A GAME EVEN NON-SOCCER FANS COULD ENJOY

 

You tell me … why do high-priced professional soccer 

players, who should know better, take an extra touch 

and thereby take themselves out of a perfect 

opportunity to score? … See the U.S. Men’s National 

Team in its latest fiasco in which CHRISTIAN 

PULICIC (among others) teed up the ball, and that 

extra second or so enabled the defense time to block or 

deflect the ensuing shot … Friday, Spain’s DANNY 

OLMO did it the right (textbook) way, one-timing a 

perfect pass 14 yards just inside the left post for the 

first goal in a 2-1 Europa 2024 quarterfinal victory 

over Germany … What a great game … between two 

of futbol’s perennial best … up and down the field, 

with little time wasted … Talk about a frenetic pace … 

with so many fouls that referee ANTHONY 

TAYLORfrom the English Premier League was hard-

pressed to keep order … whistling 39 fouls while 

issuing 15 yellow cards – both almost unheard of 

numbers … and he could have easily doubled the 

cautions – yet, believe it or not, no one was sent off 

with a red card until the final seconds when Spain’s

 DANI CARVAJAL literally tackled JAMAL 

MUSIALA to draw his second caution of the game … 

Missing a number of scoring chances in the second 

half, Germany’s FLORIAN WIRTZforced extra time 

in the 89^th minute … then was denied a potential 

game-deciding PK when Taylor let them play on after 

a shot by Wirtzdeflected off the arm of defender in the 

second of two 10-minute overtimes … And, just when 

it appeared penalties would have to decide this one, 

Spain’s MIKEL MERINO caught defender

 ANTONIO RUDIGER ball watching deep inside the 

18-yard box and soared to hammer home a header to 

the right of keeper MANUEL NEUER in the 119^th

 minute … Germany still had another crack at tying it 

up again. Had NICO FULLKRUG’s header aimed at 

the upper right-hand corner been on target instead of 

nicking the post … A classic, the game also took its 

toll on the winners. In addition to Carvajal, fellow 

defenderROBIN LE NORMAND  won’t be available 

for Tuesday’s semifinal against France because of a 

compilation of cautions ...“The way it’s going … we 

fully expect to get a yellow card up here,” said Derek 

Rae, calling the game for Fox … Taylor tried to (cliché 

alert) let them play but after a hard foul forced Spain’s

 PEDRI to be sidelined in the eighth minute, the 

embattled ref began reaching for the caution card. He 

could have kept it out. The heavy-duty roughness 

continued … and Taylor became the ongoing object of 

complaints from players as well as coaches … which 

has become commonplace in the world’s most-favorite 

sport. The good thing was, he kept his cool, ignoring 

for the most part the finger-pointing – which could 

have resulted in several players from both sides being 

banished … Taylor also was let off the hook when 

replay showed Fullkrug had been offsides prior to 

Wirtz’ hard shot from 25 yards that caught Spain 

defender MARC CURCUELLA on the left arm …

 Viewership of the match from Stuttgart on German 

TV was reportedly 26 million.

Until next time ...