Two outsiders in Berlin

By John Cheeran
Two outsiders have move moved into the final of the World Cup, France and Italy.
Before the World Cup began Brazil and Argentina were the clear favourites to clash in the final from two opposite halves of the draw.
When the group stage matches began, suddenly an aggressive Germany rose in the charts. Those who were banking a team like Italy with an illustrious past were disillusioned by their stuttering shows. Since winning the World Cup in 1998, France had done little to excite their supporters. Italy and France survived anxious moments to make it to the second round. Then everything changed around them.
Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Spain, England and that tiny little empire, Portugal, have fallen by the side.
Italy have lifted their game just when it mattered; they got past Australia in the second round with a dubious, last minute penalty in the injury time. They had the weakest opponents in Ukraine in the quarterfinal.
But when the time arrived they put the daggers into the German breasts and twisted it twice with shootout only three minutes away.
To give credit to Italy and France, they have won their last six games. It matters little now whether they played as we wished or not. Italy and France won their decisive games against Germany and Brazil, the biggest stumbling blocks on their path to the final.
Moral of the story is this: it is not how many opportunities you create that matters, but how many you can benefit from.
Coach Phil Scolari may have taught Portugal boys the art of war; but he forgot the essentials; the shooting!