The stats make for interesting reading: Spain had 63 per cent possession and 24 shots on goal, but the Swiss held out to take a win which leaves Group H looking wide open after the first round of fixtures. The Spaniards face Honduras on Monday and anything less than a victory there and they’re surely out. And following Chile’s performance earlier today it’s looking like this group could go right to the wire.
And that’s it!
Game over – massive, massive upset.
Corner half-cleared to Xavi at the edge of the box but he’s unable to control the volley. High, wide and not too handsome.
But Switzerland survive that one. Can they hold out? Spain have a corner. We’ve crossed the five minutes.
Yellow for Hackin Yackin for handling a cross. Another free, Alonso to take.
93 minutes gone. Xavi free kick into the mix but Benaglio gets off the line to punch clear. Howard Webb gave him a free – but replay showed there wasn’t a single Spanish player jumping with him. Hair must have got in the ref’s eyes.
Benaglio, who’s been excellent in goal for the Swiss, gets a yellow for a bit of time-wasting, and Switzerland make a substitution to eat up some more time. Spain can’t get any momentum. This could be a hugely damaging defeat for the tournament favourites.
…of which there will be FIVE minutes. Still hope for Spain.
Switzerland are just lining defenders up at the edge of the area. There’s no way through for Spain. We’re into injury time…
That’s not the kind of finishing that’s made Torres a Kop legend. Meets a cross on the half-volley from the edge of the box but almost takes his own head off. No danger there.
And then he gets through but his touch lets him down and it runs harmlessly out of play. We’ve a minute of the 90 left, and the Swiss are throwing everything on the line.
I like the look of that Grichting in central defence. He muscled Torres out of it like a big playground bully. Five minutes left…
The Swiss threaten again. Gokhan Inler goes on the overlap and his attempted cross is deflected just outside the post and behind for a corner.
David from Meath agrees with me on the Casillas challenge before Switzerland’s goal: “That was some effort at a tackle from Casillas – Harald Schumacher would have been proud of it.” Meanwhile, friend of the tracker Frank from Mayo has been back on. “This is more like it!” he writes. “First truly exciting game of the World Cup and with more on the line in the second round of games i think it’s finally starting to look good!”
He’s only 33.
There’s a blast from Ireland’s past. Hakan Yakin on for the Swiss, in place of Derdiyok. Good sub to have – although one of the lads in the office reckons he must be 40 by now.
Navas, who has looked exceptional since he came on, swerves one with the outside of the boot just INCHES wide of Benaglio’s right hand post. This is a great game – can’t believe there haven’t been more goals. We’ve eleven minutes left.
Unbelievable – it should have been 2-0 Switzerland. Eren Derdiyok showed better footwork than Christy Brown to skin three Spanish defenders. Just as it looked like it was getting away from him, he toepoked it past Casillas – but the ball smacks back off the post. This is by miles the best contest of the tournament so far, and the Swiss are looking dangerous whenever they can get the ball.
Yet another save by Benaglio. Ziegler and Grichting procrastinate and allow Jesus Navas a sight of goal, but it’s straight at the keeper. Surely, surely, surely it’ll come.
Screamer!
It’s wave after wave. Xabi Alonso crashes one off the underside of the bar from 25 yards, with Benaglio nowhere. That’s the three best shots of the tournament off the woodwork – Mbia, Ronaldo and Alonso.
And with that Torres has a second. It looks like it was going wide but Benaglio touched it behind for a corner.
A first sight of goal for Torres but his first touch wasn’t perfect, he has to turn back on his right and his attempt goes high and wide.
I did Puyol a disservice earlier. It was Pique who seemed to handle the bouncing ball on the goal-line in the prelude to Switzerland’s goal. It was a key touch, though – it stopped the ball conveniently into the path of the onrushing Gelson.
They’re getting closer. Iniesta curls one from the edge of the box and Benaglio stands motionless as it flies by him … but just outside the post. If it stays like this much longer Spain will start getting anxious. Actually, I’m sure they’re anxious already, given their pitiful record as one of the World Cup’s most reliable chokers.
A roll of the dice by Vicente del Bosque. Fernando Torres and Jesus Navas on, Silva and the statuesque Sergio Busquets off.
Not for the first time, Benaglio in the Swiss goal makes a key intervention. Villa beat the offside trap following a perfect through-ball by Silva. Almost perfect. Benaglio raced off his line to deny Barca’s new-boy.
This would be an extraordinary result. Switzerland have been defending from the edge of their six-yard box virtually since the first ball was kicked, but – in the great tradition of World Cup upsets – they’ve rode their luck and taken their solitary chance when it came.
And they could well have had another just now. Lichtsteiner scampers away from Xavi down the right and his cross goes dangerously between Pique and Casillas, but Spain escape. Given the performance of Chile earlier, this one is set up intriguingly.
The Swiss hit the front, a goal more against the run of play than any I’ve ever seen. A long ball down the centre is flicked on into the path of Derdiyok, he is crunched by Iker Casillas, the loose ball falls into the path of Gelson Fernandes and he rattles it into the unguarded net. If it wasn’t a goal, it could have been two penalties – first for Casillas’s madcap challenge and then for Puyol handling the ball on the line before Fernandes applied the finish. Upset of the tournament on the cards here.
GOAL SWITZERLAND!
The cameraman could just train his machinery on the Switzerland box, prop it up with a sweeping brush and head off for a few cocktails. Spain camped in Swiss territory. Three corners already in the second half.
Back on, and more of the same straight away from Spain. Xabi Alonso to Silva on the right wing and he skins Reto Ziegler, but the massed Swiss defence get back to clear their lines. No chance of a change in the pattern of play here. Spain still approaching 70 per cent of possession.
