Tuesday 20th June
Poland salvage pride
Costa Rica took the wooden spoon in group A after losing to Poland. Costa Rica opened the scoring in the 24th minute with a power-driver from a Gomez free kick. In the 32nd minute Porras failed to make contact from a corner-kick, and Bosacki side-footed the ball on the volley into the roof of the net. Early in the second half Bolanos attempted to lift the ball over Boruc, but the Polish keeper won the battle. In the 65th minute Porras pushed a Krzynowek shot away and Basacki headed the corner in at the far post to send Poland home on a winning note. (Poland 2 Costa Rica 1)

Tuesday 20th June

Germans claim top spot
Germany avoided the winners of group B by beating Ecuador and making it 3 wins out of 3. Schweinsteiger pulled the ball back for Klose to stab in an early goal in the 4th minute. Klose shot over the bar in the 33rd minute and 10 minutes later Ballack lifted the ball over the defence for Klose to power his way past the keeper and roll it into the empty net. Podolski side-footed the ball just wide in the 53rd minute, but 4 minutes later Schneider found Podolski who slid in to convert Germany's 3rd goal of the match. A shot from Mendez which flew over the bar in the 71st minute was the closest Ecuador came in the second half. (Germany 3 Ecuador 0)

Tuesday 20th June

Swedish jinx goes on
England once again failed to beat Sweden, but finished top of their group. Owen had to be substituted after only 2 minutes, but England dominated the first half. Joe Cole saw his shot go over the bar in the 20th minute. Five minutes later Rooney brought the ball under control, but his shot was blocked by Lucic. Beckham's inswinging free-kick in the 28th minute was too close to goal for Isaksson's liking who conceded a corner. In the 33rd minute Joe Cole chested the ball onto his right foot and volleyed it magnificently into the top right corner. Ljungberg ran dangerously into the box in the 39th minute, but was skilfully tacked by Ferdinand. A minute later Lampard shot over the bar. Sweden piled on the pressure in the second half. Ljungberg made another run into the penalty area in the 50th minute, but had his effort deflected. Allback headed in from the resulting corner kick to register the 2000th goal in World Cup history. Larsson headed the ball against the bar from a corner kick in the54th minute, and another corner kick in the 59th minute saw a Mellberg volley clip the crossbar. Källström volleyed from outside the area in the 71st minute, but his effort was cleared off the line. Crouch didn't trouble the keeper with his header in t he 75th minute, but 10 minutes later Gerrarld was more decisive with his header which gave England the lead. The England fans celebrating a rare win over Sweden were silenced in the 90th minute when the England defence failed to clear a throw-in and Larsson got a slight touch on the ball to deny England victory. (England 2 Sweden 2)

Tuesday 20th June

T&T party over
Trinidad & Tobago's slight hope evaporated as Paraguay claimed their first win of the tournament. Kelvin Jack had to make a save as early as the 2nd minute to keep out a header from Santa Cruz. At the other end Bobadilla did well to save from the head of Cornell Glen in the 5 minute. Two minutes later Whitley smashed the ball over the bar from outside the area. A Dos Santos header from an inswinging free-kick in the 25th minute was deflected off a T&T head into the back of the net. Ten minutes later Dos Santos and Valdez linked up but Jack saved with his legs. Kelvin Jack made a spectacular save on the stroke of half time to keep out a header from Valdez. Trinidad & Tobago had to clear off the line from the resulting corner kick. In the second half Trinidad & Tobago showed a lot of skill and spirit. Several good runs resulted in low crosses which were not converted. Jack got down well to fist away a shot by Barretto in the 63rd minute, and a rocket from Latapy flew over the bar in the 77th minute. T&T were running themselves into the ground, but with 5 minutes remaining a neat one-two between Santa Cruz and Cuevas saw the latter receive the ball in the box and beat Jack in the T&T goal. (Paraguay 2 Trinidad & Tobago 0)

