FRANCE 98 – Match Summary n°59

Croatia took a terrible revenge on 10-man Germany on Saturday night, inflicting their worst World Cup defeat in 40 years here in a controversial 3-0 victory. Croatia, who lost to Berti Vogts’ European champions in an ill-tempered quarter-final at Euro 96, now face the hosts France in Paris on Wednesday for a place in the final. But an angry Vogts accused the Croatians of gamesmanship over the decisive 40th minute sending-off of central defender Christian Worns, which spelled the end of the German coach’s 100th match in charge. Worns’ dismissal was followed by Robert Jarni’s opener just minutes later. Goran Vlaovic made it 2-0 in the 80th minute and a solo effort by Real Madrid’s Davor Suker in the 85th put the result beyond doubt.

It was Germany’s worst defeat since going down 6-3 to France in a third-place play-off in 1958, and the bitterness was all focussed on the decision by Norwegian referee Rune Pedersen. ” Until the sending off incident, there’s no doubt about it, Germany were putting on their best performance so far in the World Cup, “ fumed Vogts. ” My team really played their hearts out, they tried everything they could. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough, but I have to say I’m satisfied with them.”

But taking aim at Pedersen, he said: ” Germany were playing better, we had the upper hand … and until this incident, which I think was provoked by the Croatian team, we did well. ” The sending off would only have been justified if Worns was the last defender and that wasn’t the case. “ Defender Jurgen Kohler went even further, insisting: ” It was not us who lost the game but it was the referee who cost us the match.  The sending off decision was unjust. It was ridiculous. Why is it always the Germans who get cheated? “ Worns himself said; ” The referees decision was quite simply a joke. “

Star striker Oliver Bierhoff, who should have been sent off twice for felling opponents with his lethal right elbow, also waded into the controversy, pointing his own finger at Germany’s opponents in Lyon’s Stade Gerland. ” We were provoked by the Croatians and it wasn’t surprising that eventually one of our players took someone down and got sent off, “ he raged. ” We were playing really well up until then and I think we would have won. “

It was yet another a crushing disappointment for Germany, who won the World Cup in 1990 but who have since made two shock quarter-final exits, after being bundled out of USA 94 by Bulgaria. But while the Germans felt they had been robbed of victory, Croatian coach Miroslav Blazevic knew he had made history for a country who was only created in 1991. ” This is a historic result for us, “ he trumpeted. ” It’s true that it became a whole lot easier after one of their most important players was sent off, but I don’t think that should diminish what we did. We really deserved this victory. “

Suker said: ” It seemed like the Germans were treating it as a David and Goliath match and that really gave us an incentive. It spurred us on.   Tonight we played from the heart and it was soccer which was the winner. And it showed it’s not always the big guys who win. There will be a great party in our country tonight. “

However, a Croatian party was certainly not on the cards after the opening half-hour. Germany had the match well in hand, thanks to the constant aerial menace of Bierhoff, the playmaking of Thomas Hassler and a series of penetrating runs by right wing-back Jorg Heinrich. But Worns’ ugly professional foul on a goal-bound Suker suddenly turned the match on its’ head, leaving Germany cruelly exposed to Croatia’s swift counter-attacks in the second half. Jarni, a survivor of Yugoslavia’s 1990 World Cup side, took goalkeeper Andreas Kopke by surprise with a booming a left-footed drive from 20 metres, just seconds before the break. And although Croatian keeper Drazen Ladic pulled off a stunning reflex save to stop a Bierhoff volley soon after the re-start, Germany were inevitably going to pay for their desperate search for an equaliser. And they paid twice in the last 10 minutes. First Vlaovic curled home a superb drive and then Suker collected a long ball and beat Ulf Kirsten and Heinrich before rifling home his fourth goal in the tournament. It brought the match to an end, but the controversy was anything but over.