Chapter 109 Top 6 Elimination Round, Part

At 2006:6 on the afternoon of June 20, 16, in the final round of the World Cup group stage, the four teams in Group A took the stage first, with two games kicking off simultaneously.

The most eye-catching of these was the battle for the top spot in Group A. In the end, thanks to K's two goals, Germany defeated Ecuador 3-0, winning all three games and taking the top spot in the group. Ecuador finished second in the group.

The other two matches were between Poland, which had already been eliminated, and Costa Rica. The result was that Poland won 2-1, earning a consolation prize-like victory.

Then at 21 p.m., the final round of Group B kicked off, with two games also taking place simultaneously.

One match was at the Fritz-Walter Stadium in Kaiserslautern, where Trinidad and Tobago lost 0-2 to Paraguay, which had lost both previous matches, and their dream of qualifying was shattered.

Another strong dialogue took place at the RheinEnergyStadion in Cologne, where England tied Sweden 2-2 thanks to Joe Cole's assist and goal. On the Swedish side, Ricardo's former teammate Larsson scored the equalizer in stoppage time, but it didn't matter.

Because England, which had won both of its previous two games, had secured first place in the group as long as they didn't lose, and Sweden, which had one win and one draw and accumulating four points, had also secured qualification as runner-up in the group even if they lost, after winning the other game against Paraguay.

As a result, two groups of matchups were automatically created in the round of 16 knockout matches, with Germany, first in Group A, facing Sweden, second in Group B, and England, first in Group B, facing Ecuador, second in Group A.

The next day was the 13th match day of the World Cup. At 2006:6 on the afternoon of June 21, 16, the two third-round group matches of Group D started simultaneously before the final round of group matches of Group C.

At the Schalke Stadium in Gelsenkirchen, Portugal defeated Mexico 2-1 thanks to Simao's assist and goal.

The other match was held at the Leipzig Central Stadium. Angola, which could have qualified with a big win, failed to take control of its own destiny and was eventually tied 1-1 by Iran.

So after three rounds of group matches in Group D, Portugal won all three games and advanced with 3 points, Mexico won one and lost one and advanced as the second in the group with 9 points; Angola had two draws, one loss and one goal, while Iran had two losses, one draw and two goals.

However, the last round of Group C's group matches did not keep the audience waiting for long, as it officially started at 21:21 on the evening of the st.

At the Commerzbank Arena in Frankfurt, the two traditional powerhouses had already qualified by winning both games, and this battle was just for the top spot in the group, so Argentina ended up drawing 0-0 with the Netherlands and won the top spot in the group with the advantage of goal difference; Ricardo's teammate Messi started in the World Cup for the first time.

So in the subsequent round of 1, Argentina, first in Group C, will play against Mexico, second in Group D, and the Netherlands, second in Group C, will face Portugal, first in Group D.

The other match in Group C was a battle of honor, as both teams had lost both games before and were already eliminated; and the result of the match was that Côte d'Ivoire miraculously reversed the game with a score of 3-2, sending Serbia and Montenegro, which made its last appearance in an international competition, to a three-game losing streak and elimination.

Then, it was the turn of Italy's final round of Group E, but the Italian team was embroiled in scandal. On the evening of June 6, Italian media reported that the Italian Football Association's investigation into the Calciopoli scandal had finally made a breakthrough...

However, as the results of the investigation into the Calciopoli scandal were about to be announced, the entire Italian team was unprecedentedly united: "The most urgent task now is the World Cup. Our goal is to go as far as possible in this World Cup. We must continue to move forward courageously!"

Among the four teams in Group E, Italy's qualifying situation is the clearest. They only need a draw to secure their qualification for the group.

However, the team is currently facing other troubles. Four main players, including Totti, Zambrotta, Camoranesi and Iaquinta, have all received yellow cards. If they are given yellow cards again in this game, they will miss the next quarter-finals.

