Maradona 4 - 0 Zernoff (389971490)

Weather conditions were fairly good for football, and Ana Ivanovic saw a crowd turnout of 64000. Valdemar Valente was the appointed referee with assistance provided by Mario Urso and Jakub Rzążewski. A 4-5-1 alignment was the formation of choice for Maradona. Lineup: Filshtinskiy - Capozzi, Holgersen, Rahmgård, Vrânceanu - Ţîganu, Belu, Seia, Neagu, Iuşcenco - Bodişteanu.

Zernoff tactics involved an interesting 3-5-2 combination. The following players took the field: Boonen - Iachetti, van Anraad, Câmpean - Berger, Braunsdorf, Cabezas, Evtushenko, Iancu - van Weeren, Sonnemans.

It was an obvious ambition of Maradona to use their ability at attacking on the flanks. The strategy for Zernoff was to use their ability to press. After 2 minutes G. Iuşcenco made a speedy advance and dropped the ball to A. Bodişteanu who shuffled it past the keeper. The score was now 1 - 0. 9 minutes in, Zernoff's M. Câmpean received a yellow card for going into a challenge studs first. Zernoff pressed their opponents, causing the game to be a bit of a stalemate at times. 26 minutes into the match, the visitors' central line of defence had to look on as N. Neagu broke through, making the score 2 - 0 for Maradona. By now, the players in Maradona felt that victory was guaranteed and began to play it safe, focusing on defence and not risking too much going forward. After 36 minutes Maradona's V. Filshtinskiy had to be carried off on a stretcher in agony. D. Condrea came in to replace him. Maradona increased the lead as A. Bodişteanu struck to make the score 3 - 0 after an attack from the left left him unmarked in front of the keeper. 39 minutes into the game, M. Câmpean had to leave the pitch due to a knee injury. In came R. Panici. 3 - 0 was the halftime score. Possession in this half belonged to Maradona, who controlled the ball 69 percent of the time.

The opposing supporters gave the referee an earful when he only gave M. Evtushenko from Zernoff a yellow card after a mistimed challenge from behind 58 minutes into the game. That was far too lenient! Attacking on the wings was the choice for Maradona, and they were successfully passing the ball from the middle to the wings to attack. Maradona's E. Ţîganu had an excellent opportunity after 63 minutes, shooting after receiving a pass from the right hand side, but he missed the goal by miles! Maradona managed to extend their lead to 4 - 0 when S. Holgersen cut in neatly from the left side and struck a fine shot past the away team's goalkeeper. After 75 minutes, a couple of quick and successful challenges followed by a shot from just outside the penalty area by N. Belu might have resulted in another goal for Maradona. However, W. Boonen made a spectacular save. Maradona enjoyed most of the ball, as they maintained 71 percent of possession.

Most important Maradona player was A. Bodişteanu. On the other hand, D. Condrea's play was disheartening. The most dominating Zernoff player was without a doubt C. van Weeren. R. Panici turned in a dismal performance, however. The match ends 4 - 0.