World Cup 2006

Italians' pressure finally nets break

By TIMES WIRES
Published June 27, 2006

KAISERSLAUTERN, Germany - Australia shoved, tackled and forearmed Italy at times during Monday's World Cup match, but it was a play with little contact that set Italy up for its winning penalty kick.

Only seconds remained in stoppage time when Australian defender Lucas Neill slid into an airborne Fabio Grosso while in the box, causing Grosso to trip over Neill. A penalty kick was awarded.

Francesco Totti capitalized on the questionable call by referee Luis Medina and buried the kick just past the reach of Australian goalkeeper Mark Schwarzer for the 1-0 win.

Minutes after the match, Australia's players stood motionless on the field staring in the direction of the goal where Totti ended their World Cup run.

"We fully dominated against a team that is much more highly ranked than us," Australian coach Guus Hiddink said. "If you see the replay, there is no doubt it wasn't a penalty."

Italy coach Marcello Lippi disagreed.

"There were two fouls on (Neill)," he said. "(Grosso) didn't go down under the first and he carried on dribbling and then sustained another clear foul."

Australia held the three-time World Cup champions scoreless until Totti's 95th-minute strike, but Italy just as easily could have been up a goal or two in the first 25 minutes had it been able to finish on its many chances.

A volley by forward Alberto Gilardino was tipped over the net by Schwarzer, and a shot by another Italian forward, Luca Toni, was stopped by Schwarzer's leg.

Toni's frustration continued when he threw his hands up in the air after Vincenzo Iaquinta was unable to find him in stride early in the second half.

Italian defender Marco Materazzi received a red card in the 50th minute after delivering a tackle from behind.

Materazzi's exit left Italy to play with 10 men most of the second half.

"There was a real desire to succeed and real determination - plus a bit of organization because it is not easy to defend in 10," Lippi said. "These lads showed great heart, great character and also great quality."

Ukraine tips Swiss 3-0 in penalty kicks

Coach Oleh Blokhin complained long and loud that nobody believed in his Ukraine team. The same man fled to the dressing room as his players lined up for a penalty shootout against Switzerland.

His players had faith, though. After blanking the Swiss for 120 minutes, Ukraine's strikers finally got a chance to score with Switzerland's well-organized defense out of the equation, winning the shootout 3-0 in Cologne, Germany.

"It's very difficult to be out there for 120 minutes and then go to the shootout," Blokhin said about his case of nerves. "It's interesting for the fans, but difficult for the trainer."

Switzerland is the first team to go out of a World Cup without conceding a goal in the run of play the entire tournament. It's also the first time a team failed to score at least one goal in a World Cup penalty shootout.

"We are all disappointed. We played a good game. We fought, and I believe we all worked together," Swiss defender Ludovic Magnin said. "The Ukrainians blocked us well. They didn't give us much room to play. We played with passion. We had to leave without having conceded a goal."

Goalkeeper Oleksandr Shov-kovskyi didn't have to work very hard in the shootout. The Swiss misses were right at him, the other went off the crossbar.

Meanwhile, Artem Milevskiy, Serhiy Rebrov and Oleg Gusev hit the net after Ukraine star Andriy Shevchenko's weak, low shot was stopped by Switzerland's Pascal Zuberbuehler.

CARDS CONTINUE: Italy's Marco Materazzi became the 24th player to draw a red card, extending the World Cup record. There also were six yellows cards handed out, bringing the total to 297, also a record. The one yellow card in Ukraine's victory lifted the total to 298.

BRAZIL: Robinho will not play against Ghana because of a right thigh injury. The striker, who had medical tests in Cologne after being injured Saturday, is not seriously hurt. "It was a small problem. I'll continue treatment and, God willing, I will be available for next Saturday's match if Brazil gets past Ghana," Robinho said.

SPAIN: Striker Raul Gonzalez and midfielder Cesc Fabregas are all but certain to start today against France. They have come off the bench in recent training sessions to practice with the starting formation.

SOUTH KOREA: Pim Verbeek of the Netherlands was hired as the new national team coach, replacing Dick Advocaat.

ANGOLA: About 50,000 fans greeted the team in Ruanda. In its first Cup, Angola lost 1-0 to Portugal and drew 0-0 with Mexico and 1-1 with Iran to finish third in Group D.

[Last modified June 27, 2006, 01:39:43]