On the pitch

04 Jul 2006

A dream win for Italy, says Lippi

Italy coach Marcello Lippi said on Tuesday that his team had achieved a dream win over Germany to reach the World Cup final.

Goals in the final minutes of extra-time from Fabio Grosso and substitute Alessandro Del Piero settled a semi-final which appeared to be heading for a penalty shootout.

"It was tough but we are delighted that we have done it. It is a dream, we have achieved something huge here," said the 58-year-old former Juventus coach.

"If either side deserved to win it then it was us. It's a really special moment, fantastic.

"I was so impressed with the enthusiam and the effort from my team and I am so proud of the boys."

Italy will play the winner of Wednesday's Portugal v France semi-final in the final on Sunday in Berlin's Olympic Stadium.

Bitter defeat but we can be proud says Klinsmann

Germany coach Jurgen Klinsmann said it had been a bitter disappointment to concede two late goals against Italy which crushed the host nation's hopes in the World Cup semi-final here on Tuesday.

"It is an enormous disappointment and the mood is very low. It is a bitter pill to concede two goals so near the end," said the 41-year-old.

"I tried to say to them (the players) that they have played fantastically, everyone has pushed themselves to their limits.

"They can take so much from this tournament and they have made the country proud.

"We had our chances to score the first goal and then just before the end they took their chances."

"I don't know if I am going to carry on. I need some time to take on board everything that has happened during this tournament and in the last two years," said Klinsmann, who has his home in California.

"I will talk to my wife about it next week."

Figo and Ronaldo in doubt for semi-final

Captain Luis Figo is in doubt for Portugal's World Cup semi-final with France while Cristiano Ronaldo is also struggling to regain fitness, coach Luiz Felipe Scolari said Tuesday.

Figo picked up a thigh strain in Portugal's quarter-final win over England and was replaced four minutes from the end of regular time in a match that went to penalties.

Ronaldo, who scored the decisive penalty that ended English dreams, played with a thigh injury he picked up against the Netherlands and complained that the problem slowed him down in the later stages of the match.

"Figo and Cristiano have been training well. They know they have problems and we need to check how they are to see if they can play," said Scolari.

"The possibility is that Cristiano has a bigger chance and Figo a little bit less.

"But we can't say anything before the training session tonight."

Gallas tells France to keep cool

France, with six players on a yellow card, are wary of being deliberately wound-up by Portugal in their potentially explosive World Cup semi-final here Wednesday.

William Gallas raised the danger at the eve of match press conference, citing the part played by Portugal winger Cristiano Ronaldo in his Manchester United team-mate Wayne Rooney's sending off on Saturday.

"We saw in their last match against England that Portugal are a team who try to wind up the opposition, so we'll have to have cool heads.

"Look at the Rooney incident, perhaps he deserved to get a red card but we saw how Ronaldo hassled the referee to get him sent off.

"We'll be very attentive as they like to dive a lot, but a lot will depend on how the referee handles it too," the 29-year-old Chelsea defender said.

Grosso sends Italy into World Cup final

Italy defender Fabio Grosso curled home a dramatic winner in the 118th minute and Alessandro Del Piero sealed the result three minutes later to send Marcello Lippi's side into the World Cup final with a 2-0 extra-time win over stunned Germany on Tuesday in Dortmund.

The match was seemingly heading for penalties after 118 minute of goalless action before Grosso popped up with time running out to turn the match on its head and help send Germany to their first ever defeat in Dortmund.

Italy will now meet either France or Portugal who meet in the second semi-final on Wednesday - in Sunday's final in Berlin.

Guimaraes quits Costa Rica post

Costa Rica's World Cup coach Alexandre Guimaraes quit his post Monday after recieving phone threats at his home, he told a press conference.

Guimaraes had a contract with the Central Americans until 2010 but said it was not worth continuing in the job under the threat of violence against him and his family.

