First published by Ace Magazine online July 2014.
“On the cusp of glory, frustration and exasperation will find a way to block success…”*
Emotions in Brazil must be heading all over the place as it stands, for the footballing public, the religion of the sport is enough to make anybody even remotely concerned about the final on Sunday wonder just who they are going to cheer on. The industrious Germans who tore their side apart with the consummate ease of a Lion being offered an all you can eat menu whilst picking their main course for dinner on the Serengeti or Argentina, their biggest rivals in World Football, a country that is less than a couple of hours away by airplane, a country that produced more attractive football than Brazil in the last decade…Nobody could surely blame a single person in Brazil if they thought on Sunday afternoon, “I cannot face this, I am going to bed till Monday, roll on 2018.”
For Argentina to reach their first World Cup Final since 1990, in which they lost ironically to this year’s co-finalists Germany, is remarkable. Yet they, and Holland, made the second semi-final seem slightly turgid, a ponderous stuffy affair which both teams, skilful, rampant and glorious in most games, played as if the thought of facing Germany was as close to demoralizing as it was possible to be. On current form, it could have arguably gone through every player’s minds, Hang on, it’s surely better to play Brazil and come third than take a chance on playing a side that will give us the kind of spanking that makes Brazil’s look like it was arranged with a soft paddle and administered by a soft hearted woman.
If the Germany V Brazil game was one in which the so called Master of the art of Football was taught the ultimate lesson in humiliation, then Holland V Argentina was akin to being invited to watch two Chess Grandmasters play for the title and seeing them take over an hour to move a single pawn. 120 minutes in which the only time the game really looked as if it was in danger of breaking out into something resembling entertaining was Robben decided to take on the world.
A theoretical physicist could have made an argument that the world had been knocked of balance with the result the previous day, that somewhere in France a miracle was being seen in a piece of toast, that the next winners of the Rugby World Cup would be the small island of Sark, such was the enormity of the game, that Argentina and Holland had somehow been caught in an effective temporal anomaly that had seen a shift in the space/time continuum, so much so that 0-0 at full time was the only result that was ever going to come out of this game.
With the legendary Alfredo Di Stefano having passed away earlier in the week, Football lost one of the greats and in a World Cup in which many of the supposed greats have failed to show up, admittedly leaving some unexpected players to come forward and wow the fans world-wide, the space was open, which will never be truly be filled, for a player from one of the two teams to stake a place at the table of legends. For the Dutch side to get so close yet again to the Final without playing well in this game, a team that tore Spain to shreds less than a month ago, is heart breaking for their fans. For Argentina though the dream is still alive and it is only so due to the goalkeeping form of Romero who stood taller than the statue of Christ the King and who saved two crucial penalties at the end of an exhausting game to watch.
Exhausting, not because of the free-flowing, technically superior football deployed by the Germans the night before, but tiring because despite the odd early tackle, darting run and thwarted free kick, the brain could not help believe early on that this was a semi-final that would go all the way. Extra time would give way to penalties and the only perking of excitement that came from that was that you started to let the imagination think that Louis van Gaal could once more throw an enormous spanner in the works and substitute his goalkeeper once more just in time for the penalties to be taken. In a very dull first half, that thought would have kept the neutral with the sadistic bent to their nature grinning all the way through half time and beyond.
In something that reminded fans of the tremendous ability of some footballers to be seen in the same vein as the footballer’s of the past, the Ex West Ham United player Mascherano clashed heads with Holland’s Wijnaldum. The clash was completely unintentional, but totally fazed by the smack to the head, Mascherano took a couple of steps and fell disturbingly to the floor. The fall would have been much worse if the concerned Wijnaldum had not caught him on the way down. Clearly looking dazed he was taken off the pitch and arguably gave a much better account of himself as soon as he was allowed back on. In the era of players going down and getting back up to run for a loose ball 30 seconds later, Mascherano deserves plaudits for being strong enough to shake off what could have been a danger to his health but also not playing upon it.
If the first half was poor as a spectacle then the second half it could be argued was verging on wondering just exactly how Bury, Rochdale and Accrington Stanley were going to get on in the coming season. Looking up fixtures for the lower divisions seemingly more interesting than what was being served up in Brazil.
Two lots of 45 minutes, 30 minutes of extra time and a penalty shoot-out, surely the only people happy with this semi-final would have been those who support Germany. In terms of football entertainment, this semi-final ranks against the very worst of games to have been played out. Listless, both sides making the prospect of watching paint dry seem like the height of mass enjoyment and not in the same league as a piece of Human theatre which had been delivered 24 hours earlier.
In the end it all came down to penalties. It was always going to be that way and Germany must be licking their lips in the expected amusement to come. On this display Argentina will be lucky to get their hands on the trophy for the third time, they will be fortunate to add to their tally for the first time since 1990 and without Messi giving them an extra dimension, a player who promises so much but seems to only give about 80 seconds worth of playing ability per game, time may be up for the men from South America. The 2014 World Cup might just finally see a European winner on the continent.
Holland: Jasper Cillessen, Stefan De Vrij, Ron Vlaar, Bruno Martins Indi, Dirk Kuyt, Nigel De Jong, Wesley Sneijder, Georginio Wijnaldum, Daley Blind, Arjen Robben, Robin van Persie.
Substitutes: Daryl Janmaat, Jordy Clasie, Huntelaar.
Argentina: Sergio Romero, Pablo Zabaleta, Martin Demichelis, Garay, Marcos Rojo, Lucas Biglia, Javier Mascherano, Ezequiel Lavezzi, Lionel Messi, Enzo Perez, Gonzalo Higuain.
Substitutes: Sergio Aguero, Rodrigo Palacio, Maxi Rodriguez.
Venue: Arena de Sao Paulo
Referee: Cuneyt Cakir (Turkey)
Final Result: Holland 0-0 Argentina. Argentina win 4-2 on penalties.
Man of the Match: Zabaleta. Dependable.
Ian D. Hall
* Ian D. Hall 2014.