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Stories
The climax to the 2010 World Cup adds a new name to the trophy, as seen on TV
Round of 16 ~ June 26
South Korea 1 Uruguay 2
There are acres of empty seats for a match played in a downpour. Last week Peter Drury compared chilly conditions to a match at Notts County; we now discover Jon Champion’s benchmark for a rainy day at football: “Weather you’d expect at Port Vale.” Some Uruguayan fans are wearing Óscar Tabárez facemasks. Park Chu-Young has the first chance, his free-kick bouncing off the post with Fernando Muslera beaten. But the Uruguayans might have been three up at the break – Lee Jung-Soo gets away with a handball and Luis Suárez is wrongly flagged offside when clean through. Their one goal is a calamity for Korea, the prone Jung Sung-Ryong swiping ineptly at Diego Forlán’s cross as it flies right across the area to Suárez. Muslera is equally at fault for the equaliser, failing to connect with a defensive header that goes straight up in the air – “Look up the definition of no-man’s land, he’s there,” says Craig Burley – and it is finished off by the “Bolton Wanderers man”, Lee Chung-Young. Uruguay’s deserved winner is superbly curled in by Suárez, “the man they call El Pistolero”, after the Koreans fail to clear a corner. That 49-goal season for Ajax, the most repeated stat we’ve heard at the World Cup, gets another airing while Suárez appears to bounce off a photographer’s head en route to a group hug with the substitutes. Such celebrations are treated as a felony in English football but no one has been booked for them at the World Cup. Korea get a final chance but “Middlesbrough fans will not be surprised” as Lee Dong-Gook’s weak shot is held up on the muddy pitch and cleared.X
This has been a slightly desperate month for the football pages. A non-tournament summer tends to create two main problems. First, there’s the fact that nothing’s really happening. How, at times like these, to fill the 12-page daily sport supplement and stoke the creative muse of 14 weekly picture-bylined columnists? Football has, of course, been the main impetus behind the mushrooming of all this extra space. Without actual matches, we’re left with a noisy and occasionally ragged exercise in misdirection.
Saturday 2 Man Utd go six points clear with a 2‑1 win at Middlesbrough. Gareth Southgate accuses Cristiano Ronaldo of cheating to earn a penalty for the opening goal. “The lad’s got history,” he growls, sounding like he’s on The Bill. “I’m not scared of the word ‘crisis’,” says Arsène, as Arsenal beat Spurs 3‑0 to go third, helped by two iffy penalties awarded by Graham Poll. Arsène and Thierry have a pre-match row over the latter being rested. Liverpool end their away hoodoo, winning 4‑0 at Wigan. Charlton lose 2‑1 at Sheffield United, Keith Gillespie scoring the winner in the 88th minute. “There is a confidence problem being bottom of the league,” says Les Reed. Birmingham top the Championship with a 3‑0 win at home to Plymouth. Preston lose 2‑0 at Luton. Cardiff draw 0‑0 at Colchester, their fourth game without a goal. Leeds stay in the drop zone after a 2‑2 draw at home to Barnsley. In the Cup, Tamworth are into round three, while four League One clubs lose to League Two sides including Tranmere, beaten 2‑1 at home by Peterborough, and Port Vale, who crash 4‑0 at Hereford.