Late wakeup call for Germany in qualifiers

Team to draw ‘life lesson’ after 4-4 draw with Sweden.

BERLIN: Germany must learn their lesson from squandering a four-goal lead against Sweden in their 2014 World Cup qualifier if they are to take the next step towards becoming a championship-winning team.

Germany coach Joachim Loew was left speechless after his team allowed Sweden to score four times in the second half for a 4-4 draw in Berlin.

“I am in a state of shock,” Loew told reporters. “For us this should be a life lesson. A lesson on how one should finish off a game.

“I never expected to see my team thrown off rhythm like that. It was something that had to do with their head and we are all bitterly disappointed.

“But we will not be thrown off track. This may be a gamewhere you can learn something for life.”

Italy outplay Denmark 3-1

Mario Balotelli capped his return to the international fray with a superb second-half goal as 10-man Italy boosted their 2014 World Cup qualifying bid with a 3-1 win over Denmark.

Denmark coach Morten Olsen, whose side have yet to win in three games, said Italy’s loss of Pablo Daniel Osvaldo right in the starting of the second half had changed little.

“We know that Italy are famous for their 10-man defence, it didn’t change much for us having a man advantage,” said Olsen.

Ronaldo’s 100th appearance ends in draw

Northern Ireland stole the headlines from Cristiano Ronaldo’s 100th international appearance as they held Portugal to a 1-1 draw.

Meanwhile, Craig Levein pledged to tough it out as Scotland manager as pressure on him grew after his side’s 2-0 loss in their World Cup qualifier against Belgium. Netherlands took a significant step towards qualifying for the 2014 World Cup with a comprehensive 4-1 defeat of their main Group D rivals Romania.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 18^th, 2012.