The Netherlands 1, Japan 0
A lone second-half strike from Wesley Sneijder sent The Netherlands to the top of group E and assured their place in the round of 16.
The first half offered little in the way of chances as each team struggled to find an offensive rhythm. The second-half began in the same way, with both sides seemingly more interested in not conceding goals than scoring them. But in the 49th minute Sneijeder’s rocket from just outside the box could not be saved by Eiji Kawashima despite the keeper getting decent contact on the shot. Substitute Shinji Okazaki almost equalized in the 90th minute when a headed pass put him in on goal but his shot skimmed the crossbar and The Netherlands escaped with a narrow victory.
A Cameroon loss later in the day meant The Netherlands was the first team to guarantee their passage into the knockout stages. Japan must draw or tie Denmark when the two meet on Thursday
Australia 1, Ghana 1
Australia kept their slim advancement hopes alive by earning a draw despite being down a man for nearly an hour.
Bret Holman opened the scoring for Australia in the 11th minute when Ghanian goalkeeper Richard Kingson was unable to handle Mark Bresciano’s free kick. The rebound bounced to Holman who put it in the top corner even though Kingson managed to get a hand on the shot.
But the Socceroos’ card problem arose again when Harry Kewell was sent off for handling the ball on the goal line. Asamoah Gyan sent Mark Schwarzer the wrong way on the ensuing penalty to bring the Black Stars level in the 25th minute.
Ghana dominated possession for the rest of the game but were unable to convert. The Black Stars attempted 24 shots, mostly from well outside the penalty area, with only five being judged as on target. But the Australians had the best chance of the second half when Luke Wilkshire’s close-range shot was saved by Kingson and Joshua Kennedy muffed the rebound.
The draw gives Australia thin odds of advancing while Ghana sits atop group D heading into the final round of matches with 4 points.
Denmark 2, Cameroon 1
Cameroon squandered an early lead to become the first team eliminated from the 2010 World Cup.
Samuel Eto’o opened the scoring in the 10th minute when he took a pass from Achille Emana near the top of the box and rifled it past Thomas Sorenson. But the lead was short lived when Dennis Rommedahl received a long pass in the 33rd minute. He then crossed to Nicklas Bedtner who slotted the ball into a yawning net.
Rommedahl went from provider to scorer in the 61st minute when he cut inside Jean Makoun and beat Souleymanou Hamidou to the far post to put the Danes up 2-1. Cameroon poured men forward for the final half-hour but failed to convert on any of their numerous chances. The best of which was when 18-year-old Vincent Aboubaker’s wide-open shot took a wicked deflection off Daniel Jensen’s face and over the crossbar.
The loss means Cameroon will fail to advance for the fifth-straight World Cup. Denmark faces a must-win game against Japan on Thursday.