In addition, Italy cannot be said to be sitting on the Diaoyutai, because a draw is almost equivalent to death for both Italy and the Czech Republic.

If Italy and the Czech Republic end up in a draw and Ghana beats the United States, then Ghana will advance as group leader, Italy will be second in the group, and the Czech Republic will be eliminated.

Such a result is a heavy blow to the Czech team, and the Italian team is also unwilling to face this situation, because a draw means that the Italian team is likely to face the powerful Brazilian team in the round of 16 knockout stage.

In addition, if Italy loses, it will most likely have to compete with the United States on goal difference to decide who advances... So for Italy, the last group match is actually a life-and-death battle that must be won.

2006年6月22日16时，德国世界杯E组末轮的2场比赛即将同时开球；在汉堡AOL球场，身穿一身蓝色球衣的意大利队对阵一身白衣的东欧铁军捷克队。

Looking back at the history of confrontation between the two teams over the past 80 years, the two teams have played against each other 29 times in total, with Italy having 9 wins, 10 draws and 10 losses, slightly at a disadvantage. Among them, in 6 games in major competitions, Italy had 2 wins, 2 draws and 2 losses, scoring 8 goals and conceding 8 goals. It can be said that judging from the historical records, neither side has any psychological advantage at all.

Italy and Czechoslovakia have played against each other twice in the World Cup. In the 2 final, Italy defeated Czechoslovakia 1934-2 in extra time and won the championship. In the 1 group stage, Italy won 1990-2 on home soil. However, in the two official matches between the two teams, Italy was at a disadvantage with 0 draw and 2 loss.

The biggest surprise in the Italian lineup was that European Golden Boot winner Luca Toni missed the starting lineup. Lippi arranged a 4-2-3-1 formation for this game: Gilardino served as the lone striker, with Totti as the attacking midfielder behind him, Camoranesi as the right midfielder, Perrotta as the left midfielder, and Gattuso replaced the suspended De Rossi and Pirlo to form a double defensive midfielder.

Defender Zaccardo, who scored an own goal in the last round, was abandoned, Zambrotta switched to the right, and the left was left to Grosso; the central defender combination was Nesta and Cannavaro; the last iron gate was goalkeeper Buffon.

Li Qi still started the game from the bench with a group of good players including Inzaghi, Del Piero, Iaquinta and Materazzi.

Although the Czech team was full of injured players, they still had many stars. Czech striker Baros played with an injury, which was his first appearance in this World Cup, and Jan Koller, who was injured in the first round, sat on the bench.

Central defender Kovac replaced Ujfalusi who was suspended for a red card. In the midfield, Polak replaced the defensive midfielder Galasek who performed poorly in the previous game.

The Czech Republic also has the talented Rosicky in midfield and the good winger Poborsky; goalkeeper Cech, who has not yet put on a beret, is also ranked among the top three goalkeepers in the world.

The captains of the two teams, Nedved and Cannavaro, are teammates of Juventus, and Jankulovski also faced off against four teammates of AC Milan.

As the key battle to determine the qualification, the two teams fought fiercely at the beginning of the game. Nesta knocked down Nedved, and then Nedved tripped Gattuso, but the free kicks of both sides did not cause any threat.

In the 9th minute, the Czech Republic, which was in a more urgent situation, created a threat. Two Italian midfielders were pushed by Pollack and fell to the ground, but the Mexican referee Ajundia did not blow the whistle...

Nedved then took advantage of the chaos to steal the ball, and then used the outside of his right foot to make a diagonal pass over Cannavaro's head on the left side, but Baros's right thigh on the right side of the penalty area stopped the ball too far away, and his subsequent small-angle shot was blocked by Buffon who fell to the ground with his legs and went out of the baseline.

In the next 10 minutes, the Czech Republic threatened Buffon's goal with long passes and long shots. The Italian midfield and backcourt lost the rhythm of the game for a while. Fortunately, Czech striker Baros was completely out of form and missed several chances...

