An Argentinian hat trick, a Greek comeback and a Mexican upset

Are Argentina now favourites to win the tournament?

South Korea looked good when they defeated Greece in their opening game, but Diego Maradona’s side dominated this match as they had against Nigeria. Only this time, Lionel Messi and company matched their dominance with goals. They were helped on their way to victory by the South Korea number 10, Park Chu-Young, who inadvertently turned in an Argentine corner after just 16 minutes. You couldn’t help but feel a little sorry for Chu-Young, who knew little about the goal as the ball bounced off his leg and rolled past keeper Jung Sung-Ryong. South Korea refused to be disheartened, and tried in vain to fight back as Argentina passed the ball around them. But before long, they were two down; a dangerous ball from Maxi Rodriguez was flicked on by Nicolas Burdisso, leaving Real Madrid striker Gonzalo Higuain with a free header from just six yards out.

It looked to be game over for South Korea, with Argentina in complete control, but on the stroke of half-time the Argentineans gifted their opponents a goal. Bayern Munich defender Martin Demichelis dwelled on the ball and was dispossessed by Lee Chung-Yong, who slotted home to pull one back for South Korea. With the score at 2-1, the game looked anything but over. Yet the full time score was a fair reflection on Argentina’s performance, and two more goals from Higuain gave the World Cup its first hat trick since Pauleta’s for Portugal in 2002. The victory leaves Argentina almost certain to qualify for the second round, and despite facing criticism in the build up to the tournament, the infamous Diego Maradona could yet manage his country to glory in South Africa.

The second game of the day saw Greece come from a goal behind to defeat Nigeria 2-1. The Greeks were helped by a moment of stupidity from Nigeria midfielder Sani Kaita. 33 minutes into the first half, Kaita was shown an instant red after kicking out at Vasileios Torosidis. Nigeria had been leading after a free kick from Kalu Uche, but the one man advantage inspired Greece to turn their fortunes around. Goals in the second half from Salpingidis and Torosidis gave Greece the three points, leaving Nigeria pointless. Nigeria can still qualify for the second round, but only if they beat South Korea and Argentina beat Greece.

In the final game of the day, Mexico beat France 2-0, putting further pressure on manager Raymond Domenech. The French had chances, but didn’t take them, and were duly punished in the second half. Substitute Javier Hernandez, who will join Manchester United next month, put Mexico ahead after less than ten minutes on the pitch. Some poor defending from France allowed Hernandez to beat the offside trap. Clean through on goal, he had a simple finish, and he took it beautifully. Ten minutes from time, a penalty from Blanco secured Mexico’s victory after Eric Abidal had fouled Pablo Barrera. It was a deserved victory for the Mexicans.

The result leaves Group A with an interesting dynamic going into the final round of matches. Expect Mexico to pace themselves against Uruguay, and expect Uruguay to do the same, as a draw will be enough to take both teams through. But with Mexico on course to finish second in the group, which would more than likely mean they faced Argentina in the second round, it’s possible that Javier Aguirre’s side will push for victory in the hope of getting an easier opponent in the next stage of the tournament. Greece, Nigeria and South Korea are all far less daunting prospects; on form, anyone but Argentina would be.

Ben McCluskey, James Southern and Aimee Howarth will be working together to provide a daily blog during the 2010 World Cup.

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