this English defence. Although David James caught every ball fired at him today, he wasn’t tested on crosses, England fans will no doubt have their hearts in their mouths when the Germans put the oldest player in the tournament under pressure on Sunday.

The Same Old Story

Yes, it’s Germany in the World Cup once again after they beat Ghana 1-0 thanks to a great strike from Mesut Ozil to top Group D. Germany themselves weren’t great, but I would expect them to be much improved when the suspended Miroslav Klose returns to replace Cacau on Sunday. The Brazilian-born striker’s first touch was lacking as he moved himself out of position from shooting opportunities on several occasions this evening. Mesut Ozil was limping at the end of the game as the German’s looked very tired in the final 20 minutes. Ghana were not to pay for failing to equalise as they qualify as runners up, ahead of Australia on goal difference. Ghana meet USA in the last 16 on Saturday.

England’s record versus Germany (including West Germany) in competitive matches is as follows:

England 4-2 West Germany 1966 World Cup Final
England 2-3 West Germany 1970 World Cup Quarter Final
England 1-3 West Germany Euro 1972 Second Round First Leg
England 0-0 West Germany Euro 1972 Second Round Second Leg
England 0-0 West Germany Euro 1982 Group Stage
England 1-1P West Germany 1990 World Cup Semi Final
England 1-1P Germany Euro 1996 Semi Final
England 1-0 Germany Euro 2000 Group Stage
England 0-1 Germany 2002 World Cup Qualifying
England 5-1 Germany 2002 World Cup Qualifying

In a spriited performance today that saw the 2010 World Cup hosts beat France 2-1, South Africa became the first host nation of the competition to be eliminated at the first group stage of the competition. That statement is a bit harsh on Bafana Bafana given previous hosts of the World Cup include Italy, Brazil, England, Argentina, Italy, France and Germany, and that USA finished in their group in 1994 back in the day when 4 of the 6 teams who finished 3rd progressed. The party atmosphere may be dampened but the show will go on.

Out With A Victory

South Africa put an end to France’s embarrassing campaign that saw them pick up just 1 point, in their opening group match against a nervous and unadventurous Uruguay side. Florent Malouda scored France’s first and only goal of the competition today. They finish with the same number of goals and points as they did in Euro 2008. Raymond Domenech’s time in charge of France is now over. In comes Laurent Blanc.

With the expense of those two, it is Uruguay and Mexico who progress from Group A as predicted. Uruguay the winners also correctly backed prior to the start of the tournament. I also laid France winning the group, while hoping that I don’t come across boastful.

Deserved Group Winners

Uruguay are deserved winners in their group. Diego Forlan has been one of the best players in the competition, at least in my competition. He has two goals to his name in three matches, looks composed on the ball as he leads the attack well. His partner up front Luis Suarez got his first goal today which made up for his first two matches where he looked to go to ground every time he got the ball. I’ll be interested to see if he makes it in one of the big leagues with a move looking likely to happen this summer.

Diego Maradona Keeps Winning

Argentina were my big bet today and I was grateful they finally broke down a stubborn and defence-minded Greece side. For a while it looked like it may never happen, but their fourth goal from a set piece in this competition changed that. Martin Palermo would seal the deal late on, following up on Lionel Messi’s parried effort. Argentina have an exciting prospect in round two as they face Mexico.

Argentina have looked good in attack this tournament, but they haven’t been tested at the back. When Jonas Gutierrez, playing out of position at right back comes up against top left wingers he will be in trouble. Expect Giovani dos Santos to give him problems in round two. Lionel Messi was man marked out of the game today until Argentina took the lead. The same thing happened to the Barcelona player in two legs versus Inter Milan in this year’s Champions League. Gonzalo Higuain still has more to show despite a hat trick versus South Korea. A touch of fortune would be a generous way of saying how he got those three goals. Or being in the right place at the right time.

Qualifying with Argentina, 5 points behind them in Group B is South Korea. Looking at the highlights they were somewhat fortunate today, firstly with their second goal that on another day would probably have been saved. And later with Yakubu’s how did you miss that moment in the second half. If you haven’t seen it already, make sure you check it out. South Korea face Uruguay in the first of the last 16 matches on Saturday June 26th.