Wednesday 21 June

Iran Point Angola out
A draw against Iran wasn't enough, but gave Angola a respectable 3rd place in their group. Zandi had a shot from a difficult angle inside the area in the 14th minute, but the keeper stood his ground. A minute later Mirzapour got down to save a shot from Figueiredo. A minute after the Angolan keeper had punched away an Iranian free-kick in the 22nd minute, Daei saw his free header go over the bar. Hashemian did better 4 minutes later, but his header was cleared off the line. Ricardo got down well to save a shot from Teymoorian in the 40th minute. In first half stoppage time Love brought a save out of the Iranian keeper. Ricardo couldn't hold on to a Mahdavikia shot in the 57th minute, but the rebound was defended. Two minutes later Ze Kalanga crossed the ball to the unmarked Flavio who picked his spot with a powerful header. Mendonca lifted the ball wide of the post in the 62nd minute; but with the Iranians facing defeat they pushed forward and with 15 minutes left, Bakhtiarizadeh headed in the equalizer from a corner kick. Khatibi tested the keeper in the 84th minute, but Iran finished last in their group with this draw. (Angola 1 Iran 1)

Wednesday 21 June

Mexican losers march on
Portugal won their group 5 points clear of second place Mexico who had to rely on a miracle not taking place in the other group match being played at the same time. Fonseca forced a low save out of Ricardo in the 2nd minute, but 3 minutes later Portugal scored when Sabrosa squared the ball for Maniche to side-foot into the top corner. In the 23rd minute Portugal were awarded a penalty for hand-ball, from which Simao scored with aplomb. Four minutes later the ball fell to Tiago after Sanchez had saved a shot from Postiga, but he hit it over the bar. Almost immediately at the other end Ricardo got down brilliantly and somehow deflected a volley from Bravo out off the crossbar, but he could not keep out Fonseca's header from the corner kick. Pardo brought out a diving save from Ricardo a minute before the break, and the ball was scrambled away after the corner kick.. Mexico had a chance to score from the penalty spot in the 56th minute, but Bravo fired over the crossbar. Mexico were reduced to 10 men on the hour-mark when Perez who had already been booked was shown the red card for diving. Bravo should have scored 3 minutes later when he was clear on goal, but his shot was once again too high. The equalizer did not come, and in stoppage time a shot from Maniche was parried by the Portuguese keeper. (Portugal 2 Mexico 1)

Wednesday 21 June

Big guns fire blanks
The much anticipated match between Netherlands and Argentina failed to live up to expectation. Kuyt won the ball in the 17th minute and ran into the box, but his selfish shot from a tight angle was pushed away by the keeper. Riquelme almost scored directly from a corner kick in the 26th minute, but van der Sar came to the rescue. Once again Riquelme caused havoc a minute later when his low free-kick from the left side had to be deflected onto the post by a Dutch defender. Rodriguez shot just wide a minute later. An effort by Messi was stopped by van der Sar in first half stoppage time. A shot from Tevez had van der Sar at full stretch in the 73rd minute, but both teams seemed happy with a draw. (Netherlands 0 Argentina 0)

Wednesday 21 June

S&M fall apart
Ivory Coast came back from 2 goals down to win their first ever World Cup match in Serbia & Montenegro's last match as a united team. S&M opened the scoring in the 10th minute when a long ball found Zigic who took advantage of a defensive error and rolled the ball in. Keita pulled the ball back for Dindane in the 19th minute, but the keeper saved with his legs and Akale couldn't convert the rebound. Ilic took advantage of another defensive error to put his side 2 up in 20 minutes. In the 34th minute the Ivorians were awarded a penalty for hand-ball. Dindane sent the keeper the wrong way, and repeated his feat from the retake. Dindane turned and got a shot on goal in the 40th minute, which the goalkeeper blocked. Three minutes later Dindane rounded the keeper, went down and was booked for diving. S&M played the second half with 10 men after substitute Nadj was sent off in stoppage time of the first half for his second bookable offence. A free-kick from Boka in the 57th minute was deflected by the defence into the path of Akale whose shot was blocked by the legs of goalkeeper Jervic. Arouna Kone had his shot blocked and missed from the rebound with an hour of the match gone. In the 62nd minute Kouassi rattled the bar, and a minute later Dindane beat the keeper with a header, but it was just wide of the post. Finally in the 66th minute Dindane got his second when he headed in a cross from Keita. Yaya Toure's powerful shot was straight into the arms of the goalkeeper in the 70th minute. Seven minutes later in a rare second half attack for S&M, Stankovic flung himself to meet a free-kick, but could only steer his header wide of the post. With 5 minutes of the match left, Ivory Coast got the winner when Kalou sent Jervic the wrong way from the penalty spot. The match ended with Domoraud being sent off for his second yellow card. (Ivory Coast 3 Serbia & Montenegro 2)

