Suarez’s double punch puts England on the verge of an early exit

England’s hopes in the 2014 FIFA World Cup now hang on a thin thread after their 2-1 defeat in the hands of a rejuvenated Uruguayan side. The comeback man Luis Suarez, who is yet to be completely fit to play after a knee surgery, dealt England with two lethal blows which left the Englishmen on the edge.

It was a must win match for both Uruguay and England. England began in the way they should in order to force a result in favour of them. Wayne Rooney’s free kick went agonizingly over the bar in the early minutes of the match. But Uruguay slowly began to take control of the proceedings and in the 39^th minute got the important breakthrough. Luis Suarez headed in an inch-perfect cross from Edinson Cavani past Joe Hart into the goal for the first goal. And at half time it was 1-0 in favour of the South Americans.

The second half began and Uruguay threatened to double their lead in the first few minutes. England came back strongly with a much more spirited display from Wayne Rooney and Daniel Sturridge. England pressed hard and finally got the equalizer in the 75^th minute when Wayne Rooney tapped in from close range after Glen Johnson had gone past two Uruguayan defenders and placed it perfectly inside the box. England increased the pressure but the defense along with the keeper Fernando Muslera stood tall and kept the English at bay. In the 83^rd minute Muslera hit a ball long into the English half and Steven Gerrard woefully mis-headed it to put into the path of Suarez. Suarez took a touch, looked up to find out the goalie’s position and then slammed in a powerful shot past Joe Hart. And Uruguay was back in the lead once again and with very little remaining on the clock it was a deadly one for England. As the final whistle went the Uruguayan dug out was ecstatic with Suarez while in the English camp it was all remorse.

England still has an outside chance of staying alive on the tournament. For that they have to depend on the result of the Italy-Costa Rica match. A win for Costa Rica will find them in the queue for the air tickets back to England but a win for Italy will still give them one last opportunity if they manage to win against the Costa Ricans in their last group match.

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About Argha Ghosh

An ardent follower of sports and die-hard Manchester United fan, Argha's ultimate dream is to watch a Manchester derby from the Stretford End at the Old Trafford.