When assists put goals in shade

Chennai: The Colombia-Poland Group ‘H’ match on Sunday night wasn’t  cut out for thrill-seekers as the South American team cruised to a 3-0 win. But Colombia’s romp was notable for the quality of the assists that paved the way for all three goals.

It’s not football’s fault that those provide perceptive assists always play second-fiddle to goal-scorers. Human tendency must shoulder the blame. Although providing the finishing touch is critical in any endeavour, forgetting the hands that had laid the foundation can never be fair.

Three delightful assists certainly elevated the beauty of the Colombian goals on Sunday. Despite having Robert Lewandowski, one of the best strikers in the world, Poland fired blanks because they lacked creativity in midfield.

Colombia’s talisman James Rodriguez, the Golden Boot winner in 2014 with six goals, didn’t find the target on the night but he was the difference between the two teams with a couple of majestic assists. If not for the ever-ticking brain of the creative midfielder, Colombia would have found it difficult to unlock Poland who had qualified for the World Cup at a canter.

Rodriguez started the rout of Poland with an inch-perfect chip for Yerry Mina to nod home. The move came off a well-crafted corner involving four players. After taking the corner, James received the ball on the right edge of the box. His lethal left-foot did the rest. All Mina had to do was put his head to the ball. Colombia 1 Poland 0.

Juan Quintero’s through ball that set up Radamel Falcao midway through the second half was a work of art in weight and timing. The assist was so good that it wouldn’t have been unfair had Quintero got a share of the spoils. Falcao did full justice to the sumptuous pass with an equally exquisite finish from the outside of his right foot. The greatest praise heaped on Quintero for the assist was many thought it had come from the boot of Rodriguez.

Rodriguez wasn’t finished yet. He came back to drive the final nail in Poland’s cabin with a curved pass from another world. Unfazed by the forward movement of three Polish defenders, the Colombian maestro fired a geometrically perfect ball from the intersection of the centre-line and the touchline on the left that eluded all of them to fall right at the feet of his onrushing teammate, Juan Cuadrado. The ball inevitably reached its destination in a few seconds: back of the net. It was a rare match in the World Cup in which the assists were as delectable as goals, if not more.