June 11 - Day 12
All four teams in Group A were still in with a shout at the start of the day but, most significantly, it was swim-or-drown time for FRANCE. A fortnight ago the mere suggestion that the holders might tumble out in the first round would have seen you mocked all the way to a psychiatric unit. Today it could happen so I had no complaints about rousing myself for the 7.30 kick-off.
Once the undisputed tournament favourites, they need a two goal victory over DENMARK to hang on in there and, with Zinedine Zidane back in the side, it would still have taken a very brave man to bet against them. Even without Peter Lovenkrands, the Danes have always looked good going forward but defensively they don't look quite so bright so this was a major test for them. I feared for their future, knowing the French would mean business, but full marks to the Scandinavians. They knew what they had to do and their game plan was faultless.
Zidane was tightly marked and his lack of match practice was a clear problem. I felt those around ZZ relied too heavily on him, waiting for the main man to make things happen instead of taking responsibility themselves, taking the weight off his shoulders and giving Denmark more to think about. Through it all, the possibility of a Danish goal was very real and midway through the first half they struck the killer blow. Stig Toftig sent over a cross from the right, Dennis Rommedahl delivered the perfect finish and France now found themselves needing three goals to qualify.
In their heart of hearts, the French knew they had to get something back before the break to have any hope of staying alive. It didn't happen, Denmark grew in confidence, enjoyed a bit of luck here and there and, inevitably, grabbed a second goal. Half-time sub Jesper Gronkjaer broke clear on the left, whipped the ball low across goal and Jon Dahl Tomasson ruthlessly side-footed it past the helpless Barthez. In the course of the second half, a Desailly header hit the woodwork, Cisse forced a good save from Sorensen and Trezeguet rattled a shot off the crossbar. It simply wasn't France's day!
Playing a counterattacking game, I expected Morten Olsen to call on our Cup Final hero's pace but it was not to be. Perhaps Denmark are saving Blue Peter for the later stages! And with their attention turning to the prospect of a second round meeting with England or Argentina, there is every justification in eyeing up the big picture, especially as Gronkjaer spent the closing stages nursing the recurrence of a knee injury.
When SENEGAL went ahead against URUGUAY with an iffy penalty kick from Fadiga, it looked like Denmark and France were playing for the runners-up spot and, with Bouba Diop adding a second and third before half-time, it all appeared to be cut and dried. It seemed that the Uruguayans had thrown in the towel and were again paying the price for their unstable temperament, yet they staged a quite remarkable second half fightback. Morales pulled a goal back within a minute of the restart and a great shot from Forlan made it 3-2 midway through the second half.
Amazingly, Alvaro Recoba equalized with a late penalty kick and the Uruguayans suddenly found themselves back in the hunt, knowing one more goal would take them level on points with Senegal, level on goal difference also, but through at the Africans' expense by virtue of winning the head-to-head clash. They didn't get that final break they needed, although Morales came mighty close in injury time, and once more Uruguay are left to ponder over what might have been...IF they had been more positive against Denmark, IF they had utilized their one-man advantage against France, IF they had made the effort right from the start against Senegal. But shed no tears for these under-achievers!
Hardly surprisingly, rather than discuss all the drama we had witnessed, the talk in the TV studio was about what today's results mean for England. In all honesty, they could not have fancied coming up against the French, preferring Denmark to emerge as group runners-up. But Uruguay's late rally certainly changed the landscape. Denmark have now finished on top and will face Group F's second team (Argentina?), while Senegal are the team in England's sights, assuming the English get it right against Nigeria tomorrow. And if you believe all you hear on the box, the English are clear 'certs' for a place in the quarter-finals. We shall see.
With no mid-morning game, I had a couple of hours to kill (I did the ironing!) before the lunchtime session when everyone assumed I would be tuning in to those boys in green. Not me! The Irish only need a two goal victory to go through and, even wishing them everything but the best, it is hard to see them not getting it. Besides, I'm not a big fan of The Fields Of Athenry. Thanks to ntl, I switched on to ITV2 for GERMANY V CAMEROON where, while the Germans are clear favourites to get at least a draw, as Cameroon have to go for it, this could be a very interesting game.
Initially, the Germans showed no inclination of settling for the draw they needed. Klose set up Ballack early on but the Bayer Leverkusen man shot over, then Rigobert Song - has there been a more accident prone defender in the tournament? - came mighty close to sending a header into his own net. Just in case Germany were tempted to get complacent, Eto'o, Olembe and Song all had a glimpse of goal at the other end and, in a remarkable finish to the first half, Carsten Ramelow was sent off when he brought down Sammy Eto'o.
Now facing only ten men, Cameroon were in with a major chance of pulling off a shock but how many times have we seen evidence of German resilience? Just when they appeared to be in trouble, they pulled a rabbit out of the hat. Rudi Voller replaced Jancker with Bode at half-time and five minutes into the second half the sub got behind the African defence to take a pass from Klose and give his team a one goal cushion which really put the pressure on Cameroon.
Eighteen minutes from the end Lauren battered a header off the post as Germany sought to suck their opponents on to a hook and, when second half sub Suffo was shown his second yellow card a few minutes later, the group favourites were safe. Almost immediately Miroslaw Klose scored with a header from point blank range to wrap things up and, as word filtered back from Shizoka, the cheers of the Irish were no doubt as loud as those from the Germans.
Over at Daejon a Robbie Keane volley had given EIRE a dream start and everyone sat back in anticipation of the inevitable second goal. But the Irish have never been quite so clever when playing from the front, rather than coming from behind, and they looked a rather nervous lot for much of the time. Without ever putting them under serious pressure, SAUDI ARABIA had one or two half-chances and news of Germany and Cameroon drawing 0-0 at interval added to the suspicion that Ireland would maybe settle for the one goal.
Of course, second half strikes from Gary Breen and Damien Duff (with the help of the keeper) meant there would be no nerve-jangling finish for McCarthy's men who, as expected, now qualify as runners-up to the Germans. The most important result of the Eire campaign was not this 3-0 win, nor their last-gasp draw with Germany, but the 1-1 draw with Cameroon in their first game. And as the Irish celebrate, Cameroon know it was their failure to win that one, not their inability to beat ten-man Germany, which has them heading for home.
A very eventful day, with no lack of drama and, although I fancied them to scrape through, the departure of France is not the big shock many make it out to be. They simply have not done enough to justify the tag of being the world's best and I'm inclined to think that, having reigned supreme for so long, the French grew to believe the hype without seeing the need to dig deep to make things happen. The current squad of players have had their day, it is time for Les Bleus to rebuild.
Meanwhile, as the Irish party and the English get ready to see off Nigeria, prepare yourself for some insufferable stuff in the papers over the next few days. Or maybe you should just keep clicking on to the FF Website to see the World Cup through educated eyes. Not a bad idea, even if I say so myself!!!