FIFA World Cup : Greece wins over Nigeria thanks to Sani Kaita's red card
It is only Greece’s second appearance in the FIFA World Cups after their debut in 1994. They had bowed out of the last World Cup at the group stage after a miserable string of performances. Greece lost all three of their group matches and failed to put the ball in back of the net. Incidentally, two of these defeats came against Argentina and Nigeria who happen to be their group mates in this World Cup also.
Nigeria, on the other hand, has had a more respectable record in World Cups. The Super Eagles also made their debut in the 1994 World Cup like Greece but qualified for the second round. This exceptional performance was followed by another Round of 16 qualification in the 1998 tournament. On a negative note, Nigeria failed to progress through the group stage in the 2002 World Cup and then failed to qualify for the 2006 edition.
Both Nigeria and Greece had suffered defeats in their opening matches of the 2010 World Cup against Argentina and South Korea, respectively. Nigeria, however, must have been encouraged by the fact that they had kept the strong Argentinean attacking prowess quiet for most of the match whereas Greece never turned up against the energetic South Koreans.
A win in this match was extremely vital for both sides to extend their stay in the tournament beyond the group stage. Nigeria was the pre-match favourite on the basis of having established players who play week in week out in highly competitive leagues.
Things were not looking good for Greece from start of the match and many must have expected to see Greece’s fifth consecutive loss at this level. Many may have doubted Greece’s chances of ever scoring a goal in the World Cup.
Nigeria had the match by the scruff of its neck. There was productive distribution of passes from the Nigerian midfielders and the Greeks were chasing shadows. The Super Eagles ended a four World Cup match goal drought, when Kalu Uche’s cross-c*m-shot flew straight into the Greek goal.
There was little change of attitude from the Greek side while trailing opponents by a goal and facing an embarrassing early exit from the World Cup. Sani Kaita then came to rescue when he insanely tried to kick Greek midfielder Vasilis Torosidis. The Greek made the most of this opportunity and got Kaita sent off, turning the match upside down. Greece took advantage of an extra man on the ground and substituted a defender for bringing on striker Giorgios Samaras.
Just before half time, Dimitris Salpingidis scored the first ever goal for Greece in their World Cup history. Greece maintained pressure on the 10-man Nigeria in the second half. Vasilis Torosidis made another lasting contribution when he picked a fumble from goalkeeper Vincent Enyeama, the Nigerian hero from the Argentina game, to score. Greece completed a 2-1 win and the first victory in this World Cup.
Although Nigeria’s exit from the tournament is not yet confirmed even after suffering defeats in both opening matches, the odds are seriously against them. There is still a mathematical possibility for them to qualify for the knockout stage. Nigeria will face South Korea in their last group match which they will need to win and hope that Argentina also come out victorious against Greece.
South Korea, on the other hand, is in a stronger position and may like to settle for a single point from this match. A draw in either of these matches will end Nigeria’s campaign in the 2010 FIFA World Cup.
Despite this win, Greece have a daunting test ahead of them as they face title favourites Argentina in their last group match. Greece will need a better result than South Korea from the last round of group matches i.e. if South Korea loses, a draw for Greece will not be enough for them to progress through to the Round of 16. If South Korea end-up sharing a point with Nigeria then Greece will have to pull off a huge shock of winning against Argentina.
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