MicroLeague Sports Association September 10, 2001   FIFA: Zeemacht Completes Run With 2-1 Victory Nelisse Goal Send Dutch Champs to Title   Zeemacht 2, Basque ETA 1 Zeemacht completed an amazing run to the world title with a 2-1 victory over Basque ETA in Spain. Robin Nelisse scored the game winner in the 79th minute, taking advantage of a miscue by ETA in their own third to create a scoring chance, which he finished for his tournament best 11th goal of the competition. Zeemacht played a strong and steady game, taking few risky chances and attacking when the opportunity was there. They came out with high energy and attacked for the first 15 minutes of the match, locking ETA in their own end. They earned a free kick in the 5th minute but ETA keeper Bodo Illgner was there to win the ball at the far post with Nelisse challenging. ETA had their first chance to attack in the 13th minute. Rivaldo took a pass from Gustavo Lopez and dribbled into the area before crossing to Adrian Ilie. Swager came off his line to cut down the angle and Ilie shot it straight at the keeper, who was able to deflect the shot away. A defensive miscommunication, one of the few errors Zeemacht made all day, allowed Gabri to go in on goal in the 35th minute but he shot wide of the near post. That chance capped a five minute period where ETA dominated the flow and began to force their will on the game. Prior to that, poor passing and mistakes in the midfield had kept their speedy attach stymied. With the game more in balance toward the end of the first half, Zeemacht had the best chance of the match in the 40th. Ovidiu Stinga played the ball to Nelisse at the top of the box and Nelisse was fouled from behind by Joachim Bjorklund. It appeared the foul was in the area for sure but the free kick was given at the edge of the box in the center of the field. Zeemacht, squandered the opportunity with attempted trickery that failed and they didn't even take a shot at the net. ETA's careless handling of the ball cost them just before halftime. Juan Valeron lost the ball in the midfield and a pass later, Nelisse was breaking in on goal. Illgner came off his line to deflect the hard shot but it fell to Richard Witschge who shot into the open net to give Zeemacht a 1-0 lead. In the second half, ETA began to knock the ball around and take the attack to Zeemacht with more ease. Lopez played a brilliant diagonal ball to Ilie but he shot off the crossbar in the 54th minute. Rivaldo, who looked dangerous at times in the first half, finally got ETA on the board in the 66th minute. Bjorklund played the ball forward to Rivaldo from his own half. Rivaldo went at the defense and split the last two defenders with a stutter step that sent him in alone. Swager came off his line and Rivaldo shot for the left post. Swager got his fingers to the drive but didn't get enough to deflect the ball as it went inside the left post to tie the game at 1-1. After the equalizer, ETA looked like the more dangerous team. However, another turnover in the midfield led to Nelisse's winner and the Spanish giants were done. Pius Ikedia had the last chance of the match but shot well wide in the 84th. The Zeemacht midfield, which had played so efficiently and without the errors that plagued ETA, kept ETA from building any attacks in the final then minutes. Zeemacht won the game in the fundamentals. They tackled excellently at the back. Ulrich van Gobbel had a particularly strong game, tackling well in the back and moving forward to slow counterattacks when Zeemacht got caught moving forward. Nelisse's goal was sudden and decisive and earned him Man of the Match honors and a place on the All-Tournament team. Box Score Zeemacht 2, Basque ETA 1 @ Barcelona, Spain Scoring Zeemacht: Witschge, 45th Basque ETA: Rivaldo (Bjorklund), 66th Zeemacht: Nelisse, 79th Bookings None Statistics Zeemacht: 4 shots (3 on goal), 0 corner kicks, 0 fouls, 0 offsides, 51% possession, 18% attacking zone. Basque ETA: 4 shots (2 on goal), 0 corner kicks, 2 fouls, 0 offsides, 49% possession, 17% attacking zone. Lineups Zeemacht: Aldo Swager (7), Stefan Nanu (6), Ulrich van Gobbel (8), Gerard de Noojer (6), Pascal Bosschart (6), Jean-Paul van Gastel (7), Ovidiu Stinga (7), Orlando Trustfull (6), Richard Witschge (7), Robin Nelisse (7), Pius Ikedia (5). Basque ETA: Bodo Illgner (5), Pope Malik Diop (6), Juan Valeron (6), Joachim Bjorklund (7), Amedeo Carboni (5), Gabri De La Torre (4), Gerard Lopez (6), Slavisa Jokanovic (5), Gustavo Lopez (5), Adrian Ilie (6), Rivaldo (7). Man of the Match: Robin Nelisse, F, Zeemacht World Club Championships Tournament Summary Tournament Scoring 11 goals - Nelisse, Zeemacht 10 goals - Del Piero, Juventus; Henry, IRA; Simao, Donostia 9 goals - Rivaldo, ETA 7 goals - Yorke, IRA; Zola, Wimbledon 6 goals - Raul, Donostia; Prager, Leipzig; Ikedia, Zeemacht 5 goals - Cameron, Timbo; Adam, Timbo; Crespo, Juventus 3 goals - Ganea, Leipzig; Da Costa, Brest; Bobic, Bremen; Scholes, Wimbledon; Serna, Detroit; Jokanovic, ETA; Wiltord, Wimbledon 2 goals - Baticle, Brest; Rubil, Brest; Preetz, Bremen; Batistuta, La Forza; Rui Costa, Juventus; Sirieix, Brest 1 goal - Solberg, Timbo; Bowyer, IRA; Santos, Bremen; Bosschaart, Zeemacht; Moller, Leipzig; Baggio, La Forza; Smicer, Wimbledon; Berkovic, Timbo; Washington, Detroit; Ilie, ETA; Giggs, IRA; Taylor, IRA; Pauleta, ETA; Stinga, Zeemacht; Poom, IRA; Lopez, ETA; Guti, Donostia All-Tournament Team G - Aldo Swager, Zeemacht D - Ulrich van Gobbel, Zeemacht D - Joachim Bjorklund, Basque ETA D - Fernando Hierro, Real Donostia M - Robert Witschge, Zeemacht M - Paul Scholes, Wimbledon M - Ryan Giggs, IRA M - Slavisa Jokanovic, Basque ETA F - Alessandro Del Piero, Juventus F - Robin Nelisse, Zeemacht F - Rivaldo, Basque ETA