Group G Decided! Selecao I and Seleccao II Advance

Brazil and Portugal advanced from the group of death at the expense of Ivory Coast and newcomers, North Korea. Portugal was aided by a unexpected 7-0 rout of the Chollimas and therefore built up an unassailable goal advantage. It was never likely that Ivory Coast could emulate Portugal's feat but they tried gallantly.

Brazil and Portugal met in their final group match. It was a highly anticipated match but sadly, the match was marred by fouls and the referee took centre stage in the first half. Cristiano Ronaldo kept on blasting freekicks high and wide all through the match. Those were wasted setpiece opportunities. The best chance did fall for Portugal when Raul Meireles ran onto a loose ball (from a Ronaldo run) which Julio Cesar palmed away. At least Brazil kept a clean sheet and this should boost Juan's confidence. Juan is prone to errors and in the 93rd minute, his sloppy play almost let Danny in on goal.

Carlos Quieroz had a different opinion of the match or maybe he was watching a different match?

"I think it was a great show, a football feast. Brazil played very strong in the first few minutes but after their initial period of domination, Portugal slowly started to control the game. In the end, it was a game where we attacked and they defended. Today is a day to celebrate because Portugal has qualified with a great degree of merit. It was a great game of football, the players played extremely well and they must be congratulated. I think the draw was a fair result.''

Sounds just like the usual drivel coming from a manager with blinkers on. Make no mistake about it, Brazil-Portugal was one big yawn.

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Cristiano Ronaldo Stars In Portugal's Seven Goal Romp

Finally, Carlos Quieroz is able to witness a performance that he must be extremely pleased about. This could have been a potential banana skin for the immensely talented but unpredictable Portuguese side. The last time these two sides met, Portugal won 5-3 at Goodison Park in the 1966 World Cup quarterfinal stage. The star of Portugal '66, Eusebio was at Cape Town to witness Portugal register their biggest ever World Cup victory in history. The Black Panther gave his thumbs-up approval for a seven-star Portuguese performance.

Cristiano Ronaldo who was largely anonymous in the first half, finally decided to make his presence in this summer's World Cup finals. He was his usual electrifying self in the second half, tormenting and skinning the North Korean defenders. In the end, he was the most outstanding player on the pitch and even had the opportunity to do a sheepish "head juggle" before netting his first goal and Portugal's sixth.

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Brazil Gets Off To Winning Start Thanks To Elano's Excellent Goal!

The Selecao overcame a well-organized North Korea team to start their World Cup campaign on a winning note. However, it was far from being an easy victory as the North Koreans showed why they are worthy of a place in the greatest show on earth.

Brazil was expected to win by at least four goals but a superb North Korea defence ensured that honours were even at the break. Dunga must have instructed his players to shoot on sight in the second half because that's exactly what they did. That rattled the North Koreans a bit and finally the breakthrough came courtesy of Maicon who caught the Chollimas keeper by surprise to score almost from the touchline.

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2010 World Cup Group G Head To Head

The "Group of Death" is the term used to describe Group G. Footballing-wise, this group have the potential to produce the most memorable matches of World Cup 2010.

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