Final, Chile 2-0
Spain has been eliminated from the World Cup. They are the second straight defending champion to fail to reach the knockout stages.
There wasn’t any doubt who the deserving team was in this game. Chile dominated from the start with two second-half goals and defended brilliantly when it mattered most.
Stay on NESN.com for post-game coverage.
92nd Minute, 2-0 Chile: Sergio Ramos’ shot inside the penalty box is blocked and Spain were unable to possess it and hit the target in the following sequence. It’s been that kind of day for the defending champions.
90th Minute, 2-0 Chile: We will have six minutes of added time.
88th minute, Chile 2-0: Cazorla’s free kick from about 20 yards is saved by Bravo.
84th minute, Chile 2-0: Sergio Ramos’ header off a corner kick sails comfortably into Bravo’s hands.
83rd minute, Chile 2-0: Jorje Valdivia is about to come on for Chile.
Iniesta’s shot from distance was stopped with a brilliant diving save from Claudio Bravo. The Chilean goalkeeper has been excellent today.
79th minute, Chile 2-0: Spain advances toward the box in an out-numbered situation and make too many passes as the opportunity is lost. Iniesta’s tried to slip a ball through for Torres and it was intercepted.
About 30 seconds later, Cazorla’s left-footed shot from the edge of the penalty box sailed just past the left post and out of play.
75th Minute, Chile 2-0: Santi Cazorla has replaced Pedro for Spain.
75th minute, Chile 2-0: Alexis Sanchez made a quick dribbling move to get past Sergio Ramos and advance to the byline, where his cross into the middle was intercepted and cleared.
Chile is taking over possession more consistently and isn’t allowing Spain to counter attack.
70th minute, Chile 2-0: Alexis Sanchez used his pace to fly into the attacking third, moving past Javi Martinez’s diving challenge with ease. His cross into the box was headed wide for a goal kick, though.
68th minute, Chile 2-0: Mena sent a cross along the six-yard box and Isla’s diving shot went up and over the net for a goal kick. That was a great chance to put the game away.
66th minute, Chile 2-0: Chile is first to every 50-50 ball and showing no fear with this lead. Spain also is giving up possession far easier than we’ve seen in previous international tournaments.
63rd minute, Chile 2-0: Torres has replaced Costa. He finished with two shots (one on goal).
60th minute, Chile 2-0: Veteran striker Fernando Torres is warming up on the sidelines for Spain.
57th minute, Chile 2-0: Charles Aránguiz was stretchered off the field. Felipe Gutiérrez will replace him.
53rd minute, Chile 2-0: Claudio Bravo punched Sergio Ramos’ free kick back into the 18-yard box. Pedro crossed the ball into the box with a bicycle kick and Sergio Busquts was unable to capitalize three feet from the net. A huge change gone for Spain.
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52nd minute, Chile 2-0: Pedro is fouled just outside the penalty box giving Spain a free kick from scoring range.
48th minute, Chile 2-0: Iniesta makes a pinpoint pass to Costa in the box but he’s unable to finish the chance as the Chilean defense cleared the ball behind the touch line for a corner.
46th minute, Chile 2-0: Koke has replaced Xabi Alonso in Spain’s midfield.
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Halftime, Chile 2-0: Chile leads the defending champs 2-0 after 45 minutes. A shocking result quite frankly.
Spain has just one shot on target despite owning 61 percent of possession.
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45th Minute, 2-0 Chile: We will have two minutes of stoppage time.
43rd Minute, 2-0 Chile: Chile leads 2-0! Vidal took a free kick and Casillas punched it right to Charles Aranguiz, who fired a right-footed shot past the Spanish goalkeeper to double his team’s advantage. Aranguiz now has an assist and a goal in this game.
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39th Minute, 1-0 Chile: Xabi Alonso has picked up a yellow card. He’s the first Spain player booked today.
37th Minute, 1-0 Chile: Spain is enjoying the majority of possession but it hasn’t been able to penetrate the Chilean defense in the penalty box and create any high-quality scoring chances. Diego Costa looks lost and should be replaced at halftime. Cesc Fabregas could provide more of a spark up front.
Alonso has had the two-best chances for Spain so far.
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27th Minute, 1-0 Chile: Diego Costa had a quality scoring chance in the penalty box but his shot hit the side netting to Claudio Bravo’s right.
25th Minute, 1-0 Chile: Vidal is the first person to see a yellow card in this game.
19th Minute, 1-0 Chile: Eduardo Vargas has given Chile the lead with the game’s first goal. He received a beautiful pass from Charles Aranguiz, then made a delicate touch past Spanish goalkeeper Iker Casillas and found the back of the net.
via @MyRegularFace
If the score holds, Spain will be eliminated and Chile and Holland will advance to the knockout stages.
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16th Minute, 0-0: The ball fell to Xabi Alonso in the six-yard box but his shot was saved by Claudio Bravo. A huge early save by the Chilean goalkeeper, whose seen his back four give away possession cheaply in their own half over the last few minutes.
12th Minute, 0-0:
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8th Minute, 0-0: Spain’s free kick from about 50 yards out is misplayed by the Chilean goalkeeper but his teammates cleared it from danger. Spain is starting to enjoy a bit more possession, specifically in the final third of the field.
2nd Minute, 0-0: Chile nearly create a great scoring chance in the opening minutes. Vidal was able to maneuver into the box but Chile’s shot was deflected wide. Jara’s header on the ensuing corner was sent wide to Casillas’ right and Spain escapes danger.
1st Minute, 0-0: We’re underway in Brazil.
2:50 p.m. ET:
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2: 45 p.m. ET: Here’s a weather update from Brazil and it doesn’t look promising.
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2:42 p.m. ET: Look for Spain to get forward Diego Costa involved early. Other than drawing a penalty in the first group stage game he did very little. Costa wasn’t on the ball often and failed to create scoring chances for himself or teammates. He needs to be assertive for Spain to gets its attacking form back.
Expect Andres Iniesta to play behind Costa, with Pedro on the wing providing the striker with service into the penalty box.
2:30 p.m. ET: Spain has made some bold lineup choices for today’s game.
Pique won’t start in the central defense after a horrendous game against the Netherlands. He will be replaced by Javi Martinez, who’s more of a defensive midfielder.
Xavi, an alternate captain and one of the best midfielders of all time, has been replaced by FC Barcelona teammate Pedro Rodriguez.
Here are the full lineups for Spain and Chile:
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12:15 p.m. ET: The defending World Cup champions are in a near must-win situation Wednesday against Chile after losing their opening game of Group B 5-1 to the Netherlands.
Spain’s possession style of soccer that has helped them win just about every major international tournament since 2008 was unsuccessful against the Dutch, who gave the Spanish players almost no time on the ball and were fantastic on the counter attack. The Netherlands’ pace was too much for the Spanish defense, specifically the center back combo of Gerard Pique and Sergio Ramos.
Chile presents a similar challenge given the speed of its attacking players, a group that includes FC Barcelona forward Alexis Sanchez.
Spain lost the opening group stage game at the 2010 World Cup and went on to win the tournament for the first time in its history. Don’t be surprised if we see another inspired performance from the defending champions.
Be sure to check back to this blog at 2 p.m. ET for live score updates, analysis and highlights of Spain-Chile in Brazil.
Thumbnail photo via Twitter/@BlancoStats
