Drama in Brazil as the host nation defeated Chile on penalties after being deadlocked for 120 minutes in Belo Horizonte!
Tied at one goal each and unable to separate the two teams in extra time, Brazil and Chile took to the penalty shoot out to decide their fates in the Round of 16 of the 2014 FIFA World Cup.
A pair of Julio Cesar saves and a fortuitous Chilean hit post saved Brazil’s blushes on the day, with the host nation walking away 3-2 winners in the penalty shootout, 4-3 on aggregate. With the shoot out win, Brazil survives to fight once more in the quarterfinals, and Chile, ever a fighter, is sent home packing — though probably feeling like they deserved more.
The game itself was exciting at times, and frustrating to watch at others; when Brazil or Chile controlled the play and attacked, it was a thrill to see, but the game also featured many moments of rough, physical play that created a stop-start encounter. The two sides shared plenty of fouls, to the point where onlookers must have cringed each time referee Howard Webb blew his whistle.
Brazil took the lead in the first half courtesy of a corner that David Luiz got on the end of, after a Chilean defender mishandled the effort with an outstretched leg. But it didn’t take Chile long to equalize, as they capitalized on a Brazilian mistake in the back line out wide by the box.
Hulk collected a pass from Marcelo but didn’t put enough power on the pass back, and the ball was recovered by a Chilean forward, who slipped the ball into the box onto an awaiting Alexis Sanchez. The Barcelona winger made no mistake with his chance, curling the ball low past Julio Cesar.
The second half was a dull affair, with neither team scoring; Hulk looked to have scored but the goal was called back for a handball. Neymar got a head on a Dani Alves cross, but goalkeeper Claudio Bravo easily smothered it. In the dying minutes, Mauricio Pinilla cracked a shot on goal and smacked the cross bar, keeping the score at 1-1.
Two periods of 15 minutes of extra time saw Brazil come back to life, but they were unable to score, and Chile seemed content to go to penalties.
In the shootout, Julio Cesar saved two shots, as did Claudio Bravo, and it ultimately came down to Neymar, who scored the fifth penalty and left it to Chile to try and match it. Gonzalo Jara stepped up to take it but smacked the post with his shot, sending Brazil into celebration and to the quarterfinals.
