The Netherlands are in the World Cup 2010 semi-finals after beating five time champions Brazil by 2-1 in the Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium of Port Elizabeth. Despite being behind the score for the biggest part of the game, the Netherlands made a total come back during the second half, to complete their triumph while leaving Brazil outside the Top 4 for the second consecutive tournament. Robinho opened the score for Brazil in 10′, but with an own goal by Felipe Melo in 53′ and a second strike by Wesley Sneijder 15 minutes later, the Netherlands were the team celebrating after the final whistle. Melo was definitely the player carrying most of the responsibility for the shocking loss, since he was also sent off with a straight red card at a crucial point for Brazil.
Brazil had the absolute control of the game during the entire first half, and all the way until Melo’s own goal in 53′. The Netherlands were unable to find a solution for their defensive problems, and Brazil had the ball possession, was creating chances, and had many opportunities to finish the game early. Robinho scored for Brazil after a tragic mistake in the defence, with Juan (25′) and Kaká (31′) also missing good chances later on.
But during an unexpected moment eight minutes in the second half, the Netherlands tied the game without having a single chance up to that point: Sneijder sent a long ball in the heart of Brazil’s defence, and Felipe Melo with a careless header scored against his own team. This was the first own goal in the history of the World Cup finals for Brazil, after 97 total matches played.
Dunga’s players lost all concentration and momentum they were working on for over 60 minutes in the game, and the Netherlands took advantage to score a second goal with Wesley Sneijder: after a beautiful corner shot by Arjen Robben, Dirk Kuyt took the header and the ball ended up on Sneijder that had no problem scoring from close range also with a header.
Brazil was definitely in another planet after the second goal, and that was clear when Felipe Melo first kicked and then…stomped Robben to receive a straight red card. Brazil was behind the score, with a man down, and with just 15 minutes left on the clock. The Brazilians tried hard, made a few chances, but nothing really changed until the end of the game and the Netherlands finally took revenge for the 1994 and 1998 eliminations.
