SPAIN went through today (yesterday) top of their group with a 2-1 win over Chile and have proven that when it comes to ‘bounce-back-ability’ (after their blunder against Switzerland when they lost 1-0), the Spanish come out on top. They now face Portugal in the last 16 in the Iberian derby from which I expect Spain to progress.

Chile also went through despite being down to 10 men when Marco Estrada was sent off after Spain scored their second goal. It was a poor decision by the referee, who booked Estrada and then sent him off. Had Spain scored again and Switzerland scored against Honduras, Chile would have been eliminated from the tournament which would have been a travesty.

Thankfully, Switzerland were held by Honduras and Chile went through as the second-placed team in the group. They are an exciting, attacking team and I expect them to trouble the Samba Boys when they meet next week.

Digicel-sponsored Honduras did well to draw against Switzerland — Spain’s conquerors last week — and in the process, gained their first point of the tournament, but they were by no means disgraced in any of their three outings.

The Brazil and Portugal game was a big disappointment. The first half was a very feisty affair encompassing lots of yellow cards with both managers choosing (wisely) to substitute those players on yellows rather than risk having them sent off and suspended for the next round. I feel huge sympathy for those who had paid to witness this damp squib — this should have been one of the better games of the tournament, but unfortunately wasn’t.

Ivory Coast beat North Korea 3-0 in a game where they had 16 or 17 chances — much more than Portugal had when they beat North Korea 7-0. Portugal’s 7-0 win was a fluke — one which killed the group and in turn, Ivory Coast’s chances of qualifying. I have a lot of sympathy for them as, in my view, they are the best of the African teams. In the last two World Cups, they have been in the proverbial ‘groups of death’. In 2006, they were drawn with Argentina and the Netherlands and this time, it was Brazil and Portugal — the teams ranked No 1 and No 3 in the world respectfully!

I can’t help but feel that the referees are having a negative impact on the World Cup. Too many red cards are being handed out for what are bookable offences (at best) and yellows are being thrown around like confetti. In my view, the referees have a responsibility to keep the game as entertaining as is possible and to remain largely unseen as the game unfolds. The impact of a red card at this level cannot be underestimated and tends to bring out the worst in the team that loses a man. The 10 men tend to become ultra defensive and negative and we don’t get the quality and calibre of game that we had expected. Is FIFA to blame for this? Have they been “getting in the ear” of the referees?

Having said that, with the knock-out stages commencing tomorrow (today), these are indeed exciting times!