England vs Portugal 1 July 2006
Budweiser Man of the Match: Owen HARGREAVES (ENG)
fifaworldcup wrote:
Owen Hargreaves popped up all over the pitch to help 10-man England in both attack and defence, leading a valiant fight that ended tragically for his team in cruel penalties after they had held Portugal 0-0 for 120 minutes.
Playing deep behind England’s four attack-minded midfield stars – Frank Lampard, Steven Gerrard, Joe Cole, and David Beckham – Hargreaves was always on hand to impede the Portuguese front-men, who showed impressive flair at times but were prevented from creating many clear chances.
The Bayern Munich man stepped up his efforts even more after Wayne Rooney was sent off in the 62nd minute. His aggression may have earned him unwanted attention from the referee – he was penalised for five fouls and booked in extra time – but he was England’s anchor in their time of need. And when they needed cool heads during the penalty shoot-out, Hargreaves was the sole England player to put his spot-kick in the net.
“Hargreaves served the team superbly throughout, with great positioning and covering tackles,” said FIFA Technical Study Group member Gyorgy Mezey. "Many times he also threatened the opponent's goal breaking from midfield. His play was at a constant high level.”
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