"The first sign was in the airport," he said. "If I had not been under police protection I don't know if I would have been here today (Monday) for this press conference."

The Brazilian, a naturalised Costa Rican, said that since his return he had endured the wrath of supporters who blamed him for his country's first round exit in Group A.

Costa Rica lost all three group matches: 4-2 to Germany, 3-0 to Ecuador and 2-1 to Poland.

"I don't want to be held solely responsible and have to hire bodyguards," added Guimaraes.

Referee defends red card for Rooney

The referee who gave Wayne Rooney a fateful red card in the weekend match that saw England crash out of the World Cup has defended his decision.

Speaking to the Times newspaper in Frankfurt, Horacio Elizondo confirmed that he sent off Rooney during Saturday's quarter-final match with Portugal for lashing Ricardo Carvalho with his boot and catching him in the groin.

"It was violent play and therefore he got a red card," said the Argentine referee, who went on to deny that an on-pitch protest from Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, a teammate of Rooney's at Manchester United, had swayed him.

"People can say what they want, but this had absolutely no influence," he said.

"For me it was a clear red card, so I didn't react to the Portuguese players. There was pushing and shoving on boh sides, but for me it wasn't a reason to caution anybody."

Rooney and I are still friends: Ronaldo

Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo said Monday there is no hostility between him and his Manchester United team-mate Wayne Rooney despite accusations that he helped get the England striker sent off during the World Cup quarter-finals.

"I would like to make it clear that there is no problem at all between me and Rooney. I insist: no problem at all," he said.

"At the end of the game, we exchanged a series of text messages just as we had on the day before. Between the two of us, everything is clear," he added.

"In fact, he didn't just send me congratulations for going forward in the World Cup, he also told me we have a great team, and if we carry on as we have, we will go far."

During the second half of Saturday's match Ronaldo appeared to encourage Argentine referee Horacio Elizondo to demand a card for Rooney after the England star stamped on Chelsea's Portuguese defender Ricardo Carvalho.

Uruguayan handed whistle for France v Portugal

Uruguayan Jorge Larrondia has been appointed referee for the potentially explosive World Cup semi-final between 1998 world champions France and Euro 2004 finalists Portugal in Munich.

The 38-year-old - who says that his favourite match of his career was France's 3-2 victory over Turkey in the 2003 Confederations Cup semi-finals - will be assisted on Wednesday by his compatriots Walter Rial and Pablo Fandiono.

FIFA will be hoping it does not end like the Euro 2000 semi-final between the two sides which resulted in several Portuguese players being severely punished for violent scenes at the end after a controversial penalty was awarded against them.

The Uruguayan trio have already officiated at two matches at the tournament, the first round clash between Italy and the United States which saw Larrionda send off three players and France's 2-0 victory over Togo in their final gorup match.

We can make history, says Scolari

Buoyant Portugal coach Luiz Felipe Scolari says his team are more than capable of breaking a 31-year jinx to beat France and make the World Cup final for the first time ever.

"Portugal haven't beaten France for the last 31 years so the main favourite has to be France for all that they have done and achieved," Scolari said in his pre-match press conference.

"But Portugal are playing very well and so we can change that history. The favourite is France but the favourite does not always win.

"I don't have an explanation why we haven't won in 31 years but we couldn't beat Brazil since 1966 and we beat them in 2003. We couldn't beat Spain for many years and we also beat them recently."

Portugal had only ever been to three World Cups before this year's finals and failed to get past the first round in two of them. Their greatest ever triumph was making the semi-finals in 1966, where they lost to England 2-1.

England's future under McClaren is bright

England will benefit from new manager Steve McClaren's experience of the national team's World Cup heartache, according to Football Association chief executive Brian Barwick.

"First and foremost the England coach has to qualify for major tournaments," he said.

"We've seen over the last three weeks exactly what England in a major tournament is about, 30 million people galvanised.

"England start again in August in a new era with a new coach and we have to be positive and we are positive about that.

