2 hours ago
12
Key events
76 min Sidny Cabral, on a yellow and now marking Lamine, is sensibly withdrawn; Joao Paulo replaces him.
75 min “I feel like I’m watching Groundhog Day,” emails Charles Pearson. “Spain have ball, Spain attack, Cape Verde defend well, Spain’s attack comes to nothing. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. When will the existential epiphany come that breaks the loop?”
Well we’re close to the all-is-lost moment at the end of Act II…
73 min A buzz flows around the ground the second Lamine gets the ball; he does nothing with his first go of it, but then he beats his man on the outside, cutting back for Llorente, who squares for Merino, near the penalty spot … who scuffs his shot, Vozinha fielding easily enough.
72 min The Lamine change is, of course, the obvious one, but Merino makes sense too - he’s excellent in the air and a great target for the dinked crosses we’ve been seeing.
71 min On come Lamine and Merino, for Gavi and Fabian Ruiz.
68 min There are tough acts to follow, and then there’s replacing Oliver Glasner at Crystal Palace.
69 min Vozinha stays down, then it’s time for a hydration break … after which I think we’ll see Lamine Yamal.
67 min I never thought I’d criticise a Spain team, never mind one run by Rodri and Pedri, of a lack of game intelligence. But that’s exactly what we’re seeing – the quick interchanges that pick defences apart have been almost totally absent … and, as I type, Vozinha comes to collect another cross.
66 min There’s still a lack of urgency and tempo in Spain’s passing. I’m not sure what they were told at half-time, but I doubt it was “more of the same please lads” – yet that’s pretty much what we’re seeing.
64 min Spain remember what works, another diag from just outside the box picking out Cucurella. But Moreira blocks his cross, and this is such a good defensive effort. Usually in a game such as this one, you’d expect a smorgasbord of last-ditch blocks and penalty-area pinball, but what stands out here is Cape Verde’s discipline and composure. They’re denying space brilliantly, refusing to dive into tackles. and crowding second balls.
62 min The corner comes to nowt.
61 min Changes for Cape Verde: off go Jovane Cabral, Laros Duarte and Livramento; on come Deroy Duarte, brother of, along with Da Costa and Willy Semedo.
60 min Cape Verde make a rare attack and, when Jovan Cabral misses his kick, Spain counter with Ferran, But Borges does a really good job of shackling him, at cost of a corner.
59 min I’d not be at all surprised if the Cape Verde players are telling themselves and each other to hold out until the hydration break. Meantime, Ferran goes down the right stands up a cross for no one, and Vozinha flies out to claim.
58 min Spain are starting to feel the pressure, Laporte flinging himself into a Kompany v Leicester-style shot, thrashing over the bar from way out.
56 min Pedri looks likeliest to make something happen and he glides a ball into the middle, measured to meet the run of Fabian Ruiz … who heads straight at Vozinha.
55 min Spain seem to have forgotten what was working for them before the break – those clipped passes out wide seem to have vanished. I don’t think it’ll be long before De la Fuente makes a change or two.
53 min “With Amorim,” begins Nelson Calvinho, “let’s conveniently forget some of United’s best recruited players in some time happened during his watch, that he gave a new lease of life to players who didn’t count (Casemiro. Maguire), that he elevated the standards inside and outside the pitch for the benefit of whoever came next, that he was already fighting for champions League spots when he left, that the results started to go south this season when he lost some key players to injury and Afcon, and that results with Carrick (who’s done a terrific job) immediately and coincidentally improved when said players returned and Carrick took the job...
I remember the media saying Pep’s football could not work in the Premier League after his first, trophyless, season. Pundits can only state what happened yesterday or is happening now, but rarely can see much further (another case in point, Brentford’s relegation being given as a fact even before Keith Andrews’ first session as a head coach). As fickle as fan’s impressions and often personal.
Vamos Tubarões Azuis!”
I agree with a lot of this – the football was mainly dreadful, results were worse, and his exclusion of Kobbie Mainoo a complete nonsense. But if United get good from here, he’ll be the one who started the process – and I agree that, had there been no Afcon, at the same time Bruno Fernandes got injured, he might still be in the job … but I also think him extremely fortunate to have held it for as long as he did, and the work Michael Carrick has done should be a source of major embarrassment.
