Top 5 Most Memorable Football Matches of the Decade
Belgium 3-2 Japan 2018
Roberto Martinez, the manager of Belgium, remarked, “Let’s congratulate Japan.” They executed the game flawlessly. Still, they had fallen short. Despite having a little more than 20 minutes left and a 2-0 lead. Japan was poised to pull off one of the greatest World Cup shots for a very long time after shocking their highly-favored Belgian opponents with two quick goals immediately after halftime through Genki Haraguchi and Takashi Inui.
But Jan Vertonghen’s looping long-range header—which Eiji Kawashima probably ought to have saved—turned the tide of the match. Five minutes later, Marouane Fellaini equalized Eden Hazard’s cross, and Nacer Chadli then scored the game-winning goal for Belgium following a spectacular breakaway that included a beautiful dummy from Romelu Lukaku.
A distraught Akira Nishino was at a loss to explain how Japan had wasted a magnificent chance to advance to the World Cup quarterfinals for the first time, calling the defeat a tragedy. Martinez was naturally eager to praise his players’ tenacity.
Brazil 1-7 Germany 2014
After Germany’s record-breaking 7-1 victory over Brazil at the 2014 World Cup, Mats Hummels said that the players had agreed at halftime to refrain from any showboating. The defense said, “We just made it obvious that he had to keep focused and not attempt to embarrass them.” However, it was far too late for that.
With goals from Thomas Muller, Miroslav Klose, Toni Kroos, and Sami Khedira, Germany had a 5-0 advantage at halftime. Klose had also become the World Cup’s all-time leading scorer. Despite slowing down after the interval, Andre Schurrle’s second-half double helped Joachim Low’s team record the largest winning margin in a World Cup semifinal. Additionally, it was Brazil’s worst home loss ever and their most upsetting result since the 1950 World Cup. from Mineirazo to Maracanazo.
Before the break, a lot of spectators left the Estadio Mineirao. At the half, those who were still there booed their team nonstop. Some spectators even applauded Germany’s goals in the second half. Several supporters torched their shirts, others threw off their shirts in disgust, and one man started oddly nibbling on his flag. It’s challenging to compete in a World Cup anyplace, but Brazil was going to be particularly challenging because of the high expectations of the home crowd. A recent outage affected Selecao.
Spain 1-5 Netherlands 2014
Arjen Robben experienced shock-like like everyone else in Salvador. He shouted. That goal was incredible. Whoever dared to attempt a score from that position? It was a wise inquiry. Just before halftime of the 2014 World Cup group match between the Netherlands and Spain, Daley Blind lofted a ball toward Robin van Persie, and everyone expected the striker to try to knock it down.
Instead, Van Persie leaped into the air and defeated Iker Casillas with what is possibly the greatest exquisite diving header in history. It was a very important objective as well as being aesthetically pleasing. At the moment, Spain was in the lead. The Dutch erupted in a riot in the second half after Van Persie’s equalizer crushed La Roja. As the Netherlands partially avenged their final defeat to Spain four years prior, Van Persie once again scored, Robben, added a brace of his own, and Stefan de Vrij also found the net.
It turned out that “tika-taka,” the style of precision passing football that had allowed the Spanish to win three straight major international competitions, had died. The next match saw Chile defeat Vincente Del Bosque’s visibly surprised team, which resulted in a group-stage exit for the defending world and European champions. It was, as the MARCA headline the day after the 2-0 defeat stated. And Van Persie’s divine header had been the catalyst for their shockingly quick death.
Uruguay 1-1 Ghana (4-2 pens) 2010
Luis Suarez proclaimed, “The Hand of God now belongs to me,” following Uruguay’s 2010 victory against Senegal in the quarterfinals. I performed the finest save of the competition. And possibly the most contentious in human history. There is still much discussion about Suarez’s choice to stop Dominic Adiyiah from scoring with a header, and not just among supporters of Ghana and Uruguay.
After all, there were only a few seconds left in extra time after Diego Forlan’s twisting free-kick leveled the tight game at one goal each after Sully Muntari’s magnificent opener. If Suarez hadn’t stepped in, Uruguay would have been eliminated without a doubt. Instead, they managed to stay alive and eventually won 4-2 in penalties because of Fernando Muslera’s two saves.
However, Suarez was given the roles of both the game’s protagonist and antagonist. He had unquestionably saved his nation by doing the ultimate act of cynicism—sacrificing himself so that Uruguay could advance. But in doing so, he had also denied Ghana the opportunity to make history by being the first African country to ever go to the semifinals.
Milovan Rajevac, the coach of Ghana, blasted the unfairness of his team’s defeat and called Suarez a cheat, while Oscar Tabarez, the coach of Uruguay, insisted that the game’s rules had been followed. The coach emphasized that Suarez was removed from the game after a handball in the penalty area resulted in a red card.
Germany 0-2 Italy 2006
118 minutes of scoreless football have rarely been so captivating. The 2006 match between Germany and Italy in Dortmund contained both tension and quality. A single magical moment was all that was required for it to rank among the best World Cup games ever played. Italy produced two.
The seconds before and after Fabio Grosso broke the tie have become legendary in Italy. First, commentator Fabio Caressa captures Andrea Pirlo picking up the ball on the edge of the German penalty area, waiting and waiting, and then opting to deliver a no-look ball into Grosso’s path.
When Grosso bends the ball past Jens Lehman and into the German goal, chaos ensues as Italy’s unlikely hero starts yelling, “I don’t believe it!” I don’t think so! I don’t think so!
To equalize, Germany pushes forward, but the incomparable Fabio Cannavaro heads a cross away before sprinting out of the Italy penalty area to win his clearance and launch a masterfully executed counterattack that ends with Alessandro Del Piero atoning for his missed opportunities in the Euro 2020 final.
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