"What I see as a huge positive, and I've watched it up close in the last three weeks, is the value Steve has got from being around the players for a long time, focused on a major tournament.

"This is his third major tournament, he's been around these players for a long time and they have a huge respect for him."

Germany and Italy in second half extra-time

Germany and Italy are now going into the second half of extra-time with the score still level at 0-0 after 105 minutes during a tense World Cup semi-final match in Dortmund.

A penalty shoot-out is now beckoning if neither team succeeds in making the breakthrough in the remaining 15 minutes.

Germany beat Argentina on spotkicks in the quarter-finals while Italy have yet to experience the lottery of penalites in this tournament.

The winner will meet either France or Portugal in Sunday's final in Berlin.

Germany and Italy heading for extra-time

Germany and Italy were locked at 0-0 after 90 minutes and heading into extra-time during a tense World Cup semi-final match in Dortmund.

Clear chances were few and far between during the second half although Michael Ballack wasted a free-kick opportunity from just outside the box on 80 minutes.

The winner will meet either France or Portugal in Sunday's final in Berlin.

Germany held 0-0 by Italy at the half

Hosts Germany were being held 0-0 by Italy at half-time in a fiercely-contested but surprisingly open World Cup semi-final here on Tuesday.

Both sides had a golden opportunity to open the scoring.

The first fell to Italy's Simone Perrotta whose poor first touch prevented him from severely testing Jens Lehmann when one-on-one with the Germany keeper.

Bernd Schneider squandered Germany's best chance when he fired over the bar with just Gianluigi Buffon to beat after being put clean through by Miroslav Klose.

The only booking of the first half went to Tim Borowski for a tackle from behind on Francesco Totti in the 40th minute.

He joins six other players walking a disciplinary tightrope.

Germany's Lukas Podolski, David Odonkor and Arne Friedrich will miss an eventual final if they receive a yellow card, while Italy's Fabio Grosso, Gianluca Zambrotta and Gennaro Gattuso are also one booking away from a ban.

Germany and Italy square at 0-0 after 45 minutes

Hosts Germany have a fight on their hands with the half-time score all square at 0-0 against Italy after 45 minutes of enthralling World Cup semi-final actiaon in Dortmund on Tuesday.

Marcello Lippi's side were the dominant side in the opening exchanges and looked more comfortable in possession but Germany also had their moments and Bernd Schneider shaved the crossbar of Gianluigi Buffon's goal with a glorious chance on 31 minutes.

Germany 'keeper Jens Lehmann had a superb half dealing with everything that came his way as the Arsenal man was evidently in confident mood following his penalty heroics against Argentina.

Millions gather for Germany's moment of truth

Millions of German fans were preparing to roar on the host nation as they take on Italy in the semi-final of the World Cup in Dortmund on Tuesday.

Millions of people have taken to the streets across the country for all of Germany's five World Cup matches so far, but Tuesday's match was likely to see more than ever daub their faces with the black, red and yellow of the German flag and watch the game on giant screens.

In Dortmund itself, up to 200,000 fans were gathering ahead of the 9:00 pm (1900 GMT) kickoff despite sweltering mid-afternoon temperatures of 37 degrees Celsius.

Both Germans and thousands of Germany's sizeable Italian community were mingling in the western city, with those not lucky enough to be in the Westfalenstadion watching the match in public viewing areas instead.

Fatigue not a problem says Ballack

Germany captain Michael Ballack admits his team's strength has been sapped after going through extra-time and penalties to defeat Argentina, but promised the prospect of reaching the World Cup final would get the adrenalin pumping against Italy on Tuesday.

"It was a hard slog playing 120 minutes against Argentina but we have had a few days to recharge and can give everything again. There is no problem there," Ballack said.

"Everyone is fit and refreshed. Italy did not have as many problems in terms of the result and the length of the game but it is not a problem," said the new Chelsea man.