Thursday 22 June

Italy dump Czechs out
A Czech Republic team weakened by injury and suspension were no match for Italy. Nedved found Baros with an excellent pass in the 8th minute, but he failed to control the ball and Buffon blocked his effort. Four minutes later Nedved struck the ball himself, bringing a save out of Buffon. In the 16th minute the Italian keeper made another save from a Nedved shot and also blocked the rebound which had fallen to Jankoluvski. Ten minutes later substitute Materazzi swooped in to head Italy into the lead. Matters got worse for the Czechs just before half time when Polak, who had already seen yellow, was sent off. In the 53rd minute Cech had to dive to his right to get his fingertips to a shot from Totti, and at the other end, a good run by Nedved was stopped by Buffon. Two minutes later Cannavaro hit the ball on the volley, but his effort was too high. A Camoranesi header was well off target in the 64th minte while 2 minutes later Totti shot straight at the keeper. An attempted Czech clearance in the 67th minute came off a team-mate and fell to Inzaghi who missed the target. Nedved forced Buffon into a brilliant save in the 70th minute, and in the 83rd minute Inzaghi once again missed his target, this time with a header after a good run by Pirlo. With 3 minutes remaining Inzaghi made up for his earlier misses when he beat an offside trap, ran half the length of the field, rounded the keeper and buried the ball with any hope the Czech may have had. (Italy 2 Czech Republic 0)

Thursday 22 June

Ghana pride of Africa
The USA finished bottom of their group, with Ghana booking themselves a place in the next round at their first attempt. Draman dispossessed Reyna and coolly beat Keller to put the African side ahead in the 22nd minute. Beasley won the ball in the 43rd minute and passed it across the goal into the path of Dempsey who thumped in the equalizer. Just before the break Ghana were awarded a penalty which Appiah dispatched into the roof of the net. Ten minutes into the 2nd half, Keller denied an Appiah shot with a diving save. In the 65th minute mc Bride hit the post with a diving header. Two minutes later Bocanegra had his shot deflected for a corner kick, from which Onyewu headed just over the bar. (Ghana 2 USA 1)

Thursday 22 June

Wizards of Oz
Australia twice came back from behind to get the draw they needed to take them into the next round. Croatia opened the scoring in the 2nd minute when Srna found the top left corner from a free-kick. The Croatian keeper wasn't troubled from a Cahill header on the half hour-mark, but had to get down and make a good save from a Kewell shot a minute later. When the referee spotted a hand-ball in the Croatia area, Moore stepped up and sent the keeper the wrong way. A dreadful mistake by the Australian keeper Kalac, allowed a tame shot by Kovaè to find the back of the net in the 56th minute. Pletikosa made a point-blank save from Kewell in the 71st minute, but 8 minutes later Aloisi flicked the ball for Kewell to control and volley home from close-range. Simic was dismissed in the 84th minute for his second yellow, and 2 minutes later Emerton joined him for a deliberate hand-ball after already having been cautioned earlier. Simunic seemed to receive a second yellow card in the 90th minute, but the English referee didn't send him off until the end of stoppage time. (Australia 2 Croatia 2)

