World Cup 2010, Uruguay vs South Korea: Luis Suarez Wins It for Uruguay
The Ajax striker, Luis Suarez, scored a brace to give his team a narrow victory over the South Koreans and a place in the quarterfinals of the FIFA World Cup being held in South Africa.
The beauty of the knockout stages of the World Cup is that the winner might not always be the best team on the field; rather an individual with brilliance could prove too much for the opposition defences to counter. In the first knockout match of the World Cup, Uruguay was up against the South Korean side; a match-up where both teams were recognized for their explosive attacking.
South Korea made it into this round from Group B, while Uruguay topped Group A to make it to the second round of the World Cup. This match promised to be interesting, as the football fans were hoping for an end to end football. The match started a little slow, but soon the tempo of the game increased. The first strike came in the 8th minute, when a cross by Diego Forlan was not challenged, until it made its way to the feet of Suarez, who made no mistake in getting the lead for his team. It was a big defensive error and a lack of concentration by the Korean defenders as well as the goalkeeper, as the low-teasing cross in the 6-yard box should have been intercepted. Nevertheless, the Uruguayans got the lead in the early hours of the match, after which the South Koreans pressed hard to level the match.
Undoubtedly, the South Koreans were the better team in the first half, but they failed to redeem themselves for the error at the back. In the second half, again, the Koreans had the better of the ball in the match, as they pressed hard for the equalizer. It was not before the 68th minute, when Lee Chung-Yong found the goal that levelled the match for them. This goal came because of an error by the Uruguayan goalkeeper who went to clear a cross that was never within his reach. This gave an opening in the goal, and Lee Chung-Yong made use of that and headed the ball home.
After the Korean strike, the match seemed to turn in favour of the South Koreans, who were really good in testing the Uruguayan defence. They had the better possession in the most part of the match, but the problem was that they lacked the finishing touch, which would prove fatal to them in the match. In the 80th minute, an individual brilliance by Luis Suarez, as he curled a shot into the goal, gave the Uruguayans a lead again in the match. At that stage, the South Koreans would be kicking themselves for the missed chances, as there was little time left to find an equalizer again. The South Koreans pressed hard once again, but the goal did not come and the Uruguayans made their way into the quarterfinals, while the Koreans went home packing.
The man of the match, without a doubt, was Luis Suarez, the striker from Ajax. He came from a very convincing season for Ajax, as he scored 49 goals for the club in just 48 games. At the World Cup, he came through just at the right moment, to give his team a much-needed victory. He also made a very good partnership with Diego Forlan at the front, as both players seemed to understand each other pretty well.
This half of the knockout stages looked easier from the very start, as some low-profile team would make it all the way to the semi-finals without really being challenged in the knockouts. This result means that Uruguay would play Ghana, the only African survivors in the tournament, in the quarterfinals of the World Cup. As Ghana is still trying to find their form, this would mean that the Uruguayans are in the best position to make it to the semi-finals. The hard work is paying off for the team, and it is set to do miracles in the rest of the tournament.
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