The quarterfinal matchup of World Cup 2010 brought about some of the most interesting story lines of this world cup, none of which was more controversial than Luis Suarez’s handball incident during the Ghana vs Uruguay match.
Besides this incident, the other biggest surprise was the outcome of the Germany/Argentina and Brazil/Netherlands games. All 5 South American teams made it out of the group stage, and 4 of the teams made it to the quarterfinals. Many analysts predicted that the South American countries would breeze through this round as well and occupy 2 or 3 semifinal spots. However, this was not the case as Brazil and Argentina both were defeated by the Netherlands and Germany, respectively.
What happened in those two games? Weren’t Argentina and Brazil very strong in the group stage and the round of 16 stage? Were they over hyped? Are Germany and the Netherlands that good? Are Argentina and Brazil that bad?
Argentina and Brazil both boast some of the greatest collection of talent and skill of any team in the world. However, going into this tournament, there was a lot of controversy surrounding the managers of both these teams.
After Argentina struggled through qualifying for the World Cup, the Argentinian Federation fired Alfia Basil and brought in Diego Maradona, one of the greatest players ever in the sport, but also one of the most controversial. His appointment was marked with ridicule by the media and he was heavily criticized, mainly because this was his first time coaching a team at any level. He was further criticized after he used over 100 different players in his first years of coaching the team, trying to figure out the right players and strategy.
Brazil too had its share of controversy after Dunga took over as coach. He abandoned the traditional Brazilian, free flowing, creative style of play, and instituted a very traditional, conservative, defensive style of play. He even went so far as leaving Ronaldinho, one of the best players in the world, off the team because Ronaldinho didnt fit in his plans for the team.
Knowing this, how does this explain what happened?
Like I mentioned above, Brazil and Argentina both have some of the best collection of talent out of any team in this world. I believe they were able to breeze through the group stage and their round of 16 game on pure talent alone. For Argentina, I dont think Maradona knows that much about tactical football strategy and I really dont think that he did THAT much coaching during the World Cup. Argentina was by far a better team than Nigeria, South Korea, Greece, and Mexico and Maradona just let them be and let them outplay them. However, when they faced a strong team like Germany, who is coached by a very smart Joachim Low, they simply didnt have a chance against them because I think Maradona didnt really know what he was doing.
Brazil’s loss against the Netherlands was unlike the Argentinian’s loss…it was a bit more unfortunate. Brazil was up 1-0 at the half, but eventually fell victim by an own goal and a complete meltdown of the team after a player was sent off with a red card. However, like Argentina, Brazil wasnt as strong as everyone thought they’d be. I think the biggest warning sign was their 2-1 victory over North Korea. The one goal given up was the only goal scored by North Korea the entire tournament, who were defeated by Portugal 7-0 and Ivory Coast 3-0. A lot of people gave credit to North Korea for playing a very strong game, but that was no excuse for Brazil to not score more goals. After their 0-0 tie with Portugal, one could have seen that this team wasnt like Brazilian teams from before. This team’s offense at times looked out of sync, and unlike that of the number one team in the world.
What about Germany and the Netherlands? Where did they come from?
Germany has always been a powerhouse in soccer, and their success shouldnt come as a surprise to many people. Some might say that they’re the strongest team remaining in this tournament. Despite a 1-0 loss to Serbia, I think they are playing some of the best football right now after scoring 4 goals each against Australia, England, and Argentina. They are also the “biggest” surprise of the tournament for me. Before the World Cup started, I didnt think they would be able to advance far because of the injury to their captain, Michael Ballack, and because of the poor form of one of their best strikers, Miroslav Klose.
I think the injury to Ballack was a blessing in disguise. Ballack is a semi-diva on the field and constantly wants the ball. With him off the field, it’s given the younger players a chance to shine, which is what exactly Bastian Schweinstiger has done in the midfield. Another surprise has been the form of Klose. Klose scored only 6 goals in 38 games this past season for his club, Bayern Munich, which was the lowest goal total in his career. However, he’s completely turned around his game for the World Cup and has scored 4 goals for Germany so far. Just like the lesson learned from Paul Pierce, Ray Allen, and Kevin Garnett of the Boston Celtics this past season, star veteran, experienced players will always show up on the greatest stage.
Now, the Netherlands success might be a bit surprising to some people, but it really shouldnt be. The Netherlands, like Spain, is widely considered to be the best country to never have won the World Cup. They have always enjoyed much success at the European Championship level, making it to the semifinals twice this decade in 2000 and 2004 as well as the quarterfinal round in 2008. The Netherlands now are what Brazil used to be back in the day…a skilled, creative, free flowing team that is also very sound defensively. I fully expect them to dominate Uruguay in the semifinals and earn a birth in the finals.
Semi-final Predictions
The Netherlands over Uruguay
Germany over Spain
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