Thursday 22 June

Brazilian comeback
Japan scored first, but Brazil came back to win the match comfortably with Ronaldo scoring twice to equal the World Cup scoring record set by Gerd Müller. Ronaldo's low shot in the 7th minute after a step-over was saved by Kawaguchi. Four minutes later Kawaguchi had to get down to fist away a shot from Robinho. The 2 were in action again in the 16th minute with the keeper tipping the ball over the bar. Ronaldo picked his spot in the 20th minute but the Japanese keeper made a brilliant one-handed save. Two minutes later Juninho unleashed a scorcher which once again Kawaguchi managed to keep out. In a rare Japanese attack in the 34th minute Alex found Tamada who smashed the ball high into the net from a tight angle. Brazil equalized in the last seconds of the half when Cicinho headed the ball onto the head of Ronaldo who found the back of the net. After some neat interchange with Ronaldinho in the 51st minute, Ronaldo's shot was just wide. Brazil took the lead 2 minutes later when Juninho's shot seemed to go straight through Kawaguchi who had had a brilliant first half. A minute before the hour-mark Gilberto drilled the ball into the far corner of the net. Brazil were on fire, and Kawaguchi had to make 2 saves from shots by Robinho and Juninho around the 64th minute. Robinho dribbled his way into the box in the 69th minute, but Ronaldo couldn't get on the end of his pass. In the 81st minute Ronaldo curled the ball into the corner of the net from just outside the area. (Brazil 4 Japan 1)

Friday 23 June

Tunisia pay the penalty
Ukraine playing in their first ever World Cup progressed to the next round with a win over Tunisia. A free-kick from Namouchi was struck straight at the keeper in the 19th minute and 2 minutes later at the other side Boumnijel punched away a shot from Tymoschuk. Having been booked for diving, Jaziri received his marching orders for a foul on the stroke of half time. A free-kick from Ayari in the 66th minute took a deflection and flew over the bar. With 20 minutes of the match left Ukraine were given the chance to score from the spot, which Shevchenko took by sending the keeper the wrong way. The Tunisian keeper had to make a save from a Voronin shot in the 88th minute, and another excellent save from the same player 2 minutes later. A header from Dos Santos went wide in stoppage time. (Ukraine 1 Tunisia 0)

Friday 23 June

Spain do enough
Having rested some of their main players, Spain were happy to beat Saudi Arabia by a single goal. The ball was pulled back into the path of Albeta who struck it well from just outside the area in the 29th minute, but Zaid made a diving save. A minute later Joaquin's solo run ended with his shot being punched away by the Saudi keeper. In the 36th minute a free-kick from Reyes found the head of Juanito who buried the ball with a decisive header. Five minutes into the second half Zaid got his fingertips to a low shot from Reyes. In the 57th minute Canizares could only hold onto Soleimani's shot at the second attempt, and with 20 minutes left Soleimani tried his luck from a narrowing angle inside the box, but Canizares guided it away for a corner. (Spain 1 Saudi Arabia 0)

Friday 23 June

French scrape through
France finally won, and it was enough to take them to the next round. Trezeguet was the first to strike, but his 4th minute shot from inside the area was just wide. Three minutes later he brought a save out of Agassa with a header. Barthez pushed away a low driven cross in the 8th minute. Malouda had a shot in the 14th minute, but the keeper dived and collected the ball. In the 28th minute Salifou shot through the legs of a French defender, but Barthez got down well to cover the ball. A minute later Ribery shot over the bar for France. Ribery had his powerful shot saved in the 39th minute, and once again failed to convert when he side-footed the ball over the bar in the 53rd minute. Two minutes later Ribery turned provider passing the ball to Viera who turned and hit the back of the net on his 30th birthday. Henry missed a sitter in the 58th minute, but made amends 3 minutes later when Viera headed the ball for him to hold off his marker and fire in a second goal for France. (France 2 Togo 0)

Friday 23 June

Swiss peak
Switzerland finished ahead of France and eliminated South Korea with a win over the Asians. Barnetta had his shot blocked by a sliding tackle in the 10th minute of the match. However the Swiss did take the lead in the 23rd minute when Yakin delivered a free-kick onto the head of Senderos who bravely smashed it in, injuring himself and a defender in the process. Yakin had his free-kick palmed away in the 38th minute, and a minute later his shot was deflected for a corner. Lee Chun Suu had his shot saved in the last minute of the half. In the 64th minute Frei ran into the box and smashed the ball against the upright. Two minutes later Cho Jae Jin's downward header was pushed over the bar. Korea's fate was sealed in the 77th minute when a defender inadvertently stuck out a foot which sent the ball back into the path of Frei who went past the keeper and rolled it over the line. In the 83rd minute the ball was set up for Lee Ho in front of goal, but he failed to reduce the deficit. (Switzerland 2 South Korea 0)