However, in the 19th minute, Italy encountered another accident. Nesta seemed to have strained his right groin while fighting with Baros and was unable to continue the game... Lippi could only quickly replace Nesta with Materazzi.

At this time, the news that Ghana was ahead of the United States came in; the Czech team became more nervous and pressed the defense line closer. However, the Czech team, which pressed forward, lost its previous organization and became a little flustered in both offense and defense...

So the game came to the 25th minute, Italy finally got a chance to shoot, Totti made a lob pass from the right side of the penalty area to the top of the penalty area, Gattuso headed the ball from 20 meters in front of the goal and the ball landed on the net.

Less than a minute later, Italy's second shot changed the situation!

Pirlo made a 60-meter long pass from the backcourt, Gilardino's pass on the right side of the penalty area was blocked by Kovac, Totti took a corner kick from the right side, Materazzi, who came on as a substitute, inserted from the back row, and with his height and long legs, he overpowered Polak and headed the ball 8 meters in front of the goal, and the ball hit the lower left corner of the goal!

Cech had no way to deal with the ball from such a close distance! Italy was leading 1-0! This put the Czech Republic in a desperate situation.

Italy then retracted its formation and continued to defend and counterattack, but the Czech team had no way to tear through Italy's iron defense for a while, and the two sides entered a stalemate.

However, when the game reached the 40th minute, news came that Ghana was tied by the United States, which was definitely good news for the Czech Republic.

However, in the first half stoppage time, the situation changed again... Materazzi stole the ball from Baros in his own penalty area and made a straight pass, and Totti retreated to the midfield to protect the ball with his back; but as soon as Totti received the ball, he was tackled from behind by Polak who was already in high spirits.

The referee next to him showed Polak a second yellow card without hesitation. No matter how the Czech team pleaded, it was useless. So in the last moments of the first half, Polak was sent off with two yellow cards!

However, at the same time that Polak was sent off, news came that Ghana in another field had regained the lead over the United States with a penalty kick... This was a double blow to the Czech Republic, and misfortunes never come alone!

In the second half, the Czech team, which was in a desperate battle, could only use Steiner to replace Poborsky to fill the defensive position of the defensive midfielder. Italy, who had one more player, gradually took the initiative on the field, while the Czech team, who had one less player, had to press forward to attack, and the situation was extremely passive.

In the 49th minute, Zambrotta and Camoranesi made a two-pass combination and then passed the ball to Totti, who shot from 18 meters in front of the goal but was saved by Cech.

In the 53rd minute, Totti volleyed the ball with his right foot from 28 meters in front of the goal, heading straight for the lower left corner of the goal. Cech made a great dive and blocked the ball out of the bottom line.

In the 56th minute, Jankulovski kicked down Gilardino, and Italy made a clever free kick. Totti made a lob pass to the edge of the penalty area from the right side. Pirlo volleyed the ball directly to the left side of the goal without stopping. Cannavaro hooked the ball with his right foot from 9 meters in front of the far goal, but the ball went high.

Seeing that his team was in an advantageous position, Lippi began to gradually adjust his troops. First, in the 60th minute, Inzaghi replaced Gilardino. This striker, who had a mansion on the offside line, made his debut in this World Cup.

The Czech coach could not stand Baros's poor form and replaced him with midfielder Jarolim, sending Rosicky to the front line.

In the 66th minute, Gattuso's shot from the top of the penalty area was blocked, and the ball was immediately passed to the right by Pirlo. Totti's right-footed shot at a small angle from 14 meters in front of the goal was caught by Cech. Inzaghi, who was in position, spread his hands in front of the goal to signal Totti to pass the ball.

In the 70th minute, Lippi made his final substitution, once again replacing Camoranesi with the young player Li Qi, changing to a 4-3-2-1 formation, with the new Li Qi and Totti playing as double attacking midfielders to deliver ammunition to the striker Inzaghi.

Later, the Czech team also replaced the center back Kovac with forward Heinz, making a last-ditch effort. As a result, the Czech team's backcourt was left with more space, which made Li Qi, who came on as a substitute, more comfortable. He made continuous steals and blocked the Czech team, so that they could not pass the ball through the half court. They could only kick the ball through the goalkeeper and defenders, but the offensive efficiency was even lower...

In the 80th minute, Pirlo dribbled the ball and counterattacked, passing the ball to Totti on the right. Totti did not choose to pass the ball to Li Qi in the middle or Inzaghi who also had space at the far end, but chose to lob the ball from 20 meters in front of the goal. As a result, the ball was easily caught by Cech.

In the 82nd minute, Italy got another chance to counterattack! This time Pirlo did not choose to pass the ball to Totti, but with a fake look and a snap of his ankle, he passed the ball directly to Li Qi on the other side!

Seeing this wonderful straight pass, Andre in front of the TV at home in Milan jumped up excitedly. Li Qi's side was completely empty, what an opportunity!

"Cannavaro headed the Czech Republic's 45-degree cross... Pirlo protected the ball in the middle and dodged Jankulovski's first tackle!"

"Pirlo made a straight pass! Beautiful! The Czech team thought the ball would be passed to Totti on the right, but Pirlo passed the ball from right to left, and it went to Li Qi on the left. Li Qi's side was completely empty!"

"Li Qi starts to speed up with the ball! He's about to enter the penalty area!"

"Beautiful! Li Qi dunked past Rosenal who came over to defend with a fake move and got a one-on-one chance!"

"Facing Cech's attack... Li Qi! He chose to pass the ball to the middle!"

"Inzaghi! Empty goal!"

"Oh my god! Inzaghi headed the ball wide! Was he not ready?"

"Inzaghi probably didn't expect that Li Qi would pass the ball when he had a one-on-one chance. Maybe Totti didn't pass the ball a few times before, so he thought Li Qi might also shoot it himself, so he was not prepared."

"Although he was facing an empty goal 7 meters in front of the goal, he had no time to adjust and react when the ball came. Inzaghi, nicknamed the goal opportunist, actually headed the ball off target..."

Li Qi couldn't help but hold his head in disbelief. Inzaghi was also a little embarrassed that he missed a nanny assist from his younger brother...

However, in the 87th minute, Italy came back again. This time, Li Qi made a pre-judgment near the center circle and directly intercepted the pass to Nedved. The Czech team's passing intention was so obvious that Li Qi could see it clearly without even triggering the flash point.

After Li Qi intercepted the ball, he did not stick to it at all. Before being approached by Rosicky, he passed the ball directly to Perrotta on the right, and the latter counterattacked with a straight pass with his right foot... The Czech team's backcourt was too empty, and Inzaghi used his natural skills to successfully counter-offside and break into the penalty area alone!

This time Inzaghi did not miss the chance. Facing the attacking Cech, he looked at Li Qi who was already in position to receive the ball on the right, pretended to pass the ball, dribbled past Cech who was lying on the ground to save the ball with his right foot, and easily pushed the ball into the empty goal with his left foot from 7 meters in front of the goal, 2-0!

Italy has secured victory! Although the Czech team is still fighting back, it is too late!

In the end, Italy defeated the Czech Republic 2-0 and advanced as the first in Group E, while Czech veterans such as Nedved had to say goodbye to the World Cup.

However, in another match that ended at the same time, Ghana also defeated the United States 2-1 thanks to a controversial penalty.

In the end, the new African team Ghana successfully squeezed out the Czech team with 2 wins, 1 loss and 6 points, and advanced to the round of 16 as the second in the group!

So the first and second place in Group E will wait for the final result of Group F. In fact, Italy is mainly waiting to see who will be the second place in Group F...

Ricardo prayed silently: "Japan! Japan! Japan!"

"Alas... why do I want to live a simple life so much? It's weird..." Ricardo scratched his head, "Forget it, never mind, after all, the little Japanese is the weakest at this time, so it's better to kill him!"

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