Football: The Complete Guide to France 98

YESTERDAY AFTERNOON'S MATCH

South Africa 1 Denmark 1

GROUP C: STADE MUNICIPAL, TOULOUSE. ATTENDANCE: 36,500

Goal: McCarthy 51

Yellow cards: 4 (Nyathi, Issa, Phiri, Radebe). Red cards: 1 (Phiri)

Corners: 5

Offside: 3

Free-kicks (against): 11

Coach: Philippe Troussier

Goal: Nielsen 12

Yellow cards: 3 (Schjonberg, Hogh, Schmeichel). Red cards: 2 (Molnar, Wieghorst)

Corners: 7

Offside: 0

Free-kicks (against): 7

Coach: Bo Johansson

Running commentary

2 min: Brian Laudrup's first touch of class: clever flick slightly wide.

4 min: South Africa bothered when huge Sand and big Rieper get into penalty area. Sand's shot deflects for corner.

11 min: Schmeichel's wake-up call. Mkhalele hits drive at him.

10 min: Fish's header clears lines.

12 min: Nielsen left unmarked at far post, easily forcing ball in from Brian Laudrup's cross.

15 min: Brian Laudrup causing jangling nerves in South African defence.

17 min: Corner clips off far post to Brian Laudrup - header stopped by the fallen Vonk.

21 min: Denmark lucky to escape as Schmeichel scrambles on ground after corner.

22 min: Yellow card Schjonberg (arguing).

27 min: Mkhalele misses great chance from McCarthy's cross.

37 min: Yellow card Nyathi (time wasting). 41 min: Danes counter-attack after South Africa pressure. Sand rattles foot of post.

51 min: South Africa equalise, deservedly. Bartlett back heel across face of goal. McCarthy puts ball through legs of Schmeichel.

54 min: Yellow card Hogh (foul on Mkhalele)

56 min: Yellow card Schmeichel, (time wasting).

57 min: Michael Laudrup angry at being substituted. Equally unhappy Schmeichel becomes captain.

62 min: Yellow card Issa (tetchy foul).

64 min: Yellow card Phiri (elbowing).

66 min: Red card Molnar (referee thinks he stood on Radebe...wrong).

68 min: Red card Phiri (hand in face of Helveg). Schmeichel sympathises with him.

71 min: Schmeichel comes out to make brave interception of Nyathi.

72 min: Yellow card Radebe (foul, Laudrup).

83 min: Wieghorst, just on, misses chance.

84 min: Red card Wieghorst (tackle from behind on McCarthy).

90 min: Unfortunate Fortune hits crossbar.

WEDNESDAY'S LATE MATCH

Italy 3 Cameroon 0

GROUP B: STADE DE LA MOSSON, MONTPELLIER. ATTENDANCE: 35,000

Goal: Di Biagio 8, Vieri 75, 89

Yellow cards: 2 (Costacurta, Di Biagio)

Red cards: 0

Corners: 10

Offside: 11

Free-kicks (against): 24

Coach: Cesare Maldini

Goals: 0

Yellow cards: 4 (Wome, Njanka, Angibeaud, Song). Red cards: 1 (Kalla)

Corners: 7

Offside: 1

Free-kicks (against): 8

Coach: Claude Le Roy

Running commentary

3 min: Cameroon fortunate to escape when Albertini's searching pass almost offers Vieri opening.

6 min: Yellow card Wome (foul on Moriero).

7 min: Roberto Baggio's accurate centre decisively headed in by Di Biagio.

12 min: Italy cover first well organised Cameroon attack without sweat.

16 min: Yellow card Njanka (rough tackle on Roberto Baggio).

20 min: Songo'o out quickly to defy Vieri.

22 min: Songo'o does same to Vieri but this time concedes corner. Italy pressing hard.

25 min: Yellow card Costacurta (Sunday morning tackle on Angibeaud).

35 min: Cameroon forcing frowns on Italian bench as Italy forfeit midfield control.

41 min: Roberto Baggio leads first Italian attack for five minutes.

42 min: Red card Kalla (slid over ball, hitting Di Biagio hard on thigh).

56 min: Mboma gets half chance as Italy rock. 57 min: Substitute Job's shot touched round by Pagliuca.

60 min: Italy only counter-attacking. Vieri misses from one. Songo'o comes out to stop the next.

62 min: Yellow card Di Biagio.

64 min: Del Piero arrives as substitute for Roberto Baggio.

68 min: Del Piero frustrated when Ndo gets behind own beaten 'keeper.

75 min: Vieri lifts long ball from Moriero over goalkeeper to score comfortable second Italian goal.

