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Mexico 1 – 1 South Africa
South Africa were denied a famous opening day win inWorld Cup Group A, Mexico’s Rafael Marquez securing a 1-1 draw after Siphiwe Tshabalala’s stunning 53rd minute opener.
After a spectacular opening ceremony and welcoming messages from FIFA president Sepp Blatter and South African president Jacob Zuma, the2010 World Cup kicked off to the excitable sound of the vuvuzelas brought to the game by a colourful capacity crowd at Soccer City in Johannesburg.
In the opening minutes the hosts were carved open as the adventurous Mexicans forced their way into the South Africa box and when keeper Itumeleng Khune spilt a cross, Giovani dos Santos was superbly blocked by Aaron Mokoena as he looked set to tap into the empty net.
It was a real let off for the home side, but the Mexicans continued to knock the ball about with freedom.
Steven Pienaar could well have become the first player booked in the tournament when he was penalised for a high foot on Rafael Marquez as they contested a bouncing ball, but the referee showed leniency. From the resulting move Mexico earned a corner and Guillermo Franco was allowed a free header, but he failed to keep his effort down and Bafana Bafanawere again able to breathe a sigh of relief.
South Africa’s first move of real momentum was broken up when Siphiwe Tshabalala was held back by Carlos Salcido, earning the hosts a free-kick, but Pienaar’s 30-yard effort went well over the bar.
The first booking of the World Cup came when Efrain Juarez was penalised for handball and then failed to retreat when referee Ravshan Irmatov attempted to allow the home side to take the set piece. But within seconds Mexico were back on the attack and Giovani unleashed a fantastic left-footed shot which just cleared the bar with Khune scrambling across.
South Africa again showed clever build up play in the 23rdminute, but Katlego Mphela’s cross was smothered at the second attempt by Oscar Perez.
After Kagisho Dikgacoi was booked for a clumsy foul on Giovani, Bafana went back to attacking the left side of El Tri’s defence, Pienaar twice being blocked off when getting into a good crossing position.
But Mexico continued to dominate possession, and patient build-up play led to Carlos Vela chipping in a neat pass to Franco, who held off his marker and got a shot in on goal, but Khune’s strong right hand just managed to keep the ball out.
Within minutes Mexico were again attacking down the right, but Vela’s cross-shot went beyond the far post with no black shirts onrushing to pick up the scraps.
El Tri continued to press, and Bongani Khumalo was just about able to block a Giovani shot over the bar to concede a corner from which the game’s first big talking point emanated.
A dangerous flag-kick was swung in, and with Khune coming into no-man’s land, the ball was flicked on to Vela at the back post, but his tap-in was fruitless as the offside flag was up due to the goalkeeper’s advanced position beyond the Mexico striker.
This still didn’t stop the men in black though, as Franco got a header in ahead of Khumalo but couldn’t guide it towards goal. Siboniso Gaxa was able to counter though,winning Bafana a corner which escaped the attention of Perez and just cleared Dikgacoi at the far post.
South Africa’s best chance came on 44 minutes when Tshabalala swung in a magnificent left-foot cross, but Mphela couldn’t quite grow enough to head home. Within a minute Dikgacoi was able to get his head to a deep cross, but couldn’t direct the ball on target.
After an even opening to the second half, Bafana scored a sensational opening goal.
With the Mexico backline stretched, the marauding Siphiwe Tshabalala who strode onto the ball with real purpose on the left and unleashed a magnificent left-footed strike into the top right hand corner of the goal to send the home crowd into raptures.
Suddenly there was more belief about Bafana’s play, but also more purpose on display from the Mexicans, and it was they who could easily have struck the next goal as Giovani whipped in a fierce left foot shot which was sensationally tipped over the bar by Khune.
As Carlos Alberto Parreira’s charges bolstered their defence by bringing the midfield in tighter, Mexico continued to lack a cutting edge. And it could easily have been 2-0 whenTeko Modise side-footed wide when unmarked with plenty of time to shoot.
Javier Aguirre introduced national legend Cuauhtemoc Blanco for Vela as he looked to provide his team with a greater threat close to goal.
Modise then went down under pressure from Francisco Rodriguez as he attempted to get a right-footed shot away on one of Bafana’s breakaways as the visitors continued to boss most of the possession.
After the introduction of Javi Hernandez for Franco, the game seemed to take on a wider feel as Mexico looked to stretch the play. But Bafana again looked dangerous on the break as Blanco’s heavy first touch gifted possession to Tshabalala and his cross-field pass found Modise in space, but his cross was overhit.
On 79 minutes, Mexico hit a deserved equaliser when a cross from the left was floated in and Mokoena kept three forwards onside, allowing Rafael Marquez time and space to fire a shot between the near post and goalkeeper Khune.
The goal took the sting out of the vuvuzela sound from the home crowd ever so slightly as their side were now handed the task of regaining the lead.
Khumalo was forced to make an excellent block on substitute Hernandez as El Tri found space in between the lines of Bafana defence in the closing 10 minutes, the hosts now holding on to the 1-1 scoreline to some extent.
