World Cup 2014 Match Day 7 Game 3 ************************************************ As it happened after we left you with the 2nd Half and the fall of the Spanish giants (The story continues..................................!) after 1st Half ************************************************************************************* Good Bye to African Lions *********************************** Cameroon 0-4 Croatia: World Cup 2014 – as it happened Mario Mandzukic scored twice as Croatia won at a canter in the wake of a moment of first half madness from Alexandre Song : 90 min: Assou-Ekotto and Moukandjou have a disagreement over something, which leads to some shoving and ends with Assou-Ekotto sticking the nut on his team-mate. He didnt do it particularly violently, it was more of a Pepe effort. Luckily for him the referee didnt see it, or hed almost certainly have been sent off. 89 min: Pletikosa saves brilliantly from Webo, who took advantage of a brilliant Assou-Ekotto cross to head the ball into the ground and up, only to see his goal-bound effort tipped over the bar. 88 min: From a corner, the balls lumped long to the halfway line for Rebic to chase. He finds himself alone in the Cameroon half, with Rakitic galloping up through the centre at an astonishing rate of knots, considering how late in the game it is. Rebic plays the ball through to Rakitic, whose first touch is poor. He lifts the ball over the keeper and wide, when scoring looked easier. 87 min: Were treated to the familiar sight of several Croatians bearing down on the Cameroon goal. Ante Rebic shoots straight at Charles Itandje, who can only parry the ball back into the centre of the penalty area. He gets away with it: the ball doesnt break kindly for any of the onrushing Croatians. 84 min: Benjamin Moukandjo squanders a great chance to get his name on the score-sheet, curling a shot wide of the right upright from the left side of the penalty area when in acres of space with all the time in the world to pick his spot and shoot. 83 min: Croatia goalkeeper Stipe Pletikosa is forced to gallop off his line and make a rare save, diving at the feet of Salli to block a shot. 82 min: Eduardo and then Darijo Srna each have shots blocked in quick succession as Croatia meander through midfield at their leisure again. 78 min: Cameroon win a free-kick and then a corner in quick succession, but fail to take of advantage of either to pull back a consolation goal. 77 min: Croatia substitution: Ivan Perisic off, after a fine performance. Amnte Rebic replaces him to make his seventh appearance for his country. 76 min: Eduardo and Kovacic exchange passes on the fringes of the Cameroon penalty area again, but a leaden-footed touch by the latter gifts possession back to Cameroon. 75 min: Cameroon substituion: Eric Choupo-Moting off, Edgar Salli on. 74 min: Mateo Kovacic had just replaced Sammir in midfield and made an instant impression, cantering up the right flank, before pulling the ball back to his fellow substitute Eduardo, who shot diagonally from outside the penalty area. At full streth, Itandje could only parry the ball to the feet of Mandzukic who tapped it home. Mario Mandzukic scores as easy goal as hell ever get, tapping home from three yards or less after Charles Itandje had parried a low Eduardo drive from distance into his path. 70 min: Cameroon substitution: Vincent Aboubaker, one of few Cameroon players to perform well tonight, goes off. Pierre Webo replaces him. No sooner thasn he comes on than Stephane Mbia goes close to pulling a goal back for Cameroon, firing wide after going through on goal while Croatias players were day-dreaming. 68 min: Croatia substitution: Ivica Olic off, after putting in another epic shift. Eduardo on. 66 min: Croatia Stephane Mbia mugs Sammir of possession in midfield and canters into space towards the Cameroon penalty area. He sends the ball left to Vincent Aboubaker, who skews a wild shot wide. 64 min: Perisic picks up the ball in space and advances down the inside right channel. Had he crossed quicker, hed have picked out Sammir screaming for the ball in acres of space about nine yards from goal, but Perisic dilly-dallied over his pass and allowed a Cameroon defender to get back and block. 62 min: Cameroon could get beaten by seven or eight goals here. Theyre a man down, three goals down and seem to have given up completely if the marking at that corner was anything to go by. They had seven players in the penalty area and not a single one of them picked up Croatias centre-forward before the ball was sent into the mixer. GOAL! Cameroon 0-3 Croatia (Mandzukic 61) 61 min: And they score from it. Completely unmarked in the penalty area, Mandzukic rises highest and firmly heads the ball past Charles Itandje from seven yards. Mario Mandzukic Croatias Mario Mandzukic celebrates scoring his sides third goal. Photograph: MURAD SEZER/REUTERS 59 min: Modric tries to play a deft pass on to the head of Perisic on the edge of the Cameroon six-yard box, but Nicholas Nkoulou heads clear. Croatia win a corner. 58 min: Darijo Srna takes the free-kick, but hits the ball a couple of yards over the bar. 57 min: Nounkou brings down Perisic on the edge of the Cameroon penalty area, dead centre, just inside the D. The referee reaches for his holster and brings out his can of disappearing foam. 55 min: Olic goes close to scoring his second of the night, but settles for winning a corner after finding himself in acres of space on the edge of the six yards out but failing to take full advantage. 54 min: Ive just seen a replay of that second Croatia goal.Itandje took a massive divot out of the ground as he took his free-kick, which I suppose is forgivable in golf (as long as you replace it afterwards), but not in football. 51 min: Cameroon substitute Dany Nounkeu tries to Tim Cahill a volley past Pletikosa from the right side of the penalty area. He puts his laces through the ball and strikes it well, but his effort fizzes over the bar. 50 min: Mandzukic misses a glorious chance to make it 3-0. Darting through the centre on to a through-ball from Sammir, he found himself clean through on goal and had only Itandje to beat. What does he do? Attempt to lift the ball over the oncoming keeper and put it wide. He was under pressure from a last-ditch lunge from Nicholas Nkoulou, but for a striker of his supposed quality, that was a poor finish. 1 48 min: That was a great opportunist goal from Perisic, whos been man of the match thus far. Itandjes goal-kick was far too casual and went straight to the Croatian. He still had plenty to do, but Cameroon made it easy for him. They appear to have thrown in the towel already; none of their defenders made much of an effort to close down Perisic as he bore down on the goal. GOAL! Cameroon 0-2 Croatia (Perisic 47) Ivan Perisic doubles Croatias lead with a fine solo strike. On the left flank, he takes possession of a poor kick-out from Charles Itandje, makes a diagonal run into the penalty area and blasts the ball past the hapless goalkeeper. Second half: Ten-man Cameroon kick off, having made a change at the break. Half-time: The teams troop off for their half-time brew with Croatia a goal and a man to the good. Ivica Olic scored the opener from six yards after 10 minutes, then Alex Song infuriated his manager and team-mates with an absolutely moronic and entirely deserved dismissal a few minutes before the break. Here are some exciting moments of the match:
Posted on: Thu, 19 Jun 2014 13:09:07 +0000
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