"It is a long tournamemt - almost six weeks with preparation - but we are all targeting the final and you do not feel tired when you are winning."

Domenech imposes a news blackout on France

Coach Raymond Domenech has imposed a news blackout ahead of France's World Cup semi-final against Portugal as he seeks to prevent complacency seeping in after the stunning win over Brazil.

He's worried reports of all the euphoria back home generated by knocking out the defending champions in Saturday's 1-0 win will distract his high flying veterans from Wednesday's last four clash in Munich.

"We've achieved something super, it's always a pleasure when you reap the rewards of the work you've put in," he said.

"But our work is not finished, we can't let up.

"We're happy but now there's a match coming up, a World Cup semi-final with all that entails with the final beyond it.

"The danger is to think we've done it by beating Brazil, we've got to get the players back to where they were before that win.

"It's a bit like having two metres to go before you reach the summit.

"We've got to give the maximum in this semi-final. I've turned off my mobile to stop getting all the messages of congratulations and we're not watching the news so as to keep ourselves fixed on the objective."

Mexican to referee Germany v Italy semi-final

Mexican Benito Archundia will referee the World Cup semi-final between Germany and Italy it was announced on Sunday.

The 40-year-old will be assisted by compatriots Jose Ramirez and Hector Vergara for Tuesday's clash in Dortmund.

The trio have already been in charge of three matches at the tournament, the two first round clashes of Italy's 2-0 win over the Czech Republic - Archundia sending Czech player Jan Polak off - and Brazil's 1-0 victory over Croatia.

They also officiated at Ukraine's penalty shootout win over Switzerland in the second round.

Archundia, who is a qualified lawyer, has been an international referee since 1994 and has appeared at both the 1996 Atlanta Olympics and the 2004 edition in Athens.

Germany prepares for street party

Germany was preparing to pack even more fans into its hugely popular open-air viewing areas on Tuesday when the home nation face Italy in the World Cup semi-finals.

In Berlin, the so-called Fan Mile which leads up to Brandenburg Gate, was being expanded westwards to fit 900,000 people when the Mannschaft meets the Azzurri in the hope of securing a place in the final.

"This has become much bigger than we ever dreamt," Berlin mayor Klaus Wowereit said at the weekend.

The Fan Mile has hosted more than six million supporters so far during the World Cup, making the football celebrations the biggest street party the city has seen since the Berlin Wall fell in 1989.

Germany's Frings suspended for semi-final

FIFA on Monday suspended German midfielder Torsten Frings for the World Cup semi-final against Italy on Tuesday.

Frings was barred after the FIFA Disciplinary Committee viewed TV pictures which show him hitting an Argentinian player in the face in an on-pitch fracas following Germany's win in a penalty shootout in the quarter-final.

FIFA said he was definitely suspended for the semi-final but can return for the final on Sunday should Germany qualify.

However any recurrence of bad behaviour in the next six months would see him banned for another match, a FIFA spokesman told AFP.

"Frings is suspended for two matches, but one is a suspended punishment," the spokesman said.

Frings is likely to be replaced for the match in Dortmund by Borussia Dortmund's defensive midfielder Sebastian Kehl.

Nesta unlikely to face Germany

The chances of Italy's central defender Alessandro Nesta being fit to face Germany in the World Cup semi-finals are "very remote", Azzurri chief press officer Antonello Valentini said here on Sunday.

The 30-year-old centre-back has missed Italy's last two matches with a groin strain and is still struggling to recover from the injury.

Palermo's Andrea Barzagli replaced Nesta in the 3-0 quarter-final win against Ukraine, but that was due to Marco Materazzi's one-match suspension.

Having served his ban, Materazzi - who scored in the 2-0 win over the Czech Republic before being sent-off against Australia - will almost certainly return to the heart of the Italy defence to play alongside captain Fabio Cannavaro when they face the host nation in Dortmund on Tuesday.