All Whites in upset win over SerbiaAny chance the All Whites had of flying under the radar heading into the World Cup has been blown out of the water with one their greatest wins on the international stage.
A first-half strike from Shane Smeltz has inspired the All Whites, ranked 78th in the world, to a 1-0 upset victory over world number 15 Serbia in a friendly at the Worthersee Stadium in Klagenfurt, Austria, this morning.
Serbia, touted as dark horses for the World Cup and a team All Whites coach Ricki Herbert believed would test his side more than any of the three teams they will face in South Africa, fielded no less than six English Premier League players while the rest of their squad was made of up players who ply their trade in the top leagues in Spain, Italy and Germany.
But New Zealand looked every bit their equal as their stocks continue to rise on the international stage with what really was a stunning upset, and one which will make headlines around the world.
Just four years ago, New Zealand scored their first ever win on European soil, a 3-1 victory over Georgia, who were ranked about 100 in the world. Herbert hailed that result as one of his proudest moments, but it will pale in comparison to this.
Sure, it was a friendly, but New Zealand will now go to the World Cup with expectations of possibly winning a match on current form.
They were impressive for 60 minutes in the 2-1 loss to Australia but this morning, they looked composed and confident at the top level for 90 minutes.
Serbia, who are in the same group as Australia at the World Cup, were missing two of their top midfielders, Liverpool's Milan Jovanovic and their captain, Dejan Stankovic, of Inter Milan, but it should be remembered the All Whites were without four of their starters from Melbourne.
Such was the frustration of the Serbian fans, they started throwing flares and other objects onto the pitch as the game drew to a close and stand-in captain Nemaja Vidic, the Manchester United defender, was forced to grab a microphone in an attempt to placate them.
New Zealand built the win on their aerial strength up front, led by Rory Fallon, while the midfielders worked tirelessly to break down Serbian raids and the back three of Ryan Nelsen, Winston Reid and Tommy Smith looked comfortable aside from the odd moment in the second half.
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Serbia had the better of the opening exchanges as the All Whites gave away possession cheaply and were forced to defend deeper than they would have liked.
But their goal was never really threatened in the first half despite some neat short passing from the Serbs and the aerial threat of Birmingham City striker Nikola Zigic, who at more than 2m towered even over New Zealand's own tall timber in Fallon.
Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Nenad Milijas had the first real chance of the game in the 18th minute but his shot from near the edge of the box flashed well wide of goalkeeper Mark Paston's goal.
That appeared to provide a spark for the All Whites who started to look more confident on the ball and push players forward.
And four minutes later, with their first chance of the game, they struck.
Reid provided the long ball into Fallon, who won the ball ahead of Vidic and flicked the ball onto Smeltz at the far post. The A-League's golden boot cut inside Antonia Rukavina with ease and slotted the ball past Wigan Athletic goalkeeper Vladimir Stojkovic, sending the stopper the wrong way before running to the corner post to celebrate.
It was Smeltz's 18th goal at international level but his first in almost a year.
And he almost had a double two minutes later, denied from close range after Stojkovic had blocked a goal-bound Fallon drive into Smeltz's path.
Noticeably, New Zealand's confidence grew after the goal while Serbia, as Australia had six days earlier, looked rattled when they fell behind with players showing signs of frustration.
Still, they should have equalised after 38 minutes when Borussia Dortmund defender Neven Subotic found himself with a free header at the far post but he failed to get the ball on target and watched a chance go begging.
New Zealand took a 1-0 lead into halftime against a top 20-ranked team for the second time in a week and given the way Serbia came out after the break, it looked as though they might struggle to hold on again.
But although the "White Eagles" got good numbers forward and started to find holes in behind the defence, a combination of a lack of composure and gritty All Whites defending ensured New Zealand preserved their lead.
Zigic had an opportunity in the 63rd minute but a desperate tackle from Reid made what would have been a simple tap-in a tougher proposition, and Paston produced a good save.
New Zealand had a couple of half chances, both created through their obvious aerial strength that could test a few sides at the World Cup, but they didn't threaten Stojkovic in the second half till, with 10 minutes remaining, Jeremy Brockie, a substitute for striker Chris Wood, had a clear shot on goal but scuffed his left-foot shot into the side netting.
It didn't matter. New Zealand held their nerve in the final minutes to record one of their great wins.
SCOREBOARD
New Zealand 1 (Shane Smeltz 22)
Serbia 0
H/T: 1- 0
All Whites (3-4-3): Mark Paston, Winston Reid, Ryan Nelsen, Tommy Smith, Simon Elliott, Jeremy Christie, Leo Bertos, Tony Lochhead, Chris Wood (Jeremy Brockie 61), Rory Fallon, Shane Smeltz.
http://www.stuff.co.nz/sport/football/world-cup/all-whites/3754860/All-Whites-in-upset-win-over-Serbia**************************************************************************************************************
Ok I have two questions about this:
1) When did New Zealand get a soccer team?
2) Why is Serbia so bad?