77 min: Yellow card Angibeaud (late tackle).

80 min: Del Piero brings desperate save from Songo'o.

84 min: Yellow card Song (tackle from behind on Del Piero.

90 min: Vieri pushes past Wome and is allowed to shoot past Songo'o to take his third goal in the competition.

TODAY'S MATCHES

Nigeria v Bulgaria

TEAM NEWS

NIGERIA: Strikers Daniel Amokachi and Nwankwo Kanu have recovered from injury, but are most likely to start on the bench, as coach Bora Milutinovic fields an unchanged side.

BULGARIA: Anatoli Nankov is suspended after a red card, while midfielder Ilian Iliev is doubtful, but may declare himself fit.

Previous meeting: 22 June 1994 (Dallas, World Cup finals): Bulgaria 0 Nigeria 3.

1 Peter Rufai Deportivo La Coruna

2 Mobi Aparaku Kapellen

3 Celestine Babayaro Chelsea

4 Nwankwo Kanu Internazionale

5 Uche Okechukwu Fenerbahce

6 Taribo West Internazionale

7 Finidi George Real Betis

8 Mutiu Adepoju Real Sociedad

9 Rashidi Yekini FC Zurich

10 Austin Okocha Fenerbahce

11 Garba Lawal Roda JC Kerkrade

12 Willy Okpara Orlando Pirates

13 Tijani Babangida Ajax

14 Daniel Amokachi Besiktas

15 Sunday Oliseh Ajax

16 Uche Okafor Kansas City Wizards

17 Augustine Eguavoen Torpedo Moscow

18 Wilson Oruma Lens

19 Ben Iroha Elche

20 Victor Ikpeba Monaco

21 Godwin Okpara Strasbourg

22 Abiodun Baruwa Sion

Coach: Bora Milutinovic

1 Zdravko Zdravkov Istanbulspor

2 Radostin Kishishev Bursaspor

3 Trifon Ivanov CSKA Sofia

4 Ivailo Petkov Litex Lovetch

5 Ivailo Yordanov Sporting Lisbon

6 Zlatko Yankov Besiktas

7 Emil Kostadinov CSKA Sofia

8 Hristo Stoichkov CSKA Sofia

9 Lyuboslav Penev Compostela

10 Krassimir Balakov VfB Stuttgart

11 Ilian Iliev Bursaspor

12 Borislav Mikhailov Slavia Sofia

13 Gosho Ginchev Antalya

14 Marian Hristov Kaiserslautern

15 Adalbert Zafirov Arminia Bielefeld

16 Anatoli Nankov Locomotiv Sofia

17 Stoicho Stoilov Litex Lovetch

18 Daniel Borimirov 1860 Munich

19 Georgi Bachev Slavia Sofia

20 Georgi Ivanov Levski Sofia

21 Rosen Kirilov Litex Lovetch

22 Milen Petkov CSKA Sofia

Coach: Hristo Bonev

Spain v Paraguay

TEAM NEWS

SPAIN: Defenders Rafael Alkorta and Miguel Angel Nadal have recovered from injuries. Potential changes could see the introduction of striker Francisco Morientes and midfielder Guillermo Amor.

PARAGUAY: Defender Celso Ayala is an injury doubt. Striker Jose Cardozo may be replaced by 21-year-old Cesar Ramirez. Other possibles are Aristides Rojas or Hugo Brizuela.

No previous meetings.