Still plenty of time for Spain though and Frank from Mayo thinks they’re still going to do it. He’s not happy with the ball though.
Before the game started i predicted a 2-0 win for Spain, and i still think its going to happen.
There is definitely something up with that ball, it takes off like one of them cheap balls you’d buy in the supermarket!
You’re probably right about Spain going on to win Frank and right about the ball as well. It’s like one of those white or yellow derby balls that were around a few years back.
Half time in Durban and still goalless somehow. Spain have absolutely owned the ball, can’t remember the Swiss stringing any more than five passes together, they’ve been chasing Iberian shadows. Very easy on the eye from Spain, but aside from chances for Villa and Pique, they haven’t really threatened.
Villa with another chance for Spain and after doing brilliant to cut it back and make the chance for himself, he scoops the ball across the goal to nobody in particular. Strange finish from somebody normally so accomplished in front of the posts.
Iniesta with a go from the left after Xavi lets Villa’s ball through his legs. Iniesta’s shot is high and wide and the BBC commentators start the debate about the ball again.
Great stat from the FIFA website. The Swiss players have covered more than 50 km and it’s not even half time.
Steve von Bergen is on for Senderos by the way, he was probably hoping to have the afternoon on the bench rather than having to face this lot.
The Swiss look like they might well hold out until half time. How, I don’t know, they’ve been battered.
After being very narrow for the most of the first half, Spain go wide and almost make the breakthrough. Capdevila puts in the cross and Villa just can’t get direction on the header. Senderos goes off for Spain after injuring himself while tackling his own player earlier. Typical Senderos really.
Into the wall from Villa, who can’t add to the 28 goals he has scored in his last 30 internationals.
Iniesta goes down on the edge of the box after being caught by Grichting. Grichting was the last man, but it was a clumsy rather than a malicious challenge and barely even a free kick judging by the replays. Iniesta went down very easily. Free kick on the edge of the area for Spain.
Iniesta goes down like a sack of spuds after a challenge from Ziegler, claiming he was caught in the face. As you might expect, there wasn’t much in it.
Pique with a great chance for Spain and if anything, he tried to be too clever. Great ball from Iniesta to the centre half, who showed some great footwork in the box but tried to slide it past the keeper quite casually and Benaglio made the save.
David Silva really busy again, down the right this time, but his final ball to Villa is poor. Only a matter of time you’d feel.
Surprise, surprise, Spain have had 75% possession so far. They’ve given a lesson in how to keep the ball. Wonderful to watch but no end product as yet.
Sergio Ramos has a go from an ambitious angle down the right wing, but he should really have squared it. It’s been embarrassingly easy for Spain so far. All they’re missing is a goal.
Silva involved again, firing in a low shot from the left hand side but it’s weak and eay for the keeper to handle. Silva and Iniesta have been popping up all over the shop, they’re so difficult to pin down.
David Silva takes a tumble in the box after a clumsy challenge from Senderos. Silva has a look at Howard Webb and pleads with the English referee for a penalty in typical continental style with both hands pursed together. Webb is having none of it.
The Swiss are content to give the Spanish midfield as much time on the ball as they wish. The Spaniards on the other hand are snapping at their opponents’ heels as soon as they lose the ball.
First spell of meaningful possession for Switzerland results in a corner. Set pieces possibly a way they can seek to punish Spain. Well it may have been if the delivery from Barnetta was any good. Poor.
Spain already hogging the possession. The Swiss will need to some amount of juice in the tank if they’re going to be chasing red jerseys around all day.
33 wins in 34 internationals for Spain is quite an amazing statistic.
Gokhan Inler is already stuck to Xavi like shit to a blanket.
Switzerland are an astonishing 11/1 to win this game. Spain are unbackable at 2/7 and a draw is 4/1. It’s underway.
Switzerland didn’t concede a single goal during World Cup 2006. They got seven points from the group stages and were then knocked out on penalites by the Ukraine after a goalless draw in the last 16. Ottmar Hitzfeld is in charge so you’d imagine that they will be extremely disciplined once again this time around.
God, Barcelona are going to be frightening next season with Villa and possibly Fabregas on board. Guardiola doesn’t know how lucky he is.
Interesting to see how RTE have mixed up their pundit partnerships. For this game it’s Dunphy and Hamann, but you’d have to guess that the holy trilogy of Giles, Dunphy and Brady will be back in tow for the big games later on.
I’m particularly looking forward to the performance of David Silva. If there was ever a man in the shop window, it’s this fella, who’s been linked with virtually every big club around in the last few years. How about his goal in the friendly against Poland beofre the tournament? If you haven’t seen it yet, you can do so here.
“As a Spanish backer, I want to see a conservative 1-0 win,” says Dunphy, cryptically. His reasoning soon becomes apparent: “You don’t want them lighting up the tournament too early – it could be like pulling the pin on a hand grenade.”
Interesting.
Not sure about the Swiss. Thought Gokhan Inler was excellent at Euro 2008 but he’s up against it in midfield faced with Xavi, Xabi Alonso, Iniesta and the rest.
Team news: No Fernando Torres, no Cesc Fabregas, no Pedro.
Still, Andres Iniesta is fit and they have David Villa (main picture), Xavi, Xabi Alonso et al.
Spain: Casillas, Sergio Ramos, Pique, Puyol, Capdevila, Xabi Alonso, Sergio Busquets, Xavi, Iniesta, Silva, Villa.
Switzerland: Benaglio, Lichtsteiner, Senderos, Grichting, Ziegler, Barnetta, Huggel, Inler, Fernandes, Nkufo, Derdiyok.
