Slovakia sends WC holders home

Vladimir Weiss, the Slovakian coach, celebrated “the second best day of his life” after his World Cup debutants stunned holders Italy 3-2 and stole their place in the last 16.

• The match, played on Thursday at the Ellis Park Stadium in Johannesburg, saw the Slovaks, the only newcomers in the 32-team field, hold on desperately at the very end as Italy failed to force the draw that would have kept them in the tournament.
• “I must say the whole of Slovakia is happy. It is a fantastic day for us. We had a good preparation for the match. After the birth of my son it is the second best day of my life,” Weiss told a news conference.
• Slovakia, who drew 1-1 with New Zealand in their opener, lost 2-0 to Paraguay in their second game but were completely transformed against a woeful Italy.
• “Three days of preparation for Italy were not so easy for me because in my mind I had questions about the starting 11,” Weiss said.
• Meanwhile, Marcello Lippi, the Italian coach, took full responsibility for their humiliating exit, saying that he had not trained the team well enough.
• “I didn’t think we could win the World Cup but I though we would do better,” Lippi said.
• The 62-year-old, a national hero when he led the Italians to 2006 World Cup glory, had already announced he would step down after the finals.
• In the other final game of Group F, New Zealand drew their third game against Paraguay, exiting the tournament without losing a game.
• The three draws were above and beyond expectations for the Kiwis and they received an appreciative send off from their supporters at the end.
• “I think I need to pinch myself,” Ricki Herbert, New Zealand coach, said.
• “If you are going to exit the World Cup there are good ways of doing it.”
• Gerardo Martino, Paraguay’s coach, was pleased to get through to the second round but unhappy with his side’s performance.
• “We played very badly in the first half and we played better in the second half,” he said after the match.
• “I’m pleased with the qualification but not with the way we played. We had a lot of problems in an area where we didn’t expect, and that was in attack.”
• Striker Roque Santa Cruz agreed that the performance was below-par but credited New Zealand for their defending.

• “We don’t feel happy because we didn’t win but New Zealand were a very hard opponent and it is very difficult to play against them,” he said.