51 min Pedri and Oyarzabal gang up on Duarte in midfield, winning the ball, which then moves wider to Fabian Ruiz, at inside-right. He dips back inside, shoots … over the top.
48 min Co-commentating on English telly, Lee Dixon says Atlanta Stadium might be the best he’s ever been in, and I can see that aesthetically, it’s impressive. However the lack of pitch-level seating means that it’s not in the conversation as far as my standards go – one reason you go to a game is to feel part of it, and once you’re above it, that’s diluted.
48 min Again, it’s Pedri looking to game-break, standing up Sidny Cabral then shifting the ball by him to get a yard, standing up a cross for Oyarzabal … whose header hits a defender, allowing Cape Verde to clear.
47 min “Not feeling quite so bad now about Scotland’s inability to put Haiti to the sword,” confesses Simon McMahon. “As Steve Clarke said, a win’s a win. Though I fear you’re right about goal difference being key for the third-place teams. A single goal defeat against Morocco and Brazil and we’ll probably be ok, anything else and it’s gonna be touch and go. But a win against Morocco on Friday means that a point in our final group game against Brazil will be enough to top the group. I’m all over the place already, can you tell? Football, eh...”
What people sometimes neglect to grasp is that almost any professional team defending deep and in numbers are difficult to break down. My reservations about Scotland are that they lost the xG, possession and shots, I think – it wasn’t an onslaught.
46 min We go again…
Back come our teams. Can Cape Verde keep focused as legs and minds tire?
“I think there’s a useful comparison to be made between Curaçao and Cape Verde,” writes John Ashdown. “That has to do with the philosophies of the Netherlands and Portugal, in whose leagues so many of them play.
Like an Eredivisie team, Curaçao are throw caution to the wind, full speed ahead, tactically inflexible, ‘let’s win this 5-4’. Like a Primeira Liga team, Cape Verde are all about soaking pressure, pragmatism and flexibility.
As you pointed out earlier, both approaches are valid: Curaçao did score a goal, Cape Verde have held the European champions scoreless for a half.
And can we have a shout for my guy Vozinha, 40 years young, plays for Desportivo de Chaves in Portugal’s second division, man of the match so far?”
Vozinha has been great, so too his teammates. I wonder, though, if they’ll want to commit more players forward in the second half, as it’ll get the ball down the other end and, numerous though Spain virtues are, pace on the counter isn’t one of them.
Half-time email: “As Scotland proved the other night,” says Justin Kavanagh, “Spain are finding out that you can only struggle against the teams put in front of you!”
This is only half of the Scotland way; the next bit is when they play superbly against quality opposition and go out of the competition anyway.
Ienjoyed the hell out of that: Cape Verde have given us a lesson in how to defend the box. There’s a long, long way to go, but we could be experiencing one of the great World Cup rearguards. This might just mature into one of those classic matches we’re still talking about decades from now.
Half-time reading:
HALF-TIME: Spain 0-0 Cape Verde
A near-perfect first half for Cape Verde, who’ve defended with discipline and confidence while, in their goal, Vozinha has been excellent. And the break has probably come at a good time, because Spain were getting around the sides of them – something the now have the chance to address.
45+4 min Spain have some momentum now, Llorente moving down the right and standing up a cross for Oyarzabal. But a defender gets either side of him, allowing Vozinha the rare pleasure of waving his teammates away as the ball bobbles wide.
45+2 min I wonder if Spain have happened upon a solution to their creation issue. This time, it’s Fabian Ruiz with the lofted ball from centre to wing, the outcome a corner down the other flank. And when it comes in, Laporte is up glancing towards the far bottom-corner … but again, Vozinha is there, plunging to his right and, with the tips of his fingertips.tipping away.
45+1 min We’ll have four additional minutes.
45 min Again, Cucurella is the outlet for Spain, but this time pulling wide, punching a pass from Pedri first-time into the box. At the near post, Gavi slides in but misses his connection, the Ferran shoots low but, under pressure from Lopes, he can’t guide it far enough away from Vozinha, who dives to save.