1 Andoni Zubizarreta Valencia

2 Albert Ferrer Barcelona

3 Agustin Aranzabal Real Sociedad

4 Rafael Alkorta Athletic Bilbao

5 Abelardo Barcelona

6 Fernando Hierro Real Madrid

7 Francisco Morientes Real Madrid

8 Julen Guerrero Athletic Bilbao

9 Juan Antonio Pizzi Barcelona

10 Raul Real Madrid

11 Alfonso Real Betis

12 Sergi Barcelona

13 Santiago Canizares Real Madrid

14 Ivan Campo Mallorca

15 Carlos Aguilera Atletico Madrid

16 Albert Celades Barcelona

17 Joseba Etxeberria Athletic Bilbao

18 Guillermo Amor Barcelona

19 Kiko Atletico Madrid

20 Miguel Angel Nadal Barcelona

21 Luis Enrique Barcelona

22 Jose Molina Atletico Madrid

Coach: Javier Clemente

1 Jose Luis Chilavert Velez Sarsfield

2 Francisco Arce Palmeiras

3 Catalino Rivarola Gremio

4 Carlos Gamarra Corinthians

5 Celso Ayala River Plate

6 Edgar Aguilera Cerro Cora

7 Juan Carlos Yegros Cruz Azul

8 Aristides Aranda Rojas U Santa Fe

9 Jose Cardozo Necaxa

10 Roberto Acuna Real Zaragoza

11 Pedro Sarabia River Plate

12 Danielo Aceval Union Santa Fe

13 Carlos Paredes Olimpia

14 Ricardo Rojas Estudiantes

15 Miguel Benitez Espanyol

16 Julio Cesar Enciso Internacional

17 Hugo Brizuela Argentinos Juniors

18 Cesar Ramirez Sporting Lisbon

19 Carlos Morales Gimnasia Jujuy

20 Denis Caniza Olimpia

21 Jorge Campos Peking Guoan

22 Ruben Ruiz Diaz Monterrey

Coach: Paulo Cesar Carpeggiani

GOALSCORERS

THREE GOALS

Group B

Marcelo Salas (Chile)

Christian Vieri (Italy)

TWO GOALS

Group G

Luis Hernandez (Mexico)

ONE GOAL

Group A

Bebeto (Brazil)

Cesar Sampaio (Brazil)

Rivaldo (Brazil

Ronaldo (Brazil)

John Collins (Scotland)

Craig Burley (Scotland)

Dan Eggen (Norway)

Havard Flo (Norway)

Moustafa Hadji (Morocco)

Abdeljilil Hadda (Morocco)

Group B

Roberto Baggio (Italy)

Luigi Di Baggio (Italy)

Pierre Njanka (Cameroon)

Toni Polster (Austria)

Ivica Vastic (Austria)

Group C

Marc Rieper (Denmark)

Allan Nielsen (Denmark)

Christophe Dugarry (France)

Thierry Henry (France)

Benedict McCarthy (South Africa)

Group D

Fernando Hierro (Spain)

Raul (Spain)

Mutiu Adepoju (Nigeria)

Garba Lawal (Nigeria)

Sunday Oliseh (Nigeria)

Group E

Ha Seok-ju (South Korea)

Ricardo Pelaez (Mexico)

Group F

Jurgen Klinsmann (Germany)

Andreas Moller (Germany)

Sinisa Mihajlovic (Yugoslavia)

Group G

Alan Shearer (England)

Paul Scholes (England)

Adrian Ilie (Romania)

Group H

Mario Stanic (Croatia)

Robert Prosinecki (Croatia)

Davor Suker (Croatia)

Robbie Earle (Jamaica)

Gabriel Batistuta (Argentina)

OWN GOALS

Tommy Boyd (Scotland)

Youssef Chippo (Morocco)

Pierre Issa (South Africa)

RED AND YELLOW CARDS

RED CARDS

Group B

Raymond Kalla (Cameroon) v It (misses next two matches)

Group C

Alfred Phiri (South Africa) v Den (misses next match.); Miklos Molnar (Denmark) v SA (misses next match); Morten Wieghorst (Denmark) v SA (misses next match)

Group E

Ha Seok-ju (South Korea) v Mex (misses next match); Patrick Kluivert (Netherlands) v Bel (misses next two matches)

Group D

Anatoli Nankov (Bulgaria) v Par (misses next match)

YELLOW CARDS

Group A

Cesar Sampaio (2) (Brazil) v Sco; v Mor (misses next match)

Aldair (Brazil) v Sco

Junior Baiano (Brazil) v Mor

Darren Jackson (2) (Scotland) v Bra; v Mor (misses next match)

Gordon Durie (Scotland) v Mor

Said Chiba (Morocco) v Nor

Abdeljilil Hadda (Morocco) v Bra

Said Chiba (Morocco) v Bra

Kjetil Rekdal (Norway) v Sco

Henning Berg (Norway) v Sco

Group B

Angelo Di Livio (Italy) v Chile

Alessandro Costacurta (Italy) v Cam

Luigi Di Biagio (Italy) v Cam

Fabio Cannavaro (Italy) v Chile

Nelson Parraguez (Chile) v It

Clarence Acuna (Chile) v It

Francisco Rojas (Chile) v It

Moises Villarroel (Chile) v Aut

Fabian Estay (Chile) v Aut

Marcelo Salas (Chile) v Aut

Ivan Zamorano (Chile) v Aut

Samuel Ipoua (Cameroon) v Aut

Pierre Njanka (Cameroon) v It

Pierre Wome (Cameroon) v It

Didier Angibeaud (Cameroon) v It

Rigobert Song (Cameroon) v It

Anton Pfeffer (Austria) v Cam

Peter Schottel (Austria) v Chile

Group C

Morten Wieghorst (Den) v S Arabia (also has a red card, misses next match)

