For one Cinderella story to continue, another must end.
This match between underdogs was very one-sided, but it probably should have been even more so. Possession was split fairly evenly between Costa Rica and Greece, and neither side was particularly accurate, but that is as far as the similarities between these teams go. Greece was quick, made smart plays and passes, and broke up every attempt Los Ticos made to attack their end. They had the lion's share of scoring chances, and never gave Cost Rica a glimmer of hope.
Let's talk about those scoring opportunities for a minute. In the first half, Greece was 1 for 6 on shots. Their only goal in the first half came on a completely uncontested corner kick which was easily slotted in by Nikolaidis at 17 minutes. Every other attempt was far wide or rang off the crossbar. There was even a chance at 33 minutes where the Greek forward had the keeper on the ground out of position and not a defender in sight. You could not ask for a better scoring opportunity, yet the ball was shot wide (on the FAR side of the next!) and entirely wasted. The second half would be only marginally better for the Ethniki, their second goal coming at 76 minutes from almost an identical repeat of the game winner, this time courtesy of Machlas.
The better team won the day, but raised some doubts as well. If Greece can fix its shooting problems, it will be a serious threat. If not, look to today to be as far as the Ethniki get.
Final result: 0 - 2 Greece
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