42 min “I think it’s not entirely helpful to compare the Blue Sharks to the Blue Wave,” advises Kári Tulinius. “Unlike their fellow islanders from Curaçao, the Cape Verdeans have lots of experience of high-level football. They’ve made the knockouts in multiple Afcons, and are used to the pressure of facing superstar players. While I think Spain would comfortably win nine in a series of 10 matches, in a one-off Cape Verde can get a result. They probably won’t, but it’s not unthinkable.”
Yes, I think that’s fair – though Curacao have players with decent domestic-level experience too.
40 min Cabral leads a counter, finding Mendes who finds Duarte, but it’s the wrong pass and momentum leaks from the attack; Spain, who’ve funnelled back well, crowd him out.
39 min Again, Cucurella runs in behind – Spain are finding the outlet now – and Rodri clips a gorgeous cross-kick that finds him. He should probably go for goal but, determining the angle to narrow or opting to make sure, he heads back for Ferran, who must score … except he annihilates against the bar then, when the rebound picks out Oyarzabal, his looping header forces Vozinha to tp over the top! That’s more like it from Spain, but the Cape Verde keeper look in the mood.
38 min A foul from Llorente gives Cape Verde a chance to put a free-kick into the box, but they go short, then Jovane Cabral cuts infield off the left, shoots … way over the bar.
37 min Pedri spreads to Cucurella, who volleys into the box. And though Borges does a good job of heading clear, the ball lands on Pedri’s laces, and introduces them to leather, the connection lovely … forcing Vozinha to tip over. The flag then goes up – Cucurella was offside – but that was a decent effort and save.
35 min Livramento mugs Rodri in the centre-circle, pouncing on a loose touch before swivelling and trying a shot with the keeper way out of his goal. He doesn’t get hold of it properly, but it was the right decision to take it on.
34 min What I’m finding odd about this game is that Spain will have known how Cape Verde were going to play, yet look like it’s come as a total shock. There’s no tempo or snap to their passing and movement about the box, nor are they overloading it with men; I’m not really sure what kind of goal they’re trying to score.
33 min “Even Americans, who are used to constant stops for ads during sports have been consistently very annoyed at the forced water breaks and accompanying ad break,” advises Zach Neeley. “Just one more way to take an opportunity that only comes around once a generation at most and turn it into embarrassment.”
31 min I wonder whether, if it stays goalless, we’ll see Lamine. Meantime, Ferran picks up possession just outside the box, and feathers a delicate pass into the path of Oyarzabal, outside him. But the first touch is poor, allowing Sidny Cabral to slide in with a precise – and dangerous, given he’s already been booked – challenge.
29 min Pedri spreads to Cucurella, left side of the box, who punches first-time towards Gavi, deeper inside it. But Moreira blocks, the ball bounces up, and this time, the Real Madrid man takes the law into his own hands, leathering a shot just over the bar.
28 min If we were being unkind, we’d chortle that losing 5-1 to Graham Potter makes anyone’s position untenable.
27 min We’re away again, Ryan Mendes nailing Gavi with the chapeau trick so beloved by Patrick Vieira, lifting the ball over his head before unloading a shot directly into Cucurella’s midriff.
25 min Cape Verde could probably have done without that break, while Spain will be pleased for it. I guess it means goalies have less need to feign injury, but I’m reaching; it’s a nonsense and, I fear, one that’s here to stay. Sadly, the various suits prefer advertising income to sporting integrity.
23 min It’s time for the hydration break; the match is being played in an indoor, climate-controlled environment.
22 min Cape Verde move the ball through midfield, finding Jovane Cabral out wide. But when he might attack his man or sling over a cross, instead he goes backwards, and Spain quickly regain possession. That was a decent situation, ruined by a poor decision.
20 min Spain probe again, then Cubarsi loses patience, dragging a miserable effort wide from 20 yards. So far, it’s been a relaxing jaunt for Vozinha in the Cape Verde goal.
18 min I said below that if Spain can keep Cape Verde out for a while, we might get a thriller, but actually the already have. Spain won’t be nervous yet, but they’ve not got close to making a proper chance, lacking the speed out wide and general genius Lamine brings.
17 min Llorente barges by Sidny Cabral, who hauls him back and is booked.
