Italy 4–3 West Germany (1970)
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| Event | 1970 FIFA World Cup | ||||||
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| Date | 17 June 1970 | ||||||
| Venue | Estadio Azteca, Mexico City | ||||||
| Referee | Arturo Yamasaki Maldonado (Mexico)[1] | ||||||
| Attendance | 102,444 | ||||||
The semi-final of the 1970 FIFA World Cup between Italy and West Germany is known as the "Game of the Century" (Italian: Partita del Secolo; German: Jahrhundertspiel). It was played on 17 June 1970 at the Estadio Azteca in Mexico City. Italy won 4–3 after five goals were scored in extra time, the only FIFA World Cup game in which this has happened.
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[edit] The match
Italy led for the majority of the match, after Roberto Boninsegna scored in the 8th minute. However, defender Karl-Heinz Schnellinger equalized for West Germany during injury time at the end of the second half. German television commentator Ernst Huberty exclaimed "Schnellinger, of all people!", since Schnellinger played in Italy's professional football league, Serie A, at AC Milan (for whom he rarely scored) and previously for A.S. Roma and A.C. Mantova. It was also his first and only goal in 47 matches for the national team. The second half ended with the scores level at 1–1, and at this point the match became a battle of endurance during the two periods of extra time.
Gerd Müller put West Germany ahead in the 94th minute, but Tarcisio Burgnich equalised four minutes later and Luigi Riva put the Italians back in front. Gerd Müller scored again for West Germany to level at 3–3. Yet, as television cameras were still replaying Müller's goal, Italy's Gianni Rivera scored the decisive goal in the 111th minute. Being left unmarked near the penalty area, Rivera connected a fine cross made by Boninsegna, securing the victory for Italy at 4–3.[2]
[edit] Match overview
| 17 June 1970 16:00 |
Italy  |
4 – 3 (a.e.t.) |  West Germany |
Estadio Azteca, Mexico City Attendance: 102,444 Referee: Arturo Yamasaki Maldonado (Mexico) [1] |
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Boninsegna  8'Burgnich 98'Riva 104'Rivera 111' |
Report | Schnellinger 90' Müller 94', 110' |
      Italy
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     West Germany
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[edit] Consequences
The stress and effort profused in winning the hard-fought match proved to be the undoing of the Italian team in the subsequent final game, where the Azzurri were roundly defeated by Brazil 4 goals to one. Brazil thus became the first team to win three world football championships and, according by the rules set out by Jules Rimet they were permanently assigned the Jules Rimet Trophy, which from the 1974 world championship was substituted by the FIFA World Cup Trophy. Had Italy managed to prevail the inverse would have happened since both teams had two Rimet Cup wins under their belts.
[edit] Monument
There is a monument commemorating this match in front of the Azteca. On a plaque the following sentence is engraved: El Estadio Azteca rinde homenaje a las selecciones de: Italia (4) y Alemania (3) protagonistas en el Mundial de 1970, del "Partido del Siglo" 17 de junio de 1970. English: The Azteca Stadium pays homage to the National Teams of Italy (4) and Germany (3), who starred in the 1970 FIFA World Cup, the "Game of the Century". June 17th 1970.
[edit] References
- ^ a b Arturo Yamasaki was born in Peru, where he begun his career as referee. He moved from Peru to officiate matches in Mexico in 1968, and hence he attended this World Cup as a representative of the Mexican football federation.
- ^ 1970 FIFA World Cup Mexico. Match report. Italy - Germany FR FIFA.com
[edit] External links
Motson, John (2006) Motson's World Cup Extravaganza GREAT GAMES: ITALY 4-3 WEST GERMANY, 1970
Coordinates: 19°18′12″N 99°9′2″W / 19.30333°N 99.15056°W
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