Chileans brought the noise and effort, Germany brought the nous and efficiency, and defender Marcelo Diaz brought the noose to slip around his own country’s neck.
Germany, just days after winning the European Under 21 Championship, on Sunday night benefited from an avoidable defensive error to triumph 1-0 in a fiery and fervent final to be crowned Confederations Cup winners and exhibit their potential to defend the World Cup next summer.
The South American supporters far outnumbered their German counterparts inside the St Petersburg Stadium and after a rousing extra verse of the Chilean national anthem, their players appeared vastly more motivated. They utterly dominated the opening exchanges – exactly what Joachim Low, the German manager, had warned his young squad to avoid.
Low had spoken of the need for his inexperienced side to start strongly after conceding inside the opening six minutes when the two teams tied 1-1 in the group stage. Alexis Sanchez pressured Leon Goretzka into a mistake after just four minutes that led to an early chance for Charles Aranguiz. Moments later, Eduardo Vargas dispossessed Goretzka again, but his rifled shot was gratefully smothered by Marc-Andre ter Stegen.
Sanchez was proving a furious, Tasmanian Devil-like presence, but he failed to convert from close range in the 20th minute and was made to pay. Perhaps taking a leaf out of the Arsenal forward’s playbook, Timo Werner pounced on sloppy play by Marcelo Diaz inside the Chilean area. With Claudio Bravo rushing out his goal, Werner calmly passed across the goal for Lars Stindl to put his country into the lead and leave Diaz with a face as red as his shirt.
It was completely against the run of play and served only to awaken the world champions, who could have twice doubled their lead through Goretzka. The Schalke midfielder dragged his first effort wide of the far post and on the stroke of half time saw a second chance saved by Bravo.
Diaz was replaced by striker Leonardo Valencia shortly after the restart, but a skirmish between Joshua Kimmich and Vidal, his teammate at Bayern Munich, saw tempers begin to fray as the South Americans threatened to lose focus.
Gonzalo Jara, just minutes after managing a vital touch to steer Julian Draxler’s shot wide, was lucky not to be dismissed for an elbow on Werner. Referee Milorad Mazic, after consulting a video replay, decided to show only a yellow. Then when Sanchez went down in the area, the Chilean bench implored Mazic to review his decision.
A late double substitution by Juan Antonio Pizzi almost immediately paid off as Edson Puch stole the ball ahead from Ter Stegen and found Angelo Sagal, but the Huachipato striker blazed over an open goalmouth.
The victory is further proof of Germany’s strength in depth, but Chile must feel this was a chance gone begging to claim an intercontinental title. For all Vidal’s claims that Low’s squad is here on merit, German media billed the inexperienced squad as “not even the B team” for a reason and Chile, who have not progressed past the round of 16 at a World Cup since finishing third on home soil in 1962, must learn from this defeat if they are to avoid further disappointment next summer.
The German juggernaut, meanwhile, show no signs of slowing.
Company profile
Company: Eighty6
Date started: October 2021
Founders: Abdul Kader Saadi and Anwar Nusseibeh
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Hospitality
Size: 25 employees
Funding stage: Pre-series A
Investment: $1 million
Investors: Seed funding, angel investors
SERIE A FIXTURES
Saturday (UAE kick-off times)
Atalanta v Juventus (6pm)
AC Milan v Napoli (9pm)
Torino v Inter Milan (11.45pm)
Sunday
Bologna v Parma (3.30pm)
Sassuolo v Lazio (6pm)
Roma v Brescia (6pm)
Verona v Fiorentina (6pm)
Sampdoria v Udinese (9pm)
Lecce v Cagliari (11.45pm)
Monday
SPAL v Genoa (11.45pm)
BMW M5 specs
Engine: 4.4-litre twin-turbo V-8 petrol enging with additional electric motor
Power: 727hp
Torque: 1,000Nm
Transmission: 8-speed auto
Fuel consumption: 10.6L/100km
On sale: Now
Price: From Dh650,000
Who has been sanctioned?
Daniella Weiss and Nachala
Described as 'the grandmother of the settler movement', she has encouraged the expansion of settlements for decades. The 79 year old leads radical settler movement Nachala, whose aim is for Israel to annex Gaza and the occupied West Bank, where it helps settlers built outposts.
Harel Libi & Libi Construction and Infrastructure
Libi has been involved in threatening and perpetuating acts of aggression and violence against Palestinians. His firm has provided logistical and financial support for the establishment of illegal outposts.
Zohar Sabah
Runs a settler outpost named Zohar’s Farm and has previously faced charges of violence against Palestinians. He was indicted by Israel’s State Attorney’s Office in September for allegedly participating in a violent attack against Palestinians and activists in the West Bank village of Muarrajat.
Coco’s Farm and Neria’s Farm
These are illegal outposts in the West Bank, which are at the vanguard of the settler movement. According to the UK, they are associated with people who have been involved in enabling, inciting, promoting or providing support for activities that amount to “serious abuse”.
The biog
Name: Shamsa Hassan Safar
Nationality: Emirati
Education: Degree in emergency medical services at Higher Colleges of Technology
Favourite book: Between two hearts- Arabic novels
Favourite music: Mohammed Abdu and modern Arabic songs
Favourite way to spend time off: Family visits and spending time with friends
EA Sports FC 26
Publisher: EA Sports
Consoles: PC, PlayStation 4/5, Xbox Series X/S
Rating: 3/5
Star%20Wars%3A%20Episode%20I%20%E2%80%93%20The%20Phantom%20Menace
%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDeveloper%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Big%20Ape%20Productions%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPublisher%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20LucasArts%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EConsoles%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20PC%2C%20PlayStation%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%202%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Dhadak 2
Director: Shazia Iqbal
Starring: Siddhant Chaturvedi, Triptii Dimri
Rating: 1/5
Company profile
Date started: Founded in May 2017 and operational since April 2018
Founders: co-founder and chief executive, Doaa Aref; Dr Rasha Rady, co-founder and chief operating officer.
Based: Cairo, Egypt
Sector: Health-tech
Size: 22 employees
Funding: Seed funding
Investors: Flat6labs, 500 Falcons, three angel investors
88 Video's most popular rentals
Avengers 3: Infinity War: an American superhero film released in 2018 and based on the Marvel Comics story.
Sholay: a 1975 Indian action-adventure film. It follows the adventures of two criminals hired by police to catch a vagabond. The film was panned on release but is now considered a classic.
Lucifer: is a 2019 Malayalam-language action film. It dives into the gritty world of Kerala’s politics and has become one of the highest-grossing Malayalam films of all time.
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
