Germany edge past Algeria to set up quarterfinal clash with France

July 1, 2014

Germany edgePorto Alegre, Jul 1: The opening goal of the Porto Alegre contest came two minutes into extra-time when Schuerrle directed a lovely backheel flick into the far corner.

A delightful goal from Andre Schuerrle and a counter-attack converted by Mesut Oezil carried a sloppy Germany into the World Cup quarterfinals on Monday, 2—1 in extra-time against Algeria.

The opening goal of the Porto Alegre contest came two minutes into extra-time when Schuerrle directed a lovely backheel flick into the far corner. Oezil decided the tie in the 120th minute after Schuerrle’s shot was cleared from the line.

Algeria managed a consolation through Abdelmoumene Djabou but could not stop Germany reaching the next round.

Germany meet France, who needed two late goals to dispatch Nigeria earlier on Monday, in Rio de Janeiro on Friday in the quarterfinal.

Germany beat France in memorable semi-finals 1982 and 1986 after losing the first meeting for third place in 1958.

The game was a rematch of one of the World Cup upsets from Spain 1982 when Algeria secured a 2—1 group stage win over West Germany in Gijon. An earlier victory in a 1964 friendly put them in the rare position of holding a 100 per cent record over their opponents with two wins out of two.

That proud record came to an end despite a heroic effort against more illustrious opponents. It was a moment of true quality from Schuerrle, making the most of the slightest space on the edge of the six—yard box, which first separated the teams.

Germany never looked like losing the lead and substitute Christoph Kramer could have made things safe even before Oezil lashed home the eventual winner, capitalizing when Schuerrle was denied by a goal-line clearance as he looked to complete a break away.

In the dying seconds Djabou converted a cross by Sofiane Feghouli at the back post but there was no chance to seriously threaten an equalizer.

Days after Algeria’s famous win in 1982, the Germans played out a mutually convenient 1—0 result with Austria in the final group match which ensured both European sides progressed while the North—Africans were eliminated.

On this occasion the Algerians could have no complaints of foul play; they were good, just not quite good enough.

Coach Vahid Halilhodzic made five changes from the starting eleven named in the final group game against Russia, and his side flooded forward on the break at every opportunity.

Feghouli and Faouzi Ghoulam shot off target early on from good positions either side of Islam Slimani having a spectacular header disallowed, correctly, for offside.

Throughout the game the Algerians attempted to exploit the intentionally high line held by the Germany back four which resulted in Manuel Neuer making several spectacular clearances as a sweeper.

Loew had to shuffle the starting 11 as Goetze replaced the injured Lukas Podolski, and Shkodran Mustafi came in at full-back as Jerome Boateng moved to central defence in place of flu-victim Mats Hummels.

Bastian Schweinsteiger was preferred to Sami Khedira alongside Philipp Lahm in defensive midfield and it was he who had Germany’s first shot of the game after 12 minutes, forcing Rai’s Mbolhi to palm the ball high in the air.

This was a rare attempt by Germany in the first half though and it was only after the break that Joachim Loew’s side began to pick up — even if they were still short of the form required to be contenders for the title.

Lahm had an effort tipped away, one of his final actions in midfield before moving to full—back for the injured Mustafi. The switch, which facilitated Khedira’s introduction into midfield, certainly did not weaken the German team.

In a flurry of late pressure, Thomas Mueller had a powerful header saved and Schuerrle had his rebound attempt blocked, before Mueller poked wide after superbly controlling the ball in the box.

Algeria reached extra-time but were visibly tiring. Their resistance lasted only two minutes beyond the regulation 90 as Schuerrle broke the deadlock to the relief of the Germans.

There was late drama as Oezil and Djabou exchanged strikes in the 120th minute but Germany had done just enough to move on.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
July 21,2020

Melbourne, Jul 21: Cricket Australia's chief executive Nick Hockley has said that the Indian players and staff will most likely be asked to face two weeks of quarantine before the four-match Test series.

This scenario will bring the Adelaide Oval and its newly constructed hotel firmly into view as the sort of biosecure bubble, ESPNCricinfo reported.

India and Australia are slated to face each other in a four-match Test series, which is to begin from December 4 at Brisbane.

"The two-week quarantine is pretty well-defined. What we are working on is making sure that even within that quarantine environment, the players have got the absolute best training facilities, so that their preparation for the matches is as optimal as it can possibly be," ESPNCricinfo quoted Hockey as saying.

"Certainly the fact that the Adelaide Oval has a hotel. It does provide a facility not dissimilar to Old Trafford or Ageas Bowl where the hotels are integrated into the venue," he added.

