World Cup – Final Weekend

3rd Place Germany 3 – Uruguay 2

This was a wonderful soccer game to watch; in retrospect I am surely not alone in wishing that the final had been as entertaining and well played. The game was wide open, as both teams had nothing to lose and consequently no inhibitions.

Final: Spain 1 – Holland 0 (a.e.t)

Spain followed the script that was widely predicted. They controlled possession and defended with pressure and numbers rather than with physicality. Holland, on the other hand, was rougher than I expected, and not as oriented to attack. With the possible exception of Dirk Kuyt, the Dutch played scared. Consequently, the game was tight and tense, and not very exciting. Dutch winger Arjen Robben is losing lots of sleep, because he was in on goal twice in the second half, against the run of play both times, and failed to convert both.  The second (on 82′) included a borderline penalty that was (correctly IMHO) not called, although the cynics will say that Robben should have collapsed on contact. The only goal came near the end of the second extra time period. Spanish midfielder Cesc Fabregas sent Man of the Match Andres Iniesta through and he calmly curled the ball past Dutch goalie Maarten Stekelenberg.

The referee (my favorite Howard Webb) controlled the rough Dutch, although he didn’t have a great game. He missed a clear red card to Nigel de Jong for a flying Kung Fu kick to the chest of Xabi Alonso while challenging for a header. In Webb’s defense, replays show he was screened on that incident. He ended up giving 11 yellow cards, and sent off Dutch defender Johnny Heitenga for a second yellow in the first extra period.