But it was South Africa who came closest to winning it in the closing seconds as Katlego Mphela broke through, but he couldn’t quite get the ball under control and his left-foot shot came cannoning back off the foot of the near post with Perez beaten.
US Beat Australia in Final World Cup Tune-up
In a match replete with little defending, poor finishing by both sides, and David Beckham observing from the stands, the United States Men’s National Team used a first-half brace from Edson Buddle to defeat Australia 3-1 in both sides’ last warm-up before the 2010 World Cup.Tim Cahill scored for the losing team that dominated possession and saw striker Joshua Blake Kennedy miss numerous opportunities. Robbie Findley flubbed two chances at the empty net, while second-half substituteHerculez Gomez demonstrated his remarkable ability to tally in short order, converting Landon Donovan’s cross in second-half injury time. It was a successful afternoon for the Americans, although questions about the health of Oguchi Onyewu remain unanswered.
First Half
Edson Buddle opened the scoring with an opportunistic tally in the fourth minute. Vincenzo Grella was caught in possession just outside his 18-yard box after pressure by Robbie Findley, then the Los Angeles Galaxy striker. As his partner streaked toward the net, Buddle looked to pass, but instead took a touch to his right and blasted the Jabulani past Mark Schwarzer. The tally providedBob Bradley with more evidence that his untested attacking duo can make a difference on the international level. It was a terrible give-away by the Socceroos, but Findley and Buddle looked calm and confident and the latter man finished well.
Findley somehow managed to miss an empty net in the 15th minute. He did wonderfully to beat the offside trap and found himself released into space. The MLS Cup-winning forward sidestepped an onrushing Schwarzer, only to shoot wide of the net’s gaping maw. A miss like that could be the difference between advancing into the second round and going home early.
Tim Cahill showed why just minutes later. Australia earned a corner kick as Clarence Goodson made a mess of a clearance, and Tim Howard’s teammate at Everton beat Clint Dempsey(who looked to let up) to the back post, then toe-poked the ball past the American goalkeeper.
Buddle doubled off a brilliant cross from Steve Cherundolo in the 31st minute. Hannover 96′s captain used a step-over to gain space on the right flank, and then served to the far post where the goal-scorer stood unmarked. Unlike his partner, Buddle didn’t miss. It was a good build up for the Stars and Stripes, but the goal also came as a result of soft defending.
Dempsey and Craig Moore earned yellow cards in the 37th. The American was lucky not to be sent of for retaliation after the defender’s perhaps dangerous tackle. Bradley’s side, the recipient of soft red cards during the Confederations Cup, desperately needs to avoid those types of mental lapses if it expects to emerge from group play.
Second Half
After the break, Marcus Hahnemann replaced Howard while Cahill came off in favor of Carl Valeri.
Kennedy needed to score moments after kickoff but couldn’t turn his hips square to the goal and watched his shot fly harmlessly wide.
The Americans nearly doubled their lead in the 52nd minute. Donovan released Buddle who played the role of distributor after drawing Schwarzer out. His chipped cross found Findley who demonstrated his scoring ineptitude by hitting the crossbar with a sliding effort. The rebound fell to Michael Bradley but the Aussie keeper was equal to his effort, parrying the blast skyward. Dempsey finally put the ball in the back of the net but the play was called offside.
Jonathan Bornstein removed captain Carlos Bocanegra in the 55th minute, while Dario Vidosic replaced Jason Culina and Onyewu took Clarence Goodson’s place six minutes later. The A.C. Milan’s defender’s awkward first touch resulted in a corner for the opposition, and he looked uncomfortable during his half-hour stint.
Nikita Rukavytsya joined the match in the 72nd minute, ending Richard Garcia’s night.
Australia dominated possession throughout the middle part of the second stanza, but had nothing to show for their efforts. Hahnemann appeared lost on a number of crosses although he made a series of impressive saves. The performance hurts the EnglishPremier League goalie as the American No. 2 position is presumably up for grabs before the World Cup kicks off. Brad Guzan may be considered steadier.
Grella earned himself a yellow card in the 76th minute for a reckless challenge on Dempsey. It was quite a hard tackle for a match played with little defensive intensity and perhaps it was the result of the Texan’s earlier antics.
Buddle walked off the pitch after a successful night in the 79th minute with DaMarcus Beasley earning his 92nd cap, while Herculez Gomez replaced Dempsey three minutes later. The Mexican league’s leading scorer found himself on a 2-on-0 break with Findley after another wonderful throughball from Donovan, but scuffed his pass, immediately pointing to the pitch as if to blame its poor quality.
The Americans iced the match in injury time as Donovan once again showed his brilliant vision. The squad’s all-time leading scorer feigned a shot, instead hitting a cross on the ground. Gomez atoned for his earlier mistake, finishing from the six-yard box.
After the goal, Ricardo Clark left the pitch holding his upper hamstring and the whistle blew shortly thereafter.