Hockley also said that an exacting standard of biosecurity and testing would be applied before the series against India as the coronavirus cases are spiking in the subcontinent.

"It's widely known and it's unlikely that international travel restrictions would have lifted by the time that India will be due to come into the country. Clearly there will be testing regimes. We will be able to test people before that they get on to the plane and it is the nature of the situation of making sure we have the quarantine arrangements in line with government and health authority protocols," Hockley said.

"The key thing for the players is that there's regular testing and that we appropriately quarantine them when they come in and all of those plans are currently in development," he added.

The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday announced the postponement of the T20 World Cup 2020 slated to be held in Australia from October 18-November 15 due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Following the announcement, the BCCI is likely to go ahead with the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the October-November window. However, it is known where the T20 tournament will be played as cases continue to rise in India.
"I think the BCCI has made no secrets that they are considering what that means for the IPL. For us, it's about getting a bit of an understanding and certainty around what that means. Clearly, in a normal course, some of our best players are obviously top picks for those IPL teams," Hockley said.

"It's a bit premature to speculate on that. We need to understand what the plans are if any and once we understand that we will make decisions accordingly," he added.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
January 19,2020

Rome, Jan 19: India's star wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Ravi Kumar Dahiya kicked off the Olympic year in style, winning a gold medal each in their respective weight categories at the Rome Ranking Series here.

The 25-year-old Bajrang staged a remarkable comeback to secure a 4-3 win against USA's Jordan Michael Oliver in the summit showdown of the 65kg freestyle category.

Ravi, who competed in the 61kg category instead of his regular 57kg, also bagged gold after getting the better of Kazakhstan's Nurbolat Abdualiyev 12-2 in his final bout late on Saturday night.

The 23-year-old from Sonepat had made the final round after securing impressive wins over Moldova's Alexaandru Chirtoaca and Kazakhstan's Nurislam Sanayev.

Up against one of India's biggest medal prospects in the Tokyo Olympics, Oliver conceded that it was not his night against Bajrang.

The American lauded the competitive spirit of Bajrang.

"Wasn't my night… but I got a lot of work to do to be where I want to be! Hats off to @BajrangPunia dude is heck of a competitor! Until next time my friend," the American tweeted.

Bajrang had to sweat it out in the first round against Zain Allen Retherford of the USA before prevailing 5-4.

In the quarterfinal, the ace Indian wrestler went past another American Joseph Christopher Mc Kenna 4-2, before getting the better of Vasyl Shuptar of Ukraine 6-4 in the semi-finals.

However, it was curtains for Jitender in the 74kg and world championship silver medallist Deepak Punia in the 86kg category.

Jitender won his first bout against Denys Pavlov of Ukraine 10-1 before going down in the quarterfinals against Turkey's Soner Demirtas 4-0.

Jitender got a chance to fight in the repechage after Demirtas entered the final, but the Indian wasted the opportunity, losing 2-9 to Daniyar Kaisanov of Kazakhstan.

In the 86kg category, Deepak crashed out in the opening round, losing 1-11 to Ethan Adrian Ramos of Puerto Rico.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.
News Network
April 12,2020

New Delhi, Apr 12: As devotees across the world celebrate Easter today, former Sri Lanka skipper and current Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC) president Kumar Sangakkara on Sunday condoled the demise of people who lost their lives during last year's Easter Sunday bombings in Sri Lanka and said someone must seek answers to the questions which still remain unresolved.

"A year on we all share the pain of the families grieving lives lost, we stand with you and for you. We remember. So many questions still unanswered, but answer them someone must," Sangakkara tweeted.

On April 21, 2019, multiple blasts ripped through Sri Lanka when the Christian community was celebrating Easter Sunday.
The explosions rattled churches and high-end hotels across the country, killing 258 people and injuring over 500.

A local terror group called National Thowheeth Jama'ath had claimed responsibility for the devastating attacks.

The island nation was put under a state of emergency for a period of four months from April to August.

The Sri Lankan police had then said that 293 suspects were arrested in connection with the Easter Sunday bombings in the island country in April.

This year, most of the devotees would be offering the prayers from their homes as mass gatherings have been suspended in most countries due to the ongoing coronavirus pandemic.

Easter marks the resurrection of Jesus Christ following his crucifixion on Good Friday. It also marks the culmination of Lent, a 40-day period of fasting and penance.

Comments

Add new comment

  • Coastaldigest.com reserves the right to delete or block any comments.
  • Coastaldigset.com is not responsible for its readers’ comments.
  • Comments that are abusive, incendiary or irrelevant are strictly prohibited.
  • Please use a genuine email ID and provide your name to avoid reject.