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Chile wearing hard luck label
Everyone in Group B still alive after Austrian miracle
Posted: Wednesday June 17, 1998 07:47 PM
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Chile goalkeeper Nelson Tapia fell to the ground in disbelief following Vastic's goal in stoppage time (AP) |
ATLANTA (CNN/SI) -- Every World Cup ends up with a hard luck team which
plays well, but does not get what it deserves . Chile is looking
like that team after just two games.
Twice now the Chileans have dominated their opponent only to come away with
one point from a draw. They were ahead of Italy 2-1 late in
their opening match when the Italians got a penalty kick on a dubious hand
ball in the box that looked extremely unintentional on all replays.
Wednesday, it was Austria's turn
to victimize Chile.
Chile was the aggressor all afternoon, going ahead in the 70th minute on a
one-two combination from talented strikers Ivan Zamorano and Marcelo Salas.
Zamarano headed a free kick towards the goal from 10 yards, and only an
excellent save by Austian goalkeeper Michael Konsel kept it from going in.
But Konsel deflected the ball ahead of him directly to Salas, who was able
to tip it back at Konsel who caught it while lying in the goal.
The Chileans weren't done, though, as they continued to push the attack and
control possession of the ball. It seemed certain they would get three
points as the game moved into stoppage time. Heck, Austria had only had one
real shot at the goal all game.
But there was susbstitute striker Ivica Vastic collecting the ball at the
top of the penalty area with less than a minute of stoppage time left,
turning and, with Chilean hearts breaking all over the world, calmly
curving a 23-yard shot into the upper right corner of the goal before Chile
goalkeeper Nelson Tapia even saw it. Amazingly, Austria had salvaged a draw
after 90 minutes for the second straight game, leaving it and Chile both
with two points in Group B.
It now seems likely after Italy's win over Cameroon that
the Italians will win Group B and avoid facing Brazil in the
second round. Chile, meanwhile, faces a dangerous Cameroon squad in its
final first-round match.
All four teams are still alive in the race for the second round, and it
would not be at all surprising to see Chile, which by all rights could have
six points after two matches, end up flying home with nothing to show for
its Group B efforts. But that is the beauty of the World Cup.
As upset as Chile must be right now with two points, imagine how the
Austrians feel. Outplayed in both of their contests, they still have a
chance, albeit a small one, to advance with a win over Italy.
The Italians got an early header goal from Luigi Di Biagio, and then
cruised to a 3-0 win after Cameroon defender Raymond Nkongo Kalla was given
a red card near the end of the first half for a two-footed tackle on Di
Biagio.
Strikergate shows no signs of ending anytime soon for the Italians, though.
Roberto Baggio and Christian Vieri started for the second straight game,
leaving a healthy Alessandro Del Piero on the bench.
Baggio assisted on the Di Biagio goal with a nice cross, and Vieri's engine
ran all game. But it seemed as though the Italian offense picked things up
a notch when Del Piero entered the contest in the 65th minute. Vieri,
especially, seemed to benefit from being partnered with Del Piero, as he
slotted home two goals in the final 15 minutes.
All three are excellent players, but the Italian media and fans are likely
to continue the debate over which two of the three should start for quite
some time. The only opinion which matters is coach Cesar Maldini's, and he
will probably stick with what has worked so far, playing Baggio until he
tires out, and then replacing him with Del Piero. Vieri's spot seems safe
after his impressive performance against Cameroon.
Regardless, Italy certainly looked like a favorite to reach the semifinals
or finals with the showing it turned in against the Indomitable Lions. The
key for Italy is making sure it beats Austria in its final first-round
match in order to avoid facing Brazil in the second round.
Down and dirty: Baggio and Italy outfouled Cameroon 21-9 in their 3-0 rout (AP) | |
If the Austrians play as they have in the first two matches against Italy,
though, they should be done long before stoppage time comes around.
Off the pitch, the big news centered around the dismissal of Faustino
Asprilla from Colombia's
squad. Apparently Asprilla did not take kindly to being substituted for in
Colombia's 1-0 loss to Romania,
throwing a fit on the sidelines, and then telling the media how certain
'untouchables' on the team, i.e. blond-haired star Carlos Valderrama, would
never get taken out of a game no matter how badly they might play.
His actions did not sit well with coach Hernan Gomez, who quickly
instructed Asprilla that his services were no longer needed by his country.
In the end, though, it's not exactly the thing Colombia, a team bent on
redeeming itself after not making the second round in '94, wanted to deal
with in the days before its biggest match of the first round against England.
Already behind the ball because of the Romania loss, a loss to England
would likely cripple Colombia's chances of moving out of round robin play.
Player of the Day: Christian Vieri. With all the discussion about
whether or not Baggio and Del Piero could partner together up front for
Italy, Vieri had to feel like the forgotten man. Wednesday he reminded
Italian fans that he's still around, and he's going not planning on leaving
the Italian lineup any time soon.
Vieri was a well-deserving target for Italian long balls all night, getting
behind Cameroon's defense time and again. He scored twice after Del Piero
came into the game, but he could easily have scored twice while Baggio was
in the contest.
If Italy is to go a long way, it will need more days like this out of
Vieri. His height and speed are an advantage which coach Cesar Maldini is
not likely to take off the field any time soon, no matter how badly Italian
fans woud like to see Del Piero and Baggio playing together.
Goal of the Day: Ivica Vastic. For the second straight game Austria
pulled off a miracle in stoppage time, and this time it was the substitute
Vastic scoring the equalizing goal.
Vastic collected the ball just outside the penalty box on the left side,
made a quick move to free himself, dribbled twice to his right and curled
in the perfect shot around two defenders. The 23-yard strike was never seen
by Chile goalkeeper Nelson Tapia, not that it would have mattered anyway.
Tapia could not have saved Vastic's goal even if he had seen it, that's how
perfect the placement was.
Quote of the Day: "I don't want to talk about referees but some of the
decisions were very harsh. The referees are never against the Italians." --
Cameroon coach Claude Le Roy who watched as defender Raymond Nkongo Kalla
was given a red card on a play in which it appeared he could not avoid
running into Italy's Luigi Di Biagio
Outlook for Thursday: The host country returns to the pitch, taking on
Saudi
Arabia this time. While a disciplined team, the Saudis should not pose
a threat to the French. But this is the World Cup, and something in the gut
says this game will be a tough one for France.
If France is to slip up in the first round this will be the game. It might
be overlooking Saudi Arabia with talented Denmark up
next.
In the end, look for the Saudis to put up a tough fight and play to a
scoreless draw with the hosts, making a jumble of Group C.
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