World Cup: Uruguay vs. the Netherlands: Tied at the half
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Diego Forlán came up big for Uruguay again, beating Dutch keeper Maarten Stekelenburg just before the intermission with a wicked curving shot from about 25 yards out to send Tuesday’s semifinal to the half tied at 1-1.
Up until that score, the Netherlands had been dominating. But Forlán, whose goal was his fourth of the tournament, has been a game-changer before. And he was again here, taking a pass about 40 yards out, settling the ball, dribbling to the middle of the feet, then unleashing a blistering left-footer that Stekelenburg appeared to get a hand on -- but one hand was no match for the force of Forlán’s shot.
The Netherlands, aiming to get back to the World Cup final for the first time since 1978, got their goal on one of the most spectacular scores of the tournament in the 18th minute, a brilliant left-footer from captain Giovanni van Bronckhorst.
The shot, from 35 yards out on the left wing, struck the post on the far side, just eluding the gloved hand of Uruguay keeper Fernando Muslera, who was clad all in white for this match
-- Kevin Baxter in Durban, South Africa