U21 World League

Víctor Ugarte
Spectators: 7538 (Terracing: 5655, Seating: 1733, VIP seats: 150) It was fairly windy and cold on the field when Eustaquio Abendano kicked off to start the match. After 7 minutes of play, Cormoranii -MM-'s Călin Bota made it 0-1 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Nery Pumpido was left in no man's land by his defense there! Nery Pumpido made a wonderful reflex save on a shot from Călin Bota in the 9th minute of play. Nery Pumpido took care of the ball after a well-directed shot from Vintilă Hălmăgeanu, even though the ball almost passed him on his left side. If Eusebiu Godeanu had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 12th minute. The ball went over the crossbar instead. Nery Pumpido stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Vintilă Hălmăgeanu's shot from short distance in the 15th minute. After 17 minutes Nacional Potosí's defender was forced to head the ball over the line for a corner. It was Nicolae Drăgoi who took care of the corner kick. A well-hit corner resulted in Eusebiu Godeanu heading the ball towards the goal, but to his dismay he misdirected it and missed the goal completely. Cugat Abechuco sent away a hard shot on goal in the 19th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. 23 minutes into the match, Călin Bota had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Nery Pumpido. Nacional Potosí's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Călin Bota was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 0-2. Thanks to some nice foot action and superb ball handling Călin Bota in the 37th minute a chance for a shot on goal. With an extended leg and a bit of luck Nery Pumpido prevented the ball from getting in the gole. An unexpectedly hard shot by Vintilă Hălmăgeanu in the 41st minute of play forced Nacional Potosí's goalkeeper Nery Pumpido to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. After some careless play in the Nacional Potosí defense, Călin Bota kicked a shot that curved into the net to the right of Nery Pumpido. The Nacional Potosí fans voiced their displeasure as they felt that Nery Pumpido should have stopped the shot. Disappointed in the 0-3 score, the home team went to the dressing room to adjust tactics for the second half.

The hometeam waved at the audience when it was time for Vintilă Hălmăgeanu to strike the kick off in the second half. In the 52nd minute, Călin Bota reached a very good position and smashed the ball with a huge effort into the net, just to the left of Nery Pumpido. The goal made the score 0-4. In the 55th minute Eustaquio Abendano shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Dino Zoff saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. The throw-in from Nicolae Drăgoi in the 58th minute of the game was unfortunally taken care of by Nacional Potosí's Rogelio Abel. 62 minutes into the match, Cormoranii -MM-'s goal looked a bit too open when Quinto Abajas came free, but Dino Zoff reached the ball before it rolled over the goal line. Nery Pumpido made a fantastic save in the 64th minute, when Călin Bota sent off a good shot on target. Nacional Potosí's Nery Pumpido played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Călin Bota in the 66th minute of play. Quinto Abajas hit a great freekick 66 minutes into the match. Eusebiu Godeanu took a chance and fired a shot far from the goal in the 67th minute, but it turned out to be a dangerous situation for Nery Pumpido. Nacional Potosí's goalkeeper really had to stretch himself to stop the ball from crossing the goal line. Vintilă Hălmăgeanu could have scored with his fast shot on goal in the 71st minute of the match, but Nery Pumpido made a huge save. David Ologu was extremely unlucky when he, in the 73rd minute, took a shot that hit the right post and went out. In the 76thth minute of the game Vintilă Hălmăgeanu who was perfectly placed tried to make a shot on goal, but Nacional Potosí's Nery Pumpido was lucky and managed to grab hold of the ball. After 80 minutes of play, Nacional Potosí's Eustaquio Abendano made it 1-4 when he simply outclassed the defender marking him and hit a curling shot into the right side of the net. Dino Zoff was left in no man's land by his defense there! After a rather tough play, Nacional Potosí's Boniel Abecia got a free kick in the 85th minute. Nacional Potosí's Nery Pumpido played magnificently when he managed to stop the ball from hitting the goal, after a sharp shot by Vintilă Hălmăgeanu in the 89th minute of play. Vintilă Hălmăgeanu sent away a hard shot on goal in the 94th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Cormoranii -MM- played a much better game than Nacional Potosí and deserved their victory. The Nacional Potosí players were clearly disappointed as they left the ground.