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WORLD CUP RECORDS
Germany outclass Cameroon in stormy encounter
Shizuoka, June 11
By Nimish Dubey
Germany booked a place in the next round of the World Cup with a 2-0 victory over Cameroon. Bode and Klose scored for Germany in an ill-tempered match that saw two players being sent off and several yellow cards.
It was an ill-tempered match with numerous fouls being committed by both teams. And the referee did not help matters by flashing too many cards. Eventually, it was Germany who were better organised in a match that football purists will remember with horror.
There were no surprises from either of the teams, with Germany preferring Jancker to Bierhoff once again. Both teams went into the game needing a win to stitch up a place in the next round. Germany took the field in white shirts and black shorts while Cameroon came out in their traditional green shirts and red shorts.
The match got off to a slow start with the Germans getting most of the possession. But it was Cameroon who had the first real chance of the match in the 13th minute when Solomon Olembe ran though the German defence and got one on one with Kahn only for the German goalkeeper to make a great save. The German response was to pile on more pressure. But although they got plenty of possession, there was no real opportunity to cash in on. Schneider summed up his team's frustration when he attempted an audacious chip at the Cameroon goal from the midway line. Pele might have succedded, Schenider just sent the ball over the goal.
As the match progressed, Cameroon began to get more bold and time and time again, exposed Germany's inability to play the offside trap. Wome let rip a terrific freekick in the 27th minute only to find Kahn. A minute later, Rigobert Song caught the German defence napping with a perfectly timed run only to send his header wide. Christian Ziege then got Germany's first real shot on goal when his freekick was scrambled over the bar by the Cameroon defence.
Tempers were now beginning to fray and the referee had to flash more than one yellow card to keep the situation under control. And then disaster struck for Germany in the 40th minute. Smauel Eto'o once again caught the German defence off guard and looked clear on goal when Carsten Ramelow brought him down with a desperate tackle. Ramelow had already been booked and the referee now gave him his marching orders, reducing Germany to ten men.
That should have given Cameroon the initiative but it was the Germans who came out fighting in the second half. Voeller took off the volatile Jancker and brought on Bode. And Bode it was who put the Germans ahead in the 50th minute. Klose took on four Cameroon defenders before threading a marvellout through ball to the unmarked Bode. All he had to do was to beat the helpless Alioum in the Cameroon goal and he did that with clinical detachment. One nil to ten man Germany. That seemed to knock the Africans for a loop. So far they had contented themselves with attacking on the counter and now they had to actually take the initiative. Lauren almost scored for the Africans but his header hit the post in the 73rd minute.
With matters not going their way, the Africans began to get increasingly annoyed and their annoyance took the shape of some rather rough challenges. It was clear that sooner or later someone would get sent off and that is exactly what happened when Suffo got his marching orders in the 77th minute, wiping out Cameroon's numerical superiority. The Germans punished th Africans almost immediately for their errors when Klose punced on a loose ball in the Cameroon penalty area and doubled the German lead.
That more or less took the wind out of the Cameroonians' sails and the remainder of the match was spent in some aimless passing and although both teams came close to scoring, the sense of urgency had gone out of the encounter. In the end, the number of bookings tell one more about the match than the number of goals scored - 15 yellow cards and 2 red ones!
Match details:
Goals:
Germany: Bode (50th minute), Klose (79th minute)
Sent off: Crasten Ramelow (40th minute), Suffo (77th minute)
The teams:
Germany: Oliver Kahn, Thomas Linke, Carsten Ramelow, Christian Ziege, Dietmar Hamann, Carsten Jancker (Bode, 46th minute), Miroslav Klose (Neuville, 84th minute), Michael Ballack, Bernd Schneider (Jeremies, 77th minute), Metzelder, Torsten Frings.
Cameroon: Alioum, Bill Tcahtao (Suffo, 53rd minute), Pierre Wome, Rigobert Song, Raymond Kalla, Geremi Njitap, Samuel Eto'o, Patrick Mboma, Mayer Etame, Marc Vivien Foe, Salomon Olembe (Ngom Kome, 64th minute)
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