Italy Eliminated From World Cup After Humbling 3-2 Loss To Slovakia
Posted June 24, 2010 12:13 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Defending champion Italy is out of the World Cup after a humbling 3-2 loss to Slovakia.
For the third consecutive match, the Azzurri allowed an early goal, and this time they never recovered.
Robert Vittek put Slovakia ahead in the 25th minute at Ellis Park, taking advantage of an errant pass from midfielder Daniele De Rossi. He then doubled the lead from close range in the 73rd following a corner.
Antonio Di Natale pulled one back for Italy in the 81st, but Kamil Kopunek scored another in the 89th for the Slovaks. Fabio Quagliarella put in the final goal in injury time.
The shocking result comes two days after former champion France was also eliminated.
Paraguay Draws 0-0 With New Zealand To Move Into Last 16 Of World Cup
Paraguay moved into the last 16 of the World Cup for the fourth time Thursday after being held to an
uneventful 0-0 draw by New Zealand.
Neither team created many scoring chances despite displaying more urgency after the break following a turgid first half at Peter Mokaba Stadium.
Paraguay finished with five points in Group F, two more than New Zealand.
Paraguay substitute Edgar Benitez sent a low shot that was saved by goalkeeper Mark Paston in the 76th minute in the best chance of the match. Teammate Cristian Riveros headed straight at Paston from a short corner in the 64th in the only other chance of note.
Japan Beats Denmark 3-1
Spectacular first-half goals by Keisuke Honda and Yusuhito Endo helped send Japan into the round of
16 at the World Cup with a 3-1 win over Denmark on Thursday.
The Danes, who replied in the 81st when Jon Dahl Tomasson tapped in the rebound from his own penalty kick, failed to advance from the group stage for the first time in four World Cup appearances.
Shinji Okazaki scored an insurance goal in the 87th minute for the Japanese.
Japan’s first two goals came from free kicks less than 15 minutes apart, as it collected its second win in Group E. The Japanese finished with six points compared to three for third-place Denmark. Cameroon was last in the group won by the Netherlands.
The Japanese have now reached the knockout round for the second time. They also advanced in 2002 when they were tournament co-hosts.
Japan will face Paraguay in Pretoria on Tuesday in the second round.
The Netherlands advanced to the knockout stages with a 2-1 win over Cameroon in the final Group E game.
