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Jan 18 '18
FORTALEZA, Brazil -- The Dutch were worried about the oppressive heat at Arena Castelao, and they left it with the stifling hot conditions to thank for a spot in the World Cup quarterfinals. Jese Jersey . An inspired tactical change during the second of two official stoppages led to a late goal from Netherlands forward Wesley Sneijder and an injury-time penalty from Klaas Jan Huntelaar in a dramatic 2-1 victory over Mexico on Sunday. "I moved to Plan B at the cooling break," said Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal, soon to be the manager at Manchester United. "That is a good way to take advantage of those breaks." Despite scoring 10 goals in three group matches, the Dutch again started the match with a defensive 5-3-2 system. Van Gaal made the switch to a more attacking 4-3-3 formation in the second half and tweaked it further when referee Pedro Proenca stopped the match in the 76th minute to allow players to rehydrate. That helped turn the match around and extend Mexicos second-round curse to six straight World Cups. "Unbelievable," said Arjen Robben, the Netherlands forward that earned the late penalty. "Five minutes from full time, we were out." Instead of the Dutch players, it was the Mexicans who wilted in the heat as they conceded twice as many goals in the final minutes of the match as they had in the entire group stage. "The humidity was against us, but we were fresher and fitter than the Mexicans," Van Gaal said. "Yes, we escaped. But we showed that we could create more chances with 4-3-3, and the players handled this shift very well." The Dutch will next face Costa Rica in the quarterfinals on Saturday in Salvador, and may have to play without midfielder Nigel de Jong, who was substituted in the ninth minute with a groin injury. Mexico coach Miguel Herrera, one of the most popular characters at the World Cup because of his emotive ways on the sidelines, blamed Proenca for the loss and accused Robben of diving under a challenge from Rafael Marquez to earn the penalty. "Today it was the man with the whistle who eliminated us from the World Cup," Herrera said. "If a referee invents a penalty, youre out of the World Cup. "I hope they have a look at what happened and that this gentleman goes home just like we are." Marquez said Robben admitted that it was a bad call, but added that the Dutchman thought he should have been awarded a spot kick for an earlier challenge. "I spoke with him after the match and he told me that it was not a penalty," Marquez said. "He said that the first foul was a penalty and that one was not called." Mexico has now advanced to the second round at the World Cup six straight times and not reached the quarterfinals. The last time the team made it that far was as host of the 1986 tournament. Giovani Dos Santos gave the Mexicans the lead in the 48th minute after a goalless first half, but Sneijder equalized with a hard shot in the 88th. It was the first time Sneijder, who scored five goals at the last World Cup in South Africa, has found the net in Brazil. Robben, who has already scored three goals for the Dutch at this years tournament, then earned the penalty in the fourth minute of injury time but he handed the ball to Huntelaar. "You dont know when your chance will come, but it was today, and so you grab it with both hands," said Huntelaar, who replaced captain Robin van Persie in the 76th minute. "And it was fantastic." For Mexico, goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa was again the star player, pulling off two more great saves after playing a key role in holding Brazil to a 0-0 draw in Group A. But he couldnt block Sneijders shot and guessed wrong when diving in an attempt to stop Huntelaars penalty. "It isnt easy to go out this way, the way this match went," Ochoa said. "Its just very hard to deal with when victory escapes you this way." Marquinhos Jersey . And once again, Team Homan emerged as the victor with the reigning national champions defeating Team Sweeting at the Pintys All-Star Curling Skins Game Friday night in the tournaments opening draw at The Fenlands Banff Recreation Centre in beautiful Banff National Park. Romain Habran Jersey . The 31-year-old, a two-time CFL lineman of the year, was among the most coveted free agents on the market. The Windsor, Ont., native will be especially important to a team that has lost veteran quarterback Anthony Calvillo to retirement and is expected to go with the less experienced Troy Smith and Tanner Marsh this season.WINNIPEG - Its one thing when your teammates think youre the glue that binds Canadas womens soccer team, but its something else entirely when one of your rivals thinks youre literally the best in the world.Ive said for a long time that I believe, in my humble opinion, that Christine Sinclair is the best player in the world, said Hope Solo, the goalkeeper for the U.S. team Canada will play Thursday in a friendly.You dont always get to see how brilliant she is because she doesnt always have the support players but I think now shes starting to get the support players she needs to really highlight her own play.That means Solo ranks Sinclair above Brazils Marta — a five-time FIFA World Player of the Year — and even her own teammate Abby Wambach, who has scored more goals than Sinclair or anyone else in womens soccer.She plays both sides of the ball, Solo said. Marta, she gets the ball with her feet, she can score goals. But Christine Sinclair, she reads the game, she passes, she gets assists and shes dangerous every time she gets the ball. . . Ive looked up to her and Ive admired her as a player for a really long time.Sinclairs teammates are still in awe of her talent.Shes sort of that pivotal girl for us, said midfielder Desiree Scott, the Winnipeg native playing for the first time live in front of her parents this week.She makes everything tick and shes the one we rely on.Sinclair and Canada will need every bit of talent and skill they can muster to beat the No. 1-ranked Americans. Theyve already lost their first meeting this year and Canada, ranked seventh in the world, hasnt beat the U.S. since 2001.The rivalry between the teams has taken on more of an edge since the U.S. beat Canada in the semifinals at the 2012 Olympics, but Sinclair says the real goal remains peaking when the World Cup is held here in 2015.As for stepping to the spotlight Solo and others woould like to shine on her, Sinclair remains reticent as ever. Neymar Jersey. Its not always something Ive embraced because its a team sport and Ive always said that, you know, you cant be the best if you havent won anything, she said after practice Tuesday.I think finally at the Olympics, as a team we were able to show and as a team I think weve started to get the respect we deserve around the world.She is an 11-time winner of the Canada Soccer Player of the Year Award and has been on the national team for 14 years. Despite all that experience, at 30, Sinclair also says her game has improved, and like her team she feels that peak is coming at just the right time for a World Cup in Canada.But defeating the Americans, who have perfected so many aspects of their game, means finding new ways to break free from a defence that did a good job of shutting her down the last time they met.It seemed that every time I got the ball I had two people on me. It was a little frustrating. As a player, in terms of developing . . . I need to learn how to cope with that, she said.Meanwhile, U.S. forward Wambach wasnt too thrilled at the idea of playing on artificial turf like the surface in Winnipeg come 2015, when Canada hosts the World Cup.It will run from June 6 to July 5 and games will be played in Vancouver, Edmonton, Winnipeg, Ottawa, Montreal and Moncton. Of those, only Monctons tiny 10,000-seat stadium has real grass.The reality is the World Cup would never be played on turf if it were the men, Wambach said after practising on Investors Group Field Tuesday and noting that there were pebbles and even nails as workers renovate parts of the press box and other areas in the stadium that only opened last year.She said she assumes that will be cleaned up, but it isnt her point.Im going to stand by what Ive been saying. We deserve to be treated just like the men do. Cheap NFL Jerseys Cheap NFL Jerseys China Cheap Jerseys From ChinaCheap NFL Jerseys Authentic Wholesale Jerseys China Cheap NFL Jerseys China NFL Cheap Jerseys ' ' '
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