The Hindu : Sport / Football : Germany wins shootout against Argentina

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Sunday, Jul 02, 2006

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Germany wins shootout against Argentina

Lehmann's pulls of two stunning saves

BERLIN: Racked with exhaustion, its leader hobbled by cramps and fatigue, Germany summoned its last reserve of energy.

Showing there's no end to its resourcefulness and tenacity at this World Cup, the host beat Argentina 4-2 in a shootout on Friday after a gruelling 1-1 stalemate at the end of extra time. Moments after he sat on the pitch at the end of a goal-less extra time, captain Michael Ballack converted a penalty kick to help dispatch an old rival — and one of the tournament's fellow glamour teams.

While Germany took advantage of Argentina back-up keeper Leonardo Franco with one penalty kick after another, veteran Jens Lehmann stopped two, putting Germany in the semifinals of the World Cup.

Oliver Neuville, Michael Ballack, Lukas Podolski and Tim Borowski had no trouble with Franco in the shootout. Roberto Ayala, who scored in the 49th minute, and Esteban Cambiasso were stopped by Lehmann.

Final save

When Lehmann made the final save by diving to his right, the German players, who stood arm-in-arm on the field, sprinted to mob him. The crowd, which less than an hour before sensed an early end to the festivities with their team down 1-0, erupted with singing, flag-waving and chants.

Several players twirled towels and their jerseys as they toured the Olympic Stadium in exultation.

``It's a thriller, like a Hitchcock movie,'' Germany coach Jurgen Klinsmann said. ``Obviously you're the happiest person in the world if you win it, and the saddest if you lose.''

The party heads to Dortmund for the semifinal on Tuesday against Italy, with Germany riding a feeling of near-invincibility. The Germans, looking like world-beaters after their toughest test, are seeking their fourth world title.

Argentina heads home exhausted, despite controlling the ball for most of the match. ``It was a very emotional game, worthy of a quarterfinal,'' said Argentina coach Jose Pekerman. ``Argentina played like a favourite, played well, even though they lost.''

Argentina lamented its poor luck. ``It's a defeat which hurts badly,'' said veteran striker Hernan Crespo. ``At no time was Germany better than us — and that makes it harder to take. We don't deserve to be going home so early.''

Skipper Juan Pablo Sorin said: ``I think the Germans got lucky with it going to penalties, which is a lottery. It was very frustrating as we gave it all we had. We matched Germany, in Germany, for 120 minutes and you can't ask for much more than that.''

For scorer Roberto Ayala, whose 49th-minute header looked to have secured a win until 10 minutes from the end when Miroslav Klose levelled, ``it was a black day for Argentina.''

Ayala was desolate after German keeper Jens Lehmann saved his spotkick. ``It will take a lot of time for the hurt to go,'' the 33-year-old Valencia star told reporters after he failed to book a semifinal date which would have taken him level with Diego Simeone's record 106 caps for Argentina. — Agencies

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