Netherlands substitute Klaas-Jan Huntelaar set up one goal and converted a penalty in the dying minutes as the Oranje recovered to beat Mexico 2-1 in an astonishing finale to their FIFA World Cup last-16 clash on Sunday.
The result condemned the unfortunate Mexico squad, who were 1-0 up with two minutes to go and seemingly headed for the last eight for the first time since 1986, to their sixth consecutive second-round exit.
Netherlands midfielder Wesley Sneijder broke Mexican hearts when he drilled home an unstoppable half-volley to equalize after a knock-down from Huntelaar following a corner.
Photo: EPA
With extra-time looming, Netherlands’ live-wire winger Arjen Robben weaved into the penalty area and went down under a challenge from Mexico captain Rafael Marquez.
The Portuguese referee, Pedro Proenca, pointed to the spot and Huntelaar calmly sent goalkeeper Guillermo Ochoa the wrong way with a perfectly executed penalty-kick.
The Dutch side, who were on the back foot for much of the game, are to play Costa Rica in Salvador on Saturday and will fancy their chances of advancing.
It was a heart-breaking end for Mexico, who have now reached the last 16 at every World Cup from 1994 and always lost.
El Tri’s last quarter-final appearance was in 1986 on home soil and the only other time they made it to the last eight was in 1970, when the finals were also in Mexico.
“The tension was unbelievable, I’ve never lived through anything like that,” Oranje defender Daley Blind said. “We showed a lot of character in coming back.”
Netherlands coach Louis van Gaal praised his players’ stamina on a searing hot day at the Estadio Castelao in Fortaleza.
“Until the very last minute we were fresher and fitter than the Mexicans [side],” he said. “My players deserve a big compliment.”
Mexico dominated the early exchanges, while the Netherlands’ best chance of the first half came at the end, when some sloppy defending let Robben in on goal.
As he teed up a shot, defender Hector Moreno intervened with a desperate sliding tackle and appeared to catch Robben’s trailing foot. The Dutchman went down and appealed for a penalty, but the referee waved play on.
After the game, Moreno’s league club, RCD Espanyol, said he had suffered a broken left tibia as a result of his clash with Robben.
The 26-year-old is expected to be sidelined for several months, ruling him out of the start of the La Liga season next month.
After Moreno was replaced at halftime, El Tri took the lead just after the break through striker Giovani dos Santos.
Then came the Netherlands onslaught and the last-gasp drama, which saw them snatch victory from the jaws of defeat and keeps alive their hopes of winning the World Cup for the first time.
Revelations of positive doping tests for nearly two dozen Chinese swimmers that went unpunished sparked an intense flurry of accusations and legal threats between the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) and the head of the US drug-fighting organization, who has long been one of WADA’s fiercest critics. WADA on Saturday said it was turning to legal counsel to address a statement released by US Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) CEO Travis Tygart, who said WADA and anti-doping authorities in China swept positive tests “under the carpet by failing to fairly and evenly follow the global rules that apply to everyone else in the world.” The
Taiwanese judoka Yang Yung-wei on Saturday won silver in the men’s under-60kg category at the Asian Judo Championships in Hong Kong. Nicknamed the “judo heartthrob” in Taiwan, the Olympic silver-medalist missed out on his first Asian Championships gold when he lost to Japanese judoka Taiki Nakamura in the finals. Yang defeated three opponents on Saturday to reach the final after receiving a bye through the round of 32. He first topped Laotian Soukphaxay Sithisane in the round of 16 with two seoi nage (over-the-shoulder throws), then ousted Indian Vijay Kumar Yadav in the quarter-finals with his signature ude hishigi sankaku gatame (triangular armlock). He
Rafael Nadal on Wednesday said the upcoming French Open would be the moment to “give everything and die” on the court after his comeback from injury in Barcelona was curtailed by Alex de Minaur. The 22-time Grand Slam title winner, back playing this week after three months on the sidelines, battled well, but eventually crumbled 7-5, 6-1 against the world No. 11 from Australia in the second round. Nadal, 37, who missed virtually all of last season, is hoping to compete at the French Open next month where he is the record 14-time champion. The Spaniard said the clash with De Minaur was
RALLY: It was only the second time the Taiwanese has partnered with Kudermetova, and the match seemed tight until they won seven points in a row to take the last set 10-2 Taiwan’s Chan Hao-ching and Russia’s Veronika Kudermetova on Sunday won the Porsche Tennis Grand Prix women’s doubles final in Stuttgart, Germany. The pair defeated Norway’s Ulrikke Eikeri and Estonia’s Ingrid Neel 4-6, 6-3, 10-2 in a tightly contested match at the WTA 500 tournament. Chan and Kudermetova fell 4-6 in the first set after having their serve broken three times, although they played increasingly well. They fought back in the second set and managed to break their opponents’ serve in the eighth game to triumph 6-3. In the tiebreaker, Chan and Kudermetova took a 3-0 lead before their opponents clawed back two points, but