Once a Winner, Always a Winner

Uruguay 2-1 South Korea

In terms of winning the World Cup, it seems to be a closed shop. To this point only seven countries can lay claim to the title of World Champions. All seven of those former champions qualified for this tournament, but with heavy favourites Spain in the mix there has been a thought that the club may open it up to a new member. This argument could gain steam thanks to France and Italy bowing out early clearing up a few roadblocks to glory.  If that’s the case then I suppose Uruguay didn’t get the memo.

Uruguay was the first of the exclusive seven to claim the world title winning the inaugural tourney on home soil in 1930 (to go along with Olympic goad medals in 1924 and ’28). They were head and shoulders above the rest of the world and as Brazil, Argentina, Italy and others caught up they remained amongst the elite winning a second World Cup in 1950.  Through out the 50’s and 60’s Uruguay’s top club Penerol was every bit a good as Real Madrid, Benfica, Inter and the other European giants of the era.

By 1970 Uruguay could still field a side capable of making the quarterfinals, but the decline was underway. The next twenty years saw qualification, but early exits. Then it was a trip into the wilderness as they missed out on three out of four World Cups with only a group stage appearance in 2002 to show for their efforts.

Since that win sixty years ago Germany have three titles, Brazil a record five, Argentina have a pair of wins and England and France have lifted the trophy and have looked more of the threats to lift it again before Uruguay. For generations of fans Uruguay’s accomplishments are getting lost. As Spain, Portugal and even the United States are making noise knocking on the doors of the elites, Uruguay has staged an unlikely reappearance in football’s limelight. They were the last team to qualify (needing a disputed late goal against Costa Rica in a playoff) and were certainly not considered a favourite. A somewhat quiet draw in their opener against France didn’t help their cause either. Since then there has been a bit of momentum growing in their camp as they played in their first game in the knockout phase in twenty years.

Uruguay’s main strength coming into the tournament was their forward pairing of Diego Forlan and Luis Suarez. Forlan was a sensation in scoring a pair of goals against South Africa when they first started to show their intentions. Suarez found the back of the net against Mexico so they were both pulling their weight. Against the South Koreans they teamed up in the 8^th minute for the opener. Forlan’s cross in the box brought Jung Sung-Ryong off his line. Both halves of the Korean central defense also stayed out of position leaving Suarez way too open for a player onside. He had the whole net and tonnes of time to slot it in for the one-nil lead.

The Koreans sent the next hour putting in a solid effort to show for it when Lee Chung-Yong was rewarded heading home Ki Sung-Yueng’s free-kick due to Fernando Muslera was also off his line.

It the 80^th minute goal keeping fundamentals didn’t help against Suarez. Off Forlan’s corner Suarez curled the shot beautifully into the top corner for what has to be a top five goal of the World Cup. This was the kind of performance a top striker should have. Franck Ribery, Wayne Rooney and others should take notes. 2-1 is how it ended and Uruguay is off to the quarterfinals for the first time in forty years looking every bit the side that reached those heights on a regular basis. If you were a betting man (or woman) before the tournament began you probably would have put money on one of the previous winners, probably just not this one. Like I said the club of former World Cup winners is a closed shop and Uruguay is trying its hardest to keep it that way.