Underdogs prevail in quarter-finals

By John F. Molinaro, CBCSports.ca

Just like the first two rounds, the quarter-finals of the 2007 FIFA U-20 World Cup provided plenty of talking points for fans of the beautiful game.

Here are just some of the highlights:

Austria's Erwin Hoffer scores the winning goal against the United States. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)

Hoffer the super-sub: Just moments after coming into Saturday afternoon's game as a substitute in extra time, Erwin Hoffer scored his third goal of the tournament to lift Austria to a dramatic 2-1 upset victory over the heavily favoured United States. In Austria's previous game, against Gambia, coach Paul Gludovatz used Hoffer as a substitute late in the second half and the tactic worked - the lanky striker scored just 10 minutes after he stepped onto the field to lift Austria to a 2-1 win over the Africans. Against the U.S., it took Hoffer only two minutes to find the back of the net. Talk about making an impact. So, when the score was tied 1-1 and the prospect of a shootout was looming, did Gludovatz regret not bringing in Hoffer earlier than he did? "Why would I?" Gludovatz responded when asked the question in the post-match press conference.

Underdogs prevail: Reigning champions Argentina beat Mexico 1-0 in Ottawa to book its spot in the semifinals, but three underdog teams round out the final four. Nigeria, finalists at the 2005 tournament in the Netherlands, dropped a 4-0 decision to Chile in Montreal, while the Czech Republic outlasted Spain, the European champions, in a penalty shootout in Edmonton. The biggest upset of the quarter-finals, though, goes to Austria who beat the U.S. The Austrians have defied the odds, silencing the doubters who thought they stood little chance in Canada by going about their business in a quiet manner and reaching the semifinals following a 24-year absence from this tournament. "This team has proved that an Austrian national team can play with skill and go further in tournaments without just relying on defence," Gludovatz said.

Americans go home early: The U.S. won the hearts of neutral fans with its brilliant, attacking style of play, but the Americans couldn't find a way to get past the pesky Austrians. This has to be a bitter pill to swallow for a U.S. team, led by the supremely talented Freddy Adu, heralded by many as the greatest American youth squad ever assembled and that many believed had a good chance of winning the championship. Instead, the American are headed home early. "I'm very proud of what we accomplished in this tournament. Did we fall short of our goal, to reach the final four? Yes we did, and we are bitterly disappointed. But at the end of the day, there are more positive moments ahead for this team than negative ones," U.S. coach Thomas Rongen said.

Spanish whine: The stifling defence of the Czech Republic trumped the high-powered offence of Spain by winning 4-3 on penalty kicks in Edmonton to claim a semifinal berth. The smothering defence of the Czech Republic was front and centre throughout the game, as the Spaniards managed to build momentum late, but couldn't get ahead of their opponents. After the game, Spanish coach Gines Melendez blasted the Czechs, while conveniently ignoring the fact his players squandered countless scoring chances. "We deserved to win this match," said Melendez. "I expected them to play as they have been playing. We are attacking while they are defending, defending, defending. The pitch was not very good for attacking football..."

Chile marches on: Chile clipped the wings of the Flying Eagles, defeating Nigeria 4-0 in Montreal. The South Americans exploded for four goals in extra time after a tightly contested 90 minutes of regulation between the two teams. Chile's only previous semifinal appearance came at the 1987 tournament, staged on home soil. Defence continues to be the clothespin upon which Chile has hung its successful Canadian campaign - the South Americans have yet to give up a goal in five games. In recording his fifth straight shutout, Chilean goalkeeper Cristopher Toselli has gone 480 consecutive minutes without conceding a goal.

The champions progress: Argentina took the next step toward defending its World Cup title with a 1-0 victory over Mexico Sunday night. The victory also extends Argentina's unbeaten streak to 11 games, dating back to the 2005 tournament in the Netherlands. The defending five-time world champions - winners of four of the last six crowns - can improve on their own title record with two more victories. "When we left Argentina, we had a meeting with the players and we had two goals: One was to win our group and the second was to play seven games in the competition. Today we reached that goal." Argentina coach Hugo Tocalli.

Best goal: There weren't as many highlight-reel goals in the quarter-finals as there were in the last round, but Jozy Altidore's strike for the U.S. was still a thing of beauty. Freddy Adu charged down the left wing and floated a perfect cross into the middle of the box, where Altidore slipped between two defenders and majestically leaped in the air to head the ball home.

Best game: Again, not too many classic games like there were in the second round (and Mexico-Argentina, touted as a marquee contest, didn't come close to living up to the hype). So the nod goes to Austria-U.S.