Iraq seemed to wake up, but their teamwork was not satisfactory, which was testified by their performance in the 83rd minute when a free-kick won by Iraqi midfielder Karer Jasim and delivered from the left slipped away with no Iraqi players nearby. Iraq coach Bora Milutinovic told a press conference that he was very, very happy with the performance of his team.

"Soccer is like life. Our plan is not to lose in the first match, and lose less than four goals in the second group match. Iraqi players have been very intelligent today and I am going to enjoy the results," said he, who is the only man to have coached five different teams at the FIFA World Cup.

The coach had said before the match that he believed Spain's time had come to dominate world soccer, adding that the current generation of Spanish players was one of the best he had seen.

After receiving the reward of the Budweiser Man of the Match, Spanish midfielder Xabi Alonso said the match was very tough. "One goal is just enough for us to enter the semifinals. That is our main objective," said Alonso.

The Liverpool player added that the tough two-line defense of the Iraqi side made them very difficult to score. "We tried to make long-range shots from our side out of the box, but the Iraqi defenders were very close to each other. The strategy did not work."

Spanish coach Vicente Del Bosque was also happy with the result, saying it was their first goal to reach the semifinals and he would give a rest to his players.

【体坛英语资讯：Spain first team into Confederations Cup semis】相关文章：

★ 娱乐英语资讯：Alba and Warren reunite after brief split?

★ 娱乐英语资讯：Madonna plans second Malawi adoption

★ 体坛英语资讯：Spanish title race continues with Madrid,Villarreal

★ 体坛英语资讯：Gonzalez stuns Federer in round-robin in Shanghai

★ 体坛英语资讯：Austrian goalkeeper Payer to miss UEFA 2008 due to illness

★ 体坛英语资讯：Zheng makes history with semis spot in grand slam

★ 娱乐英语资讯：U.S.: celebrity passport info subject to sneak peeks

★ 体坛英语资讯：Denmark coach appologizes for impolite behavior

★ 娱乐英语资讯：K-Feds lawyer wants Spears to pay bill

★ 娱乐英语资讯：Moss expects second sell out