World Cup 2014 Highlights: Colombia Stun Uruguay, Storm Into Quarterfinals
Jose Rodriguez twin strikes in either half of the match against Uruguay helped Colombia rewrite history and enter quarters of FIFA World Cup 2014 for the first time ever. The team will now play hosts Brazil.
Colombians are known for their determination but they raised the bar several notches to script a 2-0 win against Uruguay in the second knockout match of FIFA World Cup 2014. Here are the highlights from the match:Â (Matchcentre | Full schedule of knockout round)
0322 hrs IST: Colombia make history! Beat two-time world champions Uruguay 2-0 to set up a huge clash against hosts Brazil.
© AP
0312 hrs IST: Did you know? Colombia did not qualify for FIFA World Cup between 2002 and 2010. Their previous best was Round of 16 in 1990. Today, the team is all set to storm their way ahead and rewrite history. Lead Uruguay 2-0 after 85 minutes.
0307 hrs IST: Colombia are now sitting deep in their own half and are inviting pressure.
0255 hrs IST: One of the main reasons Colombia has dominated against Uruguay is that this team has had majority of the possession through the course of this match. After 70 minutes, the Colombians have had 60 per cent possession!
0245 hrs IST: Flurry of substitutions from Uruguay. Forlan, Pereira come out. Coach looks to make changes but experts would say only a miracle or sheer brilliance can save the team now.
2037 hrs IST: GOAL! Rodriguez strikes once again in the 50th minute - his fifth of the tournament. Colombia have almost cemented this match now.
© AP
0232 hrs IST: Second half starts. Did you know? Colombia have never made it to the quarters of FIFA World Cup. Can they make history today?
0217 hrs IST: First half ends. Colombia has clearly been the better side in the first 45 minutes of the game. Excellent football played by the team to put pressure on Uruguay who will now need a strategy which is different from their all-out attack tactics.
0210 hrs IST: Colombia have slowed the game down considerably after taking a 1-0 lead. Vintage football strategy even as Uruguay push players forward to eliminate the difference in scores.
0202 hrs IST: GOAL! Fantastic strike from Jose Rodriguez who twists and turns to slam a blinder in the 28th minute. This is one of the best goals this World Cup for sure.
© AP
0150 hrs IST: Colombia dominate possession.Positive start by the team against Uruguay and have over 70 per cent ball possession in the opening 20 minutes.
0140 hrs IST: Four fouls already. Uruguay don't seem to be missing Suarez too much as they take on Colombia with a bit more aggression than referee Bjorn Kuipers likes. No cards yet though.
0135 hrs IST: Early minutes clearly show that this contest will be fought and fought hard. Both teams battling it out hard as fans let their cheer rip all across Maracana.
© AP
0130 hrs IST: KICKOFF! Forlan starts for Uruguay in place of banned striker Suarez. The veteran was named the best player of the 2010 World Cup but has struggled to make an impact in Brazil, despite starting in Uruguay's opening 2-1 loss to Costa Rica, when Suarez was still recovering from knee surgery.
The last few days have seen high drama in the World Cup. The South American teams have been the best in the tournament but things soured after Luis Suarez was banned for biting Italian defender Giorgio Chiellini. FIFA came down heavily on the Uruguayan and Liverpool striker banning him for nine games and four months. In the middle of the World Cup, Uruguay find themselves without their most potent strike force against a dangerous side.
However, the Suarez ban has seen all of Uruguay, from the government to the football federation to the fans, rally around one of their greatest players. Can the team step up against Colombia and book a last-eight place? It won't be easy for Colombia, have looked determined. Bristling with the perfect mix of youth and experience, Colombia, playing their first World Cup since 1998, will be no pushovers.
This has all the makings of a cracking game.
© AP
Luis Suarez Defends Himself, Claims 'Bite' Was Not Deliberate
Luis Suarez told Fifa's disciplinary panel that he did not deliberately bite Italy defender Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup.
"In no way it happened how you have described, as a bite or intent to bite," the Uruguay striker wrote in Spanish in a letter dated June 25.
The player's defense is in paragraph 6 of Fifa's disciplinary committee ruling, which has been seen by the agency. (Read full story)
© AP
Luis Suarez Banned for Nine Games and Four Months for Biting Opponent
FIFA banned Uruguay striker Luis Suarez from all football activities for four months on Thursday for biting an opponent at the World Cup, a punishment that rules him out of the rest of the tournament and the start of the upcoming Premier League season.
The ban also covers Uruguay's next nine international games, which goes beyond the next four months and rules him out of next year's Copa America. FIFA also fined the Liverpool striker 100,000 Swiss francs ($112,000). (Read full story)
© AP
Uruguay to Appeal Against Luis Suarez Ban
The Uruguayan Football Association (AUF) said Thursday it would appeal against a four month global ban imposed against star striker Luis Suarez for biting an Italian opponent at the World Cup.
AUF president Wilmar Valdez called the FIFA punishment against Suarez, also comprising a nine-match international ban, "totally exaggerated".
He said the appeal would be lodged on Thursday. (Read full story)
© AP
Uruguay, Sans Luis Suarez, Ready to Tackle Colombia in Last 16
Rocked by the Luis Suarez biting affair, Uruguay will attempt to make light of their star player's absence when they tackle Colombia in the World Cup's last 16 on Saturday.
When Uruguay's players should be focusing solely on the threat posed by James Rodriguez and his Colombia team-mates, they instead find themselves under siege in the wake of one of the biggest World Cup scandals in recent memory. (Read full story)
© AP
Colombia Looks to Break With its Past
On September 5, 1993, a date etched in the memory of all Colombians, the Colombian soccer team upset the order of things.
The country's soccer history has been a story of underachievement, but that day, in a World Cup qualifier considered one of the greatest matches ever played in Latin American, Colombia danced around the Argentine defense and scored five goals. Alfio Basile, Argentina's manager at the time, called it "a crime against nature." Colombians, understanding the magnitude of the victory against the heavily favored Argentines, called it "parricide." (Read full story)