Day 5

Match 15: Spain vs. Ukraine. This match was never in question, Spain came into this cup with high expectations, but then again they are a squad that has never lived up to high expectations on the biggest stage of the world, consistently underachieving. Today however there was no underachievement, just a severe thrashing handed out to the dismay of the Ukraine. Liverpool midfielder Alonso Xabi was able to put a head on the cross from the left corner and put Spain up 1-0 in the 13th minute. Just minutes later David Villa curled a free kick off the Ukraine wall that found the back of the net. By the 17th minute the match was already 2-0 Spain. The Spanish side would create more opportunities throughout the first half, but came up empty handed. The second half saw the tournament's first penalty kick when Vladyslav Vashchuk took down Fernando Torres in the box, and Vashchuk was sent off with a red card. David Villa smashed the PK off Oleksandr Shovkovskyi's hand and into the net. The match would remain one-sided, and in the 81st minute Fernando Torres netted a beautiful pass from Carlos Puyoi to seal the victory for Spain 4-0.......

Match 16: The final two teams to square off were Tunisia vs. Saudi Arabia. After watching Spain dismantle the Ukraine, both squads realized they could possibly advance along with Spain. The first half saw play dominated slightly by Tunisia who was the favorites to win the match. The Saudi's seemed to settle down a bit, but in the 23rd minute Zied Jaziri side volleyed a tipped cross hard and high into the net past a helpless Mabrouk Zaid. Tunisia and Saudi Arabia both seemed happy to take this score into half time. The second half saw a completely different story, the Saudi's looked re-energized, and refreshed taking an obvious possession advantage in the second half. Saudi midfielder Mohammad Noor slid a ball to Al Kahtani, which resulted in a beautiful flick into the net to equalize. The rest of the match saw Saudi Arabia dominate forward, and in the 81st minute aging Saudi hero Al Jabar was subbed in, and would then find net in the 84th minute off a 1v1 against the keeper. Saudi Arabia went up 2-1, and looked to have the game in hand. The 90th minute came and went with 4 extra minutes added for injury time. Tunisia would shock the Saudi's by netting a goal to equalize in the 92nd minute thanks to a powerful header that Mabrouk Zaid slammed into the net. This exciting match would end in a 2-2 draw and each team coming away with a point, and hopes of beating the Ukraine to advance to the next round.