World Cup 2010 » Anelka nicks a lucky deflection

Anelka nicks a lucky deflection

Deflected goals count all the same but the defending team can’t help but feel gutted whenever they lose one.

When it happens in a game that is part of a two-legged play-off set-up and it gives the team a vital away goal, it is enough to make fans cry. That won’t be worrying French football fans or Nicolas Anelka who benefited in Dublin to give his team a 1-0 lead.

Sean St Ledger was the unfortunate player who deflected the ball past the despairing Shay Given which has given Ireland a mountain to climb in their bid to make it to the World Cup in South Africa.

Ireland were definitely using a containing style of place against France so to lose a goal in such an unfortunate manner is enough to knock the confidence of any team. A 0-0 draw would have given the Republic of Ireland every chance of going to France and getting a positive result. A scoreless draw at home means that any scoring draw in the return leg would see you through on away goals, which is good enough but this option isn’t going to be available to the Irish in Paris.

Losing the first goal is a blow but the two legged tie means that not all is lost but it is important to minimise any further damage. It was always likely that Ireland would need to go to Paris and pick up a positive result if their World Cup dream was going to come true so in essence, not much has changed.

Giovanni Trapattoni should also take comfort form the fact that the French are not quite as good as they should be and if they need assistance, they only need to look to Scotland for help. It wasn’t that long ago that Scotland stunned France and the football world by stealing a 1-0 victory.

Any victory like this requires hard work and a little bit of luck or magic and it is fair to say that James McFadden’s goal can be described as a magical effort.

Thanks to Goodison Rat