A debacle for Serbia-Montenegro: 6-0 against Argentina

16/06/2006

Two Group C matches at the World Cup in Germany, and Serbia-Montenegro has little to show for it but despair. Argentina, with scores by Maxi Rodriguez (6' and 41'), Cambiasso (29'), Crespo (78'), Tevez (84') and Messi (88'), gave the Plavi a bracing lesson in modern football at Gelsenkirchen on Friday.

By Georgi Mitev-Shantek for Southeast European Times -- 16/06/06

A Serbia-Montenegro fan in downtown Belgrade reacts as he watches Friday's match against Argentina, which brought the Plavi their worst result ever at the world championships. [Getty Images]

For Serbia-Montenegro, losing or drawing was not an acceptable option Friday (16 June) in their match against Argentina. Only a win would get them through to the second round at the 2006 World Cup in Germany.

But it was Argentina that seized the day, starting the match with three strikers. Coach Jose Pekerman's tactics paid off to the tune of six goals in Dragoslav Jevric's net. For the Plavi, it was the worst defeat ever at the world championships.

Nothing went the right way for Ilija Petkovic's squad. The defence was playing without the injured Nemanja Vidic, and Milan Dudic was started in place of Ivica Dragutinovic. The combination, deployed for the first time, was simply unable to hold the line against the superb Argentinian offense.

Just six minutes into the first half, Maxi Rodriguez put his side ahead by a goal. With two double passes on the left side, Argentina completely overwhelmed the Serbia-Montenegro defence. The Plavi last line was a man short as Nadj was marking Riquelme, and that gave plenty of space to the other Albiceleste attacker. Dudic was late closing on Rodriguez, who had no problem making a score.

Argentina played a passing game and their middle line was effective at hanging onto the ball. Finally, in the 10th minute, Djordjevic made the first short for Serbia-Montenegro -- but the ball flew wide. Five minutes later, the same player passed an exquisite through-ball for Kezman, but the Atletico Madrid striker couldn't deliver. As the half wore on, the Plavi were able to put together something resembling a midfield game, though with only a few passes to the front line.

But if the Serbia-Montenegro fans were beginning to get their hopes up, it was only to suffer a cold shower in the 29th minute. With clockwork perfection, the Argentinians used a dozen passes to get the ball to Crespo in the penalty area. He flicked it to Cambiasso, who curled the shot to the right of the helpless Jevric.

Despite the solid goal advantage, Argentina was in no mood to rest on their laurels. By contrast, Serbia-Montenegro lacked any real creative spark. They couldn't muster a single sustained attack, and Kezman and Milosevic found themselves isolated up front.

Ten minutes after the second goal, the Albiceleste summoned still more magic. Saviola stole the ball from the experienced Schalke defender Krstajic, then beat Nadj and fired at the goal. Serbia-Montenegro's goalie parried the ball away -- unfortunately, in the direction of Maxi Rodriguez. The scoreboard now read 3-0.

After the break Petkovic took off Nadj and later Koroman. For awhile, the substitutions brought some life into the Serbian midfield. A long-distance drive by Milosevic forced goalkeeper Abbondanzieri to tip the ball over. Duljaj, from the byline, picked Kezman. He lofted a back pass to Milosevic, and Ossasuna's scorer headed it just wide of the right post. All that Serbia-Montenegro managed to achieve in the end was a red card for Kezman in the 65th minute. With one man short, the Plavi lost any remaining determination.

Not for a moment did the Argentinians let up and just play to conserve the result. Pekerman brought in two forwards, the "Brazilians" Carlos Tevez and Lionel Messi, probably the most talented young player in the world, to replace Saviola and Rodriguez. After only four minutes in play Messi burst down the left and found Crespo on the far post. All the Chelsea forward had to do was roll the ball home.

And the assault continued. Carlos Tevez got a nice cross from the centre and soon had Jevric at his mercy – 5-0. The Serbia-Montenegro goalie, beaten only twice in the previous eleven matches, endured additional misery four minutes later, unable to stop a set-piece from Messi.

The Albiceleste have guaranteed their second-round berth in impressive fashion, while for the Plavi and their desperate fans, all that remains is to win back some self-respect. They'll have a chance to do that on 21 June against the Ivory Coast.