Marc Rieper (Den) v S Arabia

Allan Nielsen (Den) v S Arabia

Michael Schjonberg (Den) v S Africa

Jes Hogh (Den) v S Africa

Peter Scmeichel (Den) v S Africa

Khalid Al-Muwalid (S Arabia) v Den

Emmanuel Petit (France) v S Africa

Didier Deschamps (France) v S Africa

Zinedine Zidane (France) v S Africa

Willem Jackson (South Africa) v Fr

David Nyathi (South Africa) v Den

Pierre Issa (South Africa) v Den

Lucas Radebe (South Africa) v Den

Group D

Miguel Benitez (Paraguay) v Bul

Anatoli Nankov (Bulgaria) v Par

Hristo Stoichkov (Bulgaria) v Par

Trifon Ivanov (Bulgaria) v Par

Guillermo Amor (Spain) v Nigeria

Miguel Angel Nadal (Spain) v Nigeria

Ivan Campo (Spain) v Nigeria

Uche Okechukwu (Nigeria) v Sp

Group E

Jaime Ordiales (Mex) v S Korea

Alberto Garcia Aspe (Mex) v S Korea

Lorenzo Staelens (Belgium) v Neth

Eric Deflandre (Belgium) v Neth

Group F

Zeljko Petrovic (Yugoslavia) v Iran

Dragan Stojkovic (Yuguslavia) v Iran

Jens Jeremies (Germany) v USA

Dietmar Hamann (Germany) v USA

Jorg Heinrich (Germany) v USA

Frankie Hejduk (USA) v Ger

Eddie Pope (USA) v Ger

Group G

Sol Campbell (England) v Tun

Jose Clayton (Tunisia) v Eng

Imed Ben Younes (Tunisia) v Eng

Kais Godhbane (Tunisia) v Eng

Jose Santa (Colombia) v Rom

Iulian Filipescu (Romania) v Col

Dorinel Munteanu (Romania) v Col

Dan Petrescu (Romania) v Col

Group H

Masami Ihara (Japan) v Arg

Eisuke Nakanishi (Japan) v Arg

Takashi Hirano (Japan) v Arg

Zvonimir Soldo (Croatia) v Jam

Dario Simic (Croatia) v Jam

Deon Burton (Jamaica) v Croa

TEAM OF

THE DAY

SPANISH LEAGUE NON-SPANISH WORLD CUP XI

P Rufai (Deportivo La Coruna) Nigeria

R Carlos (Real Madrid) Brazil

N Naybet (Deportivo) Morocco

W Bogarde (Barcelona) Netherlands

M Djukic (Valencia) Yugoslavia

Rivaldo (Barcelona) Brazil

Giovanni (Barcelona) Brazil

M Hadji (Deportivo) Morocco

D Kuhbauer (Real Sociedad) Austria

C Vieri (Atletico Madrid) Italy

F George (Real Betis) Nigeria

Substitutes

C Roa (Mallorca) Argentina

R Jarni (Real Betis) Croatia

A Ortega (Valencia) Argentina

D Suker (Real Madrid) Croatia

P Mijatovic (Real Madrid) Yugoslavia

HIGHS AND

LOWS

Highest scoring match

Spain 2 Nigeria 3

Lowest scoring matches

Paraguay 0 Bulgaria 0

Netherlands 0 Belgium 0

Earliest goal

4 min - Cesar Sampaio, Brazil (v Sco)

Latest goals

90 min - Anton Polster, Austria (v Cam)

90 min - Thierry Henry, France (v S Africa)

90 min - Ivica Vastic, Austria (v Chile)

Most cards in a match

10 - S Africa v Denmark (3 red, 7 yellow)

Fewest cards in a match

1 - Morocco v Norway (1 yellow)

Highest Attendance

80,000 - Brazil v Scotland (St Denis)

Lowest Attendance

27,650 - Paraguay v Bulgaria (Montpellier)

STATISTICS OF THE DAY

13 THE NUMBER of goals Nigeria scored in their first and only meeting with Bulgaria, at the World Cup four years ago. Despite losing that game 3-0, Bulgaria made it to the semi-final

19 THE NUMBER of World Cup finals Spain have qualified for before this year. France 98 is their sixth consecutive appearance and their defeat to Nigeria on saturday was only their second in their last 34 matches

15 THE AMOUNT, in thousands of dollars, (pounds 10,000) that each Nigerian player will receive in bonuses if they beat Bulgaria in today's match

30 THE NUMBER of hot Thai curries offered to the Nigeria squad by Thailand's ambassador to France before today's game. The offer was declined on strict dietary grounds, but a 100kg sack of rice is likely to change hands instead