World Cup 2010: Brazil 1-0 Netherlands - Half Time Report
Brazil lead the Netherlands 1-0 at half time. The first half of the first Quarter-Final was played at a very slow pace. Neither team was overly ambitious, with a number of passes between defenders before the ball was passed forwards.
Brazil stuck with their strongest eleven in the tournament, with Luis Fabiano upfront with Robinho floating around and Kaka supplying the balls from Midfield. The Netherlands, on the other hand, were not at full strength, with defender Joris Mathijsen missing out due to an ankle injury. He was replaced in the team by Andre Ooijer. This proved to be the crucial difference between the two sides in the first half.
Ooijer was at fault for Brazil's first goal, which was put away by the lively Robinho. In the 10th minute, with Felipe Melo in possession and looking harmless in the middle of the park, Ooijer failed to step up with the rest of the defensive line. This meant that when Melo sent his through ball to the on-rushing Robinho, the off-side flag stayed down and Robinho made no mistake when placed one-on-one with the Dutch goalkeeper, Maarten Stekelenburg.
The game, as stated before, was played at a very slow pace. There were a number of potential flash-points, as the Brazilians in particular looked to losing control on every decision by the referee. Michel Bastos was booked by the referee in the 38th minute for persistently fouling Dutch winger Arjen Robben. The only other booking of the game went the way of John Heitinga for tripping Luis Fabiano in the 13th minute.
With the score at 1-0, the Dutch still have a great chance of coming back into the game, especially if players like Sniejder and Robben get more time on the ball. The Brazilians meanwhile, will be looking to increase